Have you had a catalogue, credit card or store card where your credit limit was too high? So high that the monthly repayments were hard to manage and you got into more debt?
Many people were originally given an OK limit, but the lender kept increasing them.
You may have a good complaint that the lender was irresponsible in allowing you to borrow so much that the debt was unaffordable.
This article explains how to complain and ask for a refund of the interest you paid
Contents
What is “affordability”?
The following is my summary of the regulator’s rules:
- a lender must check if credit is affordable when you apply for it. A mortgage lender will ask for bank statements, but a catalogue offering a £200 credit limit doesn’t have to go into so much detail;
- a lender should also make new checks when deciding to increase a credit limit;
- credit isn’t affordable if paying it leaves you short of money for your bills,everyday expenses, and your other debts;
- if you have to borrow more most months, this would not be affordable. This could be borrowing on the same account – making a credit card repayment but then using the credit card to pay for food so the balance never drops is “borrowing more”;
- you have to be able to repay the balance within a reasonable period of time. Paying the minimum amount is OK for a short while, but not for a prolonged period.
How to complain
Good reasons to complain
If the lender could see any of these on your credit record, they should probably have declined your original application:
- recent credit record problems: defaults, missed payments, or arrangements to pay, mortgage arrears, payday loans;
- you already had a different credit card with the same lender where you were only making minimum payments and were using it for essentials like food and petrol. If you were given two credit or catalogue accounts by the same lender, often the second one should never have been given.
- other credit cards where you were near your limit and persistent overdraft usage. Here is an Ombudsman decision saying Zopa should not have given quite a low initial limit in this situation;
- a level of borrowing that looks too high in relation to your income.
Your credit limit should not later have been increased unless you could afford it. In addition to the points above, the following should have also warned the lender you were in difficulty already:
- making minimum payments for a long while;
- using a lot of your limit for a long period;
- a lot of gambling showing on the account statement;
- recent missed payments or an arrangement to pay on this account;
- your overall level of debt on your credit record has gone up a lot.
You don’t need all the details to complain
When your lender increased your credit limit, you don’t need the exact date. If all you can say is “you increased my credit limit several times” that is fine. You don’t need to ask for copies of all your statements – you would get a ton of paper!
But getting your credit record can help. You can’t go back and see exactly what your credit score was in say 2018, but take a copy of your current credit record as soon as you complain (get your free TransUnion statutory credit report). That will show what the pre-2018 problems were that the lender should have spotted.
Template to complain & the email address to use
The best way to complain is by email. It’s free, instant and you have a record of what you sent and when. Here is a list of credit card and catalogue email addresses to use.
In the suggestions below, I’ve invented some examples for the bits in italics in brackets. Change/delete these to tell your story.
I want to complain about irresponsible lending by you for my Barclaycard account number 987654/444. My date of birth is dd/mm/yy. The email address I used for this account was myaddress@whatever.com.
Then say they should never have given you the account:
You should never have allowed me to open an account with such a large credit limit. When I applied in 2015, you should have checked my credit record and you would have seen I had recent missed payments to a credit card and a default only two months before on a loan.
Or say that they should not have increased your credit limit:
You should never have increased my credit limit in 2015. At that time I had only made minimum payments on this credit card for a long while and/or I was using a very high level of my credit limit.
If you had properly checked my credit record before increasing my limit, you would have seen that in the two years since my account with you was opened, I had got additional late payment markers and defaults and/or taken out a lot of other credit. This should have warned you I was struggling with my finances and it was not responsible to lend me more. By increasing my credit limit you made my financial position worse. Instead you should have offered me forbearance by freezing the interest on the card.
I do not know the exact months of these credit limit increases. In your reply to this complaint, please tell me the dates and amounts.
If the lender should already have known you had problems with your account, mention these
You should also have realised that I was having difficulty because:
of the late payment charges you added to my account
of the gambling transactions showing on my card statement
I had missed two payments to you the year before in 2017
I had already asked you on the phone if it was possible to stop adding interest for a while.
End with asking for a refund:
I would like you to refund me all the interest I paid and any late payment charges from the point the account was opened
OR
I would like you to refund me all the interest I paid and any late payment charges after you increased my credit limit in 2018.
I would also like any late payment and default markers to be removed from credit records after this point.
I understand that if I take this complaint to the Financial Ombudsman, 8% simple interest is usually added to a cash refund.
Points to think about
Timing
These complaints can be made if your account is still open, or if it is closed and settled, or if it is with a debt collector (NB the complaint goes to the original lender, not the debt collector.)
You can complain if you already have a CCJ for the debt. Add a sentence to the template saying you want the CCJ removed as part of the settlement of your complaint.
If you have had an IVA or bankruptcy after these problems, or if you are still in a DRO, then ask in the comments below, as this can be complicated.
Old accounts
The Financial Ombudsman (FOS) can only go back to April 2007, when the law changed to allow these complaints.
Many lenders will reject complaints about something that was more than 6 years ago and say the ombudsman won’t look at them. But FOS will often look at old problems if you have only found out in the last three years that you can make the complaint.
If your account was opened in 2015 but the lender increased your limit in 2018 and 2019, then the two limit increases are within the last 6 years and can definitely be looked at.
However, complaints about things that happened more than 6 years ago may be hard for you to produce much evidence for. But if you feel you have a strong older case and you have some evidence, then take it to the Ombudsman and let them decide!
An alternative approach for old accounts
If your account was opened a long while ago and you defaulted and still owe a balance, perhaps in a DMP, think about asking the debt collector to produce the Consumer Credit Act agreement for the account.
If the current creditor can’t produce a proper copy of the agreement, the debt cannot be enforced in court and you can simply stop paying anything to it. This applies to all credit cards, store cards and catalogues.
It may be that the balance on the account is larger than any refund you might get. In which case if the CCA agreement cannot be produced, you would be better off.
Is a refund what you really need?
This depends how large your current financial problems are.
Complaining about newish debt will often only get the interest removed – you still have to repay what you borrowed. Don’t spend months arguing with lenders and going to the ombudsman if you will still be in a mess even if you win.
So phone National Debtline on 0808 808 4000, tell them you are thinking about affordability complaints but you would like to know what your other debt options are.
Poor reasons to complain
You can’t complain just because the interest rate was high or because you have paid them a fortune over the years.
A poor credit score on its own isn’t a reason why you shouldn’t have been given an account. But if your credit score was poor because you were having a lot of problems with your existing debt, the account should have been refused.
You won’t win an affordability complaint if something unexpected went wrong later in your life. If you had been managing a credit card fine for years but then you lost your job or separated from your partner and you defaulted, this isn’t the lender’s fault.
Don’t be put off by a rejection or a poor offer
Lenders often reject good cases
If a lender rejects your complaint or offers a low “goodwill” gesture, don’t be fobbed off – they want you to give up.
In particular, if the lender says you had made all the payments to them on time so they had no reason to think you had problems, you can ignore this. Or if the lender dismisses your complaint as the account was opened over 6 years ago.
When you have a Final Response from the lender – or after 8 weeks if you haven’t had a Final Response – send your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). Don’t delay doing this!
Is a “partial uphold” good enough?
If the lender says they should not have increased your credit limit in June 2018 when your limit was increased and they will give you a refund of interest for balances over the previous limit, that may sound good. It is sometimes called a partial uphold or a partial refund or proportionate interest.
But often the amount of money refunded in this situation is a lot less than you might expect. So tell the lender you want to consider their offer but need to know how large the refund will be.
Often you were already in a difficult financial situation at that point, with cards close to maxed out, being used for everyday essentials and only paying the minimums. At that point the lender should have stepped in and offered to help you by freezing all interest. That is why a partial refund is often not good enough, you should have all the interest refunded from that point.
How to send a case to FOS
Send FOS a complaint using their online form. You can use bits of what you put in your complaint to the lender. If the lender has rejected your complaint or given a poor offer, say why you think this wrong.
The FOS form at the end asks you to add supporting documents. Don’t worry if you don’t have A copy of your credit or finance agreement – lots of people don’t and the lender will supply a copy to FOS if FOS asks for it. Don’t delay sending a complaint to FOS while you try to get this from the lender.
If your credit record shows that you had other debt problems, send FOS a copy of it. If you have kept some, send the oldest one you have, otherwise send the current one. Also get your bank statements if they will support your complaint and send those to FOS too.
FOS is a friendly service but not fast. Just use normal English, not legal terms. Using a claims company or a solicitor doesn’t help or speed this up.
Ask questions below!
There are hundreds of comments from readers who are using this template. It’s a good place to see how these complaints often go and to ask any questions.
FAQs about Affordability claims
Can you get an overdraft refund?
Could a Debt Relief order help you?
Paul says
Hi,
Advice please. An adjudicator upheld my complaint and gave the company a deadline to respond by, they have not responded to say they agree or not what happens next.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
which lender? and when was the deadline?
Paul says
Hi,
TESCO and deadline yesterday.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
They will probably just be given another few weeks by FOS to respond :(
Paul says
oh well another long wait.
Thanks for advice and a great website.
Paul
Lynne says
Has anyone had a successful complaint against Next? I started off with a credit limit of £100 and before I knew where I was it was £3k! And I’d used it all!
Kim says
I had my complaint refused. Similar to you. Started off with a low credit limit then was £5000. Didn’t use all the credit. I heard back from them within about two weeks. I put the complaint in via resolver website. Now referring it to the financial ombudsman.
Lynne says
Ok thanks Kim. Did you still owe them anything or did you pay it off? They’ve told me I’ll hear from them on a week.
Ali says
Does anyone have any positive stories regarding overdrafts particularly natwest?
I had several payday loans and catalogues amounting to around 10k when I opened an account with natwest and they gave me an account with a £1250 overdraft in Jan 19. I had maxed it out within months. They did not allow any increases but surely they shouldn’t have given it me in the first place?
Since then I’ve cleared a lot of my debt with the help of a few affordability refunds from lending stream, 118118, very and safetynet. I cleared the natwest overdraft and closed the account in November 2020 and submitted a claim against natwest which they refused stating credit checks had been done and that I knew I could afford it ad I applied for it! I referred to FOS end Oct and awaiting a response which I’ve today chased up by email, just wondering if any others had same experience??
Thanks
Mick says
Hi all, I notice alot of posters asking about expected time lengths when complaint is sent to fos.
3 of my complaints went to case handlers last year. Once the case handlers had all the info, 2 of them came back to me within 3 or 4 weeks (thankfully both cases went my way).
However, my complaint regarding 118118 took 8 months to be picked up by a case handler. It was finally picked up in July 2020 and by August, the case handler emailed me to say they now had all the information needed to start investigating the complaint. Over six months has now passed and each month I receive an email saying they are still working on my complaint. I called the case handler last week and asked for an update and sadly got brushed off with “we haven’t forgotten about you” and “hopefully we’ll get back to you soon”….
So basically, in my experience there is no set timelines with FOS…it seems a bit random and this has only been further hindered by the pandemic.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you phone up FOS and say you want to make a complaint about the. Time it is taking to handle your 118 Money complaint.
mike says
What about secured loans or further advances?
I had 4 further advances on my mortgage with B’ham Midshires, even though I was in massive debt and had only just survived eviction through mortgage arrears. This was in 2012.
It’s led to me now being on an interest only mortgage that I can never pay off (because I had to re-mortgage to pay these further advances
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The affordability complaints I describe here (and on https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-large-high-cost-loans/) are not for secured lending.
The general FCA PRIN 6 though applies to all lending:
https://www.handbook.fca.org.uk/handbook/PRIN/2/1.html
A firm must pay due regard to the interests of its customers and treat them fairly.
So if you feel you should never have been given the advances, send a complaint saying the advances were clearly not in your best interests. Good luck, I haven’t seen any of these go through.
Chrissy says
Hello
I am in alot of debt with Barclaycard 23k. I am probably going to file for Bankrupcy as I have no assets. However, I was going to contact Barclaycard because my credit limit on my cards kept increasing as well as the fact that they took over Egg card and I had two visa accounts with them with 12500 limits. I was unable to use any 0% credit transfers as all of my debt was with the same company otherwise this could have been paid off by now. My partner no longer is willing to pay for the debt, I will be looking for work after lockdown as my children are in school. I also only ever paid the minimum payment which my partner paid as he was working and I used the cards for day to day expenses because I was in financial difficulty. Do you think they will refund any interest. I have been making minimum payments for many many years.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You owe Barclaycard 23k. Do you have any other debts?
Are you buying or renting?
When you get back to work, any idea what you might earn? Will you have childcare costs?
Lynne 4 says
Hi has anyone got an email address for Shop Direct or an address please. Is it best to email or write to them?
lorr2021 says
Hi Lynne did you manage to find an email address for shop direct? The only email i could find was for customer support at Very.
Chris says
Update on claim against JDWilliams. As predicted, they did not respond to the Adjudicator’s letter. He has decided not to give them any more time and my claim now goes to the Ombdusman for a final ruling.
Lauren T says
Same here! Fingers crossed it doesn’t take too long.
Mr and Mrs C says
I have just had the same Chris, final ruling took about 12 days after JDW didnt respond to them, I have accepted the final ruling of the Ombudsman in my favour and now have to wait till 8th March for JDW to make the offer. I honestly dont think they will respond in this time though.
izzy kilgallon says
ive just had my adjudicators decision yesterday and jd Williams have until 8th to respond ,if they don’t it will go to ombudsman for final ruling hopefully sooner rather than later ive had 3 accounts all in total under jd Williams. £8700 in total limit ,fortunately ive been able to clear and close all were maxed out and was paying minimum payment they are going back 4 years ,so its a fair bit . this has taken me 2 years to get this far . , can you keep me updated on your outcome.
JR says
Hi Sara,
So 3 weeks ago I submitted a complaint to Very about unaffordable lending since I opened an account with them in 2010. They initially gave me a credit limit of £600 which was manageable, but in 2012 they increased it to £1800. Being fresh out of university I thought this was great and quickly maxed out the limit and unsurprisingly struggled to pay it back, so come 2017 they reassigned the balance to their debt recovery agency and I agreed to pay £30 per month since then.
I received a letter from Very today to say that they agreed they were in the wrong and have agreed to pay a redress of £4,477.70 to my surprise!!! They also agreed to get in touch with the recovery agency to remove the default from my credit file which I’m very happy with.
Now, I have already paid back the debt to the agency and the balance has been paid in full for a while now. Where do I stand with the balance I’ve paid to that agency? If Very have agreed to give me that redress, am I in standing to contact debt recovery and ask for the money I gave them back?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Good result and quickly!
It sounds as though the refund they are sending you is intended to cover the cost of repaying the debt collector.
Lynne says
That’s great news. I’m waiting to hear from both JD Williams and Next about something similar. I initially had a £200 credit limit with both but very quickly in a matter of months that limit became £3,500 on both accounts. It’s good to hear people’s success stories in such matters!
JR says
Thanks Sara!
I wasn’t too sure as the redress from Very said;
Standard Interest = £1,664.15
BNPL deferred interest = £698.48
Administration charges = £552
8% simple interest = £1,563.07
Total = £4,477.70
I just wasn’t sure if that was all just interest only and didn’t include the actual credit?
Good luck with yours Lynne!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You only normally get the interest and charges refunded.
Michelle says
A little advice/insight,
I made an irrresponsible lending complaint to Marble card (newday) in December 2021 relating to a credit limit increase back in 2017. I also applied for an Aqua card (also newday) in December 2021 – credit rebuilding. I recieved a letter and text from Marble stating they were still looking into my complaint. I have a balance on my Marble card and I’ve just cleared the Aqua card (never towards the limit for either, I have direct debits and don’t miss payments).
logged on to my Aqua card app and saw that my account has been suspended. To cut a long story short – 35 minutes of been on the phone to Newday and speaking to a supervisor. I’ve established that my Aqua account has been closed because I made a complaint about Marble.A letter is on its way to me. The manager went through the response and advised they upheld the majority of my complaint, awarded me a sum for compensation but closed both of my accounts.My Marble card only appears active due to me having a balance on it. I actually don’t mind not having the cards, but I only use them to increase my credit score – and its been working. I know having both of these accounts closed will have an impact on my credit score and I’ve really worked hard over the last 2+ years to rebuild it. Surely this isn’t a common practice. Any advise please. I know I’ll end up going up the financial ombudsman. Which I’m more than prepared to do but just seeing if this is a normal?
Thank you
Em
Sara (Debt Camel) says
How large a refund have you been given for the Marble card?
Why would you apply for a new card the same month you were making an affordability complaint?
What problems do you have on your credit record?
Michelle says
The refund was over £1000, I didn’t hear the exact amount. I applied for the card prior to making the complaint, it came up on totally money. I have a few defaults on my file. From 2018/2019. No CCJ’s. And I took out payday loans approx 3/4 years ago.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well you will probably get offered another credit builder card in 6 months. Have you repaid all the defaulted debts?
Michelle says
I’ve almost paid the defaults. I don’t really need another credit card, I have another 2 which I don’t really use. I just don’t want the closure of the Marble and Aqua to have a significant impact on my credit score.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The effect will only be temporary.
Don’t apply for any more cards! With two cards with no problems extra cards won’t help.
IAN says
Hi, Im new to this but i complained to my bank about unaffordable and irresponsible lending, the gave me upto a 3000 overdraft, i was a compulsive gambler and funding my habits by any credit i could get my hands on whether it be payday loans, loan overdraft etc. Unfortunately gambling in an addiction and not as simple to stop as you would think even though you know the damage it causes to yourself and your loved ones, really its not a good feeling, Getting into huge Debt is just one of the consequences.
My question is, the response i got from my previous bank was when they actually looked at my statements around that time they can see clearly the i had a severe gambling addiction (lots of transactions) as well as lots of payday loans and i mean lots.
They say that at the time they gave me overdraft they did not consider my statements (even though they had immediate access to them for years) They accepted my overdraft purely on my automated credit score which was average at the time and therefore in their eyes I had met their acceptance level ? They are sending me final response in post, has at the time they looked into my credit report and statements they would have seen how badly addicted on gambling have hugely reliant on credit, basically they were my enabler at the time., this was around 2016/2017
Lucky i now dont gamble!!
I would appreciate any comments on if i should take this to the FCA for them to review ?
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think you should send it to the Financial Ombudsman (not the FCA).
Victory says
Hi Sara
It’s been a while but I was hoping you could advise me on the following. I have had a bit of back of forth with FOS regarding my NewDay credit cards: Aqua and Marbles. 4 weeks ago the Ombudsman provided a tentative decision to partially uphold my complaint by advising NewDay to refund me on the increases that the Ombudsman deemed unreasonable.
Now the Ombudsman have come back to me today suggesting that they want to withdraw the 8% simple Interest suggested in the tentative decision as he believes the interest is on charges I haven’t paid.
I don’t understand this, yes I still owe some money to NewDay but yes I have paid fees and charges towards the the debt. Could you advise please? Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think you need to ask the Ombudsman to clarify this.
This is the FOS policy on PPI refunds on credit cards:
“Where a consumer was mis-sold PPI alongside a credit card, and the policy remains in force, we will tell the business to cancel it. The approach we tell the business to take to compensate the consumer fairly will depend on the consumer’s circumstances and the current position of the credit card, but compensation will usually involve two steps:
A hypothetical reconstruction of the credit card account to find out what the current balance of the credit card account would be if the consumer had paid the same monthly payments, but the PPI policy had not been added to it. This will involve the business removing the PPI premiums, any interest that was charged on the premiums and any charges (and interest on those charges) that would not have applied if the PPI had not been added to the account. The business should then pay the consumer the difference between the current balance and what the current balance would have been without PPI.
The addition of interest (usually at our normal rate of 8% per year simple) on any credit balance for any periods when the reconstructed account would have been in credit”
Victory says
Thanks Sara, I have sent an email to get some clarification on this. It has been quite daunting but hopefully the end is near.
suzanne parry says
Does anyone have a timescale for Affordability claim against Shopdirect. I put a complaint in 8 months ago and as yet i have had no final response. I ended up with 8 different accounts and i asked them if they could join my accounts together so i had less to pay out each month or could they close some of the accounts they refused as they said they couldnt close accounts till the balance was clear and they couldnt join accounts together because my balance exceeded 10k which wasnt allowed as the maximum credit allowed between multiple accounts is 10k yet they still increased the limit on all the accounts. I ended up paying over 1k each month and i started reducing the credit limit on them myself each month after i had made a payment. I have contacted the FCA and they replied saying i need to give them time to respond its been 8 months and still nothing. I dont know what else i can do.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
can you afford the current repayments?
suzanne parry says
No but they refused to help until i defaulted for 3 months now they have put me on reduced payments but im still paying over 300 a month.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
can you afford the £300? If not you need to ask for that to be reduced while the FOS complaint goes through. Do you have other problem debts as well?
suzanne says
I cant really afford the 300 i have lots of other debts i have put them all on payment plans but shopdirect wont reduce the payments apparently i am paying the minimum and they wont accept less. I am getting nowhere with affordability claim and they dont answer any of my emails.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you talk to StepChange and get all your debts including the SD ones into a DMP – https://www.stepchange.org/how-we-help/debt-management-plan.aspx. Then SD will be given their fair share of what you can afford by StepChange.
A DMP has the same affect on your credit record as payments plans.
This won’t affect your SD complaint but it gets you into a safe place while you wait for FOS.
Neil says
Hello Sara
I just want to say a massive thank you to you and the this site. I’ve just received a letter from Very upholding my claim and they are refunding me £10692.03 in back interest, £3900 of that paying off my current balance. I also got £3000 back from lending stream. To everyone out there keep the faith and don’t hold off claiming, I’m still waiting on 2 more so fingers crossed!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
wow!
Amanda says
hi neil, can i ask how long did this take with very and did it go to obudsman?
Neil says
Hello,
It took around 6 weeks from my initial complaint, the FOS wasn’t involved. When I phoned them to make the complaint (I also wrote to them to) i asked what information they had used to repeatedly raise my limited and the reply was “oh it was automatically done”….not sure they had much come back after that!
Amanda says
thanks, i have wrote and then phoned. got all my data from them. i said about credit searches and bank statement checks.. same answer its down automatically by computer.. so i sent another email stating that.
Amanda says
1 last question, can i ask did they offer u that amount or did u have to “bargain” in need of a better word but to early in morning lol
Neil says
I did the maths and their offer was too good to turn down, my debt paid and £7.2k on top..I wasn’t worth pursuing any further. I’m know debt free and waiting on 2 more claims, I’ve won 4 out of 6 so far. I hope more people use this site and win so any questions are welcome.
loulouports says
Hello,
That’s great news! How long did Very take to get back to you with a final response?
Tracy says
Hi Neil
Ive currently got a claim in with very regarding credit limit increases. They were initially applied in 2013. How far back did your claim go?
Thankyou
Lynne says
Hi Neil well done you! May I ask how did you pursue Lending Stream? They make it very difficult to put a complaint in on their website so I’ve gone via Resolver. I placed the complaint on 10th December but they haven’t responded!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
phone them up and ask if they have your complaint. Did you try to enter it on their website form?
Neil says
Hello,
I made the complaint through the website and they came back to me within 2 weeks, which I was amazed at!
Lynne says
Wow ok thanks. Yep I’ve just tried it again and I logged in with a different email address and it let me fill the complaint form in this time so I’ve now got a ticket number for raising the complaint. Hopefully no need to ring them now Sara thanks.
Ali says
Has anyone had any luck with argos card, newday marbles and overdraft(natwest) charges refunded? I don’t think I shouldve been given the credit in the first place, no increases but high interest not allowing me to pay off debt when I was struggling with lots of other debts.
Thanks
izzy kilgallon says
has anyone had any success with jd Williams ? its taken me 2 years to get my adjudicators outcome in my favour and now have to wait until 8th march for response.
just wondered if there were any success stories
Lauren T says
I’m in the same boat- although it has gone to the ombudsman now as no response from JD Williams. There are a few of us on here it seems with outcomes in our favour and waiting for a response from them.
Lynne says
2 years?? Wow. I’ve put in a claim against them and I was getting twitchy as I’d not heard from them by 4 weeks!
Lauren T says
2 years for me too. Prepare for a looooong wait.
Chris says
Almost 2 years for me too. I have an adjudicator’s decision in my favour which has been sent up to the Ombudsman. Now waiting for that decision.
W says
Has anyone got an email address for a complaint to ‘fluid’ (apparently taken over by newday?)
My sister is in the process of a complaint however after writing to them as she couldn’t find an email, they requested to call her. But the complaint hasn’t been dealt with and just been brushed off. So she’s sending another letter but woukd like to also send an email.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Tell her to phone again and say she wants a response in writing or the complaint goes to the Ombudsman 8 weeks after her first letter.
Dave says
Hi,
Great website and good advice. My adjudicator ruled in my favour against Tesco credit card but Tesco never replied even with a 2 week extension so now my case has been referred to an Ombudsman. I know I will be in the queue but how long is the wait for a final answer.
Thanks
Scott says
Hi Dave,
There isn’t really a set time scale for a final decision to be received, it all depends on a couple of things.
The obvious one being dependent on how busy they are and the cases in front of yours.
Another factor is whether the Ombudsman agrees completely with the original decision.
If they don’t agree completely, they will give a provisional decision and give both yourself and the company time to respond before issuing their final decision.
It is just a waiting game now.
Scott
Dave R says
Hi Sara,
I had a credit card from May 2014 to October 2020 with a small limit £200. I rarely used this and didn’t manage it very well for years. Would often max it out and pay off minimum repayment/interest and leave it for months and months – to then clear and reuse it again every now and then. I’ve got some missed payments on there in 2017 and 1 in January 2018 but since then it was managed well before I eventually closed it. I had numerous pay day loans and loans at the time of being given it.
Is there any point in sending an affordability complaint for this?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I doubt it. The two factors that help people win these complaints are:
1) having their credit limit increased to a very high level, more than they could afford – but your limit was very low and never increased
2) only making the minimum payments consistently – but sometimes you cleared the card.
Dave R says
I figured as much. Will save my energy for fights where the odds are more in my favour. The missed payments were 3-4 years ago so hopefully not too bad.
Frances says
I wonder if you can help with an IRL and vanquis.?In 2009 I applied for a vanquis card and was accepted with a £200 limit .
At this point I was two years into a DMP paying, my credit record showed that I had 12 defaults less than 3 yrs old and and debts amounting to twice my annual salary at the time. Vanquis then continued increasing my credit limit, I couldn’t keep up the payments and took out payday loans to keep up. at the final increase were they up my limit to £3000,my credit file in 2011 showed the Dmp plus new debt taken on in the form of pay day loans . I have my credit files from the time. I finally couldn’t pay them and was terrified of losing my credit rating again on at least three separate occasions I had to contact them and they wiped off a months interest payments for me to pay but didn’t take any further action or put me on a payment plan to reduce the balance, charges were added and interest keep piling on. It was such a mess I had a significant injury in 2019 which made me accept my issues and make changes. There is still debt outstanding. I am not sure if credit cards are treated differently to pay day loans?Given that it’s so long ago but I do have evidence to prove my claim do you think it’s worth putting a complaint in? I have all the paper trail to back up my claims Thank you in advance for your help
Sara (Debt Camel) says
An good example of how fear about credit ratings causes people to make very foolish decisions.
As the article above explains, one thing you can complain about is if your credit limit was increased when Vanquis should already have known – from your credit record and your card payment history with them – you were in difficulty.
Expect Vanquis to reject a complaint because it is over 6 years ago but take it to the ombudsman.
Frances says
Thanks so much – I will go ahead and keep you updated
CD says
Hi Sara,
I have a couple questions about newday/marbles.
I’ve been in a paydown plan with marbles and they didn’t suspend the card. Basically what’s been happening is the paydown plan is locked in at 48 months and the balance is reducing at the fixed rate but the new balance is just essentially new debt. Every month my minimum month is increasing, because of the new debt and fixed paydown plan amount I’ve only just realised. I just don’t think its fair, especially if someone was overlimimit consistently when they introduced the paydown plan. I’ve frozen my card and it’s probably something they’ve should of done as barclays did the same. I just don’t know how people would get out of persistent debt if they can still use the card and create a new debt balance which would likely rollover again once the first paydown plan finishes.
My last question is, shall I put a claim in against newday? I had a credit limit of 800 in 2015 and 4 months later theh increased it to 1900, I had about 5 missed payments on other credit account’s at the time of my application being accepted. In 2015 up until the limit increase there was around 5 missed payments and I also was at max or over the balance on my other credit cards. I.e. had a 1500 limit for barclays and it was over 1500 most of 2015 except 1 or 2 months.
Let me know your thoughts.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
are they charging interest on the balance that is being reduced in this paydown plan?
Cd says
Yes they are at 33%.
Think I might complain on the limit and this potentially, let me know your thoughts
CD says
Hi Sara,
Just wanted to provide update on this. Marbles gave me a full refund of interest and fees of approx 1800. This cleared my debt off with them as they agreed they shouldn’t have increased my limit by that amount whilst being over limit on other accounts.
Just want to say thank you for all the information you provide on here.
pamela says
Hi it says to ask in comments why not to do this if you have gone into an IVA, I am in a protected trust deed(Scottish equivalent of an IVA) which I seriously regret but I am worried if I come out of it I won’t be able to do irresponsible lending claims ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Can I suggest you ask this on https://www.advicescotland.com/home/protected-trust-deed/ which is a site run by a Scottish debt adviser.
Franki says
Hi Sara
Not sure if I’m commenting on the right thread but I took out finance about 4/5 years ago with pay later they did a check of my bank accounts electronically so I’m assuming this is sufficient of checking my affordability but since taking that agreement out I encountered a series of a financial issues but have been paying what I can for quite some time. I realised I’ve paid a lot to this company and have asked them for a statement. They said I owe just over £100 on my original agreement but now owe them over £370 in fees on top of this. Just seems really unjust and keeping me stuck in this agreement
Sara (Debt Camel) says
“pay later”
who is the lender?
Franki says
Their name is ‘payl8r’ im trying to find their legal entity but struggling
It’s social money ltd t/a payl8r thank you :)
Sara (Debt Camel) says
do you have other problem debts as well?
have you asked them to froeeze interest and charges so you can clear the debt?
have you stopped using this account?
Franki says
Yes I have lots of credit accounts and probably did have at the time of borrowing. It was a one off purchase 4/5 years so havent used the credit facility again after this. I’ve never asked them to freeze interest so I can clear the debt no
Rob Gore says
Hi, does anyone know how to complain to Lloyds Bank? is there an email address that anyone can share? there website tends to run you around in circles
Thanks, rob
Kim says
Hi, I have made all my complaints through the resolver website. Maybe try that way?
Dave says
Hi,
My complaint is now in a queue for a final decision by an ombudsman.
Tesco never replied to the adjudicators decision.
I have now entered a 3 month payment plan with Tesco.
Should I inform the Ombudsman about this or leave it.
Thanks
Dave
Sara (Debt Camel) says
it isn’t relevant to the Ombudsman’s decision.
Lea says
Hi
Has any one had any experience or even success with nationwide complaints ? Overdraft or credit card?
Currently in the final decision queue waiting In ombudsman to pick up after nationwide did not agree with adjudicator . Is anyone on here currently in the queue for final ombudsman decision ? Priority or not priority queue? If so how long been waiting?
Also if any ones recently had their case picked up by final decision ombudsman how long had you been waiting?
Everytime I ask them how they queue works for final decision ombudsman is it first come first served or another way …they ignore that question and answer all my other questions. If anyone knows the answer to that on here would be good to know too .
Thanks
Lea
Mark says
Hi
I’ve received what appears to be a slightly different letter to those listed above from Barclaycard, headed “We’re giving you a refund of some default fees on your account” I didn’t ask for this, Barclaycard just did it.
It goes onto say that how they have applied fees historically may have affected my financial circumstances – it absolutely did. I have three accounts with them, all cancelled and have been for at least 10 years and I am simply paying down a balance every month with in excess of £10k across all three still to go.
I have been given a refund on each of the three accounts, but there is absolutely no calculation as to how this has been done, simply states it includes any interest that was charged on the default fees.
Anyone else had this at all? They have reduced the outstanding balances by the refunded amounts which hasn’t really scratched the surface.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
when was interest frozen on these accounts – was it from the start?
How long ago were the accounts opened? were the credit limits increased to an unmanageably high level.
Mark says
The interest has never been frozen as every time I enquired about that, the suggestion was it would impact my credit file.
One account opened in 1994, currently £7.5k limit and cancelled, One in 2001(originally Egg), currently £11.5k limit and cancelled, and another in 2001(originally Morgan Stanley), currently £2.5k limit and cancelled. All were on much lower limits to start with and were increased a number of times when getting close to the original limits, but as to when and by how much I have no record of unfortunately.
All I have been doing since about 2010 is clearing down from the card limits above with barely anything over the minimum amounts, but also late on a huge number of occasions. Total balances are still in excess of £10k and the interest that has been paid on them is probably 2-3 times that.
I do not know why they wrote regarding the “Default Fees” but not the credit limit increases to be honest.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok, so two options for you.
1) you go back to them and say that their offer is really inadequate as they have increased your credit records to unsustainably high levels and not helped you even though they know from the late payments and the low amounts you have been repaying that you have been in trouble. Say this is an affordability complaint, ask for a refund of all interest since 2010 or you will send the complaint to the ombudsman.
2) you ask them to produce the consumer credit Act Agreements for all three accounts. See https://debtcamel.co.uk/ask-cca-agreement-for-debt/. This usually only works if a debt has been sold, but these accounts are so old it is worth trying. If they can’t produce the CCA agreement the debt is unenforceable in court and you can stop paying. This would damage your credit score.
Mark says
Thank you Sarah, appreciate it
I can’t find anything anywhere as to why they would have just randomly sent the three letters allowing the refunds and headed them “Refund of Default Fees” – I suspect they realise they have not managed it properly but don’t want to admit irresponsible lending and hope I’ll just accept them. All three added together total less than £800.00.
I’d be happy to go to the ombudsman if I have to, but have seen older than 6 years the chances of success are slim, more so given I don’t have copies of everything. Is that your understanding?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
These accounts are still open. Barclaycard must have all the details about them.
Mark says
So Barclaycard have bounced this that as the last credit increase was 2006, and I didn’t complain within 6 years of that, or 3 years in terms of being a reasonable time to complain – that they do not need to investigate.
This is despite them admitting that they acted inappropriately in respect of late payments and fees.
Any ideas how to combat this, I only realised I could complain when that actually wrote to me and I investigated?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The law changed in 2007. No-one has won an affordability complaint for any decision that happened before that date, so I don’t think you will get anyone with an affordabil;ty complaint as the credit limit increases were before 2007.
There are some possible other options, but to try to look at the most likely, can you say what the rest of your finances like? Do you have other large loans or credit card bils? Overdraft? Are you buying or renting?
Also did you ever get letters from Barclaycard about “persistent credit card debt” – these would have been from 2018?
And did you ever speak or write to Barclaycard about your problems and missed payments?
Mark says
Hi
Yes, other credit card also with high limits and minimum payments.
Own a house my ex wife lives in with mortgage, I currently rent.
Definitely had persistent debt notices previously.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So you never spoke or wrote to Barclaycard about your problems?
Mark Gooda says
Yes, on many occasions and was always told there was little they could do to help outside of Payment Arrangements that would always impact my credit file. Never had they suggested freezing interest or similar
Mark says
Hi
Have spoken to them numerous times over the years and complained about other adjustments to the accounts that never carry an explanation.
They’ve never really offered support and if anything were ever offered it would always impact my credit file.
Thanks
Lisa says
Hi Sara
Do you know if Capital One generally agree with an adjudicator?
Also how is the 8% worked out. I know that you will only receive interest on any amount left after the remaining balance is cleared, but what if the balance has only been paid off in the last few months. Do they only pay interest from when the blanace was paid?
Lauren T says
So I’ve heard from JD William’s today that it has been agreed with the FOS that they are behind with complaints and have asked for extensions until the end of March to answer any complaints. Hope this isn’t the case, it’s been a long 2 years as it is. Has anyone else heard this information?
Gary says
I was advised of an extension to the 5th March from 16th feb agreed between FOS and JDW so will send an email tomorrow to see if they’ve asked for another extension when was yours extended from to end of March?
Lauren T says
Hi Gary, the extension was from 26th Feb to 31st March!!! I feel like JD Williams are really dragging this out. But I have been told my case has been referred to the Ombudsman now, so will be waiting for that decision anyway. Such a waiting game.
izzy kilgallon says
hi just an update on mine , jd Williams has requested extension from 9th march until 26th march for response. reasoning being to the current situation. im sure it will be like everyone else and go from adjudicator to ombudsman for final decision.
Amy says
Hi
Just want to say thank you for this article! I complained to Aqua (NewDay Ltd) about unaffordable lending on my credit card using the template on this page in December 2020.
To be honest I didn’t expect much and I didn’t hear back from the Complaints team for some time. However, they have cleared my balance (£900) and have updated my credit report to remove any negative markers on the missed payments. I’m still waiting on a formal letter to show the breakdown of how they have calculated the refund but hopefully is on it’s way.
I’m over the moon and it only took me around 15 minutes to amend the template and check my credit file for the exact dates of any credit limit increases and other missed payments on my file.
Again, thank you! This site is a fantastic resource and am truly grateful.
Ali says
Hi, just out of interest, did they increase your limit or always 900? Mine was 900 and complained about they shouldn’t of given me the card due to other debts at the time, they refused so with FOS now, I’ve paid the balance now but wanting get interest and late fees etc back as my minimum payment only just covered this so was never getting anywhere with clearing the balance!
Thanks
Lea says
Hi Sara
Just had a question regarding an overdraft complaint form a few years ago, at the time it was given I had a lot of payday loans and gambling transactions debts etc. Will the gambling transactions affect my complaint at all in a negative way?
Thanks
Lea
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Your complaint is that they increased your limit too high?
Was the gambling visible on the bank statements?
Lea says
Hi Sara
Yes the complaint is that’s it was too high and yes they are very visable on the statement for a number of years? The company in question are saying the credit checks they did at the time for eligibility for I passed which is why the increase in limit (not sure how as my credit rating was poor and I had various payday loans and was also already overdrawn with them by a lesser amount living in my overdraft month on month) . They say they can see the gambling transactions on my overdraft but they say that means I wasn’t in financial hardship ..even though also my rent and bills travel etc was all on overdraft as I could never get out I was stuck in it as it was upped to £5k. Then a few months down the line (maybe 6-8 months after increasing ) they suddenly took my whole overdraft facility away from me with a weeks notice by letter and said I had to pay it back immediately or set set up a payment plan (I had to do the payment plan which in turn has left a mark on my credit report for 6 years ) .
Thanks
Lea
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think you should ask the Ombudsman to look at this complaint.
Lea says
Will do.
Thanks
Lea
DM84 says
I have had an upheld decision from the Ombudsman now regarding my JD Williams account. I had to respond to say if I accept or not by 8th March.
JD Williams haven’t responded to either the adjudicator or Ombudsman decision now.
Has anyone received a refund from JD Williams or any communication regarding their cases? What will happen if they don’t respond by the end of the deadline?
Sianyyyy says
How long did it take for the ombudsman to be assigned after the adjudicator? I have my complaint upheld by adjudicator but JD Williams missed the deadline. Just wondering how much longer it’ll now take for an ombudsman to be assigned
DM84 says
It was really quick considering the length of time it took to get my adjudicators decision. My original complaint was August 2018 and my adjudicators final decision received 26th January 2021. The Ombudsman’s final deciosn came 16th February 2021 after receiving no response from JDW. I don’t know what to do now ad they have ignored both judgements.
izzy says
hi wondered if you were any further forward with jd Williams
DM84 says
Nothing yet sorry.
I contacted JDW and they just said they were reviewing my file.
I will post on here if I hear anything back.
chris says
I think there may be a bit of to-ing and fro-ing between JDW and the Ombudsman. There is a helpful guide on here if that doesn’t result in anything though at https://debtcamel.co.uk/enforce-financial-ombudsman-decision/
I have also been waiting nearly 2 years. I have got the Adjudicator’s ruling in my favour and it is now with the Ombudsman because JDW failed to respond. JDW is being slow – not really in their interests as the 8% interest charge continues to accrue.
Jay says
Hi Sara,
A couple of years ago I got into an Unarranged overdraft with Halifax which kept building up fees and mounted to around £250, at the time I couldn’t afford to pay it at all, this is now a default on my credit file and is with a debt collection agency – do you think I have any chance complaining against this?
Thank you
Paul says
Did you have any other debts at the time and do you have them still now?
Paul says
Hi
I still owe a debt from the Very account which resulted in a CCJ that I am still paying off If the debt is still there but I feel they should not have given me such a limit or increased the limit, what should I be asking for? The debt written off and removed from credit file or just the interest to be removed?
Many thanks
Paul
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You should be asking for the interest to be removed, for the default to be deleted and for Very to arrange for the CCJ to be “set aside”.
izzy kilgallon says
hi does anyone have a positive outcome from jd Williams? everyone seems to be in the same position with them
Mr and Mrs C says
I am still waiting – 3 years after i started the claim, 2 years with the FOS, and the FOS has decided in my favour. JDW have now had a month to make the offer of interest plus 8%, I have heard nothing, contacted the FOS and have been told to give them another 2 weeks due to the age of the calculations (2008 onwards)
Isobel Kilgallon says
keep us updated x
Jamie says
Hi Sara,
A while back I went into an unarranged overdraft with Halifax and fees mounted to about £250 which I could not afford, I now have a default on my file from this, do you think this is worth putting a complaint in for?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I doubt it. It was a small amount and as it was unarranged, they never actually set a credit limit for you.
George says
I currently have a number of debts which are causing a lot of stress and I feel as though they were not affordable at the time of lending. The debts are:
– Vanquis £3500
– MBNA £2300
– capital one £1700
– NatWest loan £3800
– TSB loan £7800
Would you be able to let me know what info is required to see if I have reasonable affordability claims please?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
are you up to date with payments but are struggling? or have you missed some payments?
Do you have other financial problems eg rent / council tax / utility arrears?
George says
Hi Sara,
Thank you for such a quick response.
I have recently had a pay increase at work and so would not say struggling as such, however, the money that I pay towards my debts far outweighs my disposable income. Prior to my pay increase, I was struggling to keep up with payments and so would make the minimum payment and then spend the money that had been paid onto the card until maxed out on all three above. I’ve now created a very tight budget and trying to pay back vanquis first with £300 a month going onto it but I still have around £500 a month going into the other debts and so it seems like there is no end in sight for paying these off!
I don’t have any missed payments, but the debt has just got bigger to avoid missing payments.
Thanks,
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You MUST step out of this cycle of ever-increasing debt. Affordability complaints are not quick and they are not guaranteed to work so they are not a safe choice for you at the moment unless you also get your payments lowered to an affordable level.
You may be trying to protect your credit record, but if your debts carry on going up you will soon be having to pay higher interest rates and may ultimately have to opt for one of the forms of insolvency which are much worse for your credit record than arrangements to pay or even defaults.
I suggest you talk to StepChange about a debt management plan, see https://www.stepchange.org/how-we-help/debt-management-plan.aspx. There interest is frozen and charges stopped (legally it doesnt have to be but in practice almost all creditors do, including all the ones on your list) and all your payments actually reduce your debts. You can make payment arrangements yourself with all the creditors but with more than a couple this is a lot more stressful to negotiate amounts individually than getting StepChange to deal with them all and offer each a fair amount.
You can do this IN ADDITION to making affordability complaints. If you then win the affordability complaint, the balance on your DMP will drop a lot and it will end much sooner. And any negative marks on your credit record should be removed. The DMP gets you into a safe position where you can sit back and wait for complaints to go through – and reject any poor offers from lenders hoping to settle a case cheap as you are desperate and can’t wait for a proper result from the Financial Ombudsman.
Making affordability complaints. These are a bit different for loans and credit cards.
For the NatWest and TSB loans, the question is when you got the loan were the repayments unaffordable – you could not manage them and still be able to pay all your other debts, bills and everyday living expenses. Read https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-large-high-cost-loans/ and use the template letter there.
For Vanquis, MBNA and Capital One, the important thing is whether they increased your credit limit when they should have realised it would be unaffordable if they had seen you were only making minimum payments and had checked how much debt you already had on your credit record. Read the article above these comments which looks at these complaints and use the template letter there.
MEG says
Hello,
Can affordability complaints only be made about accounts which were opened up to 2017?
I have 4 NewDay cards opened from Jan 2019 which have a combined balance of around £12k. They were not affordable as I was borrowing more each month across the cards and increasing credit limits too – something they should have noticed, surely?
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No, 2017 has no significance, there is no “only accounts before” date at all.
John says
Submitted a claim to FOs (against my bank for an overdraft) in November and nothing back bar an email saying they’re delayed. Anyone got an idea on how long this is taking currently?
No it was more I applied for a loan in 2016 and was denied. I think went on my online backing, hit three buttons and got an immediately overdraft approved for double what they denied me as a loan. I had lots of other debts including a CCJ and 3x defaults, which I guessed is why the loan was declined. Anyway the bank account effectively went to default as I used it to pay off my other debts and then got into a spiral. I think the overdraft was issued irresponsibly.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That sounds like a strong case! Send it to the ombudsman if the bank rejectes it.
You can read the template letter on the page I linked to, but you should change to emphasise that you were approved for a much larger overdraft straight after being rejected for a loan. You should be asking for a refund of all the charges on the overdraft.
What is your current financial situation like?
Fairy dust says
Does anyone have the address for the Barclays redress scheme I’ve lost the note that was with the response doem? Thanks so much
Belle says
Hi Sara, hope you are well. I put in an affordability complaint with Barclays credit card. They have written to me telling me they have upheld my complaint and agree they should of never given me the card. However they are only offering an apology and £75. Do you think I shod go back to them or send straight to Fos. Thank you.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you go back to them ask for a refund of the interest you paid and for any negative marks to be removed from your credit record. If they don’t agree, send it to FOS.
Lisa says
Hi
Capital One have agreed to settle my complaint in line with the adjudicator recommendations, refund all interest etc. Has anyone had any experience and know how long they take to sort out?
A Harrison says
Congratulations on your result
Lisa says
Thank you, im so pleased and grateful for this website.
Sharper says
Hi Lisa, it took roughly 16 days from acceptance before they paid out. I rang Capital One and gave them my bank details for the payment rather than waiting for a cheque – it might worth you doing the same.
Lisa says
Hi Thank you for your response. I will give them a call, not sure if i will be due anything but if it clears balance im happy.
Ali says
Hi
I have complained to natwest about affordability with regards to a £1,250 overdraft a few years ago when I also had other debts which I have received redress from. Natwest refused so went to FOS end oct and awaiting reply.. I was just wondering how banks are generally with this and any chance of refund of interest etc as I’ve only had from payday loans.
Thanks
Lynne says
Hi Ali I complained to NatWest – it wasn’t an overdraft it was about a personal loan. They sent me a very polite (lengthy!) reply but they said the loan wasnt unaffordable and so they said the matter was closed. It was disappointing. I’d had a bit of good news from payday lenders so thought maybe the ‘big banks’ would be favourable too. Alas not the case.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Most affordability complaints about banks have to go to the Ombudsman – have you sent yours?
Ali says
Hi
I complained direct to natwest, they didn’t uphold so went to FOS and now waiting for response since October last year…
Jenny says
Good evening, does anyone have an email address to write a complaint for irresponsible lending to Aqua/New Day please?
Carl says
Hi Sara,
Please could you give some advice.
Complained about irresponsible lending to capital 1 and Vanquis, both went to ombudsman and with an investigator at present who called me today to ask why I did not complain within the 6 year period etc. I explained I did not know I could do this until I spoke to citizen advice when pandemic happened and started to panic about how I would struggle more now with not working. The investigator said he still didn’t think he could take those conplaints further – can I ask what exactly are you meant to say because that is the truth – I didn’t know I could complain until last March when advised of it. He said he would probably only be able to look at the last credit increase as it’s within the 6 year period. Any advice as to how I could help with this before they make a decision? Thank you. The credit limits in both cards were at £250 as a start and went to £3500.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
GoO back and say that you have only recently found out last year, when you took debt advice, that a lender should have checked the new limit would be affordable for you. So you could not have complained before as you were unaware there was a reason why the lender should not have done this. Point out that you have complained within three years of finding out that you could.
Ask for the decision to go to an ombudsman if the adjudicator will not change their mind.
Carl says
Thanks Sara. He said he was happy to look at the last credit increase because it’s within 3 years of me knowing I could complain but wouldn’t look at when I opened the card accounts on all 3 and the 4 increases before that because it was before the 6 years. I explained I wasn’t aware I could until I seemed advice from citizens advice and he still went on to say I could send to ombudsman if I wasn’t happy but that he would keep looking into it at the moment. It’s really bad when people are genuinely been truthful that I wasn’t aware I could complain about company’s irresponsibly lending to me to pay other lenders etc.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
OK so make sure the “6 year decision” is definitely going to an Ombudsman. Be very clear about this.
A Harrison says
Hi there
A couple of years ago I complained to Barclaycard about irresponsible lending. My credit card limit went from £1500 to £11500 in two years. During that time it was maxed out and I had a silly amount of credit else where. At the time they declined my claim, as they felt I didn’t have a case. Since then the account has defaulted and now settled. Last year I received a letter, saying that they “may” have increased my credit limit too much. After calling they offered me £75 as a token of goodwill, but still felt that although the credit limit was high it didn’t put me in any financial trouble. I felt extremely cheated by them, as my complaint was about the credit limit being too high and I felt it was irresponsible, and they basically said ‘NO’, then I received a letter some time later saying exactly what I had said! I have since taken it to the Ombudsman, who have in turn taken it back to Barclaycard. They have written to me three times, extending the date in which they will come to a decision, and Im still waiting a response. 1st April is the next date they have given me.
I know this may not help anyone yet, but I am hoping that they remove the default from my credit file.
I have also now written to my other creditors, who I feel should have realised that my spending was out of control.
Lynne says
Hi Sara I’ve got this reply from next in regards to an unaffordability complaint. Is this acceptable do you think? Bearing in mind I’ve waited 8 weeks for this reply!
We have recognised that the increase in April 2017 was very sharp, from £150.00 to £3,750.00 which we now consider to be inappropriate. So I have arranged for the account to be bought back from Debt Manager Services, and once back with us the outstanding balance will be reduced by £535.44, which is based on the amount of interest charged on any possible additional borrowing (this includes the late payment fee of £7.50 and the 8% simple interest).
Once the account is back with Next we’ll be happy to arrange an interest free repayment plan until the balance has been paid in full.
I am upholding your compliant on this occasion, as we identified an un-proportionate increase of your credit limit in 2017.
By way of my personal apology for this, I’d like to offer you £100.00 by whatever method you’d prefer (credit to balance, gift card or bank transfer).
Kindly confirm your sort code and account number, if you’d prefer a bank transfer, and I’ll be happy to get this arranged.
This email is what is known as our ‘Final Response’. Please keep a copy of this information for your records.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Do you know what the balance is at the moment?
Do you feel £5335 + 100 is a fair offer?
Lynne says
I don’t know what the balance is at the moment but it’s pretty high. I thought I did use the whole credit limit but they say I didn’t. I don’t think £100 seemed very much tbh, but based on the fact they said it was their final response and I literally have no money as I lost my job I thought maybe I should take what I can.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think you should ask them what your current balance is and say you are surprised they say the extra interest is only £535.44 as you thought it was more, so could they explain how they have calculated this.
You may not get much cash back but it may be they should be reducing your debt by more than they have suggested,
Lynne says
Yes ok I’ve asked them that question. I’ve also asked if they would offer a cash refund of £250 and explained to them that I am currently unemployed. If they do want me to start making payments again on an interest free basis I think it’s only right they know my current position. I haven’t paid anything towards this debt since 2017 and nor have I heard from them in that time! I thought it worth a try anyway.
Lynne says
Has anyone had any success with JD Williams? I am in a similar position with them as I was with next, in that they increased my credit limit from £150 to over £3k in a really short space of time. I filed a complaint in early February. I realise they have 8 weeks to respond (although they seem to deliberately use the full 8 weeks!). I’ve had nothing from them other than an automated response.
Dawn says
I am almost 3 years down the line with this one now. Simply be and JDW. FOS have decided in my favour in January and I’m still waiting for JDWs calculations. Each time the Fos gives them more time. It’s really annoying
Lynne says
No response from next – not even to confirm they have my bank details. Maybe when they said it was their final response they meant exactly that!
Lynne says
Latest message from next complaints:
We’ve received your latest e-mail. Thank you for contacting us again and we’ll get back to you just as soon as we can.
I sent them my bank details yesterday afternoon in the hope I’d get my cash back quickly. This message came at 6:30am today so it’s not as if it was an automated one! Looks like I’m in for a bit of a wait then…..
Lynne says
Here’s the Update from Next Sara. What does she mean they’ve ‘added’ 8%?
Just to let you know, I’ve arranged for the £100.00 apology payment to be transferred into your bank account. Please allow 3-5 working days to receive this payment.
In the meantime, you mentioned the interest refund of £535.44. To help explain, I’ve added all the interest charged on the account since the increase in April 2017 and added 8% to the total.
The balance was £3508.84 when the account was sold on 11 July 2019, so the interest will be deducted from the remaining balance once the account is back with us.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
do you know when they stopped adding interest?
Amanda McCullough says
sara ive had several issues with payday loans that resulted in me missing several payments on a credit card 1 year ago, i did have this card for several years and no issues until then.. do you think i could appeal this to see if they would remove the marks since im doing affordiabilty complaints that connected to my missed paymemts? I am nearly done in paying the card off to close it.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No, that isn’t likely to work.
Delyth says
Hi sara
Do you have email addresses for:
PayPal credit
Admiral loans
Has anyone had any results from either company?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Admiral try loansquality@admiralgroup.co.uk
Xubo says
Does anyone know how long it takes to hear back from Very, I got a letter saying they’ll look into but nothing and has anyone had positive outcomes from them
Sara (Debt Camel) says
A couple of good results reported recently: https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-catalogue-credit-card/comment-page-20/#comment-413760 and https://debtcamel.co.uk/wp-admin/comment.php?action=editcomment&c=410428
Ali says
Mine was no longer than 6 months from date of complaint, maybe only a few months. They reduced my balance over £1000 from around £1300 then I paid the remaining off. They increased my balance a couple of times but I was more concerned about the interest charged which they refunded.
Al says
Bit an update for anyone that’s interested, plus some questions if anyone has any ideas.
Complained to NewDay in 2019 (6k limit maxed out cards cancelled, but pay down plan set up) about lending without good enough checks. Went to ombudsman last year (they didn’t agree) and investigator upheld, but NewDay disagreed again. So vent to ombudsman who got back last week and sided with NewDay. Not fully decided yet, but says it’s unlikely too – even though I’ve given comments.
Obviously very disappointing – and I’ve given some comments. Don’t feel like decisions are consistent with each other. In a many other cases on the site say better checks should have been done, but my ombudsman says they didn’t need too although the circumstances are the same. Lots of other examples of varying viewpoints between ombudsman’s – and my letter doesn’t clearly state why they’ve come to a different view – just says their view differs. Also, NewDay added extra information that the ombudsman used despite not being relevant – details about payments holidays last year. But this has been used to cast NewDay in a more positive light which I don’t think is fair. Anyway, really upsetting turn of events in my case – but can’t see much I can do about it now,
Demi says
Hello Sara,
I am asking on behalf of my partner.
He took out a Vanquis credit card in July 2018 with a credit limit of £500.
It defaulted in June 2019 with a balance of £619.
£129 of this balance was made up of late fees and interest.
He didn’t make any payments towards the account.
At the time of taking out the credit card, he:
• was unemployed and remained so until December 2019
• was not and still isn’t a homeowner
• had and still has £797 credit card debt with another lender
• had and still has an outstanding CCJ of £5,532
• had and still has approx. £4,000 council tax arrears (although he was not asked about bills at the time of application)
The account is now with Lowell who wrote to him a couple of times to set up a payment plan.
He is not able to make any payment though.
I would appreciate if you could clarify whether he has a case for unaffordability please?
Many thanks, Demi
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Is he not able to make any payments even though he is now in work?
Demi says
Sorry, I didn’t clarify his employment status properly.
He became self-employed in December 2019 but has had no income due to the pandemic.
So, he is still unable to make payments.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think this doesn’t sound that strong a case for an affordability complaint as the credit limit was so low.
But I think he could do with some good debt advice on his whole position. I suggest he talks to National Debtline on 0808 808 4000 about his whole situation, not just this old Vanquis debt,
Lynne says
Can you believe this. I filed a complaint against JD Williams at the start of February and had no response. I asked them today if there was any update and they’ve said can I tell them again what the issue is so they can look into it!!! What? So they’ve seemingly deleted the emails then? So now even longer to wait!
Scott says
Hi Lynne,
Chances are that this will end up at FOS anyway.
After 8 weeks from when you complained just take it to FOS. If JDW make an unusually good offer you can just close your FOS complaint.
Scott
Lynne says
Thanks Scott. They’ve now responded saying they’ll get back to me ‘in 5 days’ ! I’m sure they just pick a number out the air.