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?
Gemma says
Just for those who are currently going through complaints with Morses they partially accepted my claim at 8 weeks I have accepted and they have agreed to do bank transfer rather then cheque!
Chris says
Just an update from me
Complained about 9 months ago, rejected by provident but passed to ombudsman. Adjudicator found in my favour and gave provident to 26th March to comment but got no response.
I emailed Neil thanks to advice on here and he replied this evening to say they are going to settle in line with adjudicator recommendations and expect someone to be in touch with me this week to sort details (for reference my complaint is less complex than most, had 6 loans and complained only about the last 2).
Sam says
Hi Chris
When did you email Neil? Did it take long for him to reply? I emailed on Sunday evening (April 5th) they did not reply to the adjudicator, they had until the 26th March to respond like yours. I haven’t heard anything yet.
This site has been very helpful thanks everyone
Chris says
Same dates as me.
I emailed Tom about a week ago, no reply. I emailed Neil on 04h April and he replied on 06th. Hope you hear soon
Lynne says
Hi I first complained to provident on dec 2018 within a couple of days they rejected it
Sent to fos in March 2019! In August was told loans 4-12 were wrongly given so had to wait for a reply but for none was told by fos that my case was used as one of the test cases
I was sent very thorough letters and emails explaining everything got a call beginning of December from fos to say provident had refunded loans 10-12 when I got home the cheque was there for 6200 they were saying they didn’t think loans 4-9 were missold I got this back the end of March 6900 I was really pleased with this especially with the current climate as I am like many unable to work as self employed this is al such a relief to be able to put it behind me thanks for all your help and good luck everyone lynne
Karen says
Sent my initial complaint and had the generic response on 26 March. What happens next? Do I have to contact them again or will they contact me? Any info is greatly appreciated, this is all new to me and am hoping for a good outcome as had 26 loans in total. Also had several loans with Morses and am awaiting an initial response, has anyone had any success with them?
Shirley says
I had Morses refund only took 9 weeks and they paid it in my bank three weeks later. Ive been waiting since Beginning of July last year for provident so be prepared for a long wait. Good luck.
Karen says
Thanks Shirley, it’s been 3 weeks since I sent my complaint to Morses so fingers crossed. I know Provident is a slow process but it’s gotta be worth the wait. They’ve had nearly 30k off me and my hubby so fingers crossed.
Chris says
Hi Karen,
You are probably just going to get generic “holding emails” from provident and they rarely respond with the 8 weeks. You can chase but usually just get told it’s ina queue and will be looked at and you just have to wait. After 8 weeks from your initial Complaint you can refer to the ombudsman. I don’t know what the “norm” is here I’ve only gone this far once but mine took about 6-7 months before I got a reply from my adjudicator (that was March this year). Now hopefully about to get settlement almost 10 months after initial complaint.
Don’t let the wait get you down, it’ll be worth it. Good luck.
David says
Karen depending how far you are through the process, contact Tom/Neil and they may well speed up your complaint. From what Neil advised when he settled my complaint, they are trying to work at a speedy pace considering the current cv situation! Contact them, maybe yours will also be settled now!
Karen says
Thank you David, anything is worth a go I will try my luck. Fingers crossed.
susan brown says
I have asked provident for a 3 month payment break (also waiting for a reply to my unaffordability complaint).my agent has been very unhelpful and told me that the covid advice does not apply to home lending and vaguely referred to the BBC website
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That is very unhelpful and isn’t in line with what provident say on their website:
“If you’ve found yourself in a situation where you’re not able to make your next payment, please don’t worry. Provident won’t ever charge you for missed or late payments, but you’ll need to let us know as soon as you’re affected so we can help you.
We’ve got a range of support options available and we may be able to offer breathing space (a period where you don’t have to make any repayments) or spread your balance over a longer term to reduce your regular payment amount (you won’t be charged any extra interest for this). All we ask is that you contact us before your next payment is due and we’ll do everything we can to help.”
I suggest you complete their online contact form and say what you want and you want to complain that your rep has been very unhelpful when you asked for a break.
PS Do you have an affordability complaint in with provident?
Joanne Grant says
Hi, so my claim has been going on for what feels like ever and today I have received an email from the omsbudsman upholding most of my loans.
My question is do I have to wait or can I email this Neil to advise them of this or just wait?
Karen says
Hi guys, have received a letter from Morses today asking for further info such as my credit file or bank statements. Do I need to send these for my complaint to proceed? Appreciate any help as I’m new to this lol
Shirley says
I just sent them my credit file which you can get from credit karma free. I never sent bank statements and I got my refund it went it my bank after three weeks of accepting.
Gemma says
I did mine by email and it did help my case as it showed how unaffordable it was and what debt I was in.
claire winyard says
update – i put in a complaint at loans at home in september last year, they accepted 2 loans out of 53 sent to ombudsman october and sent in bankl statements, loan details etc, heard nothing at all until yesterday, they have gave loans at home until 21st april to reply and advised to give refund on loans 3 to 53 only reason 1 and 2 were not considered as they were pre 2007. thank you for everything i know i couldnt have got this far without all the help from this site
Kelly McCandless says
Congratulations Claire, I was similar. I had loans 5-32 upheld. Can i ask if it was an adjudicator who upheld it or the ombudsman? The reason i ask as it was the week between Christmas and New year I had mine upheld by an adjudicator. Loans at home had until 23 January to reply. They ignored that. They were given until 24th feb to reply and they ignored this and the next deadline. I then had an email from the adjudicator to say they had replied and disagreed with them so I am now in a queue for an Ombudsman. I think they are taking a leaf out of Providents book and just delaying as long as possible which adds to the misery. I hope this is not the case for you and they accept the decision. My claim with the ones upheld and 8% equates to about £10,000. This will increase the longer they drag it out as the 8% is on the first payment of each loan until the claim is settled. Good luck and keep us updated.
Kelly
claire winyard says
adjudicator gave until 21st, she also goes on to say if no response is given an ombudsman may make a decision
Amy says
I have just received an email from the fos stating that my case has now been assigned to an adjudicator does anyone know how long the process will now take until I hear anything back from the adjudicator?
Thanks
Amy says
Hi again!
Just had another email from the adjudicator stating that they are still waiting for information from the company (I called for an update 2 months ago and they were waiting for info from them then)and when they have received this information my case needs to be passed on to a specialised adjudicator anyone know what this means? And do they give the company a limited amount of time to provide said information?
Lynn says
Hi adjucator picked up my complaint on 28th February but they passed it on to another team who got back to me on 3rd April and ruled in my favour along with details of what they thought should be redressed. This was then sent Friday past to Provident who got back to me yesterday 8th April and agreed with 85 % of adjucator decision
Provident and myself agreed a refund of over 20k which according to them will be processed next week fingers crossed
Amy says
Hi
Thank you for that info, guess I will just have to keep waiting, I don’t understand what information is needed or why the company has not provided it dragging their heels I suppose which is annoying as they have had since October last year to provide information, my claim is not with provident so don’t know if it will be dealt with differently?
Amanda Eilertsen says
Shame I didn’t know you could have claim for irresponsible lending years ago .so my last loan was 2013 and it’s more than 6 years so there said there can’t go back more than 6 years I thought there would go back before 2007 ??? Is this true ?? If so I have a bit of hope
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Send your complaint straight to the ombudsman, lots of people here have had refunds for loans that are more than 6 years old.
Julie Coleman says
Hi JF – hang in there – adjudicator ruled in my favour on 8 loans on 9 January and had until 23 January to respond but of course they didn’t. Anyway after chasing, I finally had an offer from them this week which I accepted. After almost 2 years I wasn’t prepared to remain in a queue for ombudsman to make a decision – will hopefully receive cheque next week
Kaz says
Wow that’s fab, do you mind me asking how many loans you had and the value? I had quite a few totalling nearly 25k and am in the early stages of claiming.
Jf says
Hi Julie Thank you for that, I have emailled saying that I would consider an offer due to the current circumstances. Hopefully I will hear from them soon,
Hope you receive your payment soon :)
Joanne Grant says
I have had an email to say that the omsbudman has agreed most of my loans should be refunded so did Provident get in touch with you or did you email them to say that and then they offered the redress – I am not sure what to do now?
Lauren Bartlett says
Hi. I had an adjudicator rule in my favour for provident, they had until the 20th march to respond but failed to do so. So has gone into a queue for the ombudsman. Does anyone have an email address for Neil so I can try and settle with provident.
Claim been ongoing for nearly 2 years. Thanks in advance
Amanda Eilertsen says
Hi guys just wondering if anyone has had a loan from everyday loans ?? I think I’ve said this before but I took one out about 2 years ago for £2000 payed £2000 back and still owe £2500 interest and interest is still been added weekly and can’t really afford the £225 per month instalments there on the phone to me most days asking when I be paying next .i know I signed the agreement originally but I’m never going to pay this off any idea what’s the best thing to do .?.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
sorry I missed this comment. yes lots of people have had refunds from everyday loans. But most cases have to be sent to the ombudsman.
See https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-large-high-cost-loans/ which covers this sort of loan and has a slightly different template. Lots of comments on that page about everyday loans.
Jo says
Hi all, thank you for all the invaluable advice on here.
I sent a complaint to Provident mid February. Had a response to say they’re still looking into it then today received a cheque for a measly £47. I gave them a call and they said they’d emailed their final response last week and had upheld part of my claim. They said they’d email again but I haven’t received anything. They still haven’t provided me with the information I requested about my loans in the first place either.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I assume you have checked your spam folder…
If there is nothing there, I suggest you go back to them and say you have nor received the email or the list of loans you asked for and if you don’t get them by Friday you are sending your case to the Ombudsman.
Jo says
Yes, checked spam and inbox also checked deleted emails in case I’d accidentally deleted it.
Will contact them and give til Friday to respond.
It’s frustrating not knowing as it seems such a small amount.
Thanks.
Paul says
Had my first reply from FOS today I had 11 loans from 2009-2017 they are only up holding loan 11 so 1 loan in total this is the one I am paying off they said I will get 8% back but I have only paid £200 off it so how will I work that out?
Also will they clear the loan and Intrest the loan was £2000 and intrest £2500 so 4500 in total
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
when were loans 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 – were there any big gaps between repying one and taking the next? how large were they?
This last loan, you have only paid £200 towards it?
Why did the adjudicator say to only refund the last loan? That seems an unusual decision unless there were gaps between the loans.
did you have other borrowing at the same time?
do you know how much interest you have paid across all the loans before this last one?
Paul says
All from 2014 until 2017 they were. The big gaps where from the first loan that was 2 years.
They was all around the same amount £1000 and a few were £500
Yes that’s it only 200 pound Weird isn’t it how the adjudicator just ruled out the last loan. He said this,
“There was a break of 2 years between loans 1 and 2 and a break of 3 years between loans 5 and 6. I have therefore considered each part as separate lending chains.
Having thought about everything, I’ve not seen enough to say it was unfair for you to provide loans 1 – 10 to Paul, But loan 11 shouldn’t have been lent to Paul.
I’m sorry to hear that you were struggling financially and that repaying these loans may have been difficult. But given your loan amounts, what was apparent about your circumstances at the time and your history with the lender, I don’t think it would’ve been proportionate to ask you for the amount of information needed to show the lending was unsustainable for loans 1 – 10.
There wasn’t anything in the information you provided or the information the business should’ve been aware of, which meant it would’ve been proportionate to start verifying what you were saying.
When Paul was given loan 11 they still had 2 loans outstanding. The payment for loan 2 combined with the loan repayments Paul already had to make now meant that they had to pay a significant proportion of their monthly income to you. In these circumstances, there was a significant risk that Paul wouldn’t have been able to meet their existing commitments without having to borrow again. So, I think it’s unlikely Paul would’ve been able to sustainably meet their repayments for this and any subsequent loans.”
Paul says
What do you mean other borrowing sorry?
No I haven’t got a clue how much Intrest I paid on them all
I still have debt with them £7000 they said £3500 money I lent and £3500 intrest outstanding
Sara (Debt Camel) says
have you asked them for a statement of all your loans and the interest paid?
I think this sounds like an odd decision from your adjudicator. I suggest you tell your adjudicator you would like the case to go to an Ombudsman.
Would you be happy if the outstanding debt is written off? It’s hard to tell if this would be a good result as you don’t know how much interest you paid on the previous loans.
Chris says
Positive update on mine with some timescales for people that might help
Complained in July 2019 – rejected by satsuma and referred to ombudsman in around September 2019
Ombudsman reviewed and adjudicator upheld my complaint on 12th March 2020 and proposed redress. Gave satsuma until 26th March 2020 to respond. They didn’t.
I emailed Neil on 04th April at Satsuma and he replied on 06th April saying it would be dealt with ASAP in line with adjudicator recommendations
09th April (that is the date of the letter but only received today) was a cheque for my redress in line with 100% of what adjudicator recommended.
Been a long process but glad it’s finally sorted! Off to bank my cheque :D
TT says
Same here I’ve received my cheque this morning of just short of 6.5k and already banked this morning this was provident so glad I got it and it’s over never thought you could even complain about irresponsible lending this will go a long way and thanks to Sarah and other people on here I actually nearly decided I couldn’t be bothered with going to FOS stay safe everyone x
Sasha says
Hi we had an email on the 27th from the ombudsman to say we have been successful.
And that Provident will be make contact within 4 weeks with an offer.
How long did you have to wait for an offer?
Thanks
Suzi says
I’m two weeks on Monday since they agreed with the FOS😞
LMH says
I’ve had a complaint with the FOS re, satsuma (provident) and a default being added incorrectly. The adjudicator has replied in my favour saying they can not provide evidence of default letters etc. being sent and correct process not followed when the default was issued. He has recommended that it is removed. The adjudicator has now replied saying that provident have not responded with a decision so it is going to the Ombudsman. I’ve seen here people have gone to a man named Neil – would this be worth pursuing or would it undermine the process? The complaint has been with the FOS for nearly a year now and I just want it over. There is no money involved as I cleared the debt.
Thanks in advance
jm says
Hi there,
How would I work out the redress for each loan roughly? Would you work out for each loan then add together or do it as a whole? 🤔
Thank you!
J
David says
Correct me if I’m wrong, but certainly for my case and that of my wife, it was the interest per loan that was redress plus 8%.
Keep safe
jm says
Can I also just ask. Do Provident always add the 8% interest or is that only if recommend by the FO?
Thanks
J
David says
Your best bet is to request dsars and get all your account information. From what I understand fos tend to not uphold first few loans, but potentially from say loan 4/5 onwards. Certainly with my case with Neil, it helps if you both have access to your accounts, as you can negotiate which loans you wish to settle on.
Joanne says
I had an email from omsbudsman to say that they are upholding the majority of loans with Provident and that they have till the 8th May to respond. I thought I would email Tom and Neil. This is what I received –
I appreciate the wait will be frustrating, but please be assured that the team is working through Ombudsman decisions as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, there is a bit of a backlog and the current situation with Covid 19 isn’t particularly helping.
I assume what you are in receipt of is a provisional decision from an adjudicator. If that’s the case someone will review it as soon as possible. If we are happy to settle as recommended we will look to do so, but if we disagree we may ask for an Ombudsman to make a final decision. If what you have is a final decision from an Ombudsman then we would complete whatever instructions are given.
I know you will want this to be dealt with as quickly as possible and please be assured we would like all cases to be resolved as quickly as they can be. However, with things being a little unpredicatable at the moment it’s difficult for me to give a precise timescale
This was from Neil and I responded to say that the decision was from the omsbudsman. Any one else received this email or do you think this will give them a push in the right direction or they will wait until the 8th May when the omsbudman said they will make their final decision then.
Sandra says
My goodness reading all the comments I wish my sister had gone to FOS . Provident was giving her loans after loan knowing she had server mental health issues and she made it very clear to agent.
She ended up having a break down in 2018 and couldn’t cope paying the loans. They thought they were clever and only write nearly 6 thousand pound of the loan then gave her something silly like 1400 as a good will gesture they said . They had admitted to irresponsible lending but because of the medical documents they asked for only stated till 2016 they said they couldn’t refund her . On her medical notes stated by a doctor she’s been mentally impaired since 2004 . I think she tried calling the FOS last year but provident said the complaint was completed . She end up stumbling into a company that apparently fights for the refunds and the take 25% since last year December she’s been waiting for a decision all she keeps getting is we have a back long and that her complaint has to go to a case worker . In total 35 loans the interest rates is horrendous .
Claire says
Hi all, i raised a complaint with Provident in Aug 2019 and have not received a response from them since even after chasing this for months and months to only receive the same templated ‘were currently receiving a lot of complaints and working through them etc’ i then sent this to FOS over two months ago. They requested proof of complaint which i sent and i have them two follow up emails to find whether they are investigating this and have no received a response. Can someone advise please as this is quite frustrating considering it has been ongoing since August
Val says
Hi my complaint was with FOS for 2 years plus I’m sorry to say I’m only at the adujacitor stage now ,they have reached a decision on my case but it took a long long time sorry . Others might be different though
Julie Coleman says
Think you may be in for a long wait – started my complaint in May 2018 – adjudicator picked it up in January this year and ruled in my favour for 8 loans. Provident never responded so was sat in the queue for an ombudsman. I constantly chased Provident and after nearly 2 years I have accepted their offer
J says
Hi Sara!
So I just spent ages going through each loan, trying to calculate the 8% from the interest for each of them trying to get a rough idea and now I’ve just realised this isn’t going to be correct because it’s the interest on what you have paid back that year isn’t it? 😩😩 not the whole interest from the date the loan was taken out! So are my figures going to be totally out?
Thanks J
Jean says
Hi Sara could you tell me what an ombudsman provisional decision is
I complained to skyline direct who are rude won’t pay the 8% plus lie to ombudsman they rejected the complaint and even put in final responses that I did have an income as I WORKED for them as my complaint was I had no income as it was only my husband who worked as it was my old provident agent and she just filled in anything on form
They were dreadful I had to email there ceo as they were adamant I worked for them also sent them letters from hmrc to prove I had no income totall knightmare so I went to fos and they wouldn’t reply to adjudicator so she made decision and upheld loans 7-15 on the information I gave her surprise they rejected it on the last day they had to reply
They put in lots of FCA quotes as there objection I received an email from the ombudsman saying she had made a provisional recommendation that they refund loans 7-15 and both parties have until 18/5/20 to agree I don’t understand what a provisional recommendation means
Sara (Debt Camel) says
it means it will be made final unless you or the lender comes back with new information to change the decision.
Jean says
What happens if skyline come back rejecting it again the ombudsman’s wording was that this is what she is intending to do I think they will come back again with lies and they always wait until last day to reply I’m getting really fed up with skyline now have you had many people complaining about them my daughter did report them to FCA
If this is what she is intending to do why not just do it
Sara (Debt Camel) says
because if the Ombudsman has changed anything from the adjudicator’s decision, the lender has to be allowed to comment on it again. i know it may feel long-winded, but an ombudsamn’s decision is legally binding – it’s very important that both sides have a chance to make comments about them.
But it sounds as though you are nearly there – I hope it goes through quickly from now.
Jean says
The adjudicator said loans 6-15 and the ombudsman said 7-15 skyline rejected the adjudicator with all these quotes from FCA but the ombudsman’s said most of it didn’t apply in this case but I know they will be adding something else as they are not prepared to pay out they refused to add the 8% for my daughter and ombudsman let them away with it there are the worst company ever
Anna says
Hi,
I have had my loans up held by an adjudicator she has said they should give me redress for loans 5-52 (yes I know a massive amount of doorstep loans) they have until 8th may to reply, couple of questions I had been borrowing from them since 2005 (I know I can’t claim previous to 2007) as myself or said company (don’t want to name them I’m suspicious of them checking this site!) do not have my account information previous to 2013 can these older loans now not be looked at? and If they agree with what the adjudicator has said will she then tell me a figure of what I should expect from them refund wise? I have no idea how I would work this out myself and don’t want to accept a rubbish offer from them.
Lucy says
I’ve recently had an FOS decision upholding most of my loans with Morses and they are not contesting the FOS decision, however my partner had more loans than me over a shorter period and the FOS both adjudicator and Ombudsman declined his case (18 loans in 22 months).
I find this frustrating that the FOS are not consistent we had the same agent and our loans were over the same period alternating who borrowed so we could keep up the payments until we could borrow no more. I don’t suppose theres anything he can do as it was an Ombudsmans decision ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Odd! But if this was a Final decision from an Ombudsman, there is nothing more you can do. Well technically you can go to court, but I suggest you need Legal advice before considering that – I am not aware of anyone who has won an affordability complaint in this way.
Lucy says
That’s what I thought, it’s frustrating because we mentioned each other’s lending in our individual complaints I suppose it’s just down to different opinions from two adjudicators.
Thank you.
Dan says
Hey! Good news! Original complaint to provident November 2018. Adjudicator decision to refund loans 6-22 made on January 24th 2020. No response from provident so escalated to Ombudsman for final decision. Emailed Neil and Tom approx 2 weeks ago. And recieved an email from Neil today saying they are settling the complaint inline with the Adjudicator decision so hopefully won’t be long and I’ll get that cheque in the post. Stay strong guys!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
great!
Provident seem to be settling all complaints in line with adjudicator decisions at the moment, which is good news for other people waiting.
kat says
can i ask what things you put in the email?
i’m useless at writing letters!
is it a case of just why you think they were unfair at the time or do you put your current situation in too?
i’ve had an initial decision from adjudicator but they got no response from provident so now awaiting ombudsman.
Thanks
Dan says
Hi Kat, I just emailed neil and tom, saying ‘hi my name is (insert information), I had a complaint denied by yourselves and forward to financial ombudsman, I have now recieved word that you have not responded to them and is now being escalated further. I hope you can advise me as to why you did not respond, and if we could come to an agreement together?’ I also attatched my adjudicator decision, mine was a letter so i took pictures of it. :) i then recieved a response about 2 weeks later from Neil saying they are settling inline with the adjudicator and have contacted FOS. Hope this helps.
Polly says
Hi can I please have the email address 😊
Thank you
Kelly McCandless says
Hi All, hope everyone is safe and well. My question has probably been answered before on this thread so apologies if it has. My complaint loans at home, but very similar case to provident) was finaly picked up by adjudicator early december 2019. Decision upholding loans 5 to 32. Company failed to meet three deadlines, then replied and disagreed so I went into queue for ombudsman start of March Then lockdown. I haven’t had any information on what the company said, or whether they disagreed with the whole lot. I had emailed ombudsman and they just told me I was in a queue and once ombudsman had looked at it they would be in touch. I gave them a call today and I was told an ombudsman had picked it up early April. My question is what are peoples experiences time wise once ombudsman picks it up. I know lockdown has thrown a spanner in the works, and ombudsman has to look at whole case again. Are the decisions quite quick or could I be looking at another 6 months? I know they are on a case by case but does anyone have a rough idea how long? X
Thanks
Kelly
Hayley says
Hi Sara
Your site is invaluable!
My query is I have a provident loan, am I entitled to request a payment holiday under this proposal please? If so, do I just message to ask directly or do I need to apply for it in some way?
Thank you.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes!
Polly says
Hi
Can someone give the email for provident Neil I believe from the comments
Thanks
Liz says
Neil.Iveson@provident.co.uk
Polly says
Thank you very much
Danielle says
Hi,
I am keen to know if people have had an adjudicator reject their claim which was then upheld by an ombudsman. My adjudicator is not being very helpful and stating that Provident completed the correct checks but they didn’t ask me for proof of income, expenditure and they also cant provide me with evidence of a credit check. I explained to my adjudicator that I was encouraged by the agent to only present certain information and had they checked my statements and credit file they would not have lent to me but he is saying that Provident said that’s not true and as there is no evidence of the conversation then tough basically. But proper checks would have shown that I couldn’t afford these. In addition to this 2 of the first loans I had shouldn’t have been given as I was told not to declare my bankruptcy by my agent, again had they ran a credit check they would have seen this (Provident upheld my complaint on these) however are saying that the future borrowing is based on the good payment history of these loans so is there an argument that the future loans should be refunded too!!!!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
how many loans did you have from Provident?
Danielle says
I had 11 loans in total
Sara (Debt Camel) says
then I think you should ask an Ombudsman to look at the case.
Liz says
Hi guys
Hope your all well. So I started my complaint against provident in August 2018. After the long wait I got a decision from fos that the lending was unaffordable and they advised me that provident should pay back for loans 2-16. Of course the deadline passed and no joy from provident so was expected my claim to go further, but yesterday out of the blue I got an email from fos saying that provident had agreed with them and that I should here from them regarding my redress.
So I would just like to say hang in there guys I hope you all get ur claims sorted soon. Not sure how long I’ve got to wait for my cheque but let’s hope it’s soon.
Thank u sara for this site and all that you do
Good luck and stay safe
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That’s great. It seems like Provident are again starting to settle on adjudicator decisions, no need for people to try to haggle to get a compromise agreed,
Suzi says
Sorry to ask but how long from provident letting the deadline pass until you heard from Fos again to say provident was agreeing, I’m in the same position the now deadline was 26th March, not great timing with the lockdown 😞😞
Liz says
Hi suzi
My deadline was the 19th March. Contacted Neil at provident around the 16th April as hadn’t heard anything, was the bog standard email saying there looking into all cases etc but due to covid19 was a backlog. Got email fos on the 25th April saying provident had agreed.
Hope that helps
Liz
Suzi says
Sorry to be nosey I started in November 2018, got decision from fos on March 12th provident had to 26th March nothing so gone to ombudsman. Emailed Neil basically working through them. Just wondering your time scales after decision by fos? Think it gives some of us a bit of hope😬😬😬
Sam says
I have a refund due from Provident which they have now agreed with the adjudicator and am waiting for the letter confirming this from the adjudicator. I am in an IVA which is going to fail as my husband was made redundant and I have missed 6 payments with the IVA company agreement but still cannot afford payments. Will the refund payment go directly to the IVA company or to me to pay to them, does anyone know.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Your refund will probably be sent to your IVA firm. If it is sent to you and it is more than £500 you have to inform your IVA form about it and they will claim it.
How far through your IVA are you? Do you own a house? How large are your IVA payments meant to be?
Sam says
I am only 18 months through it and now I don’t own a house. My payments are £196 a month
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Can you afford to make any payments? Is there a reason you want for an IVA? With no house, bankruptcy is often better.
Sam says
I just went with what the company recommended. I didn’t know if they would consider letting me use any of the refund to pay the missing payments and any outstanding bills so that I can continue with the IVA. Is that something that is worth asking? If not does the outstanding debt get reduced by the amount of the refund? I was planning on calling them next week to ask them what I should do.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
how large is the refund likely to be? How large are the debts in your IVA? who is the IVA firm?
Sam says
I think the refund will be about £8000 but the debts are about £40,000 the company is Freeman Jones but I think they are now the Financial wellness group. I had an IVA prior to that which failed when my husband and I separated and the monthly payments were £342 a month which I paid into for over a year. So I have paid quite a lot of money over the last 2/3 years but it doesn’t seem to have reduced my debts by much unfortunately
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So you owned a house for the first IVA? was it sold?
You said “I didn’t know if they would consider letting me use any of the refund to pay the missing payments and any outstanding bills so that I can continue with the IVA.” but can you afford the monthly payments?
Your husband was made redundant, but he isn’t living with you, does this mean you aren’t getting paid child maintenence? Sorry I am not clear. two IVas, you seperating from your husband and your husband being made redundant is complicated!
IVA firms take most of the IVA payments for the first 18-24 months :(
(Sorry, lots of questions!)
Sam says
That’s ok, no sorry not very clear. No we have never owned a house. The first Iva was for the same debts and I was paying £342, my husband and I separated and I couldn’t afford the payments so the IVA failed. The we got back together and I started another IVA with Freeman Jones for the same creditors as the last IVA. In between I made the claim against provident in Jan 2019, I think I started this IVA in Feb 2019. I had forgotten all about the claim until I got the email from the adjudicator if I’m honest. Now provident have said they agree with the adjudicator.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So how much could you actually afford at the moment? If your husband is out of work, surely that is zero?
Are you renting privately or social housing? do you have car(s) on finance?
Sam says
My husband is now working again as a delivery driver so could afford payments if we can clear arrears and council tax. We owe about £1200 on council tax. My car is on finance and I need it for work. Should I speak to my IVA company? I am worried that my IVA will fail and the refund won’t get taken off the outstanding debt.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes you should talk to your IVA firm. Explain your situation. If you aren’t happy with waht they suggest, talk to National Debtline on 0808 808 4000 about what your options are.
Joanne says
My partner and I have had our cases open now for about 2 years and both got emails yesterday from omsbudsman to say their final decision will be upheld.
I assume it’s just waiting now for an email or letter from Provident – the omsbudsman said they hadn’t supplied a breakdown but will be in line with recommendations set out in the original decision.
Tracie says
Advice. I emailed my complaint to Provident just over a year ago. So far I have received 3 bog standard emails saying they are looking into it and that’s the same answer I get on the phone. After reading some people’s messages would you advise
me to email this Neil gentleman?
Ask for my full file report and send to the ombusman?
Or wait a while longer?
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Send it to the Ombudsman immediately! Don’t ask for anything else, first, just send it over now. You have been fobbed off for far too long….
Tracie says
Thanks. Sara I’ll do that.
Julie says
Hi
Has anyone dealt with Morses before?
I put in a complaint around 8 weeks ago have not received a response yet.. I also asked them for a list of all loans (27 in total) amount of loans and all interest paid but have not received this either ( should they have already sent me this?)
Has anyone dealt with them and had their complaint upheld?
Also if the refuse is it worth going to the FO with it.. Seems doorstep lenders and the FO take a long time to come to an outcome.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Just send it to FOS now. Does it matter if it takes a long while? I mean it would be great to get it sorted soon, but if it takes ages, you will still be better off at the end than if you hadn’t sent it to FOS.
Julie says
Thank you.. Do I not need their final response before sending to FO? I have emailed them today and they said my final response is due to be posted the 28th April . Should I wait for the letter to see what they say or just send to FO without.. I am still waiting for a list of all loans from Morses so I don’t have any dates etc to submit with a claim to FO. I would hope they include that in my final response.
Thanks
Julie
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok, well that is tomorrow, so I would wait and see what it says in that case!
chris says
Hi I am in the same boat almost exactly. Complaint went in about 8 weeks ago. I had a letter about 3 weeks ago saying they were continuing to look at the complaint but nothing since. I have now submitted a SAR and, once I get that, I will complain to FOS.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Send the complaint to FOS now. there is no reason to wait for a SAR. Provident can even be slow about sending those out.
chris says
Thanks Sara – will do. It will take enough time as it is.
Donna says
I requested my loan information from Provident on April 28th and was surprised to receive them today! My complaint is with the Ombudsman who have requested this information also. Should I forward this to FOS?:
Shocked that I have paid approximately 15,000 in interest since 2007 and was continually given loans with regular missed payments and refinancing of loans.
Hope the FOS rule in my favour for at least some of them.
Amanda says
Hi Sara . just a quick question for advice .eveyday lending has just phoned asking for a payment I had £2000 off them and owe 2900 interest .although I’m waiting for the complaints at everyday lending to get back to me which will be beginning of may .there are saying if I don’t pay the interest will keep going up and up .cant really afford £225 per month at the moment any suggestions? I’ve paid £2000 back to them over the year ?.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
there is a template letter for complaints about large bad credit loans such as everyday lending here: https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-large-high-cost-loans/.
Have you been affected by Coronavirus? If you have, take the 3 month payment break that should be offered and also put in an affordability complaint.
Lauren says
Hey quick question. Had an email from FOS friday to say provident are settling inline with adjudicator. What time frame did people recieve the breakdown and subsequent cheque? And was the breakdown via email or post. Thank you.
Linda says
Hi Lauren, I received the same email from FOS on Monday but I have already received my cheque from them. I haven’t received the letter with the breakdown yet, it might be worth contacting Provident to see when yours is going out.
kat says
if you don’t mind me asking, how many loans was it for?
i got my FOS email friday and did email provident but nothing yet.
i know i’m being impatient! but the thought of it all being over is just too great.
Lauren says
Hi approx 15 loans i am due a refund on. Got the email on 25th april. And just waiting to hear from provident about breakdown and sending the cheque. No word yet.
Joanne says
My partner and I are the same – this has been going on for 2 years and then get the email on 24th to say that we are both going to get redress from our loans in line with the omsbudsman. Email Neil but no response! Just want it over now!
Kat says
i know i’m prob being impatient but not heard anything from provident since fos said they’d settle. I even emailed.
has anyone else heard anything since the email on the 25/4.
it does say if not heard in 28 days to ho back to them.
Donna says
I have put in a complaint to Provident in January. No resolution after 8 weeks so sent to FOS two weeks ago. I have asked for a DSAR of all my loans since 2007 and was told by Provident today they would not have details of loans that far back. I a aware I am unable to have loans looked at before 2007 but I thought a thing after that would be considered. I have borrowed from Provident continuously since at least 2005 and was often pressured by my agent to take out another loan even though I regularly missed payments. I know this is going to take a long time but the interest I have paid back is extortionate but it will be worth it.
Rebecca says
Hi, I’ve just had my complaint rejected after putting it in mid feb. Completely disregarded part of my claim (I had been threatened by my collector that someone was coming to my house and he “would use different tactics” to my collector to get the money I owed) this wasn’t even mentioned in the final response. Just put in my claim to the financial Ombudsman Service today. Fingers crossed I get a result! I have been refinancing loans with morses since 2015.
Mike Harte says
Hi All, I’m looking for some advice if anyone has any thoughts. I submitted a claim on behalf of my parents in December of last year. Received all my statements from provident in February then requested a refund of loans from them. They upheld 2 loans each from my mum and dad ( they had 15 loans each ) last month, I then went back to them requesting they look at upholding more , submitting lots more info such as bank statements etc but they replied saying their original decision was final.
I did send this to the ombudsman in March but with very little info attached so my questions are:
1) does it matter that in my complaint to the ombudsman I didn’t give that much info? I just wanted to get them in the queue more than anything, will I
Get a chance to submit statements etc to
Them or will they just judge based on the info I provided? Or should I start a new complaint with the ombudsman submitting more details?
2) is it worth going back to
Provident again and asking for them to look again at the loans or am I wasting my time? I would be willing to settle this for them with provident rather than waiting years for the ombudsman but they seem to have dug their heels in now saying r decision is final.
Thanks guys and thank you for this site
Sara (Debt Camel) says
1) don’t start a new complaint, you can ask for any more info to be added to your current one. When your complaint is picked up by an adjudicator, ask if you should send bank statements.
2) If you have asked provident once to look again, I don’t see any point in asking them again.
Mich says
Have had provident loans for many years, 1995 to 2012 usually borrowed 500-1000, could I be inline for a refund, was low wage earner, Provident are looking into my case I have 2 weeks left out of my 8 week wait.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That sounds like a lot of borrowinf, so I hope so! But you can only get refunds from April 2007 – before that the regulations were different.
Good luck.
Louise Bates says
Hi, my story is pretty much the same as everyone else’s. I made a complaint to provident in January of this year. The usual generic emails followed & after 8 weeks I sent my complaint to FOS. I understand it’s now a waiting game & that’s fine. My question is a more general one as to how provident are allowed to conduct their complaints procedure in this way. Given the comments on this page it would seem no one gets anywhere without going to FOS. Is it purely a delaying tatic by provident. Surely their inability to investigate any complaints creates the backlog for FOS & shouldn’t this be investigated. Just my opinion & wondered if anyone had thoughts on this
chris says
Hi An update on my complaint to Morses Club. They have made an offer which I have accepted. The offer is to settle my current loans to £0 and refund £330.11. They judged that my other loans with them – 8 in total – were affordable. I am sure that I would have been able to push for a larger settlement on the other loans but I have accepted this offer because it both reduces my DMP by about £1400 and gives me some money to bank. The past lending may well have been irresponsible but this offer allows me to draw a line and move on without having to wait for the FOS to deal with it. Good luck to everybody else. As always, a donation to the Trussell Trust from this amount.
Graham says
Hi Sara, do you happen to know the timescale for provident to do their sums and send cheques to you after they have agreed with the FOS to pay the amount as per the fos adjudication, in my case they are returning interest plus 8% from loan 4-13, had an email from fos on the 22 April 2020.
Thankyou.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think they may be settling a lot (several hundred?) of cases, so it may not be quick.
Lauren says
I had an email on the 24th April, and am still yet to have any contact from provident. So I expect it will be at the end of the 28 days :( well i’m hoping so anyway. It’s so frustrating, just want it over with.
Lou says
Hi,
Just wanted to let people know my experience incase it was of any help to others.
Mine and my Dads complaints got sent to Prov in early January 2020. After they had reached the time limit for a response I was advised that I could send to FO which I did in Feb. I asked for Prov to email me loans and interest amounts from both accounts which I received straight away. I asked for updates weekly from Prov to check on any progress or anything else they might need.
The FO advises me they had wrote to Prov asking for info on accounts in April. I decided to email Provident myself stating that I would be willing to negotiate a settlement on both accounts before the FO started there investigation. Provident agreed and within a week I had a phone call and negotiated on offer on both accounts, Provident immediately notified the FO we had came to an agreement and I recieved a cheque within 5 day’s.
I know obviously some cases are taking months and months. Maybe it was due to my Dads ill health it was speeded a long but a few pointers are;
* I didn’t need bank statements
* I asked immediately for breakdowns to be emailed to me so I knew exactly what they were looking at in terms of refunds
* I asked for updates regularly
I think that prov really prefer to settle without going through the FO. Total refunds was over £25k.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Your case should have been handled speedily because of your dad’s health – good result and I bet they are pleased!
Amanda Eilertsen says
Hi Lou how many loans did you have altogether?
Lou says
I had 19, they upheld from 8 onwards and my Dad had 9 😊
Lou says
Yes! It was an excellent result and Provident were so helpful!
Julie says
Hi,
Have just received final response letter [from Morses]. They are upholding 1 loan from may 2014 refund of 552.41.
They won’t look at any loans between 2011-feb 2014
And say other loans were affordable
1 loan upheld from 27 taken out.
Will send to FO today.
Do I take photos of their final response letter and attach it? It is quite lengthy 10 pages.
What else shall I attach? I was thinking bank statements but that will be years worth :(
Also they still have not supplied me with a breakdown of each loan that I requested, should I email and ask them to send this over to include with my complaint to the FO or will the FO request this information when they pick up the case?
Thank you
Julie
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Julie,
This is morses I assume.
I suggest just attaching a pic of the first page of the letter – that presumably has the date on it. Say you can supply the rest if they need it.
Also say you have all your bank statements if they want them.
And email Morses and say you are disappointed in their decisions, you will be sending it to FOS and can they please send you the list of loans you have previously asked for.
Julie says
Yes it is morses. I shall do that thank you.
Would I also add to my complaint anything I disagree with in their final response..
I. E they say that at points throughout my lending I had a disposible income of 350 a WEEK .. Now as a single parent working between 8-16 hours and half the time being out of work that is impossible so I don’t know where those figures have come from.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
definitely mention that!
Julie says
I have just sent it over to FO and have highlighted that. I mean 350 disposable income a week. I wish.
Thank you for your help
Julie
Julia says
Hi I have emailed provident and they keep replying that they are having trouble finding my account and keep asking me for previous address etc which I have provided three times now I am just wondering if anyone else is getting provident saying this and if so what did you do please
Shelley says
Hi
I had the same problem, 2 1/2 years I’ve been waiting and finally getting aomewhere. Provident told me I’d had 2 loans but I’d had 12. Got nowhere with them so went to FOS. 3 weeks ago ombudsman emailed to say they thought my loans 4-12 shouldn’t have been lent to me so gave provident until 23rd April to respond. Heard nothing so now gone to FOS, hopefully not too much longer 😩 . Good luck
Julia says
Hi thanks for your reply did you get any paperwork from provident? I have asked them to send me mine as I don’t have any and also if they don’t send it to me will the FOS still be able to help me please 😊
Shelley says
Hi
Yes they did in the end but took months of asking, I emailed them constqntly until they got fed up with me. I think the FOS can get it if they keep ignoring you. Provident were very rude to me when I was contacting them, with my paperwork of loans they sent me a cheque for £30 as a gesture of goodwill !!!
Julia says
Hi ok thank you 😊 and I hope you sent the £30 cheque right back to them what a cheek 😂
Amanda Eilertsen says
Hi everyone .i phoned morses this morning even tho I’ve sent it to the final ombudsman.morses said they cannot comment on anything now it’s got to go through the ombudsman.but I asked how many loans I had and he said well there was 36 loans on his screen he said there were probably more but I forgot to ask what years there were from ?.
Debbie says
So adjudicator as just found in my way in regards to loans at home for loans 6-19 these loans date back to 2010 they have until the 19.05 to reply, I’m guessing they won’t reply by then to either agree or disagree seeing as they have been hard work all the way through but who knows, so as anyone else had any dealings with them at this stage do they prolong it and disagree does anyone know or as anyone had any luck with them paying out at this stage.
Kelly says
Hi Debbie,
I had an adjudicator decision at the end of December 2019 upholding loans 5-30 with loans at home. They had until 23 jan to reply and didnt, they were given another deadline in February they missed and one in march which they replied to adjudicator disagreeing with them so I was put in queue for ombudsman. This was picked up at the start of April and the ombudsman is currently looking at it. So i hate to say it but just expect them to play hardball and drag it out. I think they are getting more complaints against them though and ombudsman is looking at them with a smaller team but they seem quite efficient. Hang in there though. Fingers crossed for a good outcome for you.
Debbie says
Hi kelly thanks for your reply, I guessed they would play hard ball, I don’t mind waiting it just adds to the 8% interest with them being old so it’s adding up nicely.
Good luck with yours I believe most of the time the ombudsman agrees with adjudicator.
Kelly McCandless says
Hi Debbie, I received an email yesterday from ombudsman, I just want to give you a bit of background on my case which may help you and give you an idea what to expect. When I was initially dealing with loans at home, they offered a refund on 3 loans (I had 32) the only reason they did this was because they had no paperwork so could not prove affordability. I rejected and sent to ombudsman. When they rejected adjudicator findings in march there was only 30 loans listed. I sent details to adjudicator and asked why it was not 32 loans. Loans at home dont want ombudsman to look at first 2 loans as they were over 6 years from when I complained. I have went back to them and told them ignore the first 2 loans as I dont want to drag it out any longer. they may again come back with the 6 year rule. I know a lot of people with provident have been successful disputing loans over 6 years but I dont know how it is with loans at home. If a lot of your loans are older it may be worth while pursuing. Obviously you have still to wait and see what they say, I think by rule of thumb they are going to drag these on as long as they can and use every tactic in the book. It angers me that they continue to cause so many people even more misery. Please keep me updated, and likewise I will let you know if I hear anything which may give you an idea of timelines. Fingers crossed for you.
kimberley says
Hi Debbie I sent mine to FOS because loans at home told me I was to late to claim
Debbie says
hi Kimberley, did you send it to the FOS if not then do so they initially refused mine, if you have good luck x
Lou says
Hi there, can anyone give me advise on how to claim the 20% tax on the 8% interest back? 🤔
Julie Coleman says
Hi Lou – you need to complete an R40 form – you can either set up an online account on HMRC website (which I did) or you can ring them and request a form by post
Mark says
Morning, had a email from FOS 9 days ago advising that Provident had agreed to settle on 4 loans inline with the adjudicator. Just a couple of quick questions, do they email me, ring or just send the settlement out in post? Just wanna know what I’m looking out for. And when it says refund of the charges is that the complete charges on each loan (eg, 1400 on 1000) I’m looking at? Because that’s more than the loans itself and don’t wanna get my hopes up too much of a whopping cheque ha ha. Thanks guys. Stay safe.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The refund “on charges” is on the interest and any added charges you paid, not the repayment of the amount you borrowed. Borrowed 1000, repaid 1400 then the refund is 400.
Mark says
Ah right. I had an email for example a few months ago from provident saying I took out a 1300 loan and next to it said charges of 1320. Is that just a 20 refund?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
unless the loan was repaid in a few days, £20 sounds way too low! £1320 is possible.
Mark says
Yes I think I understand now as I’ve done the workings and read it properly. They’ve sent me the charges for each loan on the previous email so it’ll be that I’m getting back and whatever interest (which I can’t work out) is due. Should be a nice cheque when they work it out. Thanks Sara.
Carl b says
HOW DO THEY WORK THIS OUT?
I have take 14 loans since 2008,with several long breaks in between some loans.but I took out a £1600 loan in 2013 while unemployed i was paying back £48 a week a majority of my income,many missed payments.forward to now I have a loan now fro £1200 but have a job with income of 25+ a year.
anyway I made a complaint,heard nothing after so I sent to financial ombudsman. adjudicator decision was the only loan unaffordable was the one I currently have. provident have cleared interest and wiped the £120 balance that was left.
But I would never of claimed for this loan as it was the only one I could afford.so how do they come to these decisions????
I have appealed the 2013 loan with proof of statements.
thank you great site