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?
Sam says
Hi Sara I’m just wondering if u could help me the ombudsman has ruled that NewDay should refund all charges interest and charges from them upping my credit limit over £2500 the total limit on the card is 5100 I’m confused as what it means I’ve been paying £200 a month since 2017 that’s when they uppet the limit any advise would be helpful thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
is this an adjudicator decision or an Ombudsman decision?
can you copy out the exact wording?
Sam says
Ombudsman decision it says that they shouldn’t have increased the card limit after the £2500 in July 2015 as they could see that there was large cash withdrawals so in 2017 they increased it to £3100 then in 2018 they increased it to £5100 so all charges and intresest over the 2500 should be refunded and 8 percent added if they owe me but if I still owe them they should come to a agreement to repay and credit file to be rectified
Sara (Debt Camel) says
so this is from an Ombudsman not an adjuidcator?
Sam says
Yes NewDay dint agree with the adjudicator and asked for ombusbman to review it which they did and agreed with the adjudicatorers decision
Josh says
I can confirm you opened your Aqua account ending 4046 on 18 June 2007. Therefore, due to the time elapsed, we do not have a record of the underwriting details of your application as it was more than six years ago.Your credit limit was increased once during the lifetime of the account. The dates and amounts are as follows: 1 September 2007 – I know that the account remained open after this, but that change when NewDay decided to extend the credit. It therefore follows, that it change the date of the event being complained about, and you complain within six years of that date. NewDay also has to consider when you ought to reasonably have been aware of the cause to complain and I believe that you ought to reasonably have been aware, at the latest, when your account was sold to Cabot in July 2011. I can confirm you opened your Aqua account ending 7648 on 4 April 2013. Therefore, due to the time elapsed, we do not have a record of the underwriting details of your application as it was more than six years ago. Your credit limit was increased twice during the lifetime of the account. The dates and amounts are as follows:12 August 2013 – 3 January 2014 – I know that the account remained open after this, but that change when NewDay decided to extend the credit. It therefore follows, that it change the date of the event being complained about, and you complain within six years of that I am unable to uphold your complaint.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So you has two Aqua accounts. The first opened in 2007 and sold to Cabot in 2011, so you presumably defaulted on it some time in 2010? Do you know what the balance was when it was sold to Cabot?
Then they gave you another account in 2013 – what was the limit then? At that point has you repaid the debt now with Cabot?
And they increased the limit on this in 2013 and 2014 – do you know what to? Had you only been making minimum payments? What happened to this account – is it still open?
Josh says
I defaulted first aqua card in 2010.
£500 increased to £1000. I dont remember outstanding balance when sold to cabot in 2011 but I paid off this balance in April 2013.
The second card opened April or August 2013 £250 first limit increased to £1050 and £1250.
I paid off first card balance with Cabot months before issuing the second one.
I was making minimum payment that time and the balance sold to Capquest debt. I havent paid anything to this account and still open.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
then i suggest you send the complaint to the Ombudsman. Say they should never have increased the limit on your first card. And never have given you the second card., let alone increased the limit on it so high.
Josh says
The final response from vanquis mentioned about 6 years time limit to complaint and they dont have any underwriting details about my accounts.
How do i convince ombudsman?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
when did you open the Vanquis account? Did Vanquis increase your credit limit, if so, when?
Josh says
First account in 2007. £500 to £1000
Account paid off with cabot debt in 2013
Second account in 2013. £250 to £1050 and £1250 (2014). Balance outstanding.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
is this Vanquis or Aqua/Newday?
Josh says
Sorry. Its Aqua credit card accounts not Vanquis.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Just write out what happened. And explain that alsothough you knew you had got into finacial difficulty with the card repayments, you thought that was your own fault for not being better with money, you had no idea that the lender had a duty to check that limit increases were affordable, you found out about this in [month/year] when [explain how you heard about these complaints] so you are complaining within 3 years of becoming aware you had cause to complain.
Danni says
Hi Sara,
I have only now come across your site and I wish I found you sooner! So my situation *long story short* I started with one Barclaycard and then over the period of 6 years ended up with 2 Barclaycards, Provident loan, Vanquis card, Next store card and brand new car on finance, along with other debts.
I couldn’t manage the minimum payments so started a DMP where I was paying £100 a month and this lasted 3 years before the company suggested I moved to an IVA with them. I’m now in my 3rd year of the IVA paying £80 a month.
So for the last **6 years** I have been paying 80-100 monthly and I’ve still got another 2 years to go unless I cancel the IVA (which seems a bit scary)
My question is, do you have any advice on what I should do going forward? Is cancelling an iva a good idea to then deal with my creditors myself? Thank you for reading and hopefully you’ll have some advice for me, from a very run down mama!! X
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Can I ask if you are buying or renting? do you have a car worth more than £2000? (these questions aren’t as irrelevant as they may seem)
Danni says
Renting in housing association.
No I don’t x
Sara (Debt Camel) says
How large are the total debts at the start of the IVA? who is your IVA with? are the payments still affordable with bills and prices going up?
Danni says
The total debts at the start of my IVA were £6,092 with Hanover Insolvency. At the moment I’m managing although I’m a single parent on maternity leave with 2 children…but with the rising cost of living and the next hike in energy bills due in winter (currently pay £140 so if that goes any higher, I will struggle to afford that).
Sara (Debt Camel) says
But you have a car on finance – when will that end? does it have a balloon payment at the end or will you own it?
You can’t simply cancel an IVA if the payments are affordable – the IVA firm could still claim its fees. The creditors may start adding interest and making affordabilioty complaints may not clear the debts.
If you make affordability complaints with the IVA still running, the payments will just reduce the debts in your IVA but will not mean you can pay any less unless you can repay all the debts and also Hanover’s fees which will be £3500 +
So your options are to try to get through to the end of the IVA. Or if that isn’t possible, to ask Hanover to propose to your creditors that your IVA is “completed on the basis of the funds paid to date”. but the situation of your car will matter for this.
Danni says
Sorry, I had the car on finance in 2014 and was paying as normal. In 2016, I entered the DMP and was paying the monthly finance as usual until I had a loss in earnings.
I couldn’t afford to carry on paying the finance so I voluntary terminated my agreement and handed the vehicle back. It was then sold at auction and I was billed for £2,500 for the remainder of the car payment.
That £2,500 payment was added to the DMP so it was transferred over to my IVA from the moment I entered it. I no longer have that vehicle.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So that car finance was also a potential affordability complaint. But all the possible complaints are now about credit given over 6 years ago – that makes the complaints slower and harder to win as there may be less evidence about your situation when you took the credit out.
I don’t think deliberately failing an IVA to make these complaints is a good idea.
If you make them while you are in the IVA, the IVA will will pocket some of any refunds in fees. It won’t reduce what you pay each month and may not result in ending your IVA early unless the refunds are very large.
Now I am clear that you dont own a car or have one on car finance, you have 3 options at the moment.
1) fail the IVA and switch to a Debt Releief Order. This could be a very good option for you right away, read https://debtcamel.co.uk/end-iva-change-to-dro/ and if you want to to check this will work, talk to National Debtline on 0808 808 4000 about whether you will qualify for a DRO. the fact you are paying 380 to the IVA suggests that for the DRO calculations you may well be under the £75 a month spare disposable income limit but you need to be sure about this.
If ND say you sould qualify for a DRO then failing the IVA now and switching may be you least stressful option – all over a year after teh DRO start during which time you make NO payments.
2) try to get through to the end of the IVA. With over 2 years to go and prices going up, that may not be possible.
3) if you try for 2 and it it is getting impossible, ask Hanover to propose to your creditors that your IVA uis completed on the basis of what you hgave paid so far, not failed. Your creditors have to vote to approve this.
Rose says
Hi, Sara,
The adjudicator has come back and rejected my complaint against JD Williams. I had nine credit limit increases between 2012 and 2016, going from an opening balance of £125 to £2500. I was borrowing from multiple payday loan providers every month, repeatedly missed payments or paid only the minimum, and was often maxed out. However, the adjudicator said:
“From July 2014, I think J D Williams should have taken steps to build a more detailed picture of your financial situation. They increased your credit limit to £2000, I think they should have learnt more about your expenditure to ensure you could repay the credit limit in a sustainable way and in a reasonable period of time.
I say this because I can see from your bank statements and credit report that you had credit with multiple lenders.However, your balance with J D Williams doesn’t exceed £1555 therefore there has been no financial detriment to you.”
Is this worth asking to be sent to an Ombudsman, do you think? They increased my limit often after having frozen in for non-payment, added late fees and, of course, the interest – I don’t understand what “no financial detriment” actually means, seeing as this account ended with me paying a £1200 CCJ – but I guess I just don’t understand the process?
Thanks for any advice!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
By no detriment, the adjudicator means that your balance never went over the 32000 limit they think is unreasonable.
But it sounds as though a much lower limit was already impossible for you. payday loans, missed payments and maxed out suggest they should not have given the previous credit increase or two.
Can you list what the 9 credit limits were in order? Which do you feel was the point where it tipped over to being impossible?
Rose says
Ah, I see – thank you so much for explaining! I don’t actually have a list of the dates and increases: I did a DSAR to JD Williams, which was a nightmare, and when they finally sent me something, it was password protected, but not with the password they told me – I’ve been going back and forth with them for about nine months on this (every time, I send them all my details, they respond asking me for all those details again, to confirm my account, I send them again etc) so I am going from what the adjudicator said. I was actually surprised to hear, as I know I was maxed out and over limit a lot, but clearly, that was earlier in the process. Things got very difficult from the Autumn of 2013 – that’s when the wheels came off, and was the first time I defaulted on payday loans also. I have emails about being maxed out on £300, and also £500, and the only time I ever cleared my balance in full was when I’d taken a payday loan to do so – but I probably don’t have all the evidence to show that, in fairness.
Rose says
I’ve just been looking in my emails (I know I don’t have a complete record) I opened the account in February 2012, with a £125 limit; in June, it was raised to £400 (I was only making the minimum payment before then) and November £900. I was then deleting emails for almost all of 2013, as I was hiding from my debts.
I missed payments in December 2013, and January, February, March and April 2014, and received a credit limit increase to £2000 in July of that year: that gave me £801 “to spend” so I guess that the previous limit was perhaps £1200. November 2014, I missed a payment. In October 2015 – following further missed payments in January, March, May, July and August of 2015 – it was increased to £2500 (“meaning you have £681 to spend” – so I am also not sure why the adjudicator said my balance never went above £1555, since this would have put it around £1880)
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you go back to your adjudicator and say you think the previous credit limits are unaffordable, that you have asked JDW for the dates and amounts, but they have only sent you password protected files but not the password. Say you would like an Ombudsamn to look at the case as you think it was unaffordable from much earlier.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think you could say that you think the increase to £900 was unaffordable and at that point NewDay should have seen you were in difficulty and offered forbearance but freezing the interest on your debt. So you fell you should be refunded all interest you paid from that point on.
Rose says
As always, Sara, thank you so much: I really appreciate the time and the trouble you’ve taken explaining all this to me !
Jack says
Hello
I’ve got a complaint in with the FOS regarding NewDay for a Marbles and Amazon card.
I’m stating that the increases were unaffordable as I paid the minimum payment and was most months at the limit on both cards. I’ve stated that the Amazon card was approved when already maxed out on a £4000 limit on the marbles card.
I did ask for a freeze/reduction on interest but was told no.
I’ve also said that they should have not increased any limits due to the volume of credit I had and was utilising.
Both cards have now defaulted and I’m paying back small amounts due to the volume of debt.
Any experience with how this goes with the FOS? Should I get my hopes up for some sort of win or is it unlikely to happen with them?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
When did you ask for a freeze or reduction? Why did they say No?
Jack says
I can’t remember when I asked, it was through their online portal and I don’t seem to have access anymore.
I can’t remember the exact wording for them saying no but it was more of we don’t offer a reduction.
Sorry I know it’s vague but it was a while ago that I asked for the reduction in interest.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Do you have other problem debts as well as these 2 cards?
Jack says
Yeah I’ve had a few Cc’s with high limits. I’ve sought some help so in the process of sorting them out but most are now with Cabot etc as it wasn’t possible to carry on how I was so yeah, it’s a mess but I’m trying to sort it now.
David Lane says
My experience with Newday is that they are the most arrogant and unhelpful lender. Constantly extending deadlines , failing to take responsibility for their actions, selling off debts when they have been made aware of vulnerability issues.
Cb says
I complained to very for irresponsible lending. I had a letter back to say they received my complaint. I just had another letter from them saying they are terminating my agreement and closing the account. I don’t mind as I don’t owe anything or use the account anymore. Just wondering if anyone else had this when they made a claim with them?
Stu says
Hi Sara,
I am hoping you can help! I made an affordability complaint regarding historic credit cards and loans I had using the wonderful info on your website. I had an Aqua card so sent off the complaint. I currently use a marbles credit card which I make more than the monthly payments for each month and there have been no issues with it. It was recently declined when I tried to use it in store even though there was available balance. I contacted Marbles and they said that they close every account when an affordability complaint is received even if it is historic. The balance on my card is low so i’m not too bothered but it just seems strange to close it like that without notice especially since I was using the account well.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
They should let you repay the current balance in monthly payments and if they aren’t less than the minimum amount would be, this should not harm your credit record.
Melanie says
How are Vanquish when dealing with affordability complaints. I am a few days off the 8 weeks and still haven’t had a final response. Do you think this is a good sign?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No news is no news – it isn’t good or bad. I doubt anyone has looked at your complaint yet.
I have seen a couple of people being offered a full refund by Vanquis – but they seem to reject many good complaints and make poor offers to others. Come back here if you aren’t sure if any offer is good enough?
Melanie says
Thank you Sara, will do
Sarah says
Did you recieve a letter from them acknowledging the complaint? Just asking as i recieved a letter from them 5th of may and im also waiting to hear back from them.
Melanie says
I had an email acknowledging. I have asked for an update several times but they just keep quoting the fact that they have 56 days to give a final response
Sarah says
Leaat they have akncowleged… i put in a complaint to aqua declined straightaway so has been sent to fos to deal with now.. have no idea how they could say was affordable lending took me from 2016 to 2020 to pay it all off and ended up paying back over 4k even though the credit limit was 2500. Hopefully the fos will say they need to pay me back all the interest i paid.
Ross says
Morning Sara,
As predicted, my farce (with Newday) continues. On Monday, my adjudicator sent me an email saying that Newday were requesting my bank details to make the redress payment, after my case was upheld nearly 3 weeks ago, by an ombudsman, after they rejected the adjudicator decision. What’s interesting is that Newday were told that they now had to deal with me, directly, but don’t appear to want to. Also, when I replied to the adjudicator, asking when should I receive the redress breakdown, they replied to state that they don’t get involved with any figures or breakdowns but, he has requested one, from Newday, and that he will pass it on to me, once received. The question is, how can anybody know if they’re receiving the correct redress, if companies don’t even provide a breakdown of redress? Mine will involve interest, default charges, cash advance charges and a £100 d&i payment, so it’s far from simple. Plus, it’s proportionate interest, from when the limit went above £900. Doesn’t this all seem a bit messy, and not in favour of the complainants?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes it’s messy. But persevere and you can go back to the Ombudsman if its clear Newday is wrong.
Ross says
Thanks Sara,
He did also say that he would assist if it appears wrong. They’ve had the bank details, since Monday, but still haven’t made the payment, which is another way to antagonise I suppose. Still, I would prefer the breakdown, prior to the payment, so maybe it’s not a bad thing. Thanks for your advice, and I’ll definitely persevere after coming this far 😇
Shell says
Hi Sara Investigation has got back to me saying jd Williams got back to him regarding the accounts they won’t accept and they still refused to accept any accounts after 2016 even tho i opened accounts in 2018 2019 but Investigator says he thinks this is a good offer I don’t know what to do shall I accept please thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Tell the investigator you would like to know how much interest you have paid on each account and when it was opened as without this you can’t decide if this is a reasonable offer or not.
C says
This website literally saved my life!
I complained to 5 of my 10+ creditors and I have had 3 successful refunds, the other 2 are CC’s from NewDay which are with the ombudsman.
My advice is to continue your research and be patient because the advice on this website works.
9 months ago I did not see any hope and did not think that I could ever be debt free….next month I will be debt free and that feels so powerful. Thank you Sara!
Mark says
Hi, does anyone know how I can get my old account number from a catalogue debt. Iv done an irresponsible lending claim and they have asked for my account number. Problem is I don’t have it ans when I try to log on to my old acc via my email it says they can’t find me.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
when was the account settled?
Mark says
A few years back 2017 I believe
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That should still show under closed accounts on a credit report but that will probably only give the last 4 digits of the account number. That will however prove to them that you did have an account.
They should be able to find it if you give enough other information – date of birth, previous addresses, previous emails?
David Evan says
What happens if a business fails to reply within the 8 weeks ? Im asking as i have a complaint in against Newday (1 Marbles and 1 Aqua card) and they only have a couple of days left…. the only response i had was the original acknowledgment of the complaint and then 6 weeks later, removal of both my closed accounts history from my credit file, which they havent communicated anything to me about why they have done this (both have/had entries up to 2019/2020 so are still within the statutory 6 years retention).. does the ombudsman just rule in your favour or do they still have to do a full review ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The Ombudsman will do a full review – but the point is you don’t have to keep waiting for a lender to reply, you can start the FOS case at 8 weeks.
K says
Does anyone know the email address for tescos credit card complaints dept. Would be much appreciated.
Thank you
Mike_p says
I dealt with them via feedback@feedback.tescobank.com
abdul hussain says
Hi
the adjudicator has looked in to my day account and has upheld and now awaiting for new day to agree or not.
see below:
1. You should refund all the interest and charges Mr H has paid to date.
2. If the borrowing is still in place, you should reduce the outstanding capital balance by the
amount calculated at Step 1.
3. If, after Step 2, there remains an outstanding capital balance, you should ensure that it
isn’t subject to any historic or future interest and/or charges. But if Step 2 leads to a
positive balance, the amount in question should be given back to Mr Hussain and 8%
simple interest* should be added to the surplus.
4. You should remove any adverse information.
my account is still active, current balance is 7100. open in 2018 january, with a limit of 1200 and now 7600 limit in 4 years
is this a good result??
let me know thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes this is a good result.
is this Newday?
Do you know how much you have paid in interest and charges since the account was opened in 2018?
abdul hussain says
Hi Sara
yes it is new day, from my current statement from dec 21 to jun 22 my monthly interest is approx £110 a month.
is there a way to find out how much interest and charges i have paid since opening the account in 2018?
i was hoping the adj would agree that they should never have given me the card but she agreed a low limit should have been given to me.
my account was open when i hade 8 defaults and 3 ccjs amounted £6300.
i do believe i still will have a high balance after refund, i hope they agree to a plan that wont affect my credit file.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
In what you copied out, (1) said to refund all the charges and interest – is that not what the adjudicator is saying should happen?
abdul hussain says
hi sara
yes, the adjudicator is saying exactly that, to refund all interest and charges from the beginning.
thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
then you are getting a complete refund, not a refund over a low limit.
Unless you have your statements, you can’t work out what the total interest and charges are.
You should be able to agree an affordable repayment if there is a balance remaining and they can’t add any more interest to it.
abdul hussain says
thanks sara
abdul hussain says
hi sara
the adjudicator has just called me to say, newday did not agree with her, so its now in a queue for the ombudsmon:(
what a shame!!!
could take months now
Ross says
Hi Abdul,
Don’t be too despondent. The same happened to me but, the ombudsman ruled about 3 weeks later and agreed with the adjudicator. Newday are rejecting a lot of adjudicator decisions which are, equally, being upheld by the ombudsman. If you look at ombudsman decisions, on the FOS website (under Newday Ltd.), you’ll see just how many are being upheld! Good luck!
abdul hussain says
thanks ross
so hopefully mines may be picked up within a month by ombudsman.
Sara T says
Has anyone done complaints for Very and Marisota? Just wondered about timescale its only been a month but confirmed receipt?
Dave says
Please can I ask the address and process for Very. Thank you.
Lorraine says
Yes I did I got confirmation they had recieved it then after a few weeks I got sent a cheque with no confirmation they was doing that
Sara (Debt Camel) says
was this Very?
Lorraine says
Yes it was
Sara T says
Ooh fab thank you 🤞🏻I emailed the chief ex
ExecTM@theverygroup.com
Pippa says
Hello,
The Ombudsman is finally looking into my JD Williams complaint for unaffordable lending. The first account (I had 5) was opened in 2013 and JD Williams have said it’s out of time for a complaint. I replied that I only became aware that you could complain a year ago. FOS have said they have guidelines on what’s acceptable to bring about a claim which is over 6 years old. They have asked how I became aware and to provide any evidence. Has anyone got any ideas or has anyone had this same situation?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
i suggest you reply saying (putting into your own words and changing as necessary):
I have read the 2 key Ombudsman decisions about payday loans https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/files/17783/payday-loans_time-limts_final-decision-lender-C.pdf and https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/files/17784/payday-loans_time-limits_final-decision-lender-D.pdf. It seems to me that the approach used there is directly applicable to my JD Williams case.
One says “Mr H would also have been aware, or ought reasonably to have been aware, that he was paying an increasing amount of interest the more loans he took out. So I think that Mr H also ought reasonably to have been aware that he may have suffered a loss, or that he was suffering a loss as he was taking out these loans. But I wasn’t persuaded that Mr H realised that Lender C might’ve been responsible for his repayment problems – nor did I think that Mr H ought reasonably to have made that connection either. In my view, Mr H would, quite reasonably, have seen Lender C’s offer of further loan as a solution to his problem, rather than a cause of it.”
The other said:
“Mrs W appears to be an intelligent and articulate individual who is capable of using the internet to access information. But I do not think it necessarily follows that a reasonable person in those circumstances, who became aware of affordability problems with her loan and who understood that she had suffered loss as a result, would also become aware that her difficulties could be due to failings on the part of the lender. In my view, a reasonable person in Mrs W’s circumstances would be more likely to take personal responsibility for the difficulties she faced.
I am satisfied that a reasonable person in Mrs W’s position could not reasonably be expected to have understood from her contract with LENDER D that the lender had an obligation to check that her loan was affordable before agreeing to provide it to her.”
Like Mr H and Mrs W, I realised that I was paying more to JD Williams as they allowed me to open more accounts and that the minimum payments which were all I could afford were never going to clear the debt. This got worse as the credit limit was increased. However I thought this was my fault for not managing money well I didn’t realise JDW should have checked that the initial credit limit and the increases would be affordable for me, so I didn’t see JDW as the cause of my problem. I wrongly saw the extra accounts and credit limit increases as a help, even though they made the minimum payments even higher so I kept borrowing more. Until I found out what affordability complaints were, I did not realise I had a cause to complain.
I found out about these complaints early in 2021 [is that right?] when I [was told about them by a friend? saw an article about loan affordability checks and googled to find out if the same applied to catalogies? saw an advert from a claims company on Facbook and did some research? just say how you found out, there is no wrong answer] and then sent a complaint in in the next couple of months.
Pippa says
Thank you Sara, your advice is really appreciated. I have replied to FOS and they have said they would get back to me within a month.
Lorraine says
Hi I’m at work till late but its shop Direct finance all I did was put a complaint in and they just sent a cheque they didn’t say they was doing it or if I agreed with the value of it
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok but have a think about whether this was enough? This may have been a good offer or trying to fob you off with a poor one.
If you aren’t sure – go back to them and ask them what period the refund covered and how they calculated it. Also whether they added 8% statutory interest and deducted any tax.
Lorraine says
Hi Sara
I took your advise and took it to the ombudsmen but the adjudicator thought they had been fair
Tracy Sowerby says
Hi Sara
I have a complaint lodged with the ombudsman for Studio. The adjudicator has upheld my complaint and Studio have disagreed again stating its time barred. This was their initial response so obviously just stalling. Its been passed onto ombudsman now but I was just a little concerned after studio went into administration in feb but then were bought up by Frasers. Does this affect my claim at all? Thanks I anticipation.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
who is the legal lender for your account, the full legal name?
tracy sowerby says
Its studio retail limited they are a subsidiary of Frasers group who held 28.9 stake in studio and have now acquired it.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
that limited company is not in administration – it shouldn’t make any difference to your complaint.
Sarah says
Recieved a nice cheque from very today.. didnt take long after sending in a complaint 29th april.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
does that clear your balance with them?
Sarah says
I didnt owe anything just all redress of £1116.93
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Thats good. (S some people have had these cheques and Very didnt take into account the balance that had been sold to a debt collector.)
Caz says
Did they send you any other correspondence beforehand or just a cheque?
Sarah says
No just had a letter saying they acknowledged and was looking into the complaint and then got the cheque yesterday.. now just waiting for vanquis they also sent a letter dated 5th of may but think theyre wait until last minute lol
Jack says
So I’ve had an email from my adjudicator asking for credit report and copies of bank statements which is great as it’s moving.
My only question – why do they need bank statements? What does this help them with?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
to win an affordability complaint the Ombudsman looks for two things. First that the lender didn’t make adequate cheques AND second that if they had made those checks, they would have suggested that the credit was unaffordable. Your bank statements are oftne the simplest way to prove that second half.
SaraM says
I currently have 5 low credit cards ranging between 200 and 650 pounds, that are all maxed out.
I currently owe 2000 in total and am either paying the minimum, or using my left over income after bills paying around 100 off each and then relying on each one to live, along with interest.
They are only 6 months old or less but I should never have done it, as soon as I got one, I needed another to pay for it and it just spiralled.
Would I have grounds to complain? I just want them gone, cleared, settled and closed. Is that an option this early on?
I have a default on my credit for a 200 overdraft from when I was in university, I had no money whatsoever. It was with Halifax but I don’t even have the account number anymore let alone statements, I wouldn’t even know where to start – that default is 3 years and at that time I had at least 3 or 4 defaults all from payday loans etc etc, again details I don’t have anymore.
Also, would filing a complaint be visible to other lenders such as car finance? Would it effect my credit rating?
Any help appreciated, I understand it’s a long shot. Thanks so much.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
What other debts do you have? What would have shown on your credit record 6 months ago when you started applying for these recent cards – other cards, loans, catalogues? recent defaults or payments problems?
do you have any priority debts – rent, car finace, utilities?
the payday loans – have you looked at affordability claims for those?
Paige says
Hi Sara, I hope you are well.
I have had a default on my record since September 2017. In June 2016 got a balance transfer credit card for a £900 limit and was given a credit card by Barclaycard with a £4,500 limit that had a period of 0% interest. As a 20 year old, I got carried away with it and of course, it wasn’t long until I couldn’t make payments. The debt was sold on a couple of times and it’s now with Hoist. Ever since it happened I kind of just accepted it, but I often think about it and count down the days until the default drops off my file. I hope to be a homeowner one day soon and worry what this will do to me. I’ve started thinking about the irresponsible lending route to see if I can get it removed and out of my life sooner, but feel out of my depth and don’t know how much of a case I have. Do I need to contact Barclaycard or Hoist about this?
Also, when looking at my credit report with Experian, it says I have two defaults. One with Barclaycard for £0 and one with Hoist for the remaining balance. I haven’t noticed this before. Is this wrong?
Thank you.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
This default will drop off your record in September 2023.
It is correct that you have a default from Barclaycard and one from Hoist – only one counts for credit scoring.
Did you ever pay Barclaycard any interest on this card? What were you earning at the time?
Paige says
Hi Sara,
Yes, I know it’s not that far away now really. But I’ve just been thinking about the possibility of having it removed sooner, I know I should’ve looked into this a long time ago. I did pay Barclaycard interest once the interest free period ended. I was earning £16,000 a year.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
were you living at home or independently?
Moomin says
Do credit card irresponsible lending complaints include cash fees in redress for taking out cash? Capital One have not included them in my redress
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes they should – was this directly from Capital One or via the Ombudsman?
Moomin says
Complaint went to Ombudsman and Capital One sent the letter with a brief breakdown but I know for sure the figures are incorrect and don’t include cash fees and I believe the interest figure is way out so I have asked for statements from them. What should I say about the cash fees to Capital One when I go back to them?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Tell them you think the interest figures are wrong and that they should also be including cash withdrawal fees.
Also tell your FOS adjudicator/investigator that you are querying the numbers with Capital One as they look wrong.
Moomin says
Thank you Sara
Moomin says
My complaint went to the Financial Ombudsman. They asked Capital One to settle them redress directly with me. They sent me a letter but the breakdown was brief and I know for sure both the interest and the fees were incorrect and can’t possibly have included cash fees. I have asked Capital One for statements. When I go back to them how do I word that they should refund cash fee’s?
Ian says
Hi Sara please can you help with the following questions.
1.what’s the easiest way to gather all info about debts including when defaults first occurred?
2. I had accounts with various catalogues all via shop direct. Now with DCA if I make a claim and it’s resolved in my favour does any redress get paid to me or straight to DCA?
3. Can you make affordability claims with mobile phone providers eg O2, Vodaphone. I assume I can’t and the tariff section of the contracts but each company allowed me to take out several 0% loans for the devices. All which are now with DCA.
Thank you in advance
Sara (Debt Camel) says
1. how long ago were these dates?
2. Typically to the DCA but not always
3. if there was no interest, then there would normally be no redress. If there were a very large number of contracts you could perhaps argue irresponsible lending, but it would, I think , have to be abnomrally large, not just several.
Ian says
1. All within last 10 years.
2. I was hoping to use any money for a f&f settlement.
3. Thank you. I will contact them hopefully to remove adverse info from credit files.
One last question please how long would you suggest waiting until I ask DCA for cca agreements? Some defaults are still showing on credit reports so I assume that’s too early?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
1. You can send the original lender a Subject Access request ask for all the personal information they have about you.
2. This isn’t normally possible.
Andrew says
Hi. I won a case agsinst virgin credit card. After a long delay virgin agreed with adjudicator. Now 7 weeks and still nothing from vigin around paying the money they owe me.I contacted adjudicator after 4 weeks, he said he will chase them up. My question is should I try and chase them? Or is this normal delay?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Try emailing fergus.murphy@virginmoneyukplc.com and say what very poor customer service this is.
Mike_p says
I’ve finally had a refund from Paypal credit following the complaint I made. They had given me 6 credit limit increases at times when I had been making minimum payments and had numerous payday loans open. They rejected the complaint but the adjudicator said they should refund all interest from the first increase onwards. I’ve just had a £1200 refund which reduces the balance from £2000 to £800.
They made the whole process very difficult. To start with there was no obvious way to complain and I went round in circles for ages on their messaging system. I eventually got a reply but the FOS said they couldn’t accept it as it didn’t give them permission to investigate, the FOS then complained to Paypal and I eventually got a proper final response so the FOS could pick it up. The FOS found in my favour in January but Paypal kept saying they needed more time before fianlly agreeing after four months. I then heard nothing for 28 days, and finally got the refund after I chased them up.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
good to know they have lost this at the Ombudsman. The more times this happens, the more likely they are to start handling complaints better.
Did you ever get an email address for them? Was it ppelce@paypal.co.uk?
Mike_p says
Yes that’s the address I got the proper final response from. I’ve also used it to ask them about several things, although they reply by app message.
I also noticed that they are withdrawing from the voluntary jurisdiction:
https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/news-events/complaints-paypal
koyem says
Hello just wandering. What template did you use to make a complaint to paypal?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest the one on this page as it’s closest to a credit card.
Mike_p says
Yes that’s the one I used. Paypal made it as difficult as they could but I persevered and got a refund eventually.
Richard says
Hi Sara,
I referred my complaint to the ombudsman for the reasons outlined below, I was very surprised it was rejected but now I am concerned I do not have a valid irresponsible lending campaign, do you believe the below is valid grounds for a complaint?
– I had to pay a total of 9 over limit / late payment fees since opening the account in July 2017 and the credit limit increase in December 2018
– From May 2018 to December 2018 I had continuously maxed out the card by spending £4972 on gambling
– I exceeded the cards limit in 5 of the 6 months prior to the credit increase
– Across my current account and credit card account I received a total of £122 in charges in the 6 months prior to increase
– I had significant gambling transactions on my accounts totalling £14121 since opening the credit card account in July 2017 and the increase of the limit in December 2018
– In Match 2018 I had taken out significant new financial commitments in the form of a mortgage, details of which were not requested by the bank as part of my increased credit limit.
– Since opening the credit card account I had utilised my overdraft facility in 11/17 months
– I had only been making minimum payments on the credit card with the only exception being a balance transfer that did not reduce my overall debt
– I averaged 99% credit utilisation for the 6 months prior
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I was very surprised it was rejected
rejected by the lender? or by the Ombudsman?
Richard says
Rejected by lender (Santander). I only referred this to the ombudsman yesterday but have only had the automated response from them so far.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I asume the card and the overdraft are both with Santander.
I don’t think they should have increrased your credit limit with a lot of gambling showing on the card or your bank account And I hope the Ombudsman is likely to think that too!
Richard says
Thanks, yes. Both with Santander. I have another claim ongoing for the overdraft but I have not received a final letter. I had 4 subsequent overdraft increases in 2019. Hopefully the ombudsman sees things the way you and I do.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if you end up sending the Santander overdraft to FOS too, say that you have another complaint with them about the credit card and as the times overlap, you would like both complaints to be considered together,
Catherine says
I put in complaint with very on the 7th May and yesterday got a letter saying they’ve upheld my complaint but only from the increases after £2000 and they’ve gave me around £1200 and they’ve taken this off the balance that I still owe. They didn’t even give me a chance to accept offer just applied it. I’ve sent it to the ombudsmen cause I don’t think they should’ve given me the £2000 credit as a starting point anyway if they’d have checked they would’ve seen that I had loans and a overdraft of £5000 that I was continually going overdrawn on. Also they’ve not applied the 8% interest refund either. I’m in a pay arrangement at the moment and have paid nearly £1800 the last year alone so the £1200 refund doesn’t even cover that.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Good move to send that to the Ombudsman!
Catherine says
Hopefully it’ll get upheld by them. I’ve recently won a case with them from HSBC for unfair overdraft fees and charges got nearly 6k back. I also had claims with provident and amigo but they started the schemes before FOS looked at them which is annoying.
Annie says
Who was this with please?
Catherine says
Very catalogue.
Michelle says
Hi Sara , I wonder if you can help me ,
On January 23rd Barclay card gave me a default by mistake , they promised to have it removed then account then mistakenly got sold to a debt collector who then also defaulted me so Iv ended up with two I shouldn’t have , the have taken full responsibility for the mistake but still haven’t rectified it , iv spoken to them every month and keep getting different excuses, iv now spoken to a tier 2 complains manage and he said he’ll remove it asap and have bought my card back from debt collectors , and are willing to give me compensation but have asked me how much I’m looking for , I dont want to go in to low or to high , so card has a balance of £1190 and Iv had two defaults on my file for over 6 months
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you been declined for credit or have had to delay a credit application because of this?
Michelle says
Yes I couldn’t pay my car insurance monthly and I renewed my contract on my house and had to explain to my land lady why I had 2 defaults luckily she was fine about it , I had to down grade my mobile too to a sim only as I couldn’t get a contract , it’s been a nightmare to be honest I told them all this
We was going to try for a Mortgage but I knew it would be pointless which is why we had to renew our renting contact instead
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Can you show you had a deposit ready to buy?
Michelle says
my nan was going to give it to us once she’d sold her house , but just didn’t bother trying as I knew with defaults wether I explained or not they’d laugh me out the office
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If you could prove you could not go ahead with a house purcahse, you could ask for a lot of compensation. But unless you have an email trail beteen yourself and your nan with you saying you don’t need the deposit yet because you have a problem to sort out first, I am not sure how you can prove this.
Without that, I would suggest asking for perhaps £300?
LA says
I recently complained to new day regarding this after speaking to a friend, card was opened in 2015 and I had multiple pd loans, limit was £500 but was increased over time to £4500, I am on a pay down plan with them but still paying interest, I requested a £500 repayment but if they accept this, can I reject and request all interest to be refunded?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Why did you only ask for £500?
What is the remaining balance?
LA says
I hadn’t read this site I’d just discussed the situation with a friend at first, at the moment it’s £4200, I quite often make a payment and use the card again
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Ok, then £500 seems entirely inadequate. Can you say exactly how you phrased the £500 part of the complaint.
LA says
I just asked for a refund on my account to help reduce the balance but I have now sent an email saying I have reviewed my correspondence and feel £500 is too low and I ask for a refund of interest paid on credit limit increases, I’ve mentioned dates of letters I’ve received from them
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Good move. You also want them to let you pay off any remaining balance interest free without this affecting your credit record, but you can leave asking for that until they come back with a response to your complaint.
Mark says
Hi Sata
I have applied and been offered redress on the provident soa scheme between 780 and 1130 approx on numerous loans (should have been over 19000 but soa scheme started when complaint was with ombudsman, who closed matter due to this). Query is if provident have deemed all these loans unaffordable, should that also make their subsidiary vanquis card liable for repayment if I apply there? I have a card with 2250 credit limit one or two limit increases over the years and also a vanquis loan during this time (fully repaid couple of years back). Surely if the company has decided on one set of lending unaffordable there should be no issues with this? Asking in hope
Mark
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Vanquis is in a separate subsidiary so isn’t included in the Scheme.
But the good news is that you can make a complaint to Vanquis about raising your credit limit and giving you the loan, and if you win that it will be repaid in full.
Use the complaint about credit cards template here: https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-catalogue-credit-card/. And add in a sentence about also wanting a refund for the Vanquis loan.
Darren says
Hi Sara,
I’ve just been my complaint rejected by Capital One as they say I’m out of time. I had 2 accounts with them, one opened on 6/4/15 (limit increased on 29/3/16) and the other opened on 11/3/16 – they say because more than 6 years passed, they automatically rejected them.
They also said – you’ve not not given us an explanation or evidence that suggests this complaint has been made within three years of becoming aware you had cause to complain about the decisions to offer you credit. They didn’t give me the chance! When I raised the complaint over the phone, they just said ‘irresponsible lending? yeah we’ll look into it’, they gave me no chance to make a case at all!
I feel I have a good case because both accounts were used for hundreds (literally) of gambling transactions and regularly exceeded the limit, I don’t understand how extended the limit AND giving me a second card is responsible based on the first accounts history!
My question is – how does the 6 year rule get applied? Both accounts still show on my credit file with default dates of 15/4/17 so as far as I’m concerned, their dates shouldn’t make a difference?
Thanks!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
They are dating the 6 years from the time yo7 opened the account.
But send the complaint straight to the Ombudsman. Your argument is that you have only found Lunt in the last three years what an affordability complaint I’d (I assume that is correct?) and that before then you were unaware the lender had to check the credit limit was for cable for you, and so you did not realise that you had any cause to complain.
Paul says
Hi , thanks to this forum I’ve recently had success with Aqua / newday . This has left a credit balance on my card account . I’ve asked for it to be refunded to my bank account . I’m just wondering if any else has had a credit balance refunded from them and how long it took to arrive in your account ?
Thanks
Paul
LA says
Hi,
Out of interest, how long did it take for you to come to an agreement/resolve this?
Thanks.
Paul says
Hi , I logged the complaint in September 2020 so quite a while . Adjudicator ruled partially in my favour but newday elected to send it to the ombudsman. The ombudsman ruled fully in my favour . Account balance cleared and a nice sum also refunded to me .
koyem says
Hello Sara
Can I just ask?
I made a PPI claim with capital one year 2010 and I used an agency. They granted me the PPI but unfortunately I already moved house and the cheque was sent to my previous address and I dont know what happen to the cheque and I did not get my PPI refund. Year 2017 I made a complaint again about PPI when it was it on the height of making PPI complaint and they rejected my claim, I did not know about Ombudsman before so I did not do anything about it after they rejected my complaint. I am just wandering can I still send this complaint to the ombudsman?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I don’t think so. You should have followed this up in 2010/11. The lender thinks they have paid you. It’s likely to prove impossible to show now after 12 years that the cheque was uncashed
Anon says
Hi Sara
I have 2 current credit cards. The limits have been increased several times to 16,100 and 14,500. My income has never been above 28k so the limits have always felt very high. For years I could clear the balance or do ‘tarting’ and transfer the balances back and forth to take advantage of 0% offers and kept up with payments but in the last decade I have needed to use these limits due to various situations and am now in a position where I am almost at the limit of both. I’m paying £370 and £440 each month of which £220 and £250 is interest with a smaller amount paying off the capital.
Their threats of deeming me in ‘persistent debt’ and my fear around that mean I’m paying above the min payment but the cost of living rise is making this a struggle.
I don’t feel I should ever have been given such high limits for the income I had. That it was a risk. Do I have a legitimate claim to make in this regard? Obviously they didn’t make me spend up to the limit but being given the opportunity to use the limits given has meant that my debt has continued to rise.
My other question was that MBNA on several occasions over the years changed the way they calculated their interest which always resulted in me having to make higher payments. They gave the option of not accepting the terms but this meant freezing the card which I was not in a position to do so I felt held hostage. Is this something I could raise with them?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So the limits were not raised for the last 10 years and before that you didn’t have problems?
Why couldn’t you reject the MBNA increases? If they told you you could and you chose not to, I don’t see how you can complain about this.
Apart from these large credit card debts, what is the rest of your financial situation like? Do you have loans? Are you buying or renting?
Anon says
Thank you Sara. I really appreciate your site and your time.
Yes, I don’t think they have been raised in about 10 years (Barclaycard reduced my credit limit a few years back by about 1.5k). Was it OK for them to offer high credit limits based on my income?
I couldn’t reject the new ways MBNA were charging interest because by that time I was in debt, paying minimum payments and needing to reuse what I’d paid off to pay for food and other expenditure.
My current situation is that I about 35k in debt across 3 credit cards and a bounce back loan. I am just scraping making payments on everything so have no arrears. I currently have a mortgage.
Many thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think you need to talk urgently to a debt adviser about your options for all of your debts. You cannot carry on making low payments and then borrowing that amount to pay for essentials.
Talk to Business Debtline on 0800 197 6026 and they can look at your options – which may include a debt management plan or an IVA probably.
You can make affordability complaint about these cards but if you were regularily clearing all or a lot of the balances, then you may not win these complaints. They also take a long while to go through… if you want to try this I suggest you need to get yourself into a safe finacial position with a DMP now and then make the complaints. Winning any will really sped up your DMP.
Keven says
I’m getting a refund from littlewoods but is it correct that i get taxed 20% as if its my wages so it’ll affect my wifes child benefit money, because then il owe the money back to the government.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Your refund will have two parts, a refund of interest plus an extra bit of 8% interest. Only the 8% part is taxed as savings. If you don’t pat tax or are a basic rate taxpayer, you can reclaim some of the tax deducted back from HMRC, see https://debtcamel.co.uk/ppi-payday-refund-get-back-tax/.
I don’t understand what you are Trying to say about the child benefit?
Sarah says
I got a settlement from very was ment to be £1145.41 but said tax to withhold £28.48 so i actually got £1116.93..is it even worth claiming it back as i looked online at the R40 form but not sure on it all…
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It’s up to you if you think it’s worth filing out the R40 form to get a rebate of £28.
Sara T says
Could I ask how long it took from your complaint going in please?
Sarah says
It took about 6 weeks in total was quite quick.. and no ill prob wait until my other refunds come in before claim all the tax back
Sara T says
Thank you, on week 6 had a letter saying still investigating at week 4 just getting anxious as another catologue said no but a visa card refunded 🤞🏻🤞🏻
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you sent the catalogue to the Ombudsman? These lenders reject a lot of good complaints hoping you will just give up.
Sarah says
I never heard anymore then week 6 recieved cheque in the post.. still waiting for vanquis they said they need another couple weeks.. aqua and argos cards declined straight away so took them both to FOS but i believe could be waiting months for them.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes FOS isn’t speedy. But this is money you never though5 you could get back, so it’s well worth pursuing even if it takes some time.
Sara T says
No just with very atm, I’ve had ridiculous number of years robbing peter to pay paul lots of payday loans so some refunds are easy but some are trying to put me off as Sara says, so 2 at ombudsman but only a month ago and at least 4 months before they’ll be looked at x
Dave L says
Once again the arrogance of Brighthouse and GT dealing with their administration never ceases to amaze me. Complaint upheld in that that they haven’t updated my credit file for four months, so is now incorrect but apparently an apology is ok for this , I’m not entitled to any compensation and I can’t appeal it to any one.
It was the same arrogance I encountered from them with an affordability complaint.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have they said when they expect to update this?
Dave L says
No they have given no indication of when it will be done and arrogantly told me have no right to any compensation or appeal. Then smugly sent me an email saying I can’t take legal action. I have forwarded it to the ICO as it seems to be a company wide screw up.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
what is the problem – an incorrect default? or the failure to add a default a long time ago? or what?
Chris says
Hi Sara,
After some of your great advice found on your page, over 12 months later my case was picked up, the adjudicator has ruled in my favour for a JDW account from some years, I know by reading on here that JDW will probably reject this and it will go to the Ombudsman for a final decision, and I know calculations are never easy, but wondered if you could advise?
I had several increases over 2 years(2013-15), ending up with £2500 limit, the adjudicator says it should not have been increased past £1500 and they should refund all interest and charges & any payments made after the increase to £1500, since that time I had paid around £1450 before the balance of over £3000 was passed to DCA(which turned in to a CCJ), I have also since cleared the £3000, my question is how does this work? I guess the £1450 I paid to JDW, plus the interest & charges would be refunded(if the final decision is in my favour) but does the £3000 + I paid to DCA come in to it?
Thanks
Chris
Sara (Debt Camel) says
what you have paid to a debt collector should be taken into account.
Chris says
Thank you Sara, they actually agreed with the adjudicator, and before the deadline, wasn’t expecting that, now just the wait for the calculations.
Does anyone have any experience on calculations with JDW? time to calculate, accuracy of amount etc? The adjudicator says to let her know if I have not heard back from them within 4 weeks, should I just leave them to it or it advisable to keep giving them a chase?
Thanks
Chris
Chris says
Hi Sara,
I have had an email today stating redress for Fashion World will be £625, and a cheque is in the post, I feel this is way lower than it should, I have asked for their calculations for working this out, but with £4,858.50 paid to JDW & DCA without taking in to account interest & charges, it doesn’t seem to add up, I know there will be interest on the initial limits and the end limits to take in to account but seems wrong to me, any idea if I’m way off and they are correct?
Also do I send the cheque back when it comes, or keep hold of it in case they are correct?
Thanks for your help
Chris
Sara (Debt Camel) says
There is no way I can guess. I suggest you keep hold of the cheque if you decide not to cash it.
Chris says
No problem, thank you Sara.
Chris says
Hi Sara,
Still battling to get some breakdowns, they sent a very period of statements, and the breakdown they did send does mention the payments that I made, but the question I have is, is what what they say below true?
Thanks for your help
Chris
With regards to the 8%, may I confirm that, when we reconstruct your account, if your account was in credit at any point, the 8% would then be payable on the credit balances. It is not automatically applied to all redress due.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes
Chris says
Good morning Sara,
I still had no reply regarding the breakdown of calculations, the DCA has also confirmed that JDW did not ask for adjustments on payments, or for the credit file to be updated, but this was agreed between FOS investigator & JDW, so I went back to the investigator and they say “As J D Williams have completed the calculations and provided you with the figures plus reimbursed the overpayments, I’d say they’ve done what they need to do to resolve the complaint.”
Is there anything else I can do to get JDW to fully comply and send the breakdown, take the payments made to DCA in to account & adjust my credit file?
Thanks
Chris
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Send JDW a new complaint saying they haven’t explained how the refund was arrived at, it does not look reasonable and the debt collector has not corrected your credit record. Send to FOS after 8 weeks – they normally pick up these complaints pretty quickly.
Chris says
Hi Sara,
Thanks for the advice, I opened the second complaint, but received the below calculations this morning, so I escalated the resolver case to FOS as still doesn’t seem to take in account the payments to DCA, and seems to show an account balance of £2,499.97, which should be £0 as cleared with DCA in Jan.
From these calculations I can work how how they got the redress of £625.75, but no mention of over £3000 paid to DCA so hopefully FOS pick up the 2nd complaint a quickly, feel like I’m slowly getting close to the end, thanks so much for all your advice
Relevant account opening balance on 6/10/2014(following the breach) £1,587.63
Relevant closing balance on 11/7/2016 not adjusted with calculated redress £3,125.72
Total spend between 6/10/2014 and 11/7/2016 £3,668.46
Total interest between 6/10/2014 and 11/7/2016 2,095.74
Total late payment admin. Charges between 6/10/2014 and 11/7/2016 £84
Total payments on account received between 6/10/2014 and 11/7/2016 £2722.48
Total redress amount £625.75
Adjusted account closing balance after redress calculation £2,499.97
Eve says
Hi Sara,
The adjudicator has not upheld my complaint against Tesco Bank. They increased my limit several times up to 6200. This credit limit was increased in March 2018, and again in August 2019 – increasing from the initial limit of £3,200 to £4,200, and eventually to £6,200.
The adjudicator has stated I passed Tescos credit checks so they don’t think Tesco could have done any more. They also said they don’t think my current circumstances have come about because of the actions of Tesco Bank.
However, I was having to take out further lending to pay my monthly payments and also took our further credit multiple times to pay off my balance due to the interest rates. I still feel due to the level of other debt I had, they should not have given the credit limits.
What would you advise please?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
did you clear the balance down a lot several times?
Eve says
Hi Sara,
I transferred the balance to other cards 3 times I think. One time was the full balance and the other 2 times was a large portion.
Matthew Roberts says
Good Afternoon Sara,
I’ve just had a complaint about being given 2 cards and increased credit limit without proper checks, to Capital One rejected due to:
“It was made outside of the time limits for referral to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) as set out by the Financial Conduct Authority*.
This is because it’s been raised more than six years from 27 June 2011 (account ending ****) and 23 January 2014 (account ending ****), when your accounts were opened, and 27 January 2015 and 26 November 2015, when the credit limits were increased to £1250 (account ending 8078) and £1000 (account ending 7507).
You’ve also not given us an explanation or evidence that suggests this complaint has been made within three years of you becoming aware you had cause to complain about the decisions to offer you credit.
As a result, we won’t be investigating this complaint any further or offering you a refund of interest and charges, or making any changes to your credit file.
Both accounts are still live accounts and have a few hundred pounds on them, plus surely me raising the complaint 2 weeks ago shows them I’ve only just realised I can complain!? Unsure whether to reply to them or go to ombudsmen or just leave it.
Many Thanks,
Matt
Sara (Debt Camel) says
They are hoping you will give up. Just send it to the Ombudsman.
As I said in the “Old Accounts” section of the article above, it can be hard to produce much evidence about things which happened more than 6 years go, but perhaps you have some old bank statements? of credit reports? or other details?
Laura says
I had same with capital one and sent to ombudsman which they are now investigating as I explained only became aware as of November 2021 when joined this site. They just hoping you give up
Gareth says
hi Sara, my partner phone Vanquis today to ask for statements, and was told she would have to pay £5 per statement. can they charge that much for this.
Thanks Gaz
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Why does she want these? How many and how far back?
Gareth says
she wants from about 2016 to 2019. Trying g to get them to to make sure before them increasing the limit it tge card was maxed out. Also want to check for any late payments.
Gaz
Andi says
2016 that may well have their form of PPI, Repayment Option Plan.
As it’s not a PPI it can still be claimed.
Instead of requesting statements do a SAR request, you’ll get your statements, letters and other useful info for no charge.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well there are two routes here.
She can email Vanquis’s data controller Gordon.Watt@vanquisbank.co.uk and say she wants to make a subject access request for her personal date, specifically she would like either copies of her Vanquis statements beteen X and Y or the information that is contained on those statements in some other form. I would be suprised if they try to charge her for this. The ICO has said to firms “must provide a copy of the information free of charge. However, you can charge a ‘reasonable fee’ when a request is manifestly unfounded or excessive, particularly if it is repetitive.” I don’t think a few years statements would be.
Or she can send in a slightly vague complaint now and in it ask for the details of when and by how much her credit limits were raised.
Sarah says
So i got a letter today from vanquis stating thay they have been unable to provide resolution within the 8 weeks and that theyre aim to resolve it as a priority within the next 2 weeks. Anyone know if this just a tactic or they genuinely need the extra 2 weeks. Im thinking isit cuz theyre trying to work out what im due back or just stalling. They have stated i have the right to go to the financial ombudsman but im waiting to see first what they decide before i esculate it.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
fair enough to wait to 2 weeks, but straight to the Ombudsman at the end of that, no more delays!
Also come back here if they make you an offer if you aren’t absolutely sure it is good enough – many people accept what is a poor offer and then regret it later when they can’t change their mind.
Wullie says
Hi
Does anyone have email addresses for Vanquis and Aqua to make affordability complaints?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
customer.relations@vanquisbank.co.uk (put Complaint as the title)
complaints@newday.co.uk
Wullie says
Thanks Sara
What about one for Barclaycard?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
do you still have any account with Barclays?
Wullie says
No i don’t .
Sara (Debt Camel) says
then try mark.gansbuehler@barclaycard.co.uk
– let me know if it doesnt work
wullie says
Got reply from Vanquis,looking into claim.
Email to barclaycard seems to have been sent with no issues as not returned to me. Cheers
Wullie says
Hi Sara
Got letter from Vanquis telling me they are looking into it.
No reply from Newday (aqua) or Barclaycard .
Wullie
AL says
Hi Sara, so the Barclaycard saga continues. They had worked out the refund and sent it to my adjudicator who didn’t agree with how they had worked out the 8% simple interest and felt that they were not paying enough. He told them how he thinks they should be working it out. This was 10 days ago and I’ve heard nothing since which means he is still waiting for Barclaycard to get back to him. It’s so frustrating. Is there anything I can do to get Barclaycard to finish the process?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Not a lot. If it’s any consolation your adjudicator will also be feeling pretty fed up about this.
Myra says
Hi
Does anyone have a contact email for very catalogue that I can send my complaint to please
Sara (Debt Camel) says
try informationrequest@very.co.uk, let me know if it doesn’t work
Lauren says
Hi Sara, I only discovered your website today and decided to put in a complaint with JD Williams.
Had my account since may 2016 and currently owe £2433 (£3000 limit) and have been in persistent debt for 3+ years.
points of complaint;
• heavy usage of payday loans from Wonga and maxd Shop Direct (December 2015 £583 of £600 limit).
• increased my credit limit; opening limit May 2016 £1000, May 2017 £1750, August 2017 £2000, December 2017 £2750 and July 2018 £3000. *The increases in 2017 followed 3 late/missed payment markers from you for the months of January, February and March*
• I’d also taken out an Amigo loan to the value of £5,500 (January 2017) – *I’ve put in a claim through their new scheme*
I’m just wondering if bringing about an irresponsible lending claim can have any kind of impact on credit report or leave any trace that can be picked up on a mortgage application search? Hoping to apply this time next year when I should be debt free hopefully.
I also worry that because I have no CCJs or defaults I don’t have grounds for the claim to be upheld, do you think I’ve a possible case??
Thanks in advance!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The increases in 2017 followed 3 late/missed payment markers from you for the months of January, February and March
sounds like a good complaint to me. Let me know how you get on.
I also worry that because I have no CCJs or defaults I don’t have grounds for the claim to be upheld, do you think I’ve a possible case??
Yes.
I’m just wondering if bringing about an irresponsible lending claim can have any kind of impact on credit report or leave any trace that can be picked up on a mortgage application search?
Only if you apply for a mortgage to the same lender you made a complaint to (or another part of the same group of companies). Otherwise there is no way they can see the complaint. So not relevant for JD Williams
Obviously for a mortgage application you need to clear this debt as soon as possible – do you have a plan for doing this if you don’t win this complaint?
Lauren says
Hi Sara, sorry for the delay in replying.
Thank you for the reassurance, they have closed the credit feature on my account with them as expected, just wondering if that should impact my credit rating due to there being a balance on a closed account?
Surprisingly my partner and I have been approved for a mortgage via a mortgage broker with 5% deposit and all of my 8k debts and I have passed the credit checks no problem. Now I’m worrying that the second check they do before closure will flag up the closed account with JDW and it’ll be withdrawn. Hopefully I’m overanalysing.
No update from JDWs as of yet but I understand they’re likely to take the full timeframe.
Hope you’re doing ok in this heat wherever you are x
Lauren says
Hi Sara,
I’ve just received the following response from JD Williams;
‘ As your JD Williams account T0666384 was opened on 26th June 2015, given the event complained about took place more than 6 years ago, and it is more than 3 years since you should have realised that this was a problem, we believe that the complaint was received outside of the time limits set out in DISP 2.8.2R(2). We also believe that the first five credit limit increases you were offered also fall under the time limits set by the above rule.
I will now continue with my investigation into the further five credit limit increases you were offered on your JD Williams account T0666384.
Regarding the affordability checks undertaken, as a responsible lender, I can assure you that we assess all credit applications and credit limit increases applied using several sources of information, which includes information provided by the Credit Reference Agency, Experian.
We are also very careful to use up to date information regarding a potential customers financial status, along with other internal eligibility criteria that you must meet before we are able to offer a credit account or increase your credit limit.
Lauren says
Cont
Regarding the credit limit increases applied, our records show we offered a further five credit limit increases to your JD Williams account T0666384 between 6th July 2016 and 6th June 2018. Your account was up to date with payments at the time of the credit limit increases and we did not always offer you the full credit limit increases available. Again, this shows that we have acted within our duty as a responsible lender when considering the amount of credit offered to you based on our internal and external data.
Lauren says
Furthermore, every time the credit limits increased, we did notify you of these changes and there was always the opportunity to contact us to request that the credit limits be reduced to an amount that you were happy with. There is no obligation to accept the credit limit increases offered. In addition, you have chosen to accept the credit limit increases offered, as you have not contacted us to decline the credit limit increases prior to them being applied.
During the time we increased your credit limits, all your payments were made on time and in full. There were no instances where we increased your credit limits at these times where we could see that payments had not been made.
I noticed you mentioned in your complaint that you were continuously making the minimum payment, and this should have been a sign you were struggling. Making only the minimum payment required on the account, by itself, cannot be considered a sign of financial difficulties.
Lauren says
You will be aware that we send our statements every 28 days, included in which is information advising of what to do and how to reach us if you were experiencing financial difficulty.
As soon as the account showed signs of being in financial difficulty, we have sent more bespoke letters asking you to contact us if you found you were in financial difficulties and required our help. These letters also provide information of other financial support organisations that can be contacted if you feel further assistance is required.
As you have advised that you are in financial difficulties, I have suspended recovery activity on your JD Williams account T0666384 for up to 28 days from the date of this email giving you time to assess your finances and come to an appropriate arrangement. You will receive a letter to confirm the hold has been applied and when the hold is due to end.
It is important to contact us as soon as possible with an update within the next 28 days. After that time your account will revert to the position it is at today. Please be aware that if we don t receive a further update, further charges and letters may apply and this may also have a negative effect on your credit file.
We are committed to supporting our customers who are facing financial difficulties. If you would like to talk through some of the ways we can help, please contact our specialist Customer Recovery Team. They’re available on 0345 074 2029 Monday to Friday between 9.00am-5.00pm.
Lauren says
As I am unable to investigate the application for credit and the first five credit limit increases on your JD Williams account T0666384, I am unable to uphold this part of your complaint.
As the final five credit limit increases on your JD Williams account T0666384 were approved in line with business guidelines, I have been unable to identify any errors, and based on this I am unable to uphold your complaint.
Regarding your request for a refund of the charges applied, the charges applied to your account are correct and have been applied in accordance with the terms and conditions of your account. Therefore, I cannot refund any of the charges applied.
In the complaint you have requested any default markers or late payment information for your account be removed from your credit file. As a responsible lender, we have an obligation to ensure that the data we record with the credit reference agencies is accurate. The information we have recorded on your credit file in relation to this account is correct and we are unable to amend your credit file.
I appreciate this may not be the decision you were hoping for, but I hope my letter has explained how I have reached my decision.
This is our final response on the matter. If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to refer your complaint to The Financial Ombudsman Service, free of charge, but you must do so within 6 months of the date of this letter.’
James says
Hi Sara, I have been in my NatWest for longer than I remember. A FOS adjudicator has found in my favour and suggested they return interest owed from June 2016.
Do you know how and if they apply 8% simple interest? I don’t understand the letter and have asked for clarification.
Thanks. James
Sara (Debt Camel) says
This is for an overdraft? How large is your current balance and do you have any idea how much on average they have charged you in interest and fees each month?
Barbara Dale says
Hi Sara
I had a Vanquis account and a monument credit card. I definitely received 2 refunds from Monument but I am not sure if I received a refund for Vanquis. Is there any way I can check or should I apply please
Sara (Debt Camel) says
unless you made an affordability complaint to Vanquis, you will not have received a refund from them.
Gary says
Hi Sara, I’ve made a complaint to Very in May and just received a final decision this week. They upheld my complaint from inception of my account in 2011 up to the current time. They’ve said they are refunding standard interest, buy now pay later deferred interest, admin charges and 8% simple interest. This equals around £1,500. Just wondering if you think I should accept this or take it to FOS? I’m not sure how accurate their calcs are and if perhaps there’s anything I should check myself given they’ve provided limited info about the figures they’ve used. Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
What was the initial credit limit and did they increase that?
Do you have any idea how much interest you were charged in an “average month”?
Do you have a current balance?
Gary says
Hi Sara,
Initial credit limit was perhaps about £500. Increased to a max of around £2,000 after a couple of years. Paid off completely in 2019. I think perhaps I was on quite a few BNPL periods. I’m guessing their offer is probably correct then thinking about it? Interest when I did pay it might have only been £20 odd a month here and there. Anyway I’m happy with this redress given it’s a shot in the dark.
I’m waiting for FOS to decide on whether they can look at a Vanquis affordability complaint as well at the moment as Vanquis rejected in on the six year rule. Waiting to see if FOS accept my three year rule reasons. I’m expecting redress to be much higher there is FOS uphold the complaint. Do Vanquis hold statements over six years ago back to 2011 ish? I think they probably should for me as they already calculated a ROP refund a few years back. Thanks again.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think they do.
Chris says
Hi Sara
I have adjudicator assigned by FO after waiting 4 months.
this is what they say:
”Barclaycard has raised an objection to our service looking into this complaint as they state it was brought more than 6 years ago and outside of the time limits, to move your case forward I need some further information from you to address this objection and see if we are able to investigate. Please could you send me the following information – by no later than 12 July 2022. It would be helpful if you could email this information across to me rather than post it, but if they are any issues – please let me know.
This objection covers the account opening and the following limit increases:
Card open 5 July 2005
Limit increases, 22 August 2008, 9 May 2013, 30 July 2013, 15 October 2013, 31 December 2013, 26 March 2014, 3 July 2014m 19 September 2014, and 17 January 2015.
-When did you become aware you had cause to complain & what prompted you to do so
-Why didn’t you complained earlier about this issue.
We are still able to consider the limit increases in October 2016
Chris says
.. So my response to that is:
”I only became aware that I’m able to make affordability complaint about credit card increases in July 2020.
Until July 2020 I didn’t know that I was able to make a complaint about unaffordable and irresponsible lending. It was only when I came across website ‘’debt camel’’ that helps people with a lot debt issues I found out that I’m able to make a complaint. At the time I knew that my card balance is getting higher but I thought it was my own fault for using my card too much/not managing my finances better. I did not realized that Barclaycard should have checked affordability before increasing my credit card limits, I did not know I had any cause to complain before July 2020. So with this information I logged my first complaint in July 2020 with Lending Stream which they did not upheld and then in March 2021 I logged my first complaint with FO service. Then since July 2020 I have been making complaints with Ferratum, Likely Loans, Avant Credit, 118, Lendable, Argos store card, Vanquis credit card, Barclays overdraft which all had been upheld by FO service and now I’m complaining about Barclaycard. I did not complaint before July 2020 because I didn’t know I had cause to complaint. After July 2020 I have been logging complaints one by one as I had so many different loans/debt issues/credit card companies and it was too much to deal for me at once, this lead to anxiety, a lot of stress and difficulty sleeping.”
any thoughts ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
add that you have made this complaint within 3 years of becoming aware in July 2020 that you could make affordability complaints.
Chris says
Thanks Sara
I will add this.
Could you please paste link here about two FO decisions about considering complaints over 6 years ? I have seen this somewhere here few weeks ago but I can’t find it now.
thanks in advance.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-catalogue-credit-card/comment-page-33/#comment-485704
Chris says
Hi Sara
this is Barclaycard response:
Our rules usually only allow us look at complaints where they were made within six years of what’s been complained about. If it was more than six years ago, we might still be able to look at the complaint if you complained within three years of when you knew there was a problem (or when you should have reasonably known) or if there were exceptional circumstances that prevented you from bringing the complaint sooner.
From the information provided, I can see that the agreement was taken out on 5 July 2005 with further increases until January 2015. You made the complaint about being given the agreement on 15 December 2021 – more than six years after the agreement was taken out. I’m therefore satisfied the complaint was made too late for the six-year part of the rule.
You’ve said you only became aware of a reason to complain in July 2020. This was because you came across a website that helps people with debt issues and that he is able to make a complaint. However, I’ve also had to consider whether you ought to have reasonably known you had cause for complaint sooner.
Chris says
…I can see that during the application process Barclaycard would have carried out a check to assess credit worthiness and level of indebtedness. I think this ought to have made it clear the business was required to check you could afford the agreement. I can see that you began struggling to meet the repayments and your credit limit was reduced in October 2017, therefore think you ought to have realised at this stage the agreement was unaffordable to you and that Barclaycard may have been at least partly responsible.
This means that you had three years from October 2017 to raise your complaint or six years from 5 July 2005, whichever gives you longer. As you didn’t raise it until 15 December 2021, it was after both of these timescales and has therefore been brought too late.
We can look at a late complaint if exceptional circumstances were responsible for this. I’ve thought about what you’ve told me, but I don’t think what you’ve told us about are exceptional circumstances. I say this because I think that you would still have had enough time to make the complaint earlier, given when you reasonably should’ve been aware you had cause to complain. If there’s anything else that might’ve stopped you complaining in time, which you haven’t already told us about, and you’d like me to consider, please let me know.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did you quote those two key payday loans cases? Ask your adjudicator how your situation is different from them.
Chris says
not yet, I’m about to email this two cases and see what they say.
will keep you updated.
Chris says
Hi Sara
so this case is now with an ombudsman to review my case for the limits that are time-barred.
hopefully this will be good decision for me.
Chris says
Hi Sara
I also tried to explain to FOS:
Yes, my limit was reduced by Barclaycard in 2017 shortly after I finished paying off my 12 months payment plan that was introduced after the last increase of limit in 2016. After that increase I was struggling to make payments so I called Barclaycard and they introduced this payment plan for 12 months. At that point I thought this was my fault for not managing money well, I didn’t realise Barclaycard should have checked that the initial credit limit and the increases would be affordable for me, so I didn’t see Barclaycard as the cause of my problem. I wrongly saw the credit limit increases as a help, even though they made the minimum payments even higher so I kept borrowing more. I did not know that I could make unaffordable and irresponsible lending complaints. It was only after reading an article in July 2020 on a website I became aware about unaffordable and irresponsible lending complaints, FO service should be able to verify this as FO service will see on their systems that I never made complaint before march 2021 and since 2021 I have made 9 complaints to FOS of which 6 have been upheld and 3 are still with FOS. To be honest before July 2020 I didn’t even know about FOS and what service FOS provides.
Chris says
Hi Sara
good result….just an update from ombudsman..:
Barclaycard says that as Mr M experienced debt problems in October 2017 that this should
have alerted him to the possibility he had cause to complain that he had been provided
credit irresponsibly. This would mean that he should have complained no later than October
2020.
However, I don’t think it necessarily follows that Mr M would have realised that his financial
difficulties may have been made worse because Barclaycard might have done something
wrong when it gave him the credit or increased his credit limit.
Mr M says that he only realised something might have gone wrong and that Barclaycard may
have been at least partially responsible when he read about complaints of unaffordable
lending on a debt support website. I think it’s more likely that Mr M felt that he was wholly
responsible for his financial problems. Indeed, Mr M specifically says the following:
“At the time I knew that my card balance [was] getting higher but I thought it was my own
fault for borrowing/using my card too much and I did not realise Barclaycard should have
checked affordability.”
Consequently, I’m satisfied this complaint was not brought too late because Mr M brought it
to this service within the three year part of the rule
Dave says
Didn’t Barclaycard also send out letters to some customers about credit limits being too high in 2020?
I know I got one and I used that as my basis of within 3 years when complaining.
If you received one of those and still have a copy of it that might help as a reason too.
Chris says
thank you Sara
Jason says
Hi,
I’m being asked to provide 3 months of consecutive bank statements dating between 12 December 2017 and 26 February 2019.
Do I have provide this to the lender (capital one)? It would mean me having to contact my former bank to request these statements. Surely they shouldn’t be performing credit checks retrospectively.
Thanks,
Jason
Sara (Debt Camel) says
To win an affordability complaint, two things have to happen:
– the lender has to have made inadequate checks
– and if the correct checks had been made, they would have shown that the credit was unaffordable.
Bank statements prove the second of those points. I suggest you get them now. They will also help your case a lot if it has to go to the Ombudsman.
Sam says
Sara do you think that an affordability complaint can be won on the basis the lender said they’d never increase the limit again but did?
I made a complaint with the card provider about 5 years ago and whilst they didn’t uphold it they agreed to refund interest. In the final response at the time they said “ However, I can assure you that we will not increase your credit limit at any time in the future”.
The limit was however increased a couple of years later (doubled) and nobody from the company checked that anything had changed since the assurance never to increase the limit again. I subsequently ended up in a DMP.
I’ve complained that they shouldn’t have increased the limit again which has been rejected. Do you think the fact they literally assured me in writing they’d never increase it again but then did so with no further questions being asked is grounds to approach the ombudsman?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes.
Mandy says
Hi Sara,
Using the advice given on your website, i submitted a complaint to Very for unaffordable lending. In the space of 2.5 years my credit limited increased from £750 to £8000. I kept up with payments by sometimes neglecting other bills or by taking out high interest loans with 118 118 money and Lendable. Moving forward, in December 2021 Very responded to my complaint and agreed that my credit limit should not have been increased passed £3250. I was satisfied with the outcome and offered a payment plan £50 per month until the balance has been settled, they declined my offer so I escalated the complaint to the FOS. This is where I need your Advice – Very has made no changes to my account to reflect the outcome of their decision, my balance is still increasing every month since December 2021 and is now over £9000 due to the interest charges. The Adjudicator has asked Very to contact me to set up a payment plan but they have failed to do so. This has been a very stressful process due to the high interest charge every month, I have tried contacting Very but they won’t speak to me about this due to the account being with FOS. Can i escalate this complaint to the Ombudsman due to Very’s failings to make changes to the balance to reflect the outcome of their decisions?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ask your adjudicator if you need to put in a new complaint against Very. FOS usually deals with these “second complaints” much faster.
Have you also made complaints against 118 and Lendable?
Can I ask how large your other debts add up to? Are you making normal payments to those?
Mandy says
Hi Sara,
Thank you for getting back to me.
As per your advice, i went back to the adjudicator and asked if i needed a new complaint and this is what he came at me with:
‘ I’ve passed the comments on to the business as an Ombudsman would investigate the affordability complaint and some of the issues have happened since the complaint.
I’ve asked the business to contact you again to arrange a payment plan, this is a reasonable resolution as you know.
I’ve also asked them to raise a complaint about how they’ve dealt with your account and stress caused. This is usually investigated as a separate complaint so you’d be issued an new response.’
I am still waiting for Very to contact me, my account is still showing over 9200 balance when it should be £3250. i have no idea what to do know as Very are not communicating with me.
Their Arrears team keeps calling me chasing the debt and threatening to sell the debt on. can you please advise on what i can do now?
In regards to the 2 other loans, i only complained to 118. they rejected my complaint and it is now with an adjudicator. In May 2020 i took out a £4000 loan with Lendable and then in September 2020 took out another 1500 with 118. in August 2021, 118 offered my a top up loan of £4000 which i went ahead with. at the moment i am currently paying back my car finance, credit cards and lendable loan.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Their Arrears team keeps calling me chasing the debt and threatening to sell the debt on. can you please advise on what i can do now?
Tell them you are disputing the debt as that balance should be £3200.
But really it doesn’t matter if they sell it on, not something to worry about. Very will have to sort it all out with the debt purchaser if you win your complaint.