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?
Dan says
Started my complaints in September 17
Barclaycard complaint rejected at Adjudicator level – reading feedback I think I will have my work cut out to build a strong case with enough evidence – frustrating as being at or over limit nearly every month and borrowing to make repayments without actually defaulting means Barclaycard have done nothing wrong. 140 ‘cash-like’ transactions in two months (gambling and cash withdrawals) before a credit limit increase isn’t a red flag Barclaycard should notice by all accounts.
Very – still sat with an Adjudicator
Vanquis – still sat with an Adjudicator
HSBC – £400 goodwill – paid regardless of my thoughts
Mrs Cheaplaugh says
Hi I sent two complaints through Resolver to JD Williams and Fashion World. I was allowed to open accounts with each at the same time. Each offered me credit increases through the lives of the accounts until they both defaulted , owing £1700 on each account. I have had no reply from either despite them promising to investigate. The debts were sold on to collectors and are now both cleared. I was in financial hardship at the time. I was using a Payday lenders (Of whom I have won an affordability complaint via the FOS) at the time. Should I continue straight to the FOS now? Both complaints were escalated by Resolver on 24th October but I have had no response from either.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So you complained more than 8 weeks ago? Yes, send the complaints to the Ombudsman.
michael says
hello,
Just wondered how you got on with this ? I also had 3 accounts with JD williams at the same time.I have complained to them , my accounts are all still owing with balances. They have replied today to remove the charges which total £680. I have passed this to the ombudsman as they are still denying they lent to me irresponsibly. Despite all 3 accounts having the same account email log in details and so on. I would be interested to know how you get on with them.
Mrs Cheaplaugh says
I sent my cases to the Ombudsman and sat back and waited. I got a letter from somebody at the FO saying I hadn’t followed procedure and hadn’t had a final response so they were returning my files. I emailed back referring them to the dates in the Resolver file, got an acknowledgement 4 weeks ago then nothing. Skip forward to today, I called them and spoke to an investigator. She said she would pick up both of my files now and look into them. She could see that the person who wrote to me from the FO was wrong to put my case aside, that they were a ‘customer service’ operator. She said that she will now ask for their files which should take a couple of weeks then look into it. She explained that it was the responsibility of the borrower as well as the lender to run the account responsibly. However when I told them about my Quickquid case (settled before ombudsman stepped in) from the same period her attitude seemed to change. I hope something comes of it. Nothing ventured nothing gained.
Jackie crawford says
Hi
I received a letter from capital one informing me that due to the new “Plevin” ruling they will be looking to see if they failed to inform me about high commission made between them and the consumer (me) on their PPI. I claimed for the PPI and was successful. Anyway, I received a letter today to tell me that their was an unfair commission paid and with interest and charges £222.34 is owed. They then say the redress will offset the remaining balance of the credit card.
I was in an Iva from 2011 to April 2017 and my capital one card was included in this. They state
“ applying the redress in reduction of the outstanding balance which continues to exist following completion of the IVA, achieves the aim of putting the account in the position it would have been if PPI had not been purchased ( in wich case the debt owed to Capital One upon entry into the IVA would have been correspondingly lower)
We will the. Contact the insolvency practioner to confirm the amount applied in reduction of the account balance and to remit any remaining compensation”
I assumed all outstanding monies owed were written off via the IVA. Can anyone put all this into plain English for me please and let me know if the refund can be used on a closed IVA or should I take it to the FO
Many thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Jackie,
you have two problems here.
1) can the refund be offset against the “balance” that was written off. That is an interesting legal issue. You could indeed challenge this with the FO.
2) can your IVA firm claim the PPI refund? Capital One don’t mention this, but it is possible your IVA firm will say that any refund should come to them… see https://debtcamel.co.uk/ppi-iva-green-wright/, Because of this it is quite likely there is no point in pursuing the point about the set off. Who was your IVA firm?
Jackie crawford says
Hi
Thanks for this, my iva was with payplan. I will just write it off as one of those “would’ve been a nice unexpected surprise “ if it was a larger amount then I may have considered taking it further.
Thanks for the help
ajay says
I have had my complaint passed to ombudman le level and currently in a pool awaiting allocation…does anyone know how long until this gets picked up?
Linda says
Hi Ajay I’ve had a couple passed to the Ombudsman. I was told about a couple of months.
Linda says
Hi ajay just following on from this I had an email with a final decision from an Ombudsman the day after i posted this (didnt even know it had been picked up by one). Checking my records its been about a 4 week wait as it was placed in the queue for an Ombudsman on 15/12/17 (and that includes the Christmas break) so not bad really, a lot better than I thought.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That is good news – for you and other people waiting. Who was the lender?
Linda says
Hi Sarah that’s the bad news part it was 247 Moneybox another awkward company to deal with. But at least the Ombudsman decision is legal and binding. I called up the Ombudsman and told them my concerns about them ignoring emails etc and they said I can call them again if they fail to refund me in the allotted timescale. They were really nice actually. I’ve got another one I referred to the Ombudsman at the same time I’ll let you know when that’s picked up so it gives people an idea of waiting times
Lisa says
Please do let us know about the others Linda. Mine was placed in the queue a few days before yours and Ive not heard anything. Although I wasn’t expecting to until Feb/March so would be useful to know if these are picked up sooner than the expected 3 months. I’ll keep you posted on mine too.
Steph says
Aqua t/a NewDay
Eagerly awaiting a final decision from the Ombudsman regarding my affordability complaint against NewDay. Adjudicator rejected, Ombudsman issued a provisional decision upholding my complaint in full wef the first credit limit increase put through in July 2013. NewDay have issued additional information so I’m nervous this will change the Ombudsman’s provisional decision…and at this stage I don’t get the option to add anything further…
Anyone else have any NewDay experiences?
Steph
ajay says
Hi Steph, mines waiting to be passed to Ombudsman. I have had a torrid time with Newday/Aqua. What an awful company to deal with, they have tried every delaying tactic under the sun and sometimes not even bothered to reply back to the adjudicator.
Hope it works out for you .
Steph says
Thanks for your response Ajay, I totally agree with regards to the delay tactics.
Still no final response from the ombudsman … with each day that passes I feel means more likely for them to overturn their provisional decision.
Good luck with your complaint.
AK says
Hi Steph, did you send your initial complaint to Newday by post or by email? On Aqua card’s website there is no email address mentioned. If I could send my initial complaint by email it would be much easier. By any chance do you know their email address?
Jo says
Hi, I sent it by post, recorded delivery.
Jo
Steph says
Hi AK, was all done by post as they don’t have an email…although I did recently email their CEO and got a response.
Good luck!
Gl1234 says
I emailed my complaint just over 2 weeks ago to executiveofficecomplaints@newday.co.uk
I received an email back after 2 days advising someone would be in touch in 3-5 working days.
Today I received an email advising my complaint had been looked into and a final decision has been sent in the post (they don’t like to discuss via email apparently)
I emailed Barclaycard on the same day and they responded in 5 days. They didn’t agree with my unaffordable borrowing claim but have reduced my interest rate down to 8% so that’s something I suppose
AK says
Thank you very much, good to know. I resend my complaint by email now, hopefully this time they acknowledge it.
AK says
Gl1234, thank you very much again, I sent an email very late last night and they acknowledged my complaint this morning advising that they will contact me by phone or post in 3-5 days.
Clara says
Can I ask, did you get a positive response to your complaint ?
AK says
I would also like to know. I sent my complaint on 1st of February and I already got a response from NewDay saying that they lent responsibly. But as gesture of goodwill they refunded me two overlimit fees. I think I paid them more than £3000 in interest.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If they have rejected your complaint it doesn’t matter what has happened to anyone else, you have to decide whether to send your case to the Ombudsman or not.
AK says
Well, I think there is a pattern in the companies behaviour. Without reading about other people experiences and your advices I wouldn’t have courage to submit any complaints. Aqua’s complaint I’ve already submitted to FOS. This will be my last, 12th one.
Becky says
Hi Sara could you please give me an idea of what regulations would have been in place in 2009 when applying for a credit card .?inparticular those referring to affordability .? My complaint with fos against capital one seems to be doomed as adjudicator just makes excuses for capital one..
Regards
Becky
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I am sorry, I missed this query. The affordability rules then would have been much the same as they are now.
Tony says
Well this morning I had a bit of a surprise, my ppi from shop direct was paid out months ago and settled.
Today I received 3 cheques £12- £200-and £1479.71 no idea why but all the cheques say is compensation?
Result money I wasn’t expecting.
Anyone else had this after there ppi was paid out.
Wiggles says
I just got home from being away for a couple of days and got one too £1415.93 … no correspondence from them but its all good on my end
Debbie says
I had my complaint to shop direct rejected by them last week. This week I received a cheque for £180 with no explanation, just a slip saying compensation. I have no idea what it is compensation for and am awaiting a reply from them
Becky says
Hi steph I am so happy to hear that an ombudsman has overturned an adjudicators descision !!! My complaint against capital one has just been rejected by an investigator…it’s awful she’s made mistakes and has totally disregarded the oft rules that were in place at the time …she’s made every excuse under the sun for capital one..and she’s told me the the ombudsman is very likely to agree with her as they work by the same rules so wasn’t holding any hope what so ever..it’s so stressful isn’t it ?
Becky
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Ask for it to be sent to the Ombudsman. The sentence saying the ombudsman will agree with her is a standard one that is automatically put in every decision – if you think you have a good case, ignore it.
Also write out in detail exactly why you disagree with the adjudicator’s decision and ask for that to be sent to the Ombudsman.
Becky says
Hi Sara thanks for your reply …I feel so frustrated that I listed all rules from the oft regarding affordability and why I felt they had breached each one and the adjudicator just made excuse after excuse for capital one,she has made mistakes regarding the credit limit increase and when pointed out she just apologized and said she would amend it…she also stated in her tel call to me ( which is recorded ) that she had made mistakes…I’m seriously thinking about contacting caroline wayman direct and asking for her to relook at it butno sure if this will help or hinder !! What are your thoughts ?
Steph says
Hi Becky, that’s frustrating about the investigator. Fingers crossed the Ombudsman overturns the decision.
I’d suggest drawing their attention to the credit card lending guidelines which is what I did for my NewDay complaint. There were 3/4 items on the list which were applicable to me and the Ombudsman agreed. Keeping my fingers crossed for you.
Steph
Becky says
Hi Steph ,thank you so much for your reply ,the investigator in my case says that although capital knew I only earned £5000 a year,which amounts to £416 a month they wouldn’t nessesarily have known how much my outstanding debt cost per month…….they’ve agreed they knew how much debt i was In because they credit checked me each time…it’s the investigator sticking up for them…she says although they had this info they would have known how much I had to pay them each month !!!! My argument is how did they assess whether the credit was affordable/ sustainable ect ect without this info then ???
Kind regards
Becky
Becky says
Hi Steph
Can I just ask,did your complaint end up being upheld by the ombudsman ?,I’m not very hopeful but have sent in lots more info doing what you said ,I’ve pointed out the contradictions between the rules and what the investigator has said,fingers crossed …it’s such a drag keep arguing over it…my ivestigator is so bias…
Kind regards
Becky
Steph says
Hi Becky, sorry, have only just seen your comment.
Yes, it was upheld by the ombudsman in a final decision.
Refund has now been received.
Google credit card lending guidelines. It details the guidelines companies should follow when considering limit increases etc.
Hope this helps. Fingers crossed for you
Steph
Jo says
Hi Sara,
I sent my complaint about Barclaycard, they sent response quick quickly and refunded as goodwill my late payment fees (6 of them in total) but they said that it was responsible that they opened my account and increased my limit in the past. Is it worth to take this complaint higher? Many Thanks, Joanna
Sandra says
Sara, I want to say a big thank you. Using your information on Debt Camel, I complained to Littlewoods & Very about irresponsible
lending. To-day I have received a refund from both for £4557.
Fiona says
wow! that’s brilliant. mine has now gone to FOS. when did you start your complaint?
Sandra says
I sent in the complaint in June 2017 by letter. Had a long wait, but it was worth it.
Good luck with yours.
Fiona says
thanks Sandra! fingers crossed
Mandy says
Do you mind if I ask when you had your accounts I had one from 1999 for 9 years today I received a cheque for £200 with no letter or anything else – not impressed! It’s taken them 11 months to respond.
Sandra says
Hi, It took 7 months. I kept phoning them and was sent a cheque for £50 after four months
as an apology for the time it was taking. I had my accounts for over six years.
Stu says
Hi Sandra
Well done on your refund. There must be only one employee working through all the Shop Direct complaints due to the amount of time it takes them to respond. I find it interesting that quite a few people received a cheque on the same day and some without any explanation. You would think a company as big as shop direct could get their house in order Did you take it to the Ombudsman or just wait it out ?
Rowan says
Hello
I am in the same situation made complaint last year logged in my very account on Monday my balance was cleared and then today had two cheques contacted them on Monday via chat they said it was because of the complaint I contacted them today to ask for more information and said my account was closed and too call Monday confused lol
Sandra says
Hi, I just waited.
Dan says
Hi Sara – can I just get your thoughts on my adjudicators main reasons for rejecting my complaint against Vanquis
I paid more than minimum amount each month
I only went over limit twice between opening and first limit increase
I’ve stressed that I only overpaid to be able to use the card to pay other bills/live and just maxed the card out each month
I actually opened the card in July went over my limit in August, September, November and March before first increase in April. Adjudicator says I only went over limit by pence in two of those months (true) but I have tried highlighting that I only stopped there as payments weren’t authorised – I have asked for details of how many rejected uses were there on my card but the adjudicator is refusing to answer that question – is there anyway I can obtain this information from Vanquis under data protection rules?
Anyway, your thoughts on anything else I might add in response would be appreciated, thanks as always
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think if you have often paid more than the minimum this is going to be a tough one to win, sorry.
Dan says
does consistently going over limit not indicate difficulties in its own right?
Becky says
I feel your pain,it’s so frustrating trying to get your point Over to them isn’t it ?..my complaint has also been declined for similar reasons..I never paid over the min payment but because I paid the min payment for 7 years and didn’t miss a payment I’ve also been told I couldn’t have been in financial difficulty,even thought oft rules state that being able to service the debt by only paying the min payment does not mean it was affordable..my investigator has choose to ignore that oft rule…good luck send it to an ombudsman and hope for the best,it’s all you can do…doesn’t make it right but your hands are tied
Eva says
Simply Be
Just phoned Simply Be for an update on my complaint just over 8 weeks old. Very nice man answered all my questions and told me letter with cheque for just over £1600 was send out on Friday. They are refund me all the interest charges and 8% on top. He said they cannot do anything regarding the credit file but that’s ok. So the 3rd lender sorted without going to FOS. That’s so far £5760 refunded from Simply Be, My jar, WageDay Advanced).
Mrs Cheaplaugh says
Simply Be are part of JD Williams aren’t they? Did you go through the FOS ? What was your complaint?
Sasha paton says
Hi can i ask what your complaint was for this please? I have complained to jd williams as they allowed me to open 10 accts across there network all at the same time?
Eva says
Hi Sasha. I complained for unaffordibility and credit increases. I was always late with minimum payments and few times had payment arrangements.it took me 6 years to pay off and close the account. It took them 8 weeks to respond and 4 weeks to get the cheque signed off.
Sasha paton says
Thanks for letting me know i had a few months pf late payments on every account just check had 9 accounts in total that all ended up being on dmp due to me just not being able to pay the minimum payments. Im hoping i have a good case. Can i ask how many accts you had with them?
Eva says
Only had 1 account so you definitely have good case here. Go for it and keep us updated
Bridget says
Hi Sara
Just after some advice. I took my complaint against Shop Direct to the FOS who rejected it but did say that Shop Direct would not be actively pursing the debt. I have today had a phone call from Shop Direct Arrears Department asking me how I was going to pay this debt now the complaint was closed and that if no payment was forthcoming it would be sold on. Do I offer some payment or just leave it as they did say they would not actively pursue the amount outstanding. Many thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Don’t ignore this – go back to them and say what the FOS told you and ask them to confirm that they will not be pursuing you to pay the debt and will not sell it to a debt collector.
John C says
Compliant now gone into Littlewoods and Very (both Shop Direct). Opened both accounts in 2014 within a few months of each other. Littlewoods started with a credit limit of £600 then 5 increases from then till Jan 2016 up to £2,000. Very was opened late 2014 and there was 4 credit increases up to a £3,000 limit. 3 of those increases were across 8 months. Every time my limit went up I bought PlayStation 4 consoles or Garmin Watches, usually on buy now pay later, to sell on ebay. This was to cover gambling and payday loan repayments. Probably bought around 15 PlayStation’s across both accounts in 3 years – I wonder what Shop Direct thought I was doing with them all?! I’ve asked for a refund of interest on all BIN products from my 4th increase on Littlewoods (most products aren’t interest baring, just expensive as the interest is really included in the price) and from the 2nd on the Very account, which does have interest added. As these accounts have a ridiculous repayment over 28 days I ended up missing a month (I don’t get paid 13 times a year), then found myself in a position where the minimum payment the following month was over £1k across them both which is a huge part of my wages. I sent both letters to Shop Direct yesterday, recorded delivery. I see they rarely reply within 8 weeks to i’ll get straight off to the FOS then
Maxine says
I put claim into Very and have had 2 replys from them ,first was after 4 weeks saying they were still looking into it , second letter was to say it was at the 8 weeks stage and due to ongoing investigations that they were aiming to send me a response within the next 4 weeks and said I was entitled to go to ombudsman if I wanted, they apologised for the delay and thanked me for my patience, so tomorrow is the end of the 12th week, should I take it straight to ombudsman or wait to see what they say
Shannon says
Take it to the FOS. I had the same with Littlewoods and they will just keep dragging it out. If Very do happen to come back with a good offer you can always withdraw the complaint with the FOS.
Jamie says
Hi all. When i opened a very account my credit limit was £700 for 2 months. This is when i was struggling with my debts at the time. Now they’ve went down to £300 credit limit. Could i make a complaint for when they had it at £700
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did you have a balance over £300 when they cut your limit?
Becky says
my adjudicator refused my complaint for unaffordable lending as she says capital one wouldn’t necessarily have know how much my credit commitments cost each month!! My argument is how did they assess affordability then ?. Capital one has agreed they knew how much I earn, they also say they knew my indebtedness and that I was only making min payments on all credit commitments as the credit checked me each time they increased my limit, but the adjudicator has argued that although they had this info they wouldn’t have known how much those debts came to each month….how can they have assessed whether the credit limits were affordable if they didn’t have this info ….what are your thoughts Sara !!
She has also stated that they only needed to do basic affordability checks !! This is not how I read the oft rules on assessing affordability, I read it that the checks had to be sufficient to assess whether someone would be able to repay without causing financial difficulty… am I right ??
Kind regards
Becky
Sara (Debt Camel) says
As I said before, send the case to the Ombudsman and put all your points in writing to your adjudicator and ask for them to be passed on.
The regulators have not been specific about what level of cheks a lender has to do. Your argument is that they should have taken into account the fact that you only paid the minimum for 7 years to them and were only paying the minimum to other lenders.
Kelly says
Just after a bit of advice I made Ppi claims on three accounts with shop direct. This was in August 17 I finally got a response in late November (23rd) saying all off my claims were upheld but I would have to wait 28 days for the redress to be calculated. I received two responses and two cheques in January 18 but the third one also dated 23rd November I have had no redress calculations for. This is the oldest account not sure if that’s relevant. I have chased them via post and phone with no success to date. Is there a time period for them to payout as I feel this has been dragging on for an unacceptably long time
Sam Davies says
Hi,
Before making a complaint about affordability. Can you request transactions/statements?
I have a catalogue and they have defaulted this and passed the debt on to a debt company.
I want to request the statements but don’t want them to start chasing the debt. How should I best approach this?
Sam
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You can’t really request back statements for a catalogue – well you can, but they will try to charge you for them :(
Did they increase your credit limit?
Sam Davies says
Yes the limit increased. From memory I think the original limit was £200 and eventually increased to £600. The account would have been in order at first. But even then I had defaults and further defaults after when I was made redundant.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So that is the basis for your complaint – they increased your limit even though you had late/missed payments on your account and other defaults showing on your credit record. You don’t need the statements for this.
John says
Hi Sara,
My complaints of irresponsible lending from shop direct have not been upheld by an adjudicator as it is there opinion that although I was taking out many payday loans whilst being given credit limit increases, they said this was not unreasonable lending because it would of been unlikely shop direct would of been aware of the payday loan applications as they were not being reported accurately, especially by the payday lenders with credit reference agency Equifax.
Any thoughts please?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
How was your Shop Direct account conducted – did you ever miss payments? usually only make minimum payments?
sam says
Just tried to make a complaint to very. but because my account has been closed there is no way for them or me to access my statements. they are trying their hardest to stop me doing it. The women on the help chat was just telling me to phone their helpline, done that and they just said exactly the same. is there a way of getting around this?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
this ais a complaint they raised your credit limit too high? When was your account closed? Have you put the complaint in in writing?
Sam says
About credit limit too high and that they shouldn’t have let me open an account because I was in debt with payday loan companies at the time with missing payments. I am trying to get access to my statements so I can get the information ready to make my complaint.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You don’t need access to your statements, just put a complaint in in writing. If they reject it, send it to the Ombudsman
Dan says
rejections at adjudicator level for shop direct, vanquis and oakbrook finance all in the same week
very deflated – have asked all three to be escalated but I just cannot fathom some of the reasoning from two of the adjudicators
Tim says
Hi Dan,
Your oakbrook finance loan, was this direct from the company called Likely Loans, either way they are the same company. I have a complaint in against them you see and i would like to know from you what their feedback/final response was to you? Also if you could tell me a little about what you included in your complaint to them this might help me with my current complaint.
Vicky says
Hi, i would like to thank you for all the wonderful advice offered. thanks to the advice i have managed to make a few successful payday loan complaints so far. My question i about Very accounts. I had 2 Very accounts. One opened in 2010 and the other in 2012. The one in 2012 they opened had a credit limit of £3000 when i had a salary of £1032. At the time i had a loan for around £10k, 3 credit cards and an o’draft. At this point there weren’t many late payments or anything bad on my credit report. Anyway i took out another loan in 2015 consolidating the debt and asked the £3k account to be closed, i have mental health issues and know that i cannot trust myself sometimes. They reduced the credit limit to £2480, but didn’t close it. I ended up continuing to use it a little later on and then made a few late payments. Is there any complaint i can make above any of this?
Thanks
Vicky
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That second Very account looks as though it may have been unaffordable from the start. That is well worth complaining about. Also say in your complaint that you asked for the account to be closed and they didn’t do this. It may help if you can supply some evidence about your mental health problems.
the consolidation loan in 2015 – was this at a high-interest rate? Could you afford it, or did it actually cause more problems than it solved? It may be worth complaining about that too!
Andy says
Only just found this section on catalogue refunds and I am now suggesting my girlfriend submits complaints to shop direct as she had 3 seperate acccounts each starting with low limits but increased to several thousand. She hasn’t worked for 20 years due to mental health so relied on benefits to pay bills. How would she now if PPI had been applied to these accounts?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if she looks at statements, they should show PPI. Or she can phone shop direct up and ask.
Andy says
Thanks she also had to do a debt relief order to clear debts with them in 2015 but probably paid more in Interest and late fees than the balance that was put into DRO. Do you think it is worthwhile complaining. She would be happy even if she just got £50 but I would hope for a lot more as I already got her over £2000 from wonga thanks to your advice. We haven’t got any statements but have account numbers still.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
it’s worth a try, but these complaints are harder to win than payday loans.
Andy says
Thanks for the advice, i have just rung shop direct and they are now investigating all 4 accounts for ppi and affordability/mis-selling, they said an acknowledgement letter will be sent for each account in 10-14 days. I will now be pursuing this all the way and will not give up until I get my girlfriend a satisfactory refund as I strongly believe they should never have given her 4 separate catalogue accounts with massive credit limits as she has always been on benefits with barely any disposable income. Good news is most of the account balances were settled from inheritance money before going into a debt relief order so shouldn’t be any offsetting against unpaid debts.
Paul says
Littlewoods contacted me last week to ask for copies of my credit report to show my other debts and loans that I defaulted on. I sent them (though should they not have these when they ran credit checks on me before increasing my credit limit), they have now come back saying they need another 4 weeks to investigate, but I can go to the FO as they have dealt with my query in time. My complaint in time. Should I go to FOB now, or wait for them to send me a final response? I only ask as more and more people seem to be getting a positive response from Littlewoods and Very when waiting for them to conclude their investigations
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Up to you. If they do make a reasonable offer you save the time going to the FOS. If they don’t you will regret delaying.
Conor says
Hi Sara,
Just wondered whether you knew if it was at all possible to claim against Aqua for their credit card, even though I have also a loan taken out with them? I’m happy with the loan they have provided (15.9% APR, which is by far the best rate I can get for the foreseeable).
Have had my credit card since 2014 and the limit was quickly increased from £250 to £2350 in a matter of about 6 months. Maxed it out very quickly and have since then only been making just over the minimum payment, and then maxing it out again. I’ve had a few late payments and gone over my limit several times in the last few years.
As both Aqua Card and Aqua Loans are owned by NewDay I was wondering if taking out action against my credit card would affect my loan in any way?
Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I don’t see how a complaint about the credit card limit could affect an existing loan.
Craig says
Have anyone had any joy out of Aqua/NewDay? They gave me a card in June 2015 with a credit limit of £600, by September it was increased to £1500 and by December I was in arrears due to various financial difficulties which also included payday loans and gambling problems. I have been in an arrangement with them ever since i went into arrears….
Steph says
I did Craig. Had a number of credit limit increases since July 2013. NewDay drag their heels a lot with the complaints process, in my experience anyway. It took a total of 10 months to get it all sorted and had to go the full course with the FOS, but last week they refunded £4,100 – this was all late payments fees an the difference in interest between my original credit limit of £1,850 in July 2013 and the increased credit limits they gave me.
Let me know if you need anymore info.
Steph
Craig says
Hi Steph, thats useful to know thanks for this. I have sent away my complaint last week so i will see how it goes. I dont expect this one to be resolved quickly. Thanks Craig
Becky says
Hi Steph
Can I ask !!, was it you that the adjudicator didn’t uphold you complaint but the ombudsman did ?.. if not sorry,,if so can you tell me a little bit about how it all happened ? My complaint against capirtal one has been rejected by investigator and is waiting to go to an ombudsman..I’ve also got an aqua credit card which was unaffordable and was increased from £500 to £5300…..but can’t cope with complaining about that until the capital one one is sorted,I find it all so stressful…
Regards
Becky
Steph says
Hi Becky,
Sorry for not coming back to you.
Upheld at Ombudsman level. Refund has now been received. £4,000. They increased my limit 4 times over 3 years from £1850 to £5400. I always made payments on a monthly basis but majority were minimum only and I would then go straight back over the limit.
I’d suggest putting your complaint in with aqua NOW, they take a long time to reply and drag it as much as they can. Mine took 10months to sort.
The whole process was dreadful.
Anything else you’d like to know?
Steph x
Tim says
Hi Steph,
Why did you let it take 10 months? They have 8 weeks to deal with a complaint, any longer then you have the right to send it the Ombudsman, i know it could then sit with them for several months but 10 months seems very excessive. I will be putting in a complaint soon with my credit cards, if they don’t get back to me in the appropriate response time i would be contacting them bang on the 8 week deadline and if still not resolved then i would just tell them i am not dealing with them directly as i am putting the complaint through to the Ombudsman.
Steph says
Hi Tim,
I didn’t “let it” take 10 months. I reported it to the FOS at the 8 week mark. Unfortunately Aqua continued to drag their heels even once the FOS we’re dealing so I just had to let it run it’s course. I would touch base with the Investigator dealing with the case on a fortnightly update to check progress. Don’t think there’s much I could’ve done beyond that.
Becky says
Hi Steph
Please can I ask ,did you get to speak to the ombudsman at all ? My adjudicator has said that you can’t normally speak to them but I feel I need to get my point over ….my case has been fast tracked due to the level of stress it’s causing me as well as my anxiety levels…it’s been on an ombudsman’s desk since Thursday so I’m thinking on Monday I’m going to ask to speak with the ombudsman myself ..just been interested to see if you got to speak to the actual ombudsman
Kind regards
Becky
Frankie says
Hi all, just some news about complaints I made to Littlewoods and their partners. For background I have a mental health condition called Cyclothymia (similar to bipolar) which causes mania and impulsive spending. In 2012 I took out my first littlewoods credit account (I believe the limit was around £400 to begin). Fastforward 4 years and my total outstanding debt was around £3000 across their partners and I was in a DMP.
I recently (around Nov 2017) complained via email and was told on several occassions someone would get back to me, no one ever did. This year I decided to make one last attempt at contact and threatened the Ombudsman. Last week I received a letter from each company explaining along the lines of “we accept no responsibility for this, however to stop any further distress we have issued cheques for all interest and charges paid from account opening”. This is around £1200 in total.
So to confirm – yes you can claim against catalogues and you can win! It’s also worth noting I called about when I would receive the cheques and they advised in 7-10 days.
Sasha paton says
any idea of the contact details for shop direct please
dan says
Hi,
If you have an open account still then you have to complain via the online chat/message facility, otherwise it is only by post – save a copy and send it recorded if you do
Dee Clark says
Hello just a bit of advice please, I have had an account with Littlewoods for years probably 20yrs (it was an empire stores account before they took them over) I always just paid the minimum and they kept giving me increases, in the end I owed them approx. £ 9000 and was paying £330 per month as minimum payment, which became unaffordable for me. It is now being managed within a DMP do you think it would qualify for an unaffordability claim?
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
How long has it been in a DMP? Do you know roughly when the last credit limit increase was?
dee clark says
approx. 6 months and December 2016
Sara (Debt Camel) says
OK, that’s well worth a complaint then. I was worried that this might all be a long a while ago.
Becky says
Hi Sara what are the rules on household income on credit card application form ? Still battling with the adjudicator over my complaint against capital one,my own income was put on the application form as £5000 plus household income which was my husbands wage of £28,000….the adjudicator has agreed that capital one shouldn’t have assumed my husband income could be used to repay my debt and says she doesn’t feel that capital one have done this in her final response….however capital one have now come back saying that part of there creditworthiness checks included a household income of £33,000…….Are they allowed to have assessed me being able to afford something using someone else’s income…
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I am afraid there are no detailed rules on this subject. Legally your husband has no responsibility for money that you borrow as your adjudicator says.
Becky says
Thanks Sara I found a piece on the lending standards board that states when granting a loan,where the income of someone else is used to assess affordability the loan should be made to both parties….however would a credit card be worded as a loan ???
It’s a minefield…I feel so stressed out trying to fight this…
The adjudicator says one thing then changes her mind so I can never take anything as gospel with her,I’m hoping for an ombudsman with some sense !!
My other question is, she has said credit cards are deemed as short term lending !! Do I have the right to complain that capital one should have seen/ been aware that this credit card was not short term,it was used for 7 years only paying the min,except on 2 occasions when I was over the limit and transferred some onto another credit card….I know it’s not the same as payday lending and the rules are very different but I was dependant on this credit card,using high utilization,paying only the min payment then withdrawing that amount or more out in cash in order to survive the month financially…
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Capital One are a member of the Lending Standards Board.
You are referring to para 54 of the old Lending Code here https://www.lendingstandardsboard.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/The-Lending-Code-Mar-2011-revised-2015-1.pdf. That para doesn’t apply strictly to credit cards because credit cards aren’t provided on a joint & several basis. However I think it’s worth quoting this to your adjudicator as it shows that it should not be normal to lend to one person on the basis of their partner’s income and that approach can be read across to credit cards.
Becky says
Thank you so much for your time Sara…yes that’s the regulation I was referring to,my card was opened in 2009 and although paid off now is still open….it’s been a hard slog,it’s hard when you don’t know the exact rules and I’ve got the worst adjudicator ever who is completely biased towards capital one….but thank you again,I really appreciate your help
Dave 0 says
Hi Sara
I have written my complaint letter and believe I have a strong case against Aqua. I have searched their website and googled for an email address to send it to but couldn’t find one. I have phoned them up and they said they don’t have an email address and have given me a PO box address. Is this true or are they trying to fob me off
Thanks Dave
AK says
Have a look at last page of comments about catalogue and credit cards refunds. The email address mentioned there. I have used it in the evening and got an answer next morning. executiveofficecomplaints@newday.co.uk
Laura says
Does anyone know with Very (have 2 accounts with them, one Very and one Woolworths), if I would have a chance of claiming, if in the beginning of opening my accounts, they kept increasing my credit limits but then started decreasing them, as they must obviously know that I am in financial difficulty. They have decreased my credit limits gradually since 2014 for one account, and 2013 for the other, yet they still allow me to buy items on BNPL, which I am never going to pay before the due date, so therefore, have an abundance of interest charges. I have struggled with these payments over the years and cannot seem to ever see a light at the end of the tunnel with regards to paying them off…I don’t order anything from them anymore. Any advice would be appreciated.
Tony says
Hi,
I’m just looking for experiences with these sort of claims, I submitted 5 on Monday of this week stating unaffordability of the credit being the reason.
All 5 were applications within 2 months, I had minimum payments of over £1500 per month to payday loan companies, a total debt of approx £25,000 (at the time) and a history of around 10months of minimum payments on other existing cards, coupled with all accounts having cash immediately drawn out and limits hit within a matter of days/weeks.
I also have complained about an Abbey card which was given to me when I called up for a replacement card for an existing account! (Young and stupid doesn’t quite cut it)
My query is, I have received responses from 2 lenders today, which appear to be fairly standard “we ensure a suitable level of financial checks are undertaken with every application”, I assume there has been little or no investigation due to the response time and therefore think I should go straight to the ombudsman, would you agree?
Thanks in advance.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
These 5 – and the 2 who have replied – are they credit card/catalogues? or payday lenders? Was this all the result of a gambling problem?
Tony says
Hi,
These are all credit cards, i have cases with the ombudsman for those.
It was not a gambling problem, I was just young and extremely naive, a of couple of years to spend a small fortune which has crippled me for a large portion of my life.
The money I was lent, I have no qualms about paying back, but the compound interest and fees associated, given the circumstances, has been the major factor in my life being affected.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok, how long ago was this? how much do you owe now?
Tony says
This was in 2012, March, so I think I’ve just got the 6 year Mark.
I have 7.5k left to clear of what amounted to a £52k personal debt in 2014.
To say I was in a bad place is an understatement, but with the help of stepchanhe and now site such as this, I have a light at the end of the tunnel.
Given my age, income and circumstances I look back and realise how scarily easy this was to amount up.
But hindsight is a wonderful thing ey? ????
Thanks again
Sara (Debt Camel) says
wow, respect for getting your debt down so dramatically :)
Well from here every little back will really help. I just didn’t want you to be too optimistic…
“All 5 were applications within 2 months, I had minimum payments of over £1500 per month to payday loan companies, a total debt of approx £25,000 (at the time) and a history of around 10months of minimum payments on other existing cards, coupled with all accounts having cash immediately drawn out and limits hit within a matter of days/weeks.” The precise order of these applications will be important – the last one is a much stronger case than the first one.
Jamie says
Just put a compliaint for vanquis. They uped my credit limit to £1000 without even asking if i wanted to increase in 2016. Just got a text message to say congratulations your new credit limit is £1000.
adele adams says
just sent a complaint to vanquis limit upped from £500 to £1500 and i was borrowing from everyone at the time. Also a couple of months later when i had used all the money/limit i had contacted them to sort out a plan. They added interest charges and fees to where my balance was over £1900. Finally after a debt collector took over interest froze have been paying for nearly 5 years now and still owe £995. Trying as the interest and fees were such a huge chunk.
Does this sound like a fair complaint
Also have a complaint in process with Provident for balance of 3602 which is all interest remaining to be paid Trying to clean up credit as i have a little baby and want to get a mortgage eventually. Had to turn down right to buy (only 38k) as cant get mortgage.
Andy says
Hi all, I rang Shop Direct 2 weeks ago to start a ppi & affordability complaint on all 4 accounts my girlfriend had with them up to 2015, thy seemed very helpful and said someone would be ringing back and a confirmation letter would be sent in 10-14 days to acknowledge my complaint. I hadn’t heard anything so rang them back yesterday and they said they had no details of my complaint so started process all over again. just woke up to find both phone calls have cost over £5 each as I rang the 0844 phone number, does anyone have a good email address for them as I am really annoyed that I am getting nowhere and I am another £10 out of pocket, Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you email Nick McBrien at nick.mcbrien@shopdirect.com. He is head of compliance for Shop Direct and I am sure he would love to look at your complaint.
You could start your email to him by saying that:
The FCA’s complaint rules in DISP 1.3.2 says that firms should allow complaints to be made by any reasonable means. You wish to complain about the following Shop Direct brands …… and the complaints are linked so you do not wish to complain to the individual brands. Your website does not explain how to do this and does not provide a telephone number except 0844 292 1000. You called this and were told someone would ring back and you would get a confirmation letter, neither of which happened, so you had to call again. This has cost you £ (attach screen shots proving this). DISP 1.3.1AD says a telephone number which begins with 084 does not comply with the DISP rules so, in addition to your affordability complaint, you would also like a prompt refund of these call costs.
Andy says
Thanks for the quick reply and information, I will get an email off to him straight away, Do you think I would stand a good chance of getting anywhere if my girlfriend had 4 separate accounts (all in use at the same time) with them between 2010 or earlier through to 2015. We don’t have any statements of them anymore but can see lots of missed payments and defaults on credit files for shop direct and I know from memory that the credit limits were increased several times even though my girlfriend was on disability benefits and only making minimum payments.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Some people have had good results, its a bit random I am afraid, send it to the Financial Ombudsman if you don’t get an ok offer directly as most of the good settlements have gone through the Ombudsman.
Andy says
Thanks again, I am now wondering whether I should complain about all 4 accounts or just 2 off them as Isme and Very were paid off in full but K & Co and Littlewoods were put in a debt relief order for about £1,500 combined, should I separate my complaints or combine them into one as I am wary that if I succeed in getting a refund they will offset it against the £1,500 even though that has been wiped out by the DRO.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That is a difficult decision. Legally you don’t owe any money any more on the DRO debts for an offset. But that could be a difficult argument to make. And if you only complain about 2, SD could still bring up the issue. Sorry not clear what is best.
Scott says
Hi Andy,
Personally, I would pursue a complaint on all 4 accounts from the offset.
Whilst the £1500 write off under the DRO may be brought up, I am sure that the interest charged on those 2 accounts over the years would have added up to quite a bit.
Adding that interest and charges onto the interest and charges from the 2 settled accounts should add up to a good sum and if they were to offset the £1500 against it, it should at least leave something to be paid back.
As the old saying goes:- Nothing ventured nothing gained.
Good luck
Scott
Andy says
Thanks for this, I have just emailed the complaint regarding all 4 catalogues prior to reading this message as I was already thinking exactly the same, my only query now is that as all accounts were closed in 2015 I can no longer see statements online and have no paper copies. Do you think they will provide details of missed payments and credit limit increases or are they likely to ask me to go into more detail? I based my complaint on the fact that payments were regularly missed and/or only paying the minimum amount along with constant credit limit increases without customers consent whilst on disability benefits.
Scott says
Hi Andy,
To be honest, I can’t see them assisting you in that way and from what I’ve read above, they would want paid for duplicate statements.
Noodle is a good way to find out about credit increases but this would only go back 6 years.
I think you just need to let the process run and if they come back with an offer, you can always say that without seeing statements you cannot agree that the offer is fair and reasonable.
If it has to go to the FOS, they will be charged a fee so would be easier and cheaper to supply you the statements. (That however would mean that they were being helpful :-)) The FOS can relay any information that you need to see whether an offer is okay.
Scott
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You don’t need this information – they already know it! Your complaint just needs to mention the missed payments and credit limit increases. The Ombudsman will be able to get full details from them if needed.
Elizabeth says
Hi, I just raised a complaint with Aqua newday. They emailed me stating someone would phone me to go thru like a detailed questionnaire? Has anyone else had this? Thanks
Bev Nelson says
I contacted Shop Direct around Xmas 2017 just an initial enquiry as to wether I’d ever had ppi or not on two old accounts. They wrote back fairly quickly advising that yes i did have two accounts with ppi one where the ppi had ran for 1 year 1995-1996 and another from 2001-2004 and they would look into them. I didn’t even complain. Couple of weeks ago they wrote to say both complaints upheld and redress being calculated. Now, I didn’t expect thousands because from memory I knew the balances were never huge but given the timescales I thought it would be around £500. Today they wrote back saying total redress for BOTH accounts including 8% interest minus tax will be £107!!!!! Iv asked them for statements and a breakdown of how they have reached this figure but they just keep saying it’s definitely correct. Must have exchanged 20 emails today requesting how they reached their figures and they still kept saying redress was correct. Also they said that the 8% compensation rule is retail and differs from the banks redress??
Total premiums they say were £55 and total 8% comp is £66 !! Iv asked for statements and they said they will request SARS for me and waive the £10 fee.
Should i ask the ombudsman to look at this because i just feel that they’re not being truthful? Or do i just accept what they say?
adele adams says
would it be worth complaining to Littlewoods irresponsible lending/affordaility. I have been trying to sort out a new payment plan with them after the first 6 months ended. In the last month or so they have added 4 £12 charges even though i have been trying to make arrangements to pay. Until recently i havent had trouble paying them to their knowledge as i just borrow from other sources to pay them (but i have been in difficulty) Had a plan for 6 months now which stopped Dec and no plan in place now. I borrowed from a payday lender to make account up to date as i felt bullied to pay them they were harrassing me with call emails etc
In regards to affordability/responsible lending do i have a case as they kept increasing my credit limit!
I only have limit history from 2012. the account start date is 3/3/07 (would have been fairly low – i was nearly 21 and 1 of my first credit things i would have had) Jump to 2012 £5100. March 2012 £5600. Nov 2012 £6100. Dec 2012 £6400. Jan 2013 £6700. Feb 2013 £7000. June 2012 £7800. Aug 2013 £8300. Oct 2013 £8800. Dec 2013 £9300. Limit was then £9300 until Jan 2017 Then dropped to £1350 Feb 2017 (prob due to me making an arrangement with the Littlewoods credit card and informing the credit card i was struggling)
The highest my balance went was £3149 Aug 2013 will this affect my complaint as i didnt use up to my limit (although the payments were still unaffordable in my financial state) My limit was higher than my yearly salary until recently
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No it doesn’t matter if you didn’t use the whole limit. The two points to make are a) you could not afford the minimum repayments and b) they kept raising your limit without checking you could afford it.
adele adams says
Thank you that has given me the confidence to go forward
Bev Nelson says
I contacted Shop Direct around Xmas 2017 just an initial enquiry as to wether I’d ever had ppi or not on two old accounts. They wrote back fairly quickly advising that yes i did have two accounts with ppi one where the ppi had ran for 1 year 1995-1996 and another from 2001-2004 and they would look into them. I didn’t even complain. Couple of weeks ago they wrote to say both complaints upheld and redress being calculated. Now, I didn’t expect thousands because from memory I knew the balances were never huge but given the timescales I thought it would be around £500. Today they wrote back saying total redress for BOTH accounts including 8% interest minus tax will be £107!!!!! Iv asked them for statements and a breakdown of how they have reached this figure but they just keep saying it’s definitely correct. Must have exchanged 20 emails today requesting how they reached their figures and they still kept saying redress was correct. Also they said that the 8% compensation rule is retail and differs from the banks redress??
Total premiums they say were £55 and total 8% comp is £66 !! Iv asked for statements and they said they will request SARS for me and waive the £10 fee.
Should i ask the ombudsman to look at this because i just feel that they’re not being truthful? Or do i just accept what they say?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest waiting until you get the statements so you can see the numbers.
Mrs Cheaplaugh says
Just found out that JD Williams co sent their final responses to my old address last November. Both letters for each are a similarly worded and standard response stating that I had accepted their terms and conditions, that they had used info from credit reference agencies and that I had kept the accounts up to date. For that reason they were not going to uphold my complaint. My argument is that although I made the minimum payments, they increased my limit saying they checked my payment record and that of the credit reference agencies. How about existing credit within their own company? They obviously never checked that. The repayments eventually became unsustainable. The FOS is looking at my case now.
katie says
Hello,
I would be interested to know how you get on with this, I myself have had complaints in againt Jd williams. They allowed me to open 3 accounts with them constantly uping limits despite me msising payments I have pursued them for irresponsible lending. I had an initial response from Jd williams offering to return the late payment charges on my accounts totaling £600 I have delcined this. I have took it to the FOS and waiting a repsonse from them
Mrs Cheaplaugh says
Hi , I have an FOS investigator on it now, who called me last week. Although they said I was making payments on time the investigator said that JDW couldn’t or wouldn’t tell the FOS what credit checks they did, if at all, when increasing new limits. I think they are taking a particular interest in this company for allowing multiple accounts and making high limit increases. My particular argument was that at the time I was having Payday loans (Also complained and they admitted and paid up without adjudication). So it was plain to see that I was in financial difficulty. My investigator says she may uphold my complaint if JDW cannot give a satisfactory response…still waiting.
Andy says
Hi Sara, just after a bit more help with my Shop Direct complaint as I have rung them twice on 12th Feb & 23rd Feb and also emailed Nick McBrien following your advice last weekend 25th Feb and still have no response from them, Do I just need to be patient or is there another email address, I don’t mind writing to them but don’t know if I am being a bit hasty, they haven’t acknowledged my complaint in anyway. I have emailed Nick McBrien again yesterday requesting a response by Friday 9th March before I seek advice from the Financial Ombudsmen.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes, patience is needed – just wait until the 8 weeks is up then send the case to the Ombudsman.
Simon says
HI sara, after some advice. My complaint has been partially upheld by an ombudsman regarding my credit card and limit increase. Prior to the increase i had been making minimum payments,once the limit was increased i struggled and alway paid late incurring over limit fees etc. Prior to the increase i had a default recorded on my file and lots of payday loans and lots of revolving credit. I have argued that this should have all been reviewed as part of an affordability review which i thought would have been standard practice. The ombudsman is requesting that the card company stop spend on my card and let me make min payments to clear the card whilst also offering me a payment of £200 for undue anxiety the increase has caused. What are your thoughts is this reasonable? My limit was increasee from 500 to 1250 and like i say my credit history was poor and actually got worse at the time of the increase. The ombudsman has even seen my ststements where i was revolving up to 5 payday loans at the same time. I am struggling to see how the onbudsman cannot see this limit increase was not affordable for me. The credit card company initially offered to repay me all my overlimit fees which was £240 for 24 months of consecutive over limit charges of £12. I rejected as I have paid huge amounts in interest. If i agree would I pay back the balance as it stands at a rate I could afford? At this rate it will be 20 per month which will take ages to clear the 1250 balance.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
is this a decision from an adjudicator or the second Ombudsman stage?
Simon says
2nd stage Ombudsman
Simon says
Hi Sara, they have also implied that because they wrote to me informing me that my limit would be increased and i didnt say no there was always an option to decline. Whats your views on this? My default was registetered a month before my increase, if they had done a proper credit assessemnt they would have seen all this info.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
My view is that a lender should check affordability of a credit limit increase. Just because you didn’t decline it doesn’t mean that it’s affordable.
Clara says
Does anyone have the generic email address for the section that deals with the irresponsible lending complaints at the FOS. Its normally at the bottom of their letters ?
Eva says
shorttermlending@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
Clara says
Thank you Eva :)
emma says
I currently hold three shop direct accounts and am under step change attempting to pay these off. We have been trying to pay these off for four years now however due to Shop Direct’s refusal to stop adding interest charges we haven’t actually touched the original debt. I have drafted the first email in order to attempt to claim back some of these charges. I have logged onto the online accounts to find information on when credit limits were increased/ payments made etc and all of this information has been wiped from my account. Is this common practice? I also wondered if we were to pay off the debt in full would we be in position to claim back compensation for interest charged retrospectively?
Thanks
Emma
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Read this https://debtcamel.co.uk/creditor-wont-freeze-interest/ as it’s more relevant to your situation than this page which is about affordability complaints.
Simon says
Hi Sara,do you have any key regulations that I could quote in my response to the ombudsman decision around what affordability checks a credit card lender should do etc.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well it’s now CONC 6.2 https://www.handbook.fca.org.uk/handbook/CONC/6/2.html.
But the FOS knows that. It’s more important that you explain that the minimum payments were not affordable and list the things the lender should have noticed that show this – were you only making minimum payments? Did you ever pay late or miss payments? Did you have other borrowing from the same lender? what would your credit record show?
david says
i made an irresponsible lending claim against Very in January 2018 claiming they shouldn’t have increased my limit on more than one occasion and the FOS have not upheld my complaint, stating Very have done no wrong. they have said that due to me paying my monthly payment and only have 2 missed / late payments on this particular account in the past few years the account has been deemed to be maintained well.
however, with a StepChange DMP now in place, high or maxed out credit on practically all credit accounts, payday loans, amigo loan of £3k, another £1k high interest loan to likely loans, 3 defaults now on my credit file and approx. £14k of unsecured debt to be paid off in at least 5 years via SC, considering my annual wage of only £22.5k (debt is therefore more than half my income), I do not see how it has been deemed affordable considering the reason i’m in half of the mess I am is because I used credit just to live after maintaining my Very account well!
back to the FOS I went, will keep you posted!
david says
update from FOS, complaint not upheld with no grounds for escalating unless I ask for the next level to look into it, but looking at the detail in the response I doubt I have much cause or hope to get anything from this.
they are quite sure Very have not acted irresponsibly, to be honest I can’t really be bothered escalating. I am more concerned with updating you to let everyone know that its not always a positive result just because you think you have a case.
hope this helps.
Hopeful2018 says
The FOS investigator has down turned my complaint against Vanquis, they increased my limit from £500 to £1500 within 1 year – they completed a check 6 months into the account being opened but didn’t increase the limit then to £1000 (not at my request I may add) – I had at least 3 other credit cards mostly at their limits and I was borrowing Peter to pay Paul. From the information sent by the investigator, it doesn’t look like they checked my credit file when the increase was done, just that I had been making minimum payments, I had 2 missed payments and I managed to pay back the balance in full 2 months before they increased the limit before running the card up again to its limit.
Is there anything I can write back to get the Ombudsman to reconsider the investigator’s decision?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I think if you had repaid the balance in full a couple of months before you aren’t very likely to win this one.
Hopeful2018 says
I only repaid it for one month using other borrowed money, then it went back up to its limit for the next 2 months before the limit was increased by Vanquis. Also Vanquis considered raising the limit to £1000 6 months into the account but they didn’t put it on my limit due to my circumstances (I only found out about this today when the investigator told me). I don’t know how they can justify increasing the limit to £1500 after only 1 year. Going by what the investigator said in her reply, Vanquis only looked at what I had paid them (just slightly more than the minimum payment required each month – I don’t think they looked at my credit report before they increased the limit.
Would they have to look at my credit report first before they raised the limit?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
There isn’t a set checklist of things a lender has to do – the FCAs rules say they should check credit records “where necessary”. You can try arguing that because they didn’t increase at 6m they should have checked your credit record at 12m… but if they rejected you at 6m because you were only making minimum payments, then at 12m you were making a bit over minimum payments and you had cleared your balance then your situation would be looking very different. Arguing that they should have checked your credit record before giving you such a huge increase feels a stronger point to me. But make both arguments!
steve says
Hi Sara, my query is, when drafting my letter to Aqua regarding irresponsible lending, should i emphasise the credit card increases even although i never asked or the fact that i have mostly always paid minimum and always on time with no default over 5 yrs, yet my 35% has never decreased !! On the Aqua website it even states that if you manage your account correctly you can receive 15% decrease over 3 years. surely i have a claim for redress on the 35% charge im still getting ??
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So you want to say they should have cut your interest rate because you always paid on time? Can you give a link to the Aqua page where it mentions this?
Scott says
Hi Steve,
Was it definitely the Aqua Advance card that you had and not the Aqua Classic Card?
Scott
steve says
Soz yeah it is the Classic card i have, never knew the difference. My point is ive had the card 8 yrs, limit increased to 6k without asking, i only ever pay the minimum, still paying 39% actually. i asked for a decrease in % couple year ago as my credit rating better as ive had a mortgage 6 yrs never late payments. they refused and obviously we all use the cards in spite of knowing. Surely i have a case of irresponsible lending ?
steve says
Sara its on their faq page. however i never knew difference between classis and advance card, as Scott pointed out.
Scott says
Hi Steve,
Unfortunately there is no obligation on Credit Card companies to reduce interest rates.
The increases to your credit limit would have been advised to you and you would have been given the opportunity to decline the increase and to opt out of future increases.
For an affordability/irresponsible lending complaint to succeed you would need to be able to show that you struggled to make payments and that your finances were in a bit of a state before they increased your limit each time.
Without knowing your full financial history it is hard to say whether you would succeed with an irresponsible lending complaint, keeping your interest rate at 39% is not grounds to succeed.
With you having the mortgage for 6 years and assuming that all your finances are up to date, have you not considered a balance transfer card? There are a good few offers out there and most of them you can check eligibility before applying.
Sorry I’m not trying to dishearten you but I think it’s important to try and get your high interest card balance moved to a 0% balance transfer card rather than try to win an affordability complaint due to a high interest rate.
Scott
steve says
Thx Scott but done already, running out of options as 25k in debt since bought house, life things. luckily had Vanquis ROP for 5 yr. vanquis and Aqua both increased my limits, only ever paid minimum or cleared with a second charge mortgage. nearly 50 last thing i want is debt plan. house got equity so hopin can remortgage to consolidate. fingers crossed good redress from vanquis.
Scott says
Hi Steve,
Hit the big 50 myself last year so know where you’re coming from regarding DMP.
However, reading your last posting I think this is something you should seriously consider.
It is okay to release equity from the house to consolidate all your debts into a smaller monthly payment with lower interest but pointless if you then need to run up the limits again on those high interest cards in order to get through the month.
You have Vanquis and Aqua cards, both high interest cards that increased your limits, what are they sitting at? Have you used any other high interest Financial products whilst having these cards?
I have no doubt that your Credit history would have been good when you first took out the Aqua Card, as 2 years later you got a mortgage, I’m trying to get a picture as to how your Credit would have looked when they done their increases.
No one should need to borrow to pay back borrowed money but we need to show that we had no option rather than to do so.
Scott
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Aged 50 with a mortgage – if you can’t afford the repayments on your unsecured debt, then a DMP or even an IVA may well be a better option for you than a remortgage or secured loan. Can I suggest you talk to StepChange about your options, see https://www.stepchange.org/Howwecanhelpyou/DMPDebtmanagementplan.aspx.
T says
Hi Sara,
A relative who I am helping had a credit card with Barclaycard and has been paying the minimum payment for years.
I am quite positive that the limit has been increased at least twice. The second Barclaycard was opened a couple of years ago with a high limit even though they had the other card paying the minimum payment.
Is this unaffordable lending and is this worth contacting Barclaycard first, they have missed a couple of payments throughout the years but always settled the payment a few days after and has no negative payments on the credit report as far as I am aware.
Thanks
TV says
Hi Sara,
A relative who I am helping had a credit card with Barclaycard and has been paying the minimum payment for years.
I am quite positive that the limit has been increased at least twice. The second Barclaycard was opened a couple of years ago with a high limit even though they had the other card paying the minimum payment.
Is this unaffordable lending and is this worth contacting Barclaycard first, they have missed a couple of payments throughout the years but always settled the payment a few days after and has no negative payments on the credit report as far as I am aware.
Thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It is only unaffordable lending if they can show that they couldn’t afford the repayments. If his credit record is good, this will not be an easy case to win.
Matt says
Hi Sara
Opened a Barclaycard with an initial £1k limit. Its now £14k without asking. Never missed a payment and mostly minimum payments. It’s always been maxed to the limit but they continued to up the limit. Was out of work for 12 months during this 3 year span. Credit score and report is fine with no other lending.
Is it worth pursuing a claim?
Many thanks for any help!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If you have never missed a payment, sometimes paid more than the minimums and have no problems showing on your credit record this would be a very hard complaint to win.
Assuming you can make the minimum payment, my suggestion is to cut up the card and fix your payment so it’s the same each month, see https://debtcamel.co.uk/fix-credit-cards-payments/
If you can’t afford the minimum payment, you need to consider a debt management plan.
Sasha paton says
Just wondered if anyone had any success with irresponsible lending from the jd williams group. I complained 5 weeks ago which is being looked into jd williams allowed me to open 12 accounts with them across there network at the same time regularly increasing the credit limit till the debt became so much it ended up with me on dmp which is still ongoing. Just wondered what my chances were of being lucky with this complaint? Accounts were opened in 2009
Phusita says
Hi Sara
I have claim ppi to Lloyds 1. For my credit card (already close)2. For my persona loan for £5000 ( still have Balance of £3500)and they offer me £928 for my 7 year of my credit card and Reject my complain for my loan . The money came to my account 3days after I recive the letter from them but I do thing I have pay more that that to ppi £17x12x7 do think I should get over £1400 .
1. Can I send still send the it to FOS for my credit card But I have use some the money they send .
Thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
How long ago were these complaints?
Phusita says
I have complain 4 week ago and I just recive the payment last week
Thank you Sara
Matt says
Hi. I know the banks are harder to win a case against but the principle is exactly the same on this occasion…..
My wife has a hsbc credit card. She had a limit of approx 2000 which we only ever paid minimum payment on. They later increased to 2500 which we only paid minimum payment on. They then lifted it to 4500! We now have a credit card with 4500 on it. I will add this is ultimately my fault.
Is this a case for complaint. She never requested the increase but at the same time she had/has a good credit rating.
Tina says
Hi sara, I had a vanquis credit card whereby I was making minimum payments. Vanquis increased my limit from £500 then £1500 and then again twice upto £3500 over 3 years. I had lots of transactions going out to gambling websites let they still increased the limits. Does the gambling transactions help my case for irresponsible lending? Many thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I’ve not seen a case won on this basis but it’s worth mentioning. The heart of your complaint mplaint needs to be that the minimum payments on the higher credit limit were too much for you to be able to afford. And any problems showing on your credit record should be taken into account.
Tina says
Many thanks Sara, much appreciated