UPDATE: The Morses Scheme has failed. See Morses – what is happening to loans and refunds
UPDATE: in March 2022, Loans At Home went into administration. There is no money to pay any refunds. Any remaining loans have been written off and you should not make any payments to them.
UPDATE: The Provident Scheme has now closed and it is too late to make any Provident complaints.
Doorstep lending – also called home credit – is where a collector comes to your house to collect the repayments. Many people have been borrowing from the same lender for years.
If you had doorstep loans, you may be able to get a refund of the interest you paid if the lender should have realised the loan was unaffordable for you.
Contents
What is an “unaffordable” loan?
The regulator says that a loan is unaffordable if you couldn’t make the repayments without borrowing again. This could be borrowing from the same lender, from someone else, getting deeper into your overdraft or by not paying a bill.
So even if you always paid your loans on time, they could still have been unaffordable. Especially if you had several loans at the same time or often had to refinance/top-up a loan.
Often the first few loans may have been just about affordable, but the lender should have realised their loans were making your life more difficult when you kept getting more loans.
If you were struggling, your agent should have suggested that you could repay the current one a lot more slowly with no extra interest being added. But too often people were just offered another larger loan.
That was irresponsible lending and you should get a refund back of the interest you paid.
You are very unlikely to get a refund for only one loan. But if you borrowed several times and if you took out a new loan when you were having problems paying an existing one, then complain.
How to ask for a refund from home credit lenders
Here is a template letter you can use. Change it so it tells what happened to you.
Template letter for doorstep loan refunds
I want you to send me a list of them, showing for each loan when it was taken out, how much interest and charges you added and what I repaid. I would like you to send me a complete list even if you consider that some of the loans are too old to be refunded. [delete this if you have all your loan details.]
You should never have given me these unaffordable loans. I am asking you to refund the interest and any charges I paid, plus statutory interest, and to delete any negative information from my credit record.
[If any of the following happened to you, add a couple of sentences describing this. If the problems didn’t happen for all of your loans, add the words OFTEN or SOMETIMES. Delete any that didn’t happen to you.]
- I have borrowed from you continuously for [say how many years]. Every time I repaid a few payments my collector encouraged me to take a top up and refinance it. My collector never explained I would have paid less interest if I just took a new loan and carried on repaying the old one.
- I missed several payments and the collector knew I was in difficulty as I had lost my job/had my hours cut/benefits reduced but I was just offered a new loan. I was never told that I could have a repayment plan for my existing loan instead.
- When I asked my collector if I could pay over a longer period, he/she said I couldn’t unless I took a new loan.
- For the first loan my collector looked at my payslip but after that he never checked and never asked if I was getting the same money – I wasn’t.
- My collector said I needed to change some things on my application otherwise it wouldn’t be approved.
- My collector filled out the application and gave it to me to sign, I didn’t have time to read it.
I didn’t know that the lender was supposed to check that I could repay the loan without having to borrow more. I only found out in [say when and how you heard about these refunds – article in the Sun? Facebook advert? friend told you?]
Also include your customer reference number if you had one. And explain if you have moved address or changed your email so they can locate your account.
Contact details for doorstep lenders
- Cockle email enquiries@cocklefinance.co.uk with Affordability Complaint as the title
- Compton Finance email mark.phillips@comptonfinance.co.uk with Affordability Complaint as the title
- GR Finance email grfinanceltd@gmail.com with Affordability Complaint as the title
- Mutual email to complaints@mutual.uk.com.
- Naylors Finance email with Complaint in the title to admin@jrnaylors.com.
- Pinewood Finance C0 email tracy.evans@pinewood-finance.co.uk with Affordability Complaint as the title
- Short Term Finance (Birmingham) Use their online form and copy your complaints letter into there: complaints to Short-Term Finance.
- Skyline Direct complaints@skylinedirect.com
- Swift ivan@swiftdl.co.uk
- Valleys Finance admin@valleysfinance.ltd.uk with Affordability Complaint as the title
Keep a copy of online complaints or letter sent – if you email it to yourself it’s easy to pass on to the Ombudsman if needed.
You should get a response in 8 weeks
You may get a list of your loans on its own. This is NOT the response to your complaint, which will arrive later. You don’t need to do anything with the list of loans, just keep it. If the lender makes you an offer, it will help you to see how good or bad it is.
The lender should reply to your complaint within 8 weeks from when you send the email, not when they acknowledge it.
Lenders may be very slow about replying to complaints and they often don’t make a good offer. They may ask for two more weeks several times… I suggest you send the case to the Ombudsman straight away after 8 weeks.
How strong is your complaint?
Very large numbers of these complaints are being won at the Ombudsman – in the last quarter of 2020, 84% of doorstep lending complaints were won by the borrower.
In all of those Ombudsman cases, the lender had either rejected the complaint or made a poor offer.
So don’t be put off if this happens to you, send it to the Ombudsman!.
Three useful guidelines are:
- The more loans you had, the better your case. Borrowing for long periods by taking out new loans or refinancing existing ones shows you were dependent on the loans.
- It can be hard to win a complaint for just a couple of small loans.
- It’s normal to not get the first few loans refunded. If a lender has offered you a refund on loans 5-12 that is probably a good offer. But if they have offered a refund on just loans 10-12 it probably isn’t.
- The larger the loans became, the better your complaint is.
- The Ombudsman will usually look at loans that are over 6 years old, but many lenders just refuse. You can go back to 2007.
Sending a complaint to the Ombudsman
The easiest way to send a complaint is to use their online application form because that asks all the questions they need to know the answer to (most of these are easy, such as would you like to be contacted by letter, email or phone?).
You probably won’t get a refund back of all the interest you paid… but ask for a refund on all loans and let the Ombudsman make the decision about where your loans became unaffordable.
You don’t have to calculate anything or ask for a specific amount. If you don’t yet have a list of your loans, say you have asked for one but the lender hasn’t sent it.
What should you say to FOS?
There isn’t a separate template for this. You can just copy the complaint you sent to the lender. But here are some more things you may want to add.
- Say if you had a poor credit record, especially if it got worse as you carried on borrowing from the doorstep lender.
- Say if you repaid some loans early because you refinanced your loan. Here you may have paid more in interest than if you had just been given an extra loan. If this wasn’t explained to you by your agent (and I bet it wasn’t!) then you paid more interest than you should have.
- Also tell the Ombudsman if it was always your agent suggesting you borrow more, perhaps because it was getting near to Christmas, or in August when you might need more money for new school uniforms, or because you had paid off a lot of a previous loan.
A lender in your house should only offer a loan if you had asked them in writing for it. So if this happened to you, mention it in your complaint to the Ombudsman.
Send your bank statements and credit report
Send your bank statements with your complaint. If you haven’t got them all, send ones you do have and set about asking your bank for the rest, then send those. You are more likely to win a complaint if you send them, especially if you only had a few loans.
If you have borrowed for many years and the pile of statements would be HUGE, it’s still a good idea to get them all now, but you could then wait and see what the ombudsman asks for.
Don’t worry if your bank statements show a lot of gambling. The Ombudsman just accepts you have a gambling problem, you can still win these complaints.
Also get a copy of your free TransUnion Statutory Credit report and send it to the Ombudsman with your complaint. Don’t worry that you can’t get an old credit report – the Ombudsman knows this isn’t possible.
Do you have a current loan?
You can complain when you are still repaying a loan. If you tell the lender you want a payment arrangement, they should allow you to pay less each week over a longer period without adding any more interest.
But if you have other problem debts as well, talk to StepChange and they can see if a debt management plan would help.
You can also still complain if you are in a debt management plan. But don’t bother if you are in an IVA, bankruptcy or a DRo.
Need some help?
Your local Citizens Advice can help with these complaints.
You don’t need a lawyer or a claims company. They take a LOT of your refund and you can make a better claim on your own than they can. A good claim involves telling your own story, you know what happened and a claims company doesn’t!
Comments or questions?
Hundreds of readers have posted comments below about how their complaints are going and the successes they have had. If you have a question, ask it here!
Are you struggling to pay car finance?
Is your credit limit too high? Not affordable?
Can you get an overdraft refund?
steven ashurst says
has any1 had any results with morses club ?
Danielle says
I have just had a blanket reply from them about loans over 6 years and the rest they are sending to Welcome finance, so I’m already on to the Ombudsman stage.
The thing is 5 loans are not over 6 years old and they haven’t mentioned those, just completely ignored them in the letter. So I’m writing a further letter today to question them on their position on those. That way I can pass that answer to the ombudsman too.
Mine were shoppacheck and morses may I add.
gillian says
hi Danielle I put in a complaint with morse same as you,i had shopacheck , morse upheld loans 13 to 16 and passed 1 to 12 to welcome for me, welcome refused all, I sent to fos in sept 2018 it was picked up by a adjudicator beginning nov 2019 must say she was very quick deciding she picked it up Friday and had a answer for me Monday she explained they can not look at loans taken before 2nd march 2011 due to welcome entering into some sort of scheme of arrangement but upheld loans 7 to 12, welcome refused due to being over 6 years but she agreed I did not know I had reason to complain before finding out in late 2017 that I could and as wrote to them again to tell them her decision is the same just waiting she given them up to the 3rd of dec to reply or it off to final ombudsman
Danielle says
Hi
I’ve had a text with no option to reply from Morse yesterday saying they are investigating my complaint, that’s not what the letter said. Anyhow, I’ve sent it all to the ombudsman regardless because the letter said it was a full and final response and I could forward it to the Ombudsman.
I’ll keep you updated, I haven’t heard anything else with regards to provident relooking at my complaint. Fingers crossed for the new year :-)
Rob says
I put in a complaint on 15 Nov (this year) about 7 unaffordable loans. 3 of which are still outstanding. As it stands of today (26 Nov) I’ve had a reply stating they are looking into the complaint and also a request for my credit file and bank statements. I’ve had to resend these this morning due to an error on my part.
My credit file was/is a mess, plus, at the time I started taking loans from morses I had outstanding loans with prov. The collector for morses was also my prov agent at the time(changed jobs) so she knew I had outstanding loans to pay with prov yet still managed to issue more loans with morses. I stated this in my complaint so hopefully it goes in my favour.
All in all, morses have been fairly quick up until now but I’ll see how it goes from here.
Danielle says
I put mine in on the 15th. I’ve had 1 letter saying my complaint Is refused, 1 today saying it’s being investigated and the text.
I sent 2 credit reports with my complaint but so far they haven’t asked for bank statements. I do have them downloaded and saved to my laptop if they ask ready to go. Mine is the same really agents crossing over to companies and knowing your in debt but offer you more from their new company.
The letter today said they will be in touch to discuss my complaint once they have investigated. I’ll update once I have any news.
Rob says
Looks like we’re in the same canoe here!
Rob says
Danielle, how can you be at the ombudsman stage already?
Danielle says
Because the initial response to my complaint which I recieved on the 22nd said they had rejected my complaint and to take that as a full and final response. It invited me to complain to the ombudsman within 6 months. I complained the same day.
Then on the 25th I recieved a text saying a guy [name deleted] is dealing with my complaint and will be in touch to discuss it shortly.
Then today I recieved a second letter dated the 25th from someone else saying they are looking into my complaint.
I sent the complaint in om the 22nd with a copy of my complaint, the copy of their letter and credit reports etc.
Does that make sense?
I think someone at their end obviously shouldn’t of sent the first letter, as it quite clearly hadn’t been looked at in any detail. Then a further 2 people are now looking at it.
Danielle says
Hopefully we have good news next, if not onto the Ombudsman, well I’m already at that stage. The second letter does say you may have been already contacted by a representative of Morseclub. If the matter has been resolved, please accept my apologies for the crossover, we will write to you again shortly to conclude your complaint. Whereas, the text message said they will be in touch to discuss the complaint.
So essentially I’ve so far had 3 responses from 3 different people saying 3 different things and none of them seem to know the other is dealing with it. I don’t know if that’s a good or a bad thing lol.
Danielle says
Any news on your end Rob?
I had another message telling me to ring a number last Tuesday. I rang it back and a lady said they had all they needed at this stage.
Which didn’t make sense because why ask me to call?
rob says
Nothing as yet. I’ve re-sent my credit report and bank statements last Thursday as the ones I previously sent via email didn’t land their end for some odd reason. My good lady also has a complaint with morses and guess who’s dealing with hers? Steve! This guy must have his hands full. They have until Jan 10th to give a final response.
Danielle says
Well yes it’s 8 weeks as a rule but it states in their complaints procedure/ guidelines that they like any complaints to be wrapped up by week 4. If it is going to take longer they will let you know with reasons.
rob says
I’ll chase them up later this week if there’s no news. I’m hoping to hear back off prov at some point this week aswell about escalating my case.
Danielle says
Yeah I’ll phone the number given again later this week, I just think it was strange he messaged saying he needed to talk to me. Then his colleague said he did not need anything else from me at this stage.
I might be over thinking it though.
Julie says
I applied to provident in aug 2019 my 56 days are up now I was a customer of provident at the age of 18 and stopped at the age of 47 should I get a refund xx
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Can I ask how old you are now?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Julie, I asked how old you were to work out when your firat and last borrowing was. You can’t get a refund for loans before 2007. But for all loans after that you may well have a VERY strong case.
If provident haven’t replied, send the complaint straight to the Ombudsman.
John says
Does any one know how long it takes provident to check your case. Fos has told me that provident are dealing with my case
Sara (Debt Camel) says
This depends on how many cases Provident is taking back to look at.
This is usually a very positive sign – it tends to happen when a lender has just agreed to follow the FOS approach to deciding complaints. They won’t accept all the ones they review but usually quite a few.
John says
Thanks Sara I had 18 loans the first six were deemed affordable. The other twelve were irresponsible lending. I’ve calculated the interest and 8percent works out about £18579
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So that was the adjudicator decision? I hope Provident just decide to accept it.
Joy Williams says
I am in the same situation. I’ve just received a letter to say they haven’t dealt with my claim now and it’s been 56 days and i have the choice to take it to the FOS. I don’t know what to do. Should i take it to the FOS, or make provident continue to look into it. Can anyone advise.
Jay says
Straight to FOS. I tried holding it out and they took 110 days in total and the offer was an insult
Andi says
Extremely annoyed.
Since Feb I have been trying to obtain account details from Provident for my nan (deceased) – they refused as request did not fall under GDPR/subject access due to her being deceased.
I submit the claim for Irresponsible Lending, rejected due to no letter of administration.
Eventually got the letter of administration, and submitted request for Full Account information & irresponsible lending complaint 2nd Oct.
Contacted them, on 10th to ask where the acknowledgement was, they had sent it to my Nan at my Nan’s old address!!! What the hell!!
They apologise for the mistake.
I keep emailing requesting updates – we have 56days blah blah..
Today I’ve received a
“We are sorry that we have been unable to resolve your complaint at this time.
We can assure you that this matter is still under investigation and is receiving our urgent attention.”
I only have loan details for the period of March 2008 to 2014 – there are water damaged documents that are un readable except for dates that go back to the 80’s and upto 2017 the year before her death.
For the ones I have there are 23loans (14k charges for Credit) some 4 x 1kbloans in one year.
Will this information be enough for FoS, what will happen to the information that they have not provided myself?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The Ombudsman won’t look at any loans taken before April 2007 – this is a complete legal barrier so antique, damaged or missing documents before that date don’t matter at all.
The Ombudsman looks at the facts of a case and where some evidence is missing, the ombudsman makes a decision on what is mostly likely to have happened.
I suggest you send it straight to FOS. And put in your complaint how difficult and obstructive you think provident have been. It is correct that legally they are not obliged to supply personal information under GDPR for someone who has died, but there is no reason why they are not allowed to give you the information. And under the FCA rules (Provident’s regulator) they have an obligation to handle complaints fairly.
Andi says
Many thanks will do this today.
Claire says
I called provident, to see when my cheque would be here and i was told it would be likely to be the 18th December, i don’t know how likely that is going to be.
Also i still haven’t been told an amount, is that normal?
Samantha says
Claire. I would ring back and ask what amount you have been refunded. They told me over the phone. And yes it’s likely to be around the 18th. They are generally taking the full 28 days. I’m due mine on the 2nd dec and I’m still waiting
Claire says
Thanks Samantha, i did ask and the person told me it still needs to be calculated and to maybe try in a couple of days. I would be happy with the 18th or that week just hoping it doesn’t go over that date.
alison says
Awe that would be brill for you if that was the case. Ive also no idea of my amount either (if the ombudsman agrees with Adj) why not ask them on the phone? Just say you want to check figures ?
Heres me & hundreds others hoping things are going to finally move along………………
Michelle says
I rang provident yesterday to ask how much I’m being refunded, as they have finally agreed with the adjudicator and they told me that I shouldn’t be ringing them direct, I need to go through the ombudsman service. I have no idea how much my settlement is either
alison says
Did they initially reject it ?
When I asked my adjudicator about figures if provident agreed (they didn’t) he said even he didnt know. I assume hes no reason not to tell me if he knew ….
Michelle says
Yes initially rejected then out the blue last week I had phone call from adjudicator saying it’s been accepted. Although they can’t give me a figure. So I rang provident to find out and they said it’s in the queue and that I shouldn’t be contacting them I should go through ombudsman
John says
All this makes me mad, Provident quick enough to ring you knock at the door if you miss a payment
Jo says
Hi all, thank you for the earlier replies x.. I have just ordered my credit report and provident is not showing on my credit file? Has anybody else had there’s removed from there file? I’ve not even had a final response from provident! TIA X
Sara (Debt Camel) says
What report are you looking at and did Provident used to show on it?
Jo says
That was on Equifax, I’ve since checked other and their showing up on them, but can only see back to 2012 and I had a lot before then x
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Loans drop off 6 years after they have been settled. Older loans won’t be on there.
Elaine says
Just had an email from the FOS with an offer of over 12k from Provident….. can’t believe it 2 years waiting… good luck to everyone 🤞
James says
That’s great news Elaine, well chuffed for you, enjoy 👍👍
alison says
Fab news Elaine. Initially rejected or just accepted straight away ?
Elaine says
Ignored by provident, never rejected.
Sharon says
That’s brilliant news can I ask how many loans you had with provident
Elaine says
Thank you, 14 loans Provident ordered to pay back loans 4-13 and buy back loan 14 from Lowell, loans 1-3 was pre 2007 so nothing they could do.
Bill says
Hi Elaine, the Lowell loan, you say provident will buy it back! Does that mean provident will wipe the loan?
Bill
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes they will. Interest will be removed from the loan and the balance – taking into account money you have paid to lowell, will be cleared from part of the refund on the earlier loans. Any defaults on your credit record should be removed as well.
Claire says
Hi Elaine
That’s great news for you.
FOS told me that provident has accepted their finding however unable to tell me a amount, did FOS tell you straight away your amount ?
Elaine says
Yes down to the last penny, I’m sure yours will be ok, keeps us updated
I did make an account on Twitter 2 weeks ago and bombarded them with tweets asking why they haven’t abided by the FOS decision and shaming them until they blocked me, I don’t know if that helped my case but it certainly did not go against me……so get tweeting 👍
Steven says
Do companies ever agree with adjuticators ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes! In 90% of FOS cases…
CHRISTINE K says
UPDATE …. I have just this moment received my cheque. 15K, this will be a great Christmas. Just a quick timeline on my case.
Complaint sent to Provident Feb 18
Complaint sent to Fos May 18 (after Provident said no)
Got adjudicator decsision on 2nd October 19
Provident agreed on 31st October 19
Payment received 27th November 19 (was sent off on 25th November exactly a week before the final due date)
Fingers crossed for you all and thank you Sara and everyone for their tips and help.
alison cairns says
Have a fab xmas :)
Sharon says
That’s great news !!! Enjoy!!! And merry Xmas x
Danielle says
Merry christmas to you !
Gail l says
That’s great news christine
Samantha says
Yay!! Well done about time.!!
I’m still waiting apparently they have till Monday. Same old lines lol
Rob says
Got two bits of news myself today. An email to say my case is still awaiting an adjudicator and letter with a £60 fine for going down a bus lane!
Great news for you though. Hopefully everyone gets the same result.
Jolo says
Excellent
Glad it is now sorted for you. Wasn’t yours due by the 2nd??
Samantha says
Yes Christine and I both had the 2nd.
One paid one hasn’t so don’t take it as gospel that anyone will be paid earlier. They are still working through back log and they have every excuse under the sun to why it’s taking 28 days. Christine and I have rang them every few days and they never have anything to tell you x
Jolo says
Hopefully yours will be soon. Please keep us updated xx
christine k says
Thank you everyone, couldn’t have come at a better time. Like Samantha said I phoned them constantly at least twice a week, always different answers. I asked them to notify me when they posted the cheque, they never did, if I hadn’t phoned them yesterday for an update I would have not known until today’s post. Never known such a complete nonsense they producing at their customer service. Hang in there though everyone, it’s a tough wait but worth it in the end. Merry Christmas everyone and good luck xx
Shelley says
Brilliant news Christine and well done. Have a great Xmas…what I don’t understand tho is how quick yours went though the system? I approached provident over 2 years ago, after 4/5 months of emails and denies that I even had loans, they refused me. So went straight to Ombudsman over 18 months ago and still
In queue for an adjudicator. Does anyone know why this is happening please as keep ringing FOS each month and get same old story that I’m in a long list waiting to be assigned someone 😩
Sar says
Hi I was hoping anyone could help me provident have come back and said they agree with the adjudicators view which is great but the figure they have given me seems kinda low so here goes they said the full amount they are giving me is 1800.62 by cheque and writing off 404.50.
Loan 3 interest paid 380.00 paid 3/6/2013
Loan 6 interest paid 445.00 paid 13/8/2013
Loan 7 interest paid 445.00 paid 4/10/2017
Loan 8 interest paid 307.50 still owing 404.50 which is being written off. So I have actually paid 1577.50 so the 8% equals 223.12 is that right it seems abit low to me the 8%? Any help appreciated
Ella says
I worked it out as 1643.00 after 20% has been removed on the 8% before the workings on your last loan that has yet to finish so it all depends on how they have worked out that last loan. Hope that helps. :)
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The “paid” dates – were they the date the loan was repaid? of when it was taken out?
the last loan – how much did you borrow? What is the total of payments you have made to it, ignore if provident say this is interest or not, just the amount of money paid.
emma says
Hi all so ombudsman has just asked provident to send them all the info on loans i have had. But when i made a complaint to provident they only looked at the last three loans i had but i have been having loans since 1990s up until 2016. so will provident have to send the info for the older loans aswell? And how long does it take now the ombudsman has started my complaint any idea anyone?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
FOS will only look at loans after April 2007 – it’s not possible to go back further than that.
emma says
So will provident have to send them the loans i had after 2007? and can you give me an idea on how long it might take now?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes and no idea. Sorry. Things got very delayed but all of a sudden people are getting some acceptances through.
Ella says
So after more than two years and having the adjudicators agreeing our complaints back in July 2019, Provident have finally agreed to mine and my partner’s complaints. One cheque due to us by Wednesday and the other cheque due by Christmas (not sure how that is going to pan out with Christmas business closures.
Timeline is Complaints went in to ombudsman in December 2017.
Under Jurisdiction because of six year rule until July 2019.
Both complaints adjudicated end of July 2019 and found in our favour on all loans except the first one on each complaint.
Provident consistently ignored the FOS until the beginning of November 2019 – given numerous dates that just passed by.
Provident agreed partners claim beginning of November and are sending cheque for 4290.85 after tax removed.
Provident agreed my claim today and are sending a cheque for 4296.00 after tax removed.
I worked out both these claims which took a bit of working out and I was within 5.00 pound of what they are sending. My adjudicators sent very detailed claim results out with all loans listed in date order with interest amounts – I have not seen this done before on any of my other payday claims.
Thank you Sara for running this site which has loads of info for those claiming or thinking of claiming and we will make a charitable donation from our cheques.
Sar says
Hi Sara
I was wondering if you could tell me if the figure I was given by provident looks correct to you. So here goes they said they are going to refund me 1800.62 by cheque and write off remaining balance of 404.50.
Loan 3 interest paid 380 paid by 3/6/2013
Loan 6 interest paid 445 paid by 13/08/2013
Loan 7 interest paid 445 paid by 4/10/2017
Loan 8 interest paid 307.50 still owing 404.50
So I have that my actual interest I paid as 1577.50 and the 8% is only 223.16 ? Surely the 8% is wrong as I paid 2 loans of by 2013 I can’t even work the last loan out as I have been paying this off since 2013! Thanks again for this fantastic site
Shebs says
Shebs
Hi I’m in the same position put in complaint to provident 2018 rejected went to ombudsman adjudicator upheld 13 loans provident are a month late replying got the lead decision letter also been calling provident to be told I should contact ombudsman wasn’t put of by there comments and put in a complaint to provident as to why they haven’t replied surprise to get a final response the next day not upholding complaint as they have a backlog this seems to be the excuse for everything they shouldn’t be allowed to treat people this way I emailed back to say that they didn’t seem to have a backlog that day as I got a response that day I think that they have a selective backlog I’ve calculated my refund Over 20k but not holding out much hope the FCA should get involved as provident are deliberately delaying or rejecting
James says
When I first complained to provident, they never even had the decency to reply, I then, after 8-10 weeks sent my complaint to the FOS, a year later, and in August this year, the adjudicator upheld loans 6-23, gave provident until 12th September to respond, as usual, nothing. When I contacted FOS on 1st October, they said that provident had acknowledged their view, but had failed to provide a response, then in November, got the letter about the lead decisions etc, so just in limbo now, with provident neither agreeing or disagreeing!! 🤔
guy says
hi shebs, im in limbo too. i think the FCA will get involved at some stage but only after this never ending lead case is resolved !! and thats my biggest complaint , this lead decision has been going on for quite some time now with no-one any the wiser. i respect the fact that they go into detail to show provident that they are taking there concerns seriously whilst also explaining why they feel provident where wrong ,, but i honestly think it should of been resolved by now and i dont understand why this is going on and on and on .
Julie Clarke says
Ok , so I am slightly confused how some people are getting results and pay outs but others ( like me ) waiting for lead cases . I thought until these cases were decided provident or FOC were not in the position to decide any cases. Obviously I must be mistaken . I am happy for those that have payouts for Christmas and do see it as a good sign but I never get anywhere with my own case . I ring fos weekly for updates to be told no time frame can be given and provident refuse to even acknowledge any emails I send , even when sent to management . It seems that there is a huge backlog but some are getting through and decided where others are in stalemate . It is very frustrating especially when your case has already been upheld by two different adjudicators with no response ever from provident . But provident do contact me my letter every month due to arrears which i think is a bit cheeky as they owe me so much.
James says
Hi Julie, I am in the same situation, very, very frustrating 😡
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It sounds as though provident has agreed to look again at some complaints. I don’t know how many or how they were chosen. there may be some specific criteria. It may just be one group or provident may be planning a later batch. Sorry, not much help. This isn’t slowing down your case, but it must be very frustrating for you.
A.batc says
Hi Sara/everyone
I have recently sent my complaint against naylors finance to fos, over 50 loans from them in the last 6 years alone! (Been a customer since 2005) my question is all the loans I had with them are in my name but on occasion when refinancing or taking out a new loan the collection agent would ask for my partners income even though it was my loan and our relationship was very much on and off! would this go against me with the ombudsman? As the income they were inputting would make the loans look affordable.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You can only get a refund from April 2007 loans, no earlier.
By April 2007, you will probably have had several loans and the Ombudsman may well say that Naylors should have been asking some detailed questions – and that would include the extra income they were assuming you had access to.
guy says
hi sara , regarding this lead case , how long do these things usually take and did the previous lead case decision take as long as this. i appreciate the things that are involved in this ,but it just seems never ending with no time frame/information. Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes, this all happens “behind closed doors”.
FOS will draft a final decision and send it to Provident for the comment. It may already have gone. How long the next step takes depends on how Provident reply. FOS will want to consider all the points provident make and may want to add to their draft to take account of them.
I think FOS make a big mistake by allowing the lead decisions for some payday loans to rag on for a very long time. More recent ones are going through much quicker. But there isn’t any point in me speculating about how long this will take, sorry.
Steven says
If an adjudicator agrees and upholds your claim what happens next please
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It depends if provident accept the adjudicator’s decision.
If they don’t, it has to go to a more senior person at FOS with the title of An Ombudsman to look at. A final decision from an ombudsman is legally binding.
Provident used to reject a lot of decisions but that may be changing so it will be interesting to see what happens to your case.
Alison says
Hi Sara
Provident have agreed to settle with adjudicator decision I have accepted and cheque will be with me Christmas Eve!!
Thanks again for all your help it’s been a long haul March 2016 till now this is my last one.
Thanks
Ally
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Great! Though I suppose the Xmas post can be a bit dodgy… any idea how much?
Alison says
Hi Sara
Should have been 30k I have agreed at 18 less what I still owe with all credit file entries removed so I am clear default.
Thanks again xx
alison says
its lovely to hear people are going to be getting paid out around xmas time :)
Ella says
Just for interest – our claims were both in the lead cases wait but have both now been agreed – Provident has told us that the first cheque will be with us by the 5th December but the second cheque will take to the 24th December 2019 and they are taking the full 28 days to pay as they have so many to refund. So even though the lead case letters have gone out it doesn’t mean they won’t get agreed in the meantime.
Shebs says
I contacted fos today as provident is now a month overdue to reply to adjudicator and said that on this site a lot were getting replies from provident agreeing with adjudicators decision they said they don’t know anything about this and I also asked for an update on the lead case still no update totally useless
Michelle says
Did you get your cheque due the 5th December? We have one due 12th and one 18th but they haven’t given us figures so have no idea If they are paying us exactly what the adjudicator said to pay us 😡
Julie Clarke says
So I have just rang up FOS again for an update and spoke to a senior ombudsman who to be fair knew what she was talking about . This is what I was told so please don’t shoot the messagner lol ! My case and thousands of others do not meet the same criteria as the ones that have been going through this past few weeks . They can’t give me the criteria ( which is kinda frustrating ) but it is to do with patterns of lending . I do feel my case should be looked into again now provident are, it seems paying out on some and they are asked again to agree or disagree at least , as mine has never had an answer by them so how do they know they will disagree if asked ? Provident has never answered on the two adjudicators ruling on mine . Anyway the fos lady told me that these olds cases ( over two years ) are flagged up on their system a bit like in a and e when u go over the national average waiting time and they are just as frustrated as I am at how long they are taking. So no answer or timeframe but nice to know my case is not just lost on the system .
James says
With this lead decision pending, what if the FOS decide that provident have a genuine argument regarding debt patterns and problem debt ? Would this mean that our cases will be thrown out ? And if the FOS change the way they look at complaints, would that be for any new complaints made AFTER the decision has been taken ? In other words, would the decision (if in Provident’s favour) affect complaints already upheld by the adjudicator ? This is just so frustrating.
Julie Clarke says
I agree it is so frustrating and so unclear . Every contact I have regarding these loans I get more confused . No one seems to be able to give a straight answer . Even the letter I received was so vague and didn’t make me feel more confident . I feel if mine takes ages now either provident will stop replying or making offers or the decision will be against my case.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
FOS are applying the same approach to Provident loans that they apply to payday loans, guarantor loans, Brighthouse, large bad credit lenders such as 118 money…. this isn’t something they made up for provident, it is just how they assess affordability.
And the FCA, provident’s regulator, wrote this letter https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/correspondence/portfolio-letter-firms-high-cost-lending.pdf to all high cost credit CEOS earlier this year. What FOS is doing is exactly in line with what the regulator wants.
I don’t know what argument Provident is making. But FOS really isn’t doing anything unusual here, so it seems VERY VERY unlikely it will change its mind.
James says
Hi Sara
So the FOS are following the FCA’s guidelines on problematic debt, and I take it that this is what the lead decision is doing. So, although provident may have their own ideas about this, the FCA set out their guidelines clearly in 2018 regarding problem debt, and it would seem that provident must adhere to it. Is it just a stalling tactic by provident, or is it the FOS who have made the decision to review these cases. Sorry, but I don’t know the ins and outs of such things, thanks.
Linda says
Hi Sarah I rang provident this morning and they told me that my case has been resolved and will hear from fos within 2 weeks . Does this mean they have agreed with the adjudicated.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I hope so – but I simply don’t know.
James says
Hi Linda, what number did you call provident on ? Thanks.
Candy says
Provident have stayed the same to me- that it’s resolved and should hear from fos within 2 weeks. The number I called on was- 0800 023 4567. However I was put on hold
Samantha says
*update*
Hi all
Finally received my cheque this morning due date of Monday so they were cutting it fine 😂
13 loans since 2007 refunded so nearly 12k.
Good luck to everyone else still waiting
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes!
alison says
Have a fab Xmas :)
Sharon says
Brilliant news x hope you have a brilliant Christmas
Jolo says
Excellent merry Christmas
Jolo says
Can I also ask did the envelope say prov on it at all. I’ll be working when mine is due to turn up so got the son on look out 😂😂
CHRISTINE K says
Nice one Samantha, finally. Have a lovely Christmas xx
Susie says
I can’t believe it ,I have phoned the FOS this morning, and Provident agreed at last! And they made me an offer of £2,787.93p ! Which is close to what I had worked out. He said he will send letter to Provident today to start the 28 day clock ticking. It’s too much to hope the cheque will be here by Christmas but at least by the end of the year Provident will be off my back.
alison says
Happy New year :):)
Shebs says
Good news merry xmas
Susie says
Thank you, it’s not just about the refund though is it? It’s just getting them off your back. I paid this weeks payment over the phone though and it just didn’t seem the account had been closed.
Shebs says
Hi phoned provident today was getting fed up getting different versions when I phoned demanded to speak to fos team I was told my case was allocated to someone but they were not in they said she would phone me back
And true to there word she just did she said she was prioritise my case and was just waiting on figures and her manager giving her authority she will be finished and replying to ombudsman by end of next week she was really nice and even said to call next week for update
I have mixed feelings want to think they are agreeing with ombudsman and would like to think they are not stringing me along again
James says
Hi Shebs,
What number did you call provident on, if you don’t mind me asking, cheers.
Shebs says
08009166421
James says
Hi Sara,
Just an update, I have just literally 5 minutes ago phoned provident, they have agreed with the adjudicator, and are refunding me over £8k, by my calculations, the refund should have been around £12.5k, they apparently have already made up the cheque, is this normal ? Don’t they need to wait until i accept or reject it? This refund equates to around 2/3rds of the total interest plus 8% etc, what would you suggest, take it, and bring the whole saga to an end, or hold out for the actual amount due ? Thanks.
P.S I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, just wondered why it was so low, then again, I don’t know what was in the email they sent to the FOS, just need to wait and see. But, to everyone waiting, I would suggest calling them, I wasn’t expecting that, the guy was very helpful, and it only took 2 minutes. My complaint was put in last july, so nearly 18 months, others have waited much longer. Good luck, and best wishes.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Ask your adjudicator to confirm that Provident have accepted the adjudicator’s decision that loans x….y should be refunded and say P’s calculation seems much lower than you expected. Nice though 8k will be, that is a huge difference!
James says
Thanks for the reply Sara, will do, I will keep you updated, thanks.
emma says
hi sara ombudsman has said they have asked for all the loans i have had from provident to be sent to them. how long do you think it will take now to sort out
Sara (Debt Camel) says
no idea! Sorry, things seem to have started moving faster, we don’t know yet how that will affect the speed of recent cases.
James says
Hi Sara, please bear with me on this one,
From what I can work out, I believe provident have worked out my total interest including the 8% simple interest, then they have done another separate calculation to get how much interest the 8% would be, i think they have then deducted 20% (tax) from the 8% simple interest, which leaves the correct amount of interest to be ADDED to the ORIGINAL interest paid, but rather than deducting the 20% tax (from the 8%) then adding the remainder to the original interest, i believe they have actually DEDUCTED the remaining 8% simple interest from my overall total !! From these figures, it is just about EXACTLY the same amount that I was quoted last night for my refund. I think it is a miscalculation from provident, as my total refund should be around 11.8k minus the 20% tax on the 8% simple interest, which was around £780, by my reckoning I should have just over 11k refunded, but they gave me a figure of around £8700, obviously, I wont know for sure until the FOS get in touch, but again, sorry for the long winded message, kindest regards.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If that’s it, it should be easily sorted!
James says
Thanks, hope I didn’t ramble TOO much.
Connor says
Hi all,
Just an update, still waiting for my cheque from Provident.
After excepting providents agreement to the adjudicators decision on the 07/11/19, I didn’t hear anything back of the FOS for a whole week, after 2 emails to confirm they had received my acceptance.
So my 28 days didn’t start from the 7th, it started on the 14th, when the adjudicator got back to me.
In the email I received from the adjudicator on the 7th it stated that Provident were going to pay via cheque, with others waiting very close to this 28 days for the cheque to arrive I feel it is the last 2 fingers up to us from provident (we have 28 days so we are going to use them to annoy you)
If on the 7th they had agreed with the adjudicator, they knew the amount, they know they are going to pay by cheque, all they need is my acceptance, surely once confirmed it would take a matter of days to get it sent out.
Surely it is their way of delaying for that one final time.
Don’t get me wrong, I am so pleased they finally agreed after 2 years, and feel for everyone still waiting. It just shows Provisent really are being unprofessional right up till the end.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
They are being bureaucratic and incompetent. Not doing this deliberately. What could they possibly gain from this?
Claire says
Hi connor
Did you get told and amount of your refund? As I’m still waiting, but was told my 28 days finish on the 18th December
Connor says
Hi Claire,
Yes the amount was confirmed in the adjudicators email on the 7th November when she said Provident had agreed with their decision. Just under 10k
I’ve read a few posts where people haven’t been told an amount which I think is rather strange, as how can you agree to an unknown figure?
Susie says
I got told my amount but not the date it would finish. Provident finally(by now I am into the 3rd year) agreed wit the adjudicator on Thursday, I just happened to phone the FSO yesterday and agreed to the amount, I got the email straight after the phone call , does the 28 days start from yesterday? It’s gone on for so long now. I am still paying loans off, does that mean I don’t pay anymore? I am frightened of stopping payment then the collector knocking on my door .
Jolo says
I didn’t get told my date in the email from the fos I rang provident to confirm they had received my acceptance and got a date then.
With regards to the outstanding balance did your offer email say they would be writing off the balance?
Mine said cheque amount xxx write off balance xxx so it may be worth ringing prov to find out.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If you have been told your balance is being wiped you should stop paying the debt now! Every payment you make means the refund has to be recalculated to take account of that.
Jay says
I’ve had the below email in relation to my nans complaint. Any idea from anyone who has had theirs resolved how long I’ll be waiting now?
Thanks for contacting us. We’ve asked Provident Personal Credit Limited to send us the information they have about Mrs Wyatt’s complaint so we can look into what’s happened.
Once we’ve received this, we can begin to investigate. One of our case handlers will be in touch to introduce themselves and discuss Mrs Wyatt’s complaint in more detail.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Things were taking a VERY long while but they are suddenly moving. No idea how long new complaints will take.
Shebs says
Hi Sara I was told that the 8% should be for each year till settled is that right
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes that’s right. So a loan you repaid in 2012 gets about 7 years interest and one you repaid in 2015 gets about 4 years.
Ann says
Fantastic news, just got a call from FOS, provident finally agreed to refund of £9100. Think I counted the total loan interest at £6000 so that sounds about right.
Initial complaint made September 2017, forwarded to fos after 8 weeks of nothing. May 2018 provident said loans were too old as they were over 6 years old. I thought that was the end of it, but then realised I could state about not knowing I could complain til recently and they can go back as far as 2007. Nothing then until this year where I got email to say adjudicator agreed and advised loans 4-14 were unaffordable and provident had until 19th August to reply. They didn’t, this is the first I’ve heard anything other than the standard letter about lead cases etc.
Cheque should be here within 4 weeks they said
Woohoo
Good luck to everyone still waiting x
Sharon says
That’s brilliant news well done x
Angela says
Me too . Message from FOS today. Provident agreed to refund £8900 plus 8% interest .
Im so happy at long last things moving . First complained September 2017
Rob says
Got a letter today of provident saying they have sold my debt to vanquis bank ltd. Can they do this while the case is with the ombudsman? Anyway, I’ve had to mail the fos to ask if they will consider escalating my case due to..
1. Loosing my job on 5th October
2. Being refused jobseekers allowance since then due to not having enough ni contributions the previous tax year.
3. Mortgage arreas letter
4. Prov selling the debt
The last time I mailed the fos it took 2 weeks for a reply.
Stressed out.com!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes they can sell the debt. Selling it to Vanquis though is odd at it is part of the same company… Inform Vanquis that you are disputing the debt with Provident and have an open case at the Ombudsman.
rob says
Will do, thanks.
Danielle says
Weird goings on with my complaint, today I had a missed call from the FOS, no message left. I called back and they denied it ever happening. Then said they had heard from the business and they agree with the adjudicator etc. She said 3500 but it seems very low to what I worked out of the details in the subject access request. I said is there anyone to check it at your end? She said no.
She told me I’d recieve an email within half an hour with details, come back to them with a detailed email about where I think the discrepancies are. So presume theres a breakdown of calculation etc.
Anyway this is almost two hours ago and no email.
I will not agree until the maths is correct anyway.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
as you can see from James’s comment below, other people are also having problems with Provident’s calculation. Insist on a breakdown showing how much interest is being refunded on each loan.
James says
Hi Sara
Just an update regarding my refund from provident, they have agreed with the adjudicator’s decision and are going to refund me interest on loans 6-23, they have offered me £8748.44, but when I calculated the ORIGINAL interest, the total interest paid was £11,186.84 BEFORE the 8% was to be added, I have emailed the FOS, with this info, therefore I have neither accepted or rejected the offer. I have a query about two of the agreement numbers, as one shows a cash loan of £ 1595.04, but with NO interest charges, and another one totalling £1548.84, for non cash loans ( ie cards) but the interest charges are duplicated and triplicated, and just confusing. But even without these two agreements being refunded, the total interest paid would have been £8043 before the 8%, the loans date from 2008-2016, can you shed any light on this? Do you think the offer is low? Ps with the 8% simple interest, is it worked out as follows, eg if I had a £500 interest charge and I took the loan out in 2009, does that mean that the 8% would be worked out at 8% x 10 years =80% ? Would it be £500 +80% = £900, thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Danielle above is also having problems.
Your 8% calculation sounds like the normal way it is done.
Danielle says
Hi Sara,
Well the Ombudsman insisted I reply with evidence. So I spent all evening making a word document with all calculations to refer to aswell as sending the subject access request again as a reference document for the figures, even though they both have it.
I have concluded with that in there, I have said as I have recieved two offers and both times the calculations did not add up. I will only accept an offer with a full breakdown of calculation and evidence as to where they got it from.
I was finally happy to hear they agreed and then it was less than half.
Thanks for your help.
Danielle says
Hi James
That’s how I worked out the interest also.
Although it was to the nearest year so most likely if it’s the day and week the calculation would be slightly more or less.
James says
Hi Danielle
Did Provident recalculate their offer ?
Danielle says
I have sent the letter last night so I have to wait to see what happens. The email said I have until the 16th of December to accept or dispute amount with evidence.
The evidence bit was a bit weird seen as they both already have the subject access request with all loans and amounts etc. Unless they meant the maths behind my dispute.
Danielle says
Hi James,
Any news at your end? I have not even recieved an acknowledgement or reply from the Ombudsman as of yet.
Hope it’s not put in the queue for the ombudsman and they just ho back and say to provident that their Calculation needs work.
Guy says
I have an open case against provident. The last loan I got in 2016 was sold to lowells. I haven’t heard from lowells in months ( by letter) and I couldn’t tell you when they last phoned, but today I had 2 calls from them. I didn’t answer because I just can’t be bothered with debt collectors. Now I’m wondering if they where just trying their luck to get money from me or whether it was to do with selling my loan back to provident. I Would like a comment from someone with experience of this situation please, before I make the mistake of answering. Thanks.
Bill says
Hi, I’ve had few missed calls from Lowell and now receiving text offering me 60% discount to settle 4 loans they purchased from provident 7 years ago, am still waiting for adjicator to pick up my case but it is a bit strange Lowell?
Bill
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Guy, Bill, if you haven’t already, tell Lowell you are disputing the debt with Provident.
Scott says
Hi guys I have been watching this chat and the information I have gain I brilliant thankyou Sara you really are amazing 2.5years today finally agreed from provident call today they have agreed after disagreeing 3weeks ago £10,618 refund £3,256 balance write off and credit file corrected everybody hang on in there.
Bill says
Hi Sarah,
After 2 years I finally had news from the adjudicator, received an email to say welcome finance was in a scheme of arrangement since 2011 and as my 9 loans where before the date they can’t consider my complaint! I had 9 loans with them but only till today I never knew welcome finance had been in a scheme of arrangements!
I thought welcome finance had been passed onto morses ltd?
Any thoughts Sarah please?
Bill
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Someone else only had her complaint upheld for loans after 2011: https://debtcamel.co.uk/refund-doorstep-loans/comment-page-11/#comment-326443
James says
Hi Sara
If you dispute the refund (ie you think it is too low ) does it affect your claim ? In other words could provident rescind the offer, and would the FOS put you back in line for a decision? Or since provident have agreed, would it just be a matter or a recalculation on their part ? Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
there are no written down rules on what happens here. But if provident have agreed to refund certain loans and all you are disputing is what the refund amount is, I think it would be unreasonable of provident to rescind their offer. I don’t think you need to worry about this.
James says
Thanks Sara
emma says
hi sara so ombudsman have sent me an email saying that they have sent a letter to provident saying they agree with me about the loans i had and provident disagree with the ombudsman. so can you tell me what will happen now sara thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You have had an “adjudicator” decision in your favour at FOS. Now provident have rejected it, it will go into a queue for a second level decision “by an Ombudsman”. An Ombudsman decision is legally binding. they agree with adjudicator decisions in 90% of cases.
emma says
thanks sara do you have an idea how long that will take?
gillian says
hi bill I was the same I had 16 loans in total, 1 to 6 were before 2011 and 7 to 12 were welcome finance (shopacheck),13 to 16 were morse club/ morse club refunded all intrest without going to fos but welcome refused fos told me that loans 1 to 6 could not be looked at due to scheme of arrangements but upheld 7 to 12 welcome refused on the grounds of they were over 6 years old but adjudicator asked me when I knew I could complain, I did not know until 2017 , this morning I got email from adjudicator saying welcome have replied that loans 7 to 12 can be looked at so now just waiting to see if they accept adjudicators decision she as given them until the 14th of dec to reply
Bill says
Hi Gillian,
Thanks for replying, I just got a very abrupt email from adjudicator saying it’s before 2011, and first I heard of this scheme of arrangement? All this Morses club, shopacheck, welcome finance is confusing! All I remember I dealt with shopacheck! I’ll email adjicator to to ask for complaint to go to the ombudsman as can’t see getting anywhere, thanks again, Bill
Rob says
Hi Gillian,
Did morses take long to resolve your case?
James says
Hi all & Sara
Just looking for some advice if anyone has had anything like this from Satsuma, my complain was/is currently in the queue for an ombudsmen decision after satsuma failed to get back to the adjudicator end of September, so I phoned satsuma as I do every 2-3 weeks this morning to see if they will ever respond.
A little amazed to be told on the phone that on the 26/11 satsuma had agreed with the adjudicator decision & would clear my outstanding loan of £580 & also pay me back interest & charges of £2500, which I am delighted about!
However they said they would come back to me directly & not via the FOS… has anyone heard of that ?, I have emailed the adjudicator & asked satsuma to email directly as I need it in writing before accepting …
Thanks
James
Deb says
Hi everyone, well I’ve had an email from FOS today saying provident agree with them and they’re refunding me just short of £7k!! I am thrilled. I’ve scanned and emailed my acceptance from back to him, now I’m well aware I won’t get the money before xmas, but does anyone know how long it does take from sending the acceptance back to receiving the cheque?
Sara your advice and help and everyone else’s too,on this topic has been invaluable. I’m so grateful.
Ella says
Well done, Provident do take the full 28 days from receipt of acceptance. They are closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. We are waiting on one by tomorrow and the other by Christmas Day.
Deb says
Would today be the day of acceptance? I accepted it today but in their eyes?
Is it worth me emailing them with bank details or just sit and wait for a cheque?
Thank you
Just want it done now, it’s been ongoing since May 2018.
Ella says
The day you accept is the first day but it takes two days to register on their computers – but it will have today’s date. They always send cheques, don’t know why. We have waited since Sep 2017.
Deb says
Thanks Ella, useful info there. Have you got sorted yet?
Sharon says
That’s great news can you give us a breakdown of dates/timescale/when you complained etc please
Deb says
Complained to provident Feb 2018, then went to FOS May 18. I had a decision in my favour in October 2019, then I got one of the lead decision letters.
I didn’t expect to hear yet so I’m chuffed!
I hope things are starting to move for everyone now.
Ella says
Not sorted yet, the Provident advisor I spoke to is going to get them to email us and tell us when they expect to get the cheque sorted. At this point it’s just been ‘overlooked’. I have a response to that but couldn’t put it on here. I am still going to complain about them though, I have a timeline of all their refusals, passed and ignored deadlines, whether it makes a difference I won’t know but it will make me feel better. Their practices are disgusting. When I loaned off Provident I paid on time 95% and the other 5% would be a week or two late, never ignored, never not paid so they shouldn’t be doing it to customers.
James says
Hi all
After 1.5 years some great news on my claim against Satsuma, I have been offered £2500 + my outstanding loan of £580 written off!, I’ve just accepted now but will call satsuma first thing to make sure they’ve got it and start the countdown, 2 payday loan refunds & 8 complaints left to go!
I’m expecting this to take the full 4 weeks but will update when I get the cheque … satsuma had actually made this offer over a week ago but there were delays at the FCA.
Thanks for all the advice
James
James says
Hi, I just phoned provident with my doubts about their interest calculations, they are going to get the case handler to have another look at the figure, and provide me with a breakdown of the interest, so fingers crossed 🤞
Lucy says
Just got an email from safety net credit they are writing off my £867 debt and a refund of £400 to me. So happy thanks again to this website.
Plus only took 2weeks after emailing the complaint
Ella says
Hi Sara
A little advice if you can, I am due a cheque tomorrow from Provident however after ringing them they have said it has not been actioned so I have told them I am going to look into taking further action or legal advice. Have I got any options as their 28 days is up tomorrow. I have also told them I will be sending a complaint to the FCA.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Not really. Certainly nothing that would be quick.
Ella says
Okay – that is what I thought, I think it just shows a lack of consideration on their part, but they are not bothered so I just have to wait it out while they get it sorted. Thanks anyway Sara. :)
Jolo says
Please keep us updated. I myself am due a cheque by Tuesday the 10th. I Hope yours turns up soon
Ella says
No cheque as yet. It hasn’t been actioned or anything so I have asked the FOS to ring them to find out the problem. Whilst I appreciate they have a large caseload, brought on by themselves, authorising, signing and posting a cheque is not a huge task. I don’t at this point believe they will pay it, that is my thoughts largely because of them ignoring and delaying.
Angela says
Received an email from FOS on Monday saying Provident had at last accepted my complaint and have offered me £8991 . Which i think is about right. Email from FOS said if i didnt agree i needed to reply to them by 9th Dec. I just replied to the email saying I accepted the offer. Is this all i need to do or will I receive a letter to sign.?
Im just happy things have now been sorted as it seems to many people on here 😀
James says
Hi
The letter I received from the FOS said that provident had agreed with their proposals and are refunding me ( I am disputing the amount though, it is a lot lower than it should be ) i just says they hope this is acceptable to me and look forward to hearing from me in due course, ie there was no timeframe regarding accepting or rejecting provident’s offer.
Shebs says
Hi was told by provident last week that my case was being dealt with and case handler said she was just waiting on figures and authorisation what a load of lies called today to be told nothing being done on my account don’t know how much more lies I can take I asked to speak to fos team and was told they have been told not to put any calls through to them as it stops them working on cases they don’t seem to realise what damage they are doing my nerves are shattered surely to fos needs to step in
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I know this is going to sound unsatisfactory but let me explain what is happening.
Strictly this is what I “think” is happening as there is nothing published on this. But I have seen this happen with other lenders who have had a big argument with FOS and then have decided they have to broadly accept the FOS approach. So I am assuming the same is happening here.
You can group Provident complaints into the following categories:
1) those that have had adjudicator decisions which the customer rejected which are in a queue for the Ombudsman
2) those that have had adjudicator decisions which Provident rejected but where it has now changed its mind and made an offer which has been accepted by the customer
3) those that have had adjudicator decisions which Provident rejected, which Provident has looked at again but where it has either rejected the decision again or made an unsatisfactory counter offer. These are now in a queue for an Ombudsman.
4) those that have had adjudicator decisions which Provident rejected, which Provident has agreed to look at again. See below.
5) those which have recently had adjudicator decisions which Provident has not yet either accepted or rejected
6) a very small number, possibly only 1 or 2, where an Ombudsman is currently producing a “lead decision”
7) those which are currently being looked at by an adjudicator
8) those which are waiting in a queue to be looked at by an adjudicator.
9) complaints which are still with Provident, not yet sent to FOS.
Provident has agreed to look again at some – possibly most, possibly all – complaints in (3) and to apply a new approach to decision making which is more in line with what FOS will do. After this they move into either (3) where an Ombudsman decision will be needed or into (2) where they will be paid at the end of Provident’s painfully slow payout process by cheque (although a few VERY large payments are made by bank transfer).
This is a “mass procedure”. Provident will have no experience of managing this process. Errors may be made in the decision making and in the calculations. This is very annoying for the borrowers affected but it is much more likely to be a cock-up rather than a deliberate ploy to pay you less.
Even more annoying is that if Provident are having to answer a lot of phone calls and emails about where an individual case is in the process, it just takes people off actually looking at the cases and reaching decisions. This is probably why FOS aren’t phoning them up about these cases. And why people may get a confusing or wrong answer if they phone Provident.
For people in (5) and (9) I would hope that the new approach is being used and a lot fewer will be rejected.
It may be that Provident has also agreed to look again at some of the cases in (7) and (8). Or if it isn’t already doing this, it may start to do it after processing a lot of the complaints in (4).
Shebs says
Hi Sara thanks for you reply and time provident haven’t replied to the FOS they were due to reply 1/11/19 not replied yet I have been phoning provident and the case handler on my account did phone me last week and she said she was dealing with my case as it was prioritised and she was just getting figures and mana get authority and would be done by this week I thought why would she be getting figures if they would were not upholding the complaints called to get update this morning and was told nothing has been done on complaints also have a balance with Lowell and contacted them as provident was told by fos to buy back this debt and they have had no contact from provident it looks to me like I’ve been told a load of lies last werk
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I do understand how fed up you are but this is unlikely to be deliberate lies. Are you currently making any payments to provident or Lowell?
Ella says
I hope you get sorted out soon Shebs. Mine took four weeks with the Provident advisor before they made a decision and agreed to settle, not sure if that helps with timescales.
Shebs says
Yes making payments to Lowell and provident
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So you have an adjudicator decision in your favour which says that Provident should take back the debt with Lowell and refund that and other loans? In that case you can reasonably stop paying Lowell and provident and tell them why. It’s good to stop paying a debt collector as every payment made has to be taken into account in working out the numbers.
emma says
Hi all this is the email i had from ombudsman. As you,ll see i dont think provident should have lent all of the loans to you. Thats because where a home credit provider has repeatedly lent to the same person on multiple occasions ans over extended periods of time, it could be an indicator of problem debt-which i thought in your case. Provident has told us it disagrees with our thinking on this issue. Normally, this would mean that an ombudsman would review your complaint and make a decision. But we have lots of complaints in a similar position to yours. Because of this, we,re currently working on a small number of cases to look at the business arguments in detail-and we expect the work we,re doing on these cases to help us resolve yours to. So can anyone help me please and explain what this email means?
emma says
hi all can anyone help me with the above message so confused
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It means FOS is trying to find a soltion to all adjudicator decisions that provident has rejected without it having to take them all to a formal Ombudsman decsion. FOS would prefer to get provident to change its mind – and this does seem to be working, if you read other comments here a lot of people are starting to report getting an email saying provident has now agreed to accept the adjuicator decision.
emma says
Thank you Sara for your message hope i get an answer soon fingers crossed.
Danielle says
Hi Emma,
If you read the posts backdated to early October, a lot of people had this letter. The Ombudsman is working on a few lead decisions so that provident cannot argue and have to settle more complaints at adjudicator level.
Sara thinks this should speed up the complaints process.
emma says
Hi Danielle thank you so much for your message fingers crossed then might get a response soon.
guy says
hi emma, i had the exact same email last week, yesterday i had an offer which i accepted.
emma says
Thanks Guy for your message thats great news wow hope i get an offer then soon that would be fantastic. Merry christmas to you Guy
emma says
Hi Guy could i ask how many loans was that for and how long you have been waiting if you dont mind?
Susie says
Hi Emma, I had similar type of letter on the 11th November then I had an offer on 28th November, so very quick. I had prepared myself for another long wait!
emma says
Hi susie thanks for your message thats great news. I hope i get an offer soon. they do seem to be moving quicker now so fingers crossed.
Sharon says
Just wish I could work out how they are working these acceptances out as it’s not in date order !!!! Anyone have any ideas ??
Philip Keane says
I was contacted by provident today with a letter saying I owed nearly 800 pounds, the debts are from 2014 and there is one for 100 pounds and another for 400 pounds two months after the first.
Why would I get a second loan if I didn’t pay the first , not sure what to do next
Joseph says
You can send them a ‘prove it’ letter – I’m sure there is a template on this website. It basically makes them prove that you actually owe the debt and if they can’t, they can’t enforce it. In the mean time while they do this investigation, it gives you some time to look over your records and see if this is true, if it is, it buys you some time to figure out what to do until they respond. Good luck!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Do you remember borrowing from them? Did you think the loans were repaid?
Donna says
Has anyone complained to morses club?
Crissy says
I complained and they took 10 weeks to reply dismissing my. Complaint with a ten page reply ? I am sending to fos!
Donna says
Wow 10 pages long ok thank you
Steven says
I complained earlier this year and they disagreed with it so sent to fos and an ajudicator was assigned about 3 weeks ago
Rob says
Yip, waiting for a reply. I’m only a few weeks deep though. Seems like there’s only 1 guy there that deals with the whole country!
Deb says
Hi can anyone who’s ( actually) been paid shed any light on a timeline? Provident effectively have 4 weeks to pay me ( FOS said the business would be in touch?) so do they get in touch? And do they pay on time? Just wondered how it’s all working out?
Amanda says
Hi can anybody tell me why you can’t claim before 2007 ? I have had numerous loans before then
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The changes in the Consumer Credit Act 2006 came into force on April 2007. That was the date the Ombudsman became legally able to consider complaints about businesses which had a consumer credit license from the OFT, which included Provident. This date is an absolute bar, not a question of an interpretation of FOS rules which you could challenge.
(If you are wondering why PPI complaints can go back further, it’s because they are complaints about banks, which were FSA regulated not OFT regulated, or insurance companies.)
Sam says
Does that mean loans taken after April 2007 or can it include loans taken before but not paid up til after 2007 please
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You would have to ask FOS that.
FOS may take loans before 2007 into account when making a decision on the ones that are within time. It is common to not get a refund on the first few loans, so if you had continuous borrowing from 2006 to 2012 say, FOS may decide all your loans from April 2007 onwards are refunded.
I will say that if you have been borrowing for a very long while you may well geta refund that you are very happy with even though the older loans aren’t refunded.
Sam says
Thanks Sarah yes I have 15 loans after 2007 to 2011 all renewed before paid up to live as a single parent with multiple sclerosis but have all paperwork for these and another 10 loans before this date which I no cannot get anything bk from I just waiting on response from provident at moment then 8days I can escalate to financial ombudsman thanks for your help
Sara (Debt Camel) says
good luck, that sounds like a strong case.
alison says
Its fantastic to hear that loads of people are getting refunds – at last!!
Has anyone had news – whos case was rejected by Provident and placed in the queue for an Omudsman lately ?