The repayments on many loans and car finance are too high to be manageable so people get deeper into debt trying to repay them.
When you applied, a lender should have checked a loan would be affordable for you – often they did not check properly and you should never have been given this loan.
This article describes how to complain, with a template to use. Many people have won complaints using this. If you win, you will get the interest refunded in cash. If you still owe a balance, the interest is removed so you only have to repay what you borrowed.
These complaints do not hurt your credit record if you carry on making the loan repayments while the complaint goes through.
Contents
A quick overview
What types of loans?
- this includes high cost, bad credit lenders, bank loans, and credit union loans;
- you can complain if you are still paying the loans, it has already been repaid, it has defaulted, or you have a payment arrangement/DMP;
- a consolidation loan may have been cheaper than the credit cards it cleared – but it could still have been unaffordable for you!
- you can also use this approach for car finance. But if you are still paying car finance, you may have a better option than an affordability complaint, so read HP/PCP car finance problems first. And then read Car finance affordability – what you get if you win a complaint
- if you have a guarantor loan, read Refunds from guarantor loans as it’s different and the guarantor may be able to complain as well;
- the complaints here do not apply to mortgages.
What is “unaffordable”?
The regulator says “affordable” means:
you can make the repayments without hardship or having to borrow elsewhere.
This isn’t just for “bad credit” loans – you can win a complaint about a loan from a major bank. But as bad credit loans have very high interest rates, they are more often unaffordable.
For large loans, a lender should have made adequate checks at the start. The larger your loan, the worse your credit score and the more other debt you had, the closer a lender should look.
If your loan was fine at the beginning and only caused problems later when you lost your job or your mortgage repayments went up, you are unlikely to win an affordability complaint as this could not have been predicted at the start.
How does this work?
You first make a complaint to the lender saying the loan was unaffordable and ask for a refund of the interest.
There is a template here you can adapt to say what happened to you. Send it by email.
The lender has up to 8 weeks to reply. Lenders reject many good complaints, so you can send a rejection to the Financial Ombudsman.
Complain to the lender
Email addresses for lenders
If your loan has been sold to a debt collector, send your complaint to the original lender not the debt collector.
It’s easiest if all communications are by email – free, instant and you have a copy with a date stamp to show the ombudsman.
For banks, see this list here: email complaint addresses for banks.
For car finance and logbook loans, see this list: email address for car finance lenders
Here are the email addresses for some non-bank lenders. There are a lot of other smaller lenders, including many Credit Unions. If your lender is not listed, ask in the comment below for an email address.
Abound (used to be Fintern) complaints@getabound.com
Admiral loansquality@admiralgroup.co.uk
Anico complaints@anicofinancialservices.com
Avant Credit emailcomplaints@avantcredit.co.uk
Bamboo Loans complaints@bambooloans.com
Better Borrow enquiries@chetwood.co
Creation customercare@creation.co.uk
Everyday Loans – for loans after 31 March 2021 complain to complaints@everyday-loans.co.uk using the template in this article. It is no longer possible to make complaints about loans before that date
Fair Finance complaints@fairfinance.org.uk
Finio Loans (rebrand of Likely Loans) complaints@oakbrookfinance.com
Fluro (used to be Lending Works) cx@fluro.co.uk
Koyo loans info@koyoloans.com
Lendable complaint@lendable.co.uk
Lifestyle Loans info@lifestyleloans.co.uk
Likely Loans – see Finio
LiveLend support@livelend.co
Loans by Mal (Monthly Advance Loans) Complaints@loansbymal.co.uk
Loans 2 Go read Loans2Go – how to complain
MBNA mbnaonlinecomplaints@mbna.co.uk
Moneyline headoffice@moneyline-uk.com
My Community Bank complaints@mycommunitybank.co.uk
Novuna (used to be called Hitachi) ComplaintsTeam@NovunaPersonalFinance.co.uk
Plata complaints@plata.com
Plend complaints@plend.co.uk
Progressive Money complaints@progressivemoney.co.uk
Quick Loans customerscare@quickloans.co.uk
Reevo complaints@reevomoney.com
Salary Finance (Neyber) complaints@salaryfinance.com (for loans, not “pay advance”)
Savvy info@savvy.co.uk
Shawbrook Customercare.team@shawbrook.co.uk
Snap Finance customer@snapfinance.co.uk
Tandem pl@tandem.co.uk
TM Advances info@tmadvances.co.uk
Updraft complaints@updraft.com
Vanquis customer.relations@vanquisbank.co.uk
Zopa complaints@zopa.com
118 118 Money complaints@118118money.com
Use this template
Email the lender to begin your complaint. Put AFFORDABILITY COMPLAINT as the subject of your email.
Template for you to adapt:
Please confirm the date this loan started, the amount, the interest rate and the monthly repayments. [don’t include this if you already know the information]
I am asking for a refund of the interest and any charges I paid, plus statutory interest, and to delete any negative information from my credit record. [the refunds for car finance can be a lot more complicated than this, see but this is all you need to put in your complaint]
I also want the CCJ that I have for this debt set aside. [delete this sentence if you don’t have a CCJ!]
I attach copies of my bank statements and credit report from the time I applied for this loan/these loans. [delete if you don’t yet have them yet, but they help your case if you do. Even if they show gambling, that supports your argument the loan was unaffordable.]
I didn’t know that the lender was supposed to check that I could repay the loan without having to borrow more. I only found out in [2024] when I saw a newspaper article in the Sun/an advert on Facebook for refunds/a friend said they had made a complaint/whatever. So I am complaining within 3 years of having found out that I have cause to complain. [only put this paragraph if some of your loans are more than 6 years old. It explains why you haven’t complained before. It’s only an example so change it so it really covers what happened to you!]
Add extra information if you want – see below for some ideas – you don’t have to do this.
Do you need a payment arrangement now?
If you want an affordable payment arrangement now, add a sentence to the complaint saying this. These complaints may take months to sort out – a payment arrangement can get your finances into a safe place:
- a payment arrangement shows on your credit record, but if you win the complaint all negative marks will be deleted
- talk to a debt adviser such as National Debtline if you want to know more about payment arrangements
- but don’t risk a payment arrangement for car finance or a logbook loan – one would put your car at risk.
Other details to add if you want
The template above is fine, you don’t have to add a lot more details.
But you can add extra points if they apply in your case, for example
- my bank statements and credit record (attached) show that I was unable to afford the loan repayments.
- this was a large loan, you knew I had poor credit and may have been in a difficult position so you should have tried to verify my income and expenses. If you had done this, you would have rejected my application.
- during a telephone call, your agent suggested some figures should be lower to get my application accepted.
- if the lender was your bank – you should have seen from my bank account that I was in financial difficulty, I was using my overdraft a lot, I was only making minimum payments to my credit card from you.
And some examples of points about top-ups:
- a credit check would have shown that my finances had got worse since the first loan
- I had said the first loan was to consolidate debt, but you should have seen that this hadn’t happened.
While you are waiting for a reply
Try to get copies of your bank statements from 3 months before a loan to three months afterwards. You can get statements from closed bank accounts, normally going back 6 years.
Also get a statutory credit report now and download it. You can get one from TransUnion. Do this as soon as possible as sometimes the details change, so you want a full one saved to show the Ombudsman later if necessary.
Do not wait until the Ombudsman asks you for credit records or bank statements – you want them ready to hand. They really help your case as they prove your financial situation when you took the loan out.
You should get a response from the lender within 8 weeks. If you don’t, phone them up and ask when you will get it – a couple of days is worth waiting for but many responses are rejections, so don’t wait weeks for one, go to the Ombudsman straight away.
Go to the Ombudsman if you don’t get a good offer
Don’t be put off by a rejection! Or if the lender said it was your fault because your loan application wasn’t accurate – the lender should have made checks.
Sometimes a lender will send a long, complicated reply designed to make you look as though you should give up. If they say the loan was over 6 years ago, see below for “time limits”.
I suggest you rely on your instinct – if repaying the loan caused you a lot of problems then send it to be looked at by the Ombudsman.
If you aren’t sure, ask in the Comments below this article. You only have 6 months to send the complaint to FOS, so it’s best to do this as soon as possible.
It isn’t usually worth trying to negotiate with these lenders, you are just wasting your time.
Send to Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS)
It’s easy! Use the “do it online” option to send a complaint to the Ombudsman. It asks you for all the details they need.
The main part of your complaint can be a version of what you sent the lender in your complaint. Add any more details you want, including pointing out mistakes in the lender’s reply. Also attach:
- the reply from the lender
- Trans Union statutory credit record
- bank statements starting 3 months before first loan
- do not worry if you don’t have A copy of your credit or finance agreement – lots of people don’t. 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.
Other information that may help your case
Don’t delay sending a case to the Ombudsman while waiting for this information.
If you don’t have the bank statements from the time of the loan application, get them now. You can get these going back at least 6 years even from closed accounts. And you can often go back a lot further with an account that you are still using.
This is a good point to ask the lender for a Subject Access Request (SAR) if you are missing information that may come in useful at the Ombudsman. This could be your loan applications, all credit and other affordability checks and assessments, and a statement of account for the loans, and – if you think this will help – a record of all phone calls.
Your lender will have details of how to ask for this information on their website – it’s often included in their Privacy Policy, with a link at the bottom of web pages.
“Is there a time limit?”
You can’t complain about a loan that started before April 2007 – that is when the law changed to allow these complaints.
Lenders will often reject a complaint if the loan started more than 6 years ago.
But the Ombudsman can look at a complaint about older loans where you complained within 3 years of finding out you have a “cause to complain”. So if you have only just heard that a lender should have checked the affordability, you can take your complaint to the Ombudsman if the lender rejects it as too old.
The Ombudsman also has a 6 month rule. You must send a complaint to the Ombudsman within 6 months of getting a reply from a lender. So don’t delay!
Need some help?
Don’t use a claims management company. They are expensive and often incompetent and use a similar template to the one in this article.
Instead ask a question in the comments below.
Can you get an overdraft refund?
Refunds from cards and catalogues
Get a car finance commission refund?
Lou7 says
Hi all,
I need some advice as I am starting to panic. I had a loan with likely loans and I put it into my dmp. I made a complaint to them and they took some money off the balance. Then they sold the debt to Lowell. But this week I had a letter off Lowell saying that the debt is being given back to likely loans with immediate effect. When I check my likely loans account it says I am paid up with -£77 on the screen. Don’t know what is going on and had messaged likely loans but got no reply. Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
how much did you borrow?
when you made a complaint, at that point, how much had you paid to the loan? how much did they take off the balance?
Lou7 says
Hi Sara
I borrowed £2000. Paid a few months and then put it in my dmp. When I made the complaint I had paid about £800 and they took about £500 off the balance.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
well that was a very poor offer – they should have removed all the interest from the account. I suppose it is possible they are trying to correct some of their previous poor offers, but that is me guessing and you cannot assume this is correct.
How much has been paid to LL or Lowell from your DMP since then?
In any case, this is no reason to panic. So your DMP may have to start paying LL instead of Lowell – no big deal.
Lou7 says
Thanks Sara.
Mary says
Hi Sara
I made a complaint about irresponsible lending to Loans 2 go about a year ago, as I had a large loan with them and the interest rate was very high, I couldn’t afford to keep making the payments. After I sent in the complaint email, they agreed to wipe out the loan for me and nothing more. I accepted this offer and I do not owe them anything anymore.
Would I still be able to put in second affordability complaint and ask for some redress? Looking back at my loans I had taken out so many with loans 2 go, I have wrongly paid in excess of £10,000 altogether as the interest rates were so high for each loan. For example, I took out a loan of £2,000 and had to pay £7, 200 in total. It’s beyond insane now that I’m looking back, and can’t believe I didn’t ask for some kind of compensation before.
Just wondering if this was at all possible and if I did, what are the chances I could obtain some kind of redress?
Many thanks!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
did you just complain about that one loan? or did you say all the loans had been unaffordable?
Mary says
I just complained about that one loan which was the most current one!
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did their reply refer to any of the previous loans at all?
And how far back do the previous loans go?
Mary says
In their final response letter, they did refer to my previous loans (I’m not sure why as my initial complaint was only about the most current one).
They said having reviewed everything and as a gesture of goodwill, they will write off my outstanding current loan. I accepted this offer as it was a substantial amount outstanding (circa £2,900).
I guess now I’m wondering if I can bring a claim for compensation for the others…
Many thanks!
Also, the loans go back to 2018 (6 loans in total).
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well you can send them a new complaint. Emphasise that before you only complained about your current loan.
They may well reject this, saying they reviewed all your loans and you should have gone to the ombudsman then if you were unhappy with their offer.
I don’t know what the ombudsman would decide in this situation, but it’s worth sending the complaint to them if L2G does reject it, as I expect they will.
karol says
Hi Sara,
I have made unaffordability complain to my 118 118 loan and it was upheld yesterday, stating below.
Considering the loan was for £1,500, repayable over 24 months with repayments of £119.81 monthly, I think the checks 118 118 Money carried out were proportionate. The detailed credit check showed no defaults had been applied in the last 12 months. No pay day loans had been taken out in the last six months. And all off your active accounts were up to date. No missed or late payments had been reported to your credit file. There was a county court judgement showing on the credit check, it showed the following: the county court judgement was applied on 1 August 2017, so this was three years before you took out the loan. But the credit check demonstrated a change in circumstances. This is because the credit check showed you were managing your existing commitments really well. So there was nothing concerning here.
I have basically disagreed with the decision and I have asked Ombudsman to make a final decision on my complaint but wonder if the above can play against me, I don’t understand how CCJ on my file might have not been an issue, there’s also issue with the rent amount which was wrong and I have asked them why this was not checked by 118. Would you advise what else I could put in my case in order to be successful?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The detailed credit check showed no defaults had been applied in the last 12 months. No pay day loans had been taken out in the last six months. And all off your active accounts were up to date.
is that all correct?
What else had happened in the last 12 months – had you taken out other new credit? had balance on your credit cards or overdraft increased>
karol says
I had CCJ in place and still present – he said it ok as all off your active accounts were up to date. No missed or late payments had been reported to your credit file. Cos of that CCJ I am unable to obtain loans now, yet back in 2020 was ok????
My rent amount was wrong on the application – I have mentioned that in the response email. I said that 118 should check as no one pays so less in London.
No other bills ware taken for consideration – gas, electricity, food and the fact that I was behind with rent and other bills.
I was trying to keep the minimum payments for credit cards but each month the amount was higher.
The way how investigator responded to me was bit odd, he also send email by mistake to me but it was addressed to someone at 118 and apologised.
I am disappointed
karol says
I have 11 credit cards atm.
I am struggling to pay anything and had payment holidays from aqua,marbes and 118 – I have now defaulted on repaying the 118 loan.
I have outstanding bills for : gas and electricity my rent is in arrears and same with water. This is all in the last year or so, could I add this to my case now?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
so you have stopped making payments to the credit cards? Have you spoken to a debt adviser? with priority debts it is unlikely that this 118 complaint is your biggest probelm at the moment. I suggest you phone National Debtline on 0808 808 4000.
But my question was not what your current situation is, but how your situation had changed in the 12 months before applying to 118 money. During that time did you open new credit accounts? or have balances increased on your other accounts?
karol says
Hi Sara,
I have asked the investigator to pass my case to an Ombudsman to review. Is there anything that I should be aware regarding Ombudsman in terms if he decides the same as the investigator? Is there any potential risk after the case is reviewed by Ombudsman?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
my suggestions are as before :
– please talk to a debt adviser now about your full situation. This will not stop you carrying on with this FOS complaint but you need help with those priority debts
– you need to explaint to FOS what had happened in the 12 months before applying to 118 money. During that time did you open new credit accounts? or have balances increased on your other accounts?
The only risk is that the Ombudsman will agree with the adjudicator and you do not win this case.
Jo says
Has any one every dealt in a claim with everyday loans I’ve had four loans never cleared on with top up every time and the loans getting bigger
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Lots of cases have been won against them and if your loans got bigger each time, that sounds like a solid case.
Jo says
Currently still owe them 2750 off a 3500 loan how long do they have to responded if I make a claim
Sara (Debt Camel) says
8 weeks.
Are the repayments affordable at the moment?
Jo says
No I’m currently in a set off with amigo and just won cases with lending stream quick quid and provident
Sara (Debt Camel) says
then if the EL repayments aren’t affordable, ask them for a payment arrangement. These cases can take a while to go through at the Ombudsman.
Dave L says
Anyone else had issues with Newday after months of stalling and being awkward. Ombudsman finally found in my favour for unaffordable and likely to be over £10000 coming back to me from credit cards and loans with them.
First of all they took a while to acknowledge the ombudsman decision. Then claimed they had to have the ombudsman advise them I had accepted the decision rather than me. So adjudicator has now advised them, they seem to think this gives them another 28 days rather than the 28 days from when they were informed of the ombudsman’s decision.
Contacting them in February I complained further that they had sold off my loan to asset link capital in contravention of the standards for lending. They refused to accept a complaint or investigate it, refused to accept it as their responsibility as the loan had been sold off.
Now they are claiming they have to wait for the balances to be updated to them from asset link capital for the loan before they calculate how much money I’m owed. Seeing as I got the figures within half an hour, the whole company seems like a badly run joke, who will do anything to avoid or delay paying a settlement
James says
Hi, I made a complaint against NatWest loans in October 2014 and July 2015. They were unaffordable but I didn’t complain with in the 6 year window. Does any one have any recommendations?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
what date did you make the complaint to NatWest?
and when did you get the reply from NatWest? And when did you send it to the Ombudsman?
James says
complaint September 2021
October/November 21 – NatWest
October/ November 21 – FOS
May 22- adjudicator
July 22 -Ombudsman
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok, I thought you were saying you complained in 2014/15.
I am sorry you didn’t ask for help with this earlier, but as you now have a Final Decision from an Ombudsman there is no practical way to do any more. Your only option would be to take NatWest to court, I do not know of anyone that has won a court case in this situation and I suggest you would need professional advice from a solicitor if you want to try it.
James says
Hi, I made a complaint against NatWest regarding an unaffordable overdraft. The ombudsmun adjudicator has upheld my complaint and said they need to return overdraft fees from June 2016. I still have a 12k overdraft. He said 8% will only be applied to any refund due to you after any debt with NatWest is repaid first with the refund of interest and charges.
Is this standard?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes that is normal.
gary says
Had debts on dmp and paying them, but had upheld complaint go through with fos, there was a outstanding balance to debt collectors after interest taken off, can debt collectors actually doing anything legal I.e default ccj. If I stopped paying them, as I shouldn’t had the loan in first place
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The remaining balance is a legal debt and they could in theory go to court for a CCJ if you stop paying. I suggest you just leave it in your DMP.
Michael says
Hi Sara,
I have recently opened a complaint with the ombudsman against Natwest.
In March 2022 Natwest rejected it
In May 2022 i sent it to the FoS and it is still awaiting assignment.
The complaint is against Natwest for a loan of £12,000 given in August of 2019
As well as an Overdraft facility which was increased from 2500 up to now £10k – the last of which was increased from 5k to 10k in the same month of august 2019
I have had a huge history of gambling transactions on my accounts for many years now. I had an Amigo loan of £10k from July 2018 (deemed unaffordable and refunded in 2020) as well old payday loans from years ago, all of this is historically visible on my Natwest accounts, as well as multiple loans from friends and family.
In 2019 i used a facility called GAMBAN to block all gambling from my accounts – it worked for a while but it only stopped one form of gambling (online)- i was still losing money in casinos and bookmakers and even started using a friends card to deposit and play online (with his permission – not that this is any excuse)
Michael says
Anyway, getting to the point – in anticipation of proving that i had a very serious gambling problem to the FoS, can accounts and statements from other bank accounts be considered and also the account in my friends name? – he is willing to get me the statements if they will help.
E.g i would have his card details saved on the account i played on and have his CVV card number memorised – i’d send £500 to his bank account and deposit to the site with his card information – when looking at the statements it simply shows as an outgoing transfer.
E.g.2 Depositing with my Revolut account – most of the gambling transactions i used this bank account which Natwest wouldn’t have direct sight of, but they would see £1,000’s of pounds being transferred to this account in very short periods of time (gambling sessions)
There are some Casino transactions visible and i have been up to and at my maximum overdraft limit since its inception as well as a marked defaulted on my loan also NatWest CC at the time.
Just wondering what you think my chances of success are? i am asking for interest and charges to be refunded plus 8% on your recommendation.
Thanks in Advance
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You can supply any information you want to FOS, but realistically they are not likely to take any notice of a bank statement that is not in your name – there is no way NatWest could have seen it.
But I am not sure this matters to your case. You are complaining about your overdraft limit going back years, which will have included periods where gambling transactions were showing? And then they should have known that information when it came to the loan application. Also large cash transfers after a p[eriod where you were had a lot of gambling showing whould have been a warning sign that all was not right.
I hope you have now managed to really stop? Your “friend” – it is a great shame that he did not act like a real friend and say No to you.
Michael says
Yeah, it’s bitter sweet with that friend.
I don’t talk to him anymore.
Gambling transactions going back years.
Monthly statements often showing £20-£30k in transactions despite only earning £3k per month after tax.
All things I hope the FoS will consider, I guess I just have a fear that they could shrug off my complaint.
I’ve paid well over £15k in fees and interest on my overdraft, the loan however I’m sure will still have a balance left to pay.
They can see on my credit report that at the end of every month for 4 years I was at maximum spend of my overdraft.
Also hoping the fact I had an amigo loan deemed unaffordable at roughly the same time will be an advantage for me.
Still not expecting to have my case picked up for a few more months yet which sucks £240 a month in overdraft interest is incredible expensive for me right now
James says
Does anyone have any data on NatWest. So they follow the adjudicator when it comes to irresponsible lending with overdrafts or do they send it to the ombudsman for a final decision?
Ernest says
Good evening ..pls is that anyone have any idea how long the car finance irresponsible lending complain take before investigator pickup your complaint ?
Jo says
Has anyone had a claim from everyday loans if so how long did it take them to respond with an outcome xx
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Lots of people! They often make poor decisions even on good cases so send it to the Ombudsman if they reject your complaint.
Jo says
Oh I will thank you xx
Mike says
Hi I just wondered what was a normal timescale from when the adjudicator picks up your complaint to a decision. My Moneybarn complaint was picked and assigned an adjudicator at the FO in February 2022. I sent in a lot of evidence months ago including information from a Moneybarn SAR request, bank statements etc and the adjudicator has confirmed they have the Moneybarn business file 6/7 weeks ago. Its been over 5 months now since it was picked up and I cant understand the delay as they have all the information. I did send a gentle reminder about a month ago to the adjudicator asking if they needed any more but was told they have everything and will be in touch soon. I just wondered if this was normal as they have had all the information from both parties for a good while now or if I should contact them again. Any help would be appreciated
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you contact them again.
Jax says
Just out of interest, was there a lot of gambling on your bank statements? Apparently all cases involving gambling need to be checked by another department before they can be sent out.
Mike says
Ok will do. Its just difficult to know what to say as when I’ve done that previously I get a ‘I’ll provide you with an update soon’ response. I didn’t know whether it would be be better to call as oppose to email?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I would phone.
Ernest says
Pls when do you submit your complain till when the Adjudicator pick up your file pls?
Sandra says
Hello, I had an agreement with Advantage finance and it went belly up due to health problems but struggled through, kept every email, scanned every document and eventually nearly a year later than expected i paid the final original balance of loan. Credit file updated in February as paid in full settled happy days. Mind you i still had arrears of charges but this does not affect your credit file I have 200 left to pay now a £100 for next two months.
This afternoon credit karma pinged there is something new on your file. :(. Advantage has reinstall my file for a balance of £8. Emailed them told it was part of original loan. Sent a statement it only shows £200. I told them I have written confirmation what the balance was to close account etc etc they wanted proof. Told them to check my file as it was them that sent it. Refused to close my account again said £8 was part of original loan. I advised i wanted it to go to their complaints dept or I could got straight to FOS or fca. Reply was if you pay £50 by the end of the week we will close your account and write of the rest of the fees. Said no thank you and while you are compiling my complaint add in affordability to it and my account will now be frozen until complaint is sorted and I have an agreement in writing to pay the £200 so they should not be able to default it.
What a cheek.
Martyn says
Hi Sara could you advise I am die refund from a loan company having won at the fos.
They said the payment was due with two weeks I contacted them today as it’s two weeks now and they say they sent it on the 13th.
What do I do go back to the fos.
Regards
M
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you checked they sent it to the right bank account? Explain that it hasn’t arrived.
Deeanne says
Hi
I have a car through Advantage Finance and the interest is more than the car is worth.! I even paid a £1000 deposit and its still costing me £18k I have managed to keep up my payments to date for nearly 2 years as I desparately need the car. Its costing me £353 pcm.
I have terrible credit so cannot go anywhere else.
I also have Tappily and 118 118 loan and credit card. I feel like I am robbing Peter to pay Paul.
I am happy to argue affordability as I have other credit cards etc but I dont want to lose my car.
Do I just keep making repayments whilst challenging them?
I am going to offer the credit cards etc a token payment as my work prevents me from doing a DRO or similar
Sara (Debt Camel) says
How much did you borrow – not the added interest, the amount you borrowed, so the car price less your deposit?
How much have you paid to the finance so far?
Have you made affordability complaints to 118? Use the template in the article above.
Also to Tappily – use the payday loan template here https://debtcamel.co.uk/payday-loan-refunds/
The credit card is this a new card? or has the credit limit been increased?
Deeanne says
Hi Sarah
The car was £11,995 which was overpriced.
I had an advance payment of £10,995
Then there was an option fee £200; Acceptance fee £325 & HP £7697. Total £19217
Direct Debit is £316.95
The balance is currently £13195.
I will use the affordability link suggested for 118 and Tappily
I was struggling through lockdown with depression and my disability and my partner lost his job so it’s only my income
I did what I always do and applied for credit
I was given a Vanquis; Capital One; Aqua; 118 and Zopa credit card within a few months of each other.
I have never had good credit as battle with compulsive spending
Vanquis increased my limit by a £1100 approx 12 mths ago
Sara (Debt Camel) says
so have you paid 19217-13195 = 6022 so far?
It would be safer if you actually add up the total of the payment you have made to be sure rather than trying to guess what this may be.
I suggest you should aslo be make an affordability complaint against Vanquis. And also Aqua , Capial One and Zopa unless they only gave you small limits. See https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-catalogue-credit-card/ for complaints about credit cards.
Deeanne says
Hi Sarah
Yes £6022 to date.
I will do as you suggest with the credit cards thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok so you have paid less than the amount you borrowed on the finance (ignoring the interest and charges they added)
The situation here is that if you make an affordability complaint and win it, it is very likely that the Ombudsman would say that:
1) the finance is ended and you have to return the car
2) the deposit you paid is refunded
3) you also get a refund of the payments you have made LESS a per month charge for “fair usage” This “fair usage” charge is normally quite a bit less than the monthly charge but it is set by FOS and depends on a lot of factor so I can’t geuess what it would be.
Once you have paid the full price of the car from your deposit plus the monthly payments – it sounds as though that will be in 14 months time – then if you win a complaint this is what would happen:
1) the finance is ended and you get to keep the car
2) you have a refund of any payment you have made in excess of what you borrowed.
So the question is, can you struggle on for another year? Then if you complain, by the time it goes to the ombudsman you would be over the 14 month period.
If this sounds hard – and remember energy bills are going up in October a lot – then you have to stop robbing Peter to Pay Paul by offering ALL your other loans and cards a token £1 a month. See https://debtcamel.co.uk/token-payment-debt/. tell them you have a priority debt – car finance – which you are struggling to afford. I say offer, but really you are telling the creditors what you can afford and ask them to freeze interest. So you should cancel direct debits and phone you bank to cancel any Continuous Payment Authorities.
If you are unsure about this, talk to National Debtline on 0808 808 4000. This will harm your credit record but it is already very bad, so that probably doesn’t matter much.
If you don’t think you can carry on with the car finance even if you only make token payments to all the non priority debts, then you MUST talk to National Debtline asap to go through your options.
You can still go ahead with affordability complaints when you are making token payments.
Deeanne says
Thank you Sarah
I will continue making the car payments as suggested.
I have cancelled my direct debits and will contact the creditors to make token payments.
I will also raise affordability complaints to Tappily, 118 and Vanquis etc
I truly appreciate your advice
Deeanne says
Hi Sara
A quick update so far:
Vanquis did not uphold the complaint so I have escalated this to the ombudsman.
118 are still investigatng both complaints re the C/C and loan but in the mean time have text, emailed and called me everyday demanding payment for arrears. They also took £124 from my card today despite me requesting them to stop all payments – I have called my bank but they said there are no direct debit or continuous p/m authorities set up. I have now had to cancel my debit card just in case and have sent a further complaint to 118.
I am also awaiting a response from Tappily and Aqua
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You need to send a complaint to your bank – 118 cannot take money from your account unless there is either a DD or CPA set up.
Deeanne says
I will contact the bank again tomorrow to find out how they managed to take my money
The bank tried to say they could not see the transaction pending when it clearly showed on the app and I had a text from 118 stating they took it (all pleased with themselves!)
Deeanne says
Hi Sara
I rec a response from the ombudsman confirming that my complaint with Vanquis has now been upheld. They have confirmed that because I escalated it to them Vanquis reviewed their initial decision and agreed to irresponsible lending. I am so chuffed with this outcome!
Vanquis has agreed to remove all interest and charges on any balances over £500 from the date of the increase (May 2021) They have also agreed to remediate my credit file of any adverse information.
There are no stipulated amounts but I am hoping any reimbursement will clear my o/s balance in full (£1744.92). Is there a way of calculating this?
Really appreciate your advice and template letters .
Still waiting to hear back from Tappily (who have gone strangely quiet on me and made no attempt to contact me for payment since July) and 118 (who contact me daily; send me emails offering debt advice and random texts stating they will pay half my monthly payment etc!!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well you can add up the interest you have paid since then from your statements – but they are not refunding ALL of this, only the amount over £500.
So you have complained to Tappily & 118 and don’t yet have a final response from them?
Deeanne says
Yes that’s correct.
I believe they have till the end of next week to respond
And thank you
I will go back through my statements to get a rough estimate
Ernest says
Good evening Sara ..pls do you have any idea how long the car finance irresponsible lending complain take before investigator pickup your complaint ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Sorry no.
Maria says
Good morning
The ombudsman has upheld my complaint against Avant Credit and told them to contact me direct. Does anyone else have a complaint upheld against them and how long did they have to wait for a response
Kieran says
Thanks for the information Sara. Everyday loans have agreed with my complaint and refunding my repayments over the original loan amount with interest. For anyone thinking of doing this I found the process very easy and straightforward. It’s taken 7 weeks and the payment should be sent to me in 2 weeks time.
Jo says
I’m waiting on everyday loans checking my claim been 3 weeks now and heard nothing, although I’ve heard they can be very hard to get a claim from xx
Sara (Debt Camel) says
They accept some complaints but reject other good ones – if you know their loan caused your hardship, send your complaint to the Ombudsman if EL rejects it.
Jo says
I am planning to I’ve had four loans they seen I was in a payment plan with provident paying them 5pound a week of a 4589 loan there was lots of other things on my banks statement including overdrawn bank charges can I email them with this or will they see it xx
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It is a good idea to send EL your bank statements – 3 months before the loan they gave you and 3 months afterwards.
Jo says
Mmmm I might just do that Ty very much xx
Lucie says
Hi Sara,
I’ve logged affordability complaints with moneyboat over the weekend and this is the reply I’ve received from them
Dear Lucie ,
I am writing in response to the complaint you raised. Please accept this email as an acknowledgement of your complaint.
In the event of an affordability/irresponsible lending complaint, could you please provide us with copies of your bank statements applicable at the time of your applications, so that we may carry out a full and comprehensive review of your complaint.
Should it transpire that information provided by you at the time of application was false or misleading, we may register this attempt to gain redress falsely as a first party fraud with fraud prevention agencies. Any fraud marker may affect your ability to obtain credit with banks and other lenders in the future.
We will write to you in due course, once we have completed our investigation; please find our complaints procedure outlined below, which advises you of the manner your complaint will be handled:
Now I can’t remember what I put on my application- should I be concerned by their reply? Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
They say this to EVERYONE. They are just hoping to put you off.
No one has reported having any problems when they send a case to the Ombudsman. They seem to be just making empty threats.
Lucie says
Good, I was a bit worried! so just send in a copy of bank statements for the month that I took the loans out then?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I would send the bank statements for the 3 months before your application and the 3 months afterwards.
Kieran says
I’ve had a response back from 118 about two agreements I’ve had in the past. They have not upheld the complaint on the first (and seem to be implying wrongfully that I might have acted fraudulently when answering questions) but have upheld the second. Unfortunately I sent both complaints in the same email and they have stated…
Please note that the above refunds are being offered in full and final settlement of the whole complaint.
Does that mean if I agree to the settlement of the second I essentially waiver my right to go to the ombudsman for the complaint they have rejected? Seems unfair if so.
Also I’m sure I haven’t but the use of fraudulent in their response has put me off referring to the ombudsman, would there potentially be any personal repercussions of me referring my complaint to the ombudsman?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes, you have to choose to send the whole complaint to the Ombudsman. How large were each of the loans? Did the second loan settle the first loan or were they both repaid in full?
Several lenders routinely tell people they may have committed fraud which may be reported – no one has ever had a problem if they have ignored this and sent the case to the Ombudsman. The lender just do this try to get people to drop cases.
Kieran says
Thanks, reassuring about the use of their language it seems fairly aggressive so I could see it putting people off.
Agreement 1 – £1000
Agreement 2 – £1880.83 this settled the loan of agreement 1 with balance of 880.83. I had made £561.82 of payments including interest to agreement 1 so in total paid £1442.65
Sara (Debt Camel) says
so you paid £442 in interest to the first loan.
What have they offered for the second loan?
Kieran says
£301 + 124 in interest and to be honest the second loan was settled fairly quickly so I didn’t pay too much interest on that.
Actually typing this out sounds like maybe I should settle. The loans were from 2016 and my circumstances (read debt!) Has changed a lot since then.
Jax says
My complaint against Hitachi has been upheld by the adjudicator at FOS. I’m delighted with this. Was definitely my strongest case. If Hitachi agree with their findings I will be debt free once they apply the redress. I still have a couple of complaints to make which would clean up my credit file too. Thank you Sara for everything you do.
Maria says
My complaint against Avant Credit was upheld by the Ombudsman a week ago and they have said Avant Credit will contact me direct. Does anyone know how long before Avant Credit usually response. I have also complained to Safety Net but have not had a response yet it has been 3 weeks.
jason hunter says
Avant credit upheld my complaint but still waiting on the redress I’ve emailed them since but with no response, it’s been 4 weeks now.
Maria says
Hi Sara
The Ombudsman upheld my complaint 4 weeks ago but Avant credit still haven’t contacted to me I have emailed them twice now. Do you have a number I could phone as I cannot locate one on their website
Sam says
Just an update….
Bamboo have upheld my complaint. All interest being refunded, credit file being amended. Really expected to have to go to the ombudsman so great news!!
Chris says
Hi
Can I ask how long it took bamboo to reply ?
Thanks
Dan says
I would like some advice in relation to a complaint I put in about Avant credit which an adjudicator has today advised that they cannot uphold. Their response I find confusing as they agree that Avant should have carried out further checks but cannot uphold.
They believe that Avant should have built a detailed picture of my financial situation by asking for payslips banks statements as they note that after been provided with the credit checks done by Avant it shows that at the time of lending I was over my limit on all 3 of my credit cards, and had also taken out around 4 new short term lending accounts during the 6 months prior to my request to Avant Credit for a the loan of £6,000. This should’ve prompted Avant Credit to carry out further checks to see whether the loan was affordable. They state they don’t believe Avant Credit carried out proportionate checks.
I’m confused as to why this hasn’t been upheld and why they also state in their response that they have asked for my bank statements, which having gone through all their correspondence is incorrect and they haven’t asked for this.
Would you take this further?
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So they didn’t ask you for bank statements? I suggets you reply saying this and attaching your bank statements and asking them to look at the case again.
Dan says
Hi Sara, that’s right, there has been no request for bank statements and only today have they been mentioned. I have responded and made them aware that these weren’t requested.
I must admit, seeing the statements and the amount I was spending on online gambling has made me so ashamed :(
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It is a shame you didn’t send the statements to FOS at the beginning. But send them now.
To win a FOS complaint the adjduicator normally needs to decide on 2 things
– did the lender make adequate checks – they have decided No
– would proper checks have shown the loan was unaffordable – without your bank statements the adjudicator is not sure about that.
Soph says
Has anyone made a complaint to Blackhorse regarding unaffordable car finance?
Any success stories?
Thanks in advance x
Ernest says
Good morning Sara .. pls quick question l put irresponsible lending for car finance … almost 5 months ago buy am still making my monthly payment at the moment without missing any payment … 3 yrs agreement but I am 2yrs at the moment only remaining 1yr from (2020 to 2023) to go but l will like to keep my car …
Pls what do you think in this situation ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
what was the purchase price of the car? How large a deposit did you pay? What is the total of the monthly payments you have paid?
Ernest says
£18,500 for the car l took finance of £10,000 and l deposit £8,500 . I think l have paid £5000 now. And monthly payment of £345
Sara (Debt Camel) says
so you have not yet repaid the purchase price of the car when you add up the deposit and the monthly payments? It will be another 14 months until you have? You need to check the numbers to be sure, not guess at them
Ernest says
When l check my credit report its shows £5000 on the car finance to pay to them ..
Sara (Debt Camel) says
never relay on a credit report. Add up your payments!
Ernest says
Good afternoon Sara.. l just check my records now for the car Financial… l bought the car for £18,500 l deposit £8.500 then take 10,000 car loan total to pay back interest of £2,260 monthly payment £340 for 3yrs Balance £5114 .. September 2020 to 2023.
But l have another 2 car finance complaint with the same company.. making 3 car finance complain. 1st car 2015 paid off and 2rd2018 paid off.. 3rd still paying Balance of £5114. I want to keep the car. The car registration is on my name not the loan the company .. and also what do you think about the one 2015 because l company this year more that 6yrs .
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I haven’t come across anyone ,along complaints about several loans to the same finance company. My guess is that if you win one or both of the complaints about settled finance then the refund would be used to reduce what is owed on the current finance.
The car is on your name – are these contracts hire Purchase or unsecured loans? Read the finance documentation.
Ernest says
Good morning sara thanks for replying on the documents saying .. (hire purchase agreement)
Is that not possible to make a complain about 3 car loans car finance? I took the car loan in 2015 and l finished paid it off in 2018 and l took another loan 2018 finish paid it off in 2020 and l took another one 2020 till date still paying.. alot of gambling transaction on my bank statement and no affordability check my the company and they not request my bank statement only payslip for all the three cars. My credit very bad that time aswell
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Is that not possible to make a complain about 3 car loans car finance?
Yes it is, I am just saying that I have never seen this before.
Ernest says
Ok thanks l will check properly when got home… just remember now to tell you l put 3 diffrent irresponsible lending complain for 3 different cars 2 paid off .. 2015 to 2018 paid off. 2018 to 2020 paid off. 2020 sep to 2022 still paying £ 5k to pay. Same company for the 3 cars.marsh finance.
Claire says
Hi, I put in a complaint through resolver and they replied today, saying that they could or would not respond to anything other than an email registered to a customer. Is that right? I thought it was any reasonable method of contact? Anyway should I just send the same letter from my email or persevere through resolver please?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
who is the lender?
Claire says
Future Finance.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ha, no one has mentioned them for ages and now you are the second today.
Well you can have an argument with them about how to submit a complaint if you want, but it seems simpler to just email them at servicing@futurefinance.com with COMPLAINT as the title.
Claire says
Ok thanks will do. It was an email from another lender that made me look at my bank statements and I remember FF sending me an annual statement, after paying about 340 off a 2130 initial balance it was still at 2105. I hadn’t realised till then how much it was likely to cost me. I payed it off with my bounce back loan as I was so worried about it hanging over me.
Mer says
Hello Sara,
I would be grateful if you could check these for me to see if I a eligible to go ahead with a affordability complaint on a hire car purchase ?
I was not honest about my situation to get the car, I got a terrible deal.
Cash price of the car :24000
Deposit paid :4000
Credit: £20000
Total payable: £38360 (five year contact from 2017 which has ended now and they have sent me claim form for 6000 outstanding + 2000 court costs and interests) I also have credit card arrears and the outstanding balance is mainly left from the pandemic time when I had no money coming in and was behind on rent etc.
Am I eligible to apply for the affordability complaint?
Can I counterclaim the amount on the claim form or should I ask the court for more time as I want defend the claim ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The deal may have been bad but the question is, was the finance affordable at the time you took it out?
The fact you later got into difficulty in the pandemic will not help you win an affordability claim – that is a check about the original lending decision.
Melissa says
I made a claim against Vanquish for an irresponsible loan taken out in Oct 2015. They initially refused it but I forwarded it to the FOS and they upheld the complaint and Vanquish agreed to look at it again. FOS view was that they didn’t think they were irresponsible in given me the loan in the first instance but shouldn’t have increased the card to £1,500 in 2017. They advised Vanquis to payback all interest and charges from May 2017 up to now. Vanquis paid £550 and said I still owed them £600. I’m not sure how they came to their refund price as monthly interest is £42 and years of late charges over a 5 year period doesn’t add up. Can anyone advise if this sounds right or know how they work out the interest?
They didn’t even send a response letter just paid the said refund and closed the case.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If FOS told them to refund all interest, that sounds a lot too low. Ask them for an explanation of how they calculated it.
Also tell your adjudicator at FOS what is happening.
Jo says
I’ve been waiting 5weeks on a response from everyday loans getting close has anyone had a response sooner from them just curious. Can everyday loans be awkward xx
Sara (Debt Camel) says
waiting 8 weeks is pretty normal.
John says
Hi
I’ve just had a reply off the ombudsman saying I was too late complaining ( over 6 years )after the adjudicator accepted the decision and everyday loans rejected it
I’ve sent them a reply saying I’d only found out last is this the normal and can I appeal the decision thanks john
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if this decision from an Ombudsman is different from the adjudicator decision, you should be able to go back to the Ombudsman and argue against it.
If it is a Final Decision from an Ombudsman, then there is no way to carry on with the complaint except by going to court.
John says
Hi Sarah
It’s provisional the adjudicator ruled in our favour but everyday contested it so it went to the ombudsman whos agreed with everyday that it was over 6 years so it couldn’t complain
Sara (Debt Camel) says
does it say you can go back and make further representation to the Ombudsman?
John says
Hi Sara
Yes I have Till the 23rd of August to send any additional info in
Thanks John
Mary says
Hi Sara
I made an unaffordability complaint to 118 Money. The loan was originally £3300 plus £2500 interest, so I paid over £6000 back in total.
They declined my complaint but offered me a goodwill payment of £350.
I’m a bit disappointed at this as I was expecting them to refund the interest to me.
I wanted to ask you, is this a good offer based on your experience and knowledge? Or do you think I should take this to the Financial Ombudsman? If I do take it to the Financial Ombudsman, is there a chance I would be successful in getting the interest back?
Or should I go back with a counteroffer to 118? Just really disappointed with this offer.
Thank you!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I don’t think they will consider a counteroffer.
That obviously isn’t a good offer – that would be a full refund of interest. (Also your credit record cleaned if you had any late payments to the loan showing.) They are hoping you need a few hundred right now and won’t go to the Ombudsman.
Can you say something about your situation when you took the loan out? It can’t have been great or you wouldn’t have had to get such a high cost loan, but was it generally improving, with all your problems in the past? Or would your credit record have shown you had been borrowing more recently?
Mary says
Hi Sara
When I took the loan out I was very desperate, and I had several other payday loans on top of this. 118 was the only lender who would offer me the money at that point. If they undertook thorough checks, my credit rating would have shown that I was in a poor financial state and the loan was unaffordable.
118 never asked for any payslips, bank statements etc. I also defaulted on the loan several times and still have these emails.
So do you think it’s worth sending this to the Ombudsman or just accepting the £350?
Many thanks for the advice.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
that sounds worth sending to the Ombudsman.
Alan says
Evening,
My case has just been picked up by an adjudicator against HSBC loans. The adjudicator has requested credit reports from 1 month previous to the loans being approved. I’m really not sure how to get this information? As it was back in 2017. I have sent an up to date credit report along with bank statements for the months leading upto the approvals. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That is the best you can do – only a few people that have had a paid subscription for a long while can go back and ask for earlier reports.
Bella says
Hello,
Yesterday I emailed Bamboo about a loan I took out in Dec 2016 (this was on top of various other credit agreements with other lenders) to complain about irresponsible lending. The loan was for £1k but with interest etc, I owed over £2k. I quickly had an email back from them asking for 2 months of bank statements directly before I took out the loan, however I explained these were unavailable to me as I was no longer with that bank (I’d been advised to set up a new bank acc before entering my DMP, given that I had maxed out a large overdraft with the first bank).
Anyway, I’ve just had a text from Bamboo saying they’re going to phone me on Monday to discuss my email. Is this quite standard? Any idea what they’ll want to speak about specifically? Is there anything I should or shouldn’t say? I assume they’ll be after finding a reason to avoid refunding me anything so I’m already nervous in case they ‘catch me out’ (I’m an agreeable person by nature so I don’t want to undersell my situation at the time being anything other than a total mess). Any advice?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
have you asked the old bank for bank statements? These can sometimes be obtained from closed accounts.
Bella says
I haven’t yet, one reason being I have a £3k-ish OD on the closed acc that needs repaying. It’s included on my DMP however the bank have my wrong date on birth on the acc (no idea how) so between us we’ve never identified that I am me over the phone. I heard something about if a debt is owed but it lays dormant for so long and no one chases you for it, then it doesn’t have to be repaid? No one has chased me for this in around 3/4 years. So I’m not sure whether to poke the bear…?
Would it make a major difference in Bamboos decision, more than just all the credit showing on my record at the time?
Just to add, the OD has been included on the DMP but stepchange haven’t been able to make any payments to them because of the identity issue. They say they keep the portion of money that should go to the bank aside, in case it resolves itself.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if you don’t supply bank statements, you are unlikely to win this complaint with Bamboo or with the Finacial Ombudsman. They are the simpleset way to prove a loan was unaffordable.
As you don’t seem to be disputing that the overdraft is yours, it may well be that this gets resolved at some point and you do have to pay it. Of course there is some possibility that it will vanish without trace but I never think it’s safe to rely on this happening. I uderstand why you don’t want to poke them into life but you need those statements. Also possibly for any other debts you make an affordabilty complaint about.
Jax says
When I complained to them they asked me for bank statements too. I sent them and they replied within 2 days agreeing the loan was unaffordable. My circumstances may have been very different to yours but it was pretty straightforward to deal with them. Good luck.
Bella says
Thank you both for getting back to me.
The call is scheduled for first thing Monday before I’ll be able to get to the bank, so I’ll see what she says and then proceed with poking the bear to try and get those statements.
Great to hear it was all straightforward for you Jax. Anything I might get from them will go straight towards paying the OD back anyway, so it’s still very worthwhile.
On the subject of OD’s, is it worth me putting in a complaint about my OD too? My limit was £2800 (I now owe maybe £3300 from memory after interest and charges). I applied and was accepted for various increases, at the same time I was taking on more credit card and loan debt.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
read https://debtcamel.co.uk/get-refund-overdraft/ for overdraft refunds.
also look at claiming against any credit cards or catalogues that increased your limit wheny ou were only making minimum payments, see https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-catalogue-credit-card/
Bella says
Hello Sara, I’ve now made and heard back from the FOS about the complaint against my OD and they found in my favour. This is what they said…
“I’m pleased to let you know that NatWest have agreed with my assessment and they have made the following offer to settle your complaint:
“I confirm that I agree with your view. However, having reviewed the complaint again I note that the account was written off and closed in September 2019, and the outstanding balance at that time was £3386.31. I have calculated that our customer incurred £1886.91 of charges and interest from January 2015 onwards and as such we would reduce her outstanding debt by this amount and no refund would be due to her (we can arrange for this refund to be reflected on her credit file). I have checked to see if the charges and interest caused the default, however, the default balance was over £3000 and as such I am satisfied that the default would still have stood had the charges not been applied.”
Please let me know if you have any questions or if for any reason you don’t agree with the offer above.”
So where this account just lay dormant to me before – it was written off? Does that mean they were never coming after me for what I owed? Am I right in understanding the debt has been reinstated (albeit at a reduced total)? What are the chances I can negotiate a partial settlement on the remainder? Or does debt with banks not work that way?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So you were unaware that this balance had been written off? how does it currently show on your credit record?
Bella says
I was completely unaware of its written off status. I knew the debt existed but no one was chasing me for it, and I was hoping it would end up statute barred (up to this point its been 4/5 years, maybe more, since any noise was made about it). I had to contact the bank in order to retrieve bank statements for other complaints, but even then no one was asking me about the debt. It’s took a long time sat in the bank with all my ID for them to even find my old accounts. It seems by making the complaint against them I’ve ended up with an outstanding £1.5k bill that I’d never have had if I hadn’t complained.
Is there anything I can do with this?
It’s showing on credit karma as an open account, with the first default applied October 2017. The OD balance is on there too.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
“it’s showing on credit karma as an open account, with the first default applied October 2017. The OD balance is on there too.”
what sort of debt was this? I thought you were talking about your overdraft?
Bella says
I am – it is an overdraft. Sorry I meant the balance is showing alongside it saying the account is open.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Ok then I suggest you go back and say you had never been told that that the account had been written off – if you had been you would not have made a complaint about it.
Say you would like the bank (who was it?) to confirm in wriritng that this debt has been written off by them and show as being partially settled on your credit report.
bella says
Thanks Sara. I’ve emailed the FOS back with what you’ve said. It’s Natwest bank.
Franki says
Hi Sara I’ve made an affordability complaint with loans2go. They came back to say they want my bank statements and they offered a reduction on the interest. I’ve requested bank statements from nationwide for my account as it’s now closed. Since emailing loans2go to say I’ve chased the statements up etc they’ve now issued me with a default. I don’t know what to do now as they are demanding payment of the arrears or they will issue a default any help or advice would be appreciated thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if you have stopped paying them, you will get missed payments and then a default. These negative marks should be removed if you win an affordability complaint with L2G or at the Ombudsman.
How long ago did you make the complaint?
How large was your loan and how much have you paid to it so far? Have you had any previous loans from them?
How large was your balance and what have they offered to reduce it to?
Chris says
Hi Sara,
I logged an affordability complaint against Everyday Loans using your template for a loan of £1500. I’m pleased to say that the FOS upheld my complaint. Up until I lodged my complaint I had repaid £2593.53. EL have been told to make this right by:
– removing all interest, fees and charges applied to this loan from the outset. The payments I made should be deducted from the new starting balance – the £1,500.00 originally lent. I have already repaid more than £1,500.00 then Everyday Loans should treat any extra as overpayments. And any overpayments should be refunded to me.
– adding interest at 8% per year simple on any refunded payments, if there are any, from the date they were made by me to the date of settlement.
– if, as seems likely, after all adjustments have been made, no outstanding balance remains, Everyday Loans should remove all adverse information it recorded on my credit file as a result of this loan.
† HM Revenue & Customs requires Everyday Loans to take off tax from this interest. Everyday Loans must give me a certificate showing how much tax it has taken off if I ask for one.
Are you able to please calculate how much, if any, I should be refunded after adding interest at 8% and deducting tax?
Thank you so much, this site/forum helped a lot!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
how much were you paying a month?
have you been making payments all the time up until now or did you stop when you lodged the complaint, if sowhen was that?
Chris says
Hi Sara,
The loan for £1500 was taken out on 28th June 2019. I was paying £172.89 per month and stopped when I lodged the complaint. My last repayment was December 31st 2020. According to my bank statements, via direct debit, I have repaid £2593.53 in total. I contacted EL to tell them I could no longer afford the loan due to being made redundant but they offered no solution. So I formally complained to EL in February 2021 and then escalated the complaint to FOS in September 2021.
Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
squinting at the numbers my guess is the 8% will be between £150 and £190.
Jo says
I just received a refund from everyday loans also getting 2860 plus 8% all done within six weeks just waiting on the money going in they up held all my loans very quick and I’m very thankful lol hoping it won’t take long for the money they told me it could take two weeks xx
fusion says
Interesting one for me, 1plus1 loans reject my complaint I sent it to FOS who have no advised they are objecting to them investigating the complaint. I know it’s a delay tactic and the FOS is legally binding on them via the FSA but surely this behaviour is what should be punished. I have highlighted how they behaved the same when I went onto a DMP. very unprofessional and rude.
Jax says
Hello. How does redress work on a loan please? I had a 10k loan in 2019 with just over 5k interest on top. I made a complaint to them (Hitachi) re irresponsible lending that they rejected. Sent to FOS who upheld it and said all payments should be classed as being made to the principal amount loaned and interest should be removed. I have a balance of just over 5k so once the interest is removed I owe about £200. But Hitachi have said they owe me around £400 in compensatory interest. How can that be? I’m not complaining at all but I really don’t get it!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It depends on how they calculate the 8% interest.
Jax says
Thanks Sara. As I say, I’m certainly not complaining as £400 is very welcome 😊. I’ve not seen any calculations as yet so we will see what happens.
Simon turner says
Hi Sara,
I posted earlier regarding my complaint to Moneyway. I have also made a complaint to Marsh regarding 3 car loans. Is it correct that if the loans are over 6 years old they don’t have to investigate.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
See the section Is there a time limit? in the article above.
Simon says
Hi Sara,
Moneyway have rejected my complaint as I took the loan out in 2015. I am still waiting for a response from Marsh about the 3 loans I had with them.
Once again many thanks for your swift reply and advice
Simon
Jax says
Hi, my complaint against Zopa went to FOS. The adjudicator says they did nothing wrong and hasn’t upheld it. The adjudicator said they should have done further checks before agreeing to the loan but had they done so there would be nothing that suggested I couldn’t sustainably repay it. I’m really surprised as FOS has found 3 accounts I had taken out before this to be irresponsibly lent. My bank statements are shocking, in the month before the loan there was a total of 50 separate gambling transactions totalling around £3500. My salary was only around £2600 per month. There’s no point in the month that my account was showing a credit balance – I was always in my overdraft. The bank statements for the other months leading up to the loan are just as bad. I’ll be sending a detailed response on Monday and will ask for it to be looked at by an ombudsman.
Jax says
I would really appreciate your view on this please Sara. Do you think its worth pursuing? I’ve not had to ask for an ombudsman to look at a case so far. Many thanks in advance.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes it sounds as though it should be quite easy to show the loan was unaffordable if they had looked closer. Your detailed response shoule explain this.
Jax says
Excellent, thank you!
Jax says
I’ve done my detailed response now. I don’t think the adjudicator looked at anything I sent and relied on the information from Zopa. I say this because there are inaccuracies in their response to me; the correct information was in my bank statements and credit report. I’ve asked for it to go to an ombudsman.
Jax says
The adjudicator has now found the loan to be unaffordable. Let’s wait and see what Zopa says.
Claire says
UPDATE: About 2 weeks after my emailed complaint to Future Finance I had an email with a letter attached saying they did not accept/uphold my complaint but after reviewing my details in light of more recent lending criteria offered a full refund with interest as a goodwill gesture. I then had to confirm my payment details and they said payment could be 7-10 working days after that but it was completed and paid a few days after they acknowledged my email with my bank details on. Originally I borrowed £2K with a £130 arrangement fee and after the first year I had a yearly statement showing that after payments of £337 the remaining balance was still £2105.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Interesting. The other person I know who complained to FF recently got a similar good result.
AQ says
Hello Sara,
I complaint to 118 118 money 8 weeks ago and yesterday was last day. Received their final response and they did not uphold my complaint. Instead they offered £400 as gesture of goodwill. Also the language they used is like intimidating, saying we want to remind you when you accepted the loan agreement you said every statement was true and we can send your details to fraud prevention agencies and that.
My question is do I have any chance of winning at FOS or should I just accept their offer.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Can you say something about this loan and your situation when you took it out?
118 will very often dismiss good cases. The stuff about fraud – a few lenders say this, no one has ever had a problem when they have sent a case to FOS.
AQ says
Took the first loan in April 2018 for £3500, they asked for bank statements which I provided, it had some transactions from Satsuma and coupe of rebound direct debits. Then in October 2018 they offered a top up without asking any bank statements which the first loan and took the overall balance to £8577. I had about 10 missed payments with this second loan.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you send that to the Ombudsman. They should have checked affordability for that top up. And wining the complaint would removed the missed payments from your credit record.
Chris says
Hi Sara – I took out a £10,000 loan with a credit union about 4 years ago. The loan was for debt consolidation and the credit Union asked for bank statements and also met me to discuss the loan. However, my finances were in a terrible state – DMP, payday loans, consistent maxed overdraft, maxed credit cards, other large loans etc. Do you think I would have a case for an affordability complaint? Obviously the loan was granted to help to consolidate some of my borrowing but it wasn’t enough to resolve my financial situation and I simply ended up borrowing more elsewhere to pay the credit Union repayments. The credit union’s interest was also quite high – 20 something per cent.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It is possible to win a complaint about a credit union loan. And for a consolidation loan.
Did you get into difficulty very soon after the loan?
Chris says
Thanks for your quick reply Sara. When they granted the loan I had payday loans, DMP, high balances on CC, loans, overdraft. I paid a few off with the credit Union loan but it wasn’t enough to settle everything. Within a month or so I took out another high-interest large loan from Likely Loans and then took out further payday loans within a few months. I just feel a bit bad because they were trying to help my financial situation and did take the time to talk to me about it. Is the complaints process the same as for other loans? Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes the same process.
You have already complained about Likely Loans? And the payday loans, CCs and overdraft?
Chris says
Thanks – yes I’ve complained about all of those and mainly been successful thanks to your advice. Do you think a credit Union compliant would be worthwhile in the circumstances described? Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes if you were unable to manage it immediately – taking out the Likely Loan…
fusion says
Some early good News adjudicator has upheld my complaint against 1plus1 loans in my favour -at the initial investigation.
Despite them trying to block the investigation by the ombudsman which was overturned by the adjudicator, I am still not quite sure what they were using to object their investigation into my complaint, but seems like a delay tactic, they now have until the 16th sept to reply or it goes the ombudsman, I have a feeling they will delay it as much as they can as they seem that type of company.
potentially a 2.5k refund of interest on 3k borrowed.
I have had some strong successes with my complaints against my financial situation I went from 48k in debt to 4.6k in debt in under 2 years I’ll be debt free before December. I won a 25k complaint against everyday loans, 118 118 money and most recently Livelend, refund of £958.
I have a few finally starting to be seen by the ombudsman, when I discussed with the adjudicator recently they advised they can see all of my previous complaints which I have won and I said these should be used as reference to strengthen my complaints. my argument points have also been around affordability and suitability and whether loans were given with my best interests at heart.
Andrew says
Good evening Sara,
I have just recieved an email from an adjudicator who is reviewing my case against 118 118 money stating that she believes that she may have an answer for me tomorrow but will like to phone me. Is this usual practice? I would have expected a response to be issued via email. Do you have any idea of what I could expect from the phone call?
Regards,
Andrew
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I can’t guess.
Andrew says
Hi Sara,
An update on the phone call for you and the followers of this page. The call was very positive and the adjudicator just wanted to clarify information on my bank statements. She has now written to 118 118 money informing them of her opinion that my complaint should be upheld and a full refund of charges and interest (plus 8% per annum) should be issued. She has given them 2 weeks to respond.
118 118 money seem like a seedy company so I wouldn’t be surprised if they try to fight this decision or waste further time by insisting that it goes to the Ombudsman. They offered me no settlement when I complained to them and similar to other peoples complaints, they used very threatening language.
I am hopeful of the process so far and positive with the FOS. Fingers crossed they don’t dispute the adjudicators decision. Thank you for your advice.
Regards,
Andrew
Sara (Debt Camel) says
thanks for the update, I thought that sounded odd!
Ernest says
Good evening Sara .. pls l need your advice for this pls.. l just received this email from adjudicator for car finance ..
I can see your first agreement was taken in July 2015, it is possible I will need to do an assessment into whether this loan can be considered by our service due to the time limits. I can see you have already provided when you were made aware you could complain, I have also written to the business for confirmation on their stance on this aspect and await their response.
At present, there’s nothing further I need from you at this stage and I will be in touch if needed.
Pls what do you think ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So wait and see what happens.
Ernest says
Thanks Sara
Cj says
So my NatWest account was overdrawn by 4750 for many many years in fact we’ve been od for over 20 years every month it used to be 1500 but was raised until it got to the higher amount .originally bank charges were horrific£38 charged or every bounced dd or £38. For going over your od limit etc some months we were paying over two hundred pounds in charges until they changed it all.. we now have it cleared due to payday refunds but can we put complaint in with them amount their charges
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes, but it can be harder to get refunds going back more than 6 years so do this now! See https://debtcamel.co.uk/get-refund-overdraft/ for more bout overdraft complaints with a template.
Cjones says
Also had car credit from money way which I’ve now paid thankfully 5 months late but paid .do I still have a claim with them .I had so many loans paydays or bad credit loans .which I juggled for years .even when I gave them a copy of my bank statements it was on there. Bought my car for 5200 paid deposit of 200 paid 3000 in interest
Sara (Debt Camel) says
People are wining car finance complaints including against Moneyway. Use the template letter in the article above. Again do this asap.
Shaun says
Hi Sara,
Could really do with tiny bit of advice!! I claimed against NatWest last year and got paid out on one loan. You then told me to send all my others to FOS. It’s taken a while but now had this
That you passed its affordability checks in October 2019 and therefore was approved a loan for £19,100. This loan refinanced previous loans and it also supported you by reducing your overdraft limit to £250. Your account showed you were receiving a regular healthy monthly salary and there was no activity which showed financial difficulty. You maintained your loan well therefore there was nothing to highlight you were in financial stress. Given this, and that your level of debt decreased, it was unable to agree loans provided in 2019 or 2021 were inappropriate. Furthermore, you have had full use of the funds which you have benefited from.
Given the circumstance, it would like to offer to refund all interest applied to loans approved between March 2017 and January 2019 which totals £3,609.62. It believed this was fair and reasonable in the circumstance.
Any adverse information [relating to those loans] would also be removed from your credit file.
My adjudicator hasn’t had time to go over complaint properly and cannot comment.
Am scared il miss out of jumped at the offer. Would I potentially lose all of it didn’t go my way if I knocked back the offer?
Any help is much appreciated!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You previously posted this list of your loans.
And said one had been upheld with a refund of £3700
Loan 1 – £13,124 10/11/15 – 31/10/17
Loan 2 – £2,911 08/03/17 – 28/02/18
Loan3 – £1,106. 19/12/17 – 30/06/18
Loan4 – £7,217. 06/04/18 – 31/08/18
Loan 5 – £7,890. 06/08/18 – 31/10/19
Loan 6 – £7, 410. 02/01/19 – 31/10/10
Loan 7- £18,827. 04/10/19 – 30/09/21 (Loan 5&6 were running alongside each other and I consolidated both with loan 7)
Loan 8 currently running £14000
a) which loan was upheld
b) I assume loan 6 actually ended in 2019, not 2010?
c) when did loan 8 start?
d) tell me more about your situation when they gave you loans 7 and loan 8.
shaun says
Hi Sara, thanks for replying.
Loan 1 has settled. Done and dusted.
Yes that’s right that was just a error with loan 6.
Loan 7 I did consolidate a lot of things I was paying just shy of £500 a month still had small credit card.
Loan 8 then started 31/8/21 at 14.70% the amount was 14k .
Do you just think they are low balling me on biggest loans?
Would I be risking the current offer? Would adjudicator possibly side with them even though they basically admitting fault?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok so Loan 8 – was this consolidating other debt? or what was it for? were your other debts still increasing at this point? how affordable do you think the repayments were in the months after you took the loan?
shaun says
Yeah loan 8 was to consolidate multiple lines of credit. I just thought better to consolidate and try have one monthly payment. Unfortunately it went back to getting in vicious circle again thinking I could just buy off credit card thinking I can pay back etc.
After 2 years paying I re consolidated again for £14000 this did lower my monthly payment from £495 to £335 but back to 5 years again instead
Of having 3 left.
Sorry if replied already not sure it went through first time.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
So they have agreed to refund 5 & 6 as unaffordable. But not the loan 7 that consolidated them.
Despite the long history of borrowing from them which shows that loans are not helping to improve your situation. In your case I think you had a gambling problem which wasn’t showing on your bank statements, but the fact that you were clearly struyggling over a long period should have led a responsible lender to suspect there was something they were not aware of.
I think that is unreasonable and they are trying to settle this very cheaply.
At the point where you applied for loan 7, they should have offered to help you with loans 5 & 6 not by refinancing but by allowing you to repay at a lower rate.
“Would I be risking the current offer? Would adjudicator possibly side with them even though they basically admitting fault?”
In theory FOS can make any decision they want.
In practice where a lender has made an offer* then FOS seems to take that as the starting point and only looks at the loans that are in dispute. So it is very very unlikely you are risking the current offer by rejecting it and saying you want the adjudicator to consider your case.
* not counting small goodwill offers such as “we are sorry you felt you had to complain and would like to offer you a £35 Tesco voucher.”
shaun says
Hi Sara,
I think it is from loan 2 to 7. They said March 17 to jan 19. They seemed to have said no to 1 and 7
I’ve spoke to adjudicator over email, I understand he ain’t adviced based. He never really gave much away. Basically saying until he looks at it he can’t say anything really.
It’s just slightly frustrating waiting for a year for it to be picked up then this offer comes in a matter of days. I feel like asking him to maybe make it a bit of a priority with what’s at stake really but obviously it doesn’t work like that. I’d be just so disappointed if it went wrong.
But I think il have to carry on it could be a massive difference to the amount.
Thanks for advice Sara! Much appreciated.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I thought you said they have settled loan 1? Are they including that amount in the current offer to you?
shaun says
Sorry they have! I got Mixed up apologies!
Yeah loan 1 was sorted making me group the rest and go FOS with them all.
Drea says
Hi hoping someone can advise if they have had past experience with the ombudsman. I raised a complaint with MotoNovo- they rejected and part of rejection was it was outwith the 6 and 3 year rule. (It was 11 days after the 6 years)
I sent straight to the ombudsman who has asked me the following:-
MotoNovo Finance 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.
I can see you have stated you were only made aware you could complain recently when speaking with a debt advisor, why didn’t you think the business had done anything wrong in granting you the finance before this?
Interestingly MotoNovo have only came to the ombudsman with that one reason for denying my claim. In their response to me there was actually 4 points that they rejected on!!
Can someone advise of the most appropriate response to this- as I genuinely didn’t even know that I could complain until I happened across this site.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you reply (assuming this is right for you, there are no magic words to use, you need to be accurate for your case):
I knew it was very hard to pay this car finance and as a result I got into more debt elsewhere, but I didn’t realise that the MotoNovo should have checked that the credit was affordable for me so I had no idea that they had done anything wrong. I knew I had to keep paying or the car would have been repossessed.
If I had realised MotoNovo had done something wrong before, I would have complained at that point! But I had no idea.
Drea says
Thank you have responded to them with your suggestion (tweaked to my circumstances)
Drea says
FOS case worker has responded with the below / I am not sure what he means by “exceptional circumstances”
From the information provided, I can see that the loan was taken on 3 March 2016. You made the complaint about being given the agreement on 14 March 2022 – 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. I have also gone on to consider whether you had cause to complain sooner.
I can see the business ran a credit check on you and collected some data on your employment and living status, this supports what you have said about the application process. Although you may believe the checks conducted at the time were not sufficient, the fact that some check had been conducted and as you have said you presumed they would’ve checked the finance was affordable, I think it is reasonable some blame for you financial struggle ought to have been placed on the business and their decision to lend.
This means that you had three years from 3 March 2016 to raise your complaint or six years from the same date whichever gives you longer. As you didn’t raise it until 14 March 2022, 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. So if there’s anything that might’ve stopped you complaining in time and you want me to consider this, please let me know.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
“Exceptional circumstances” is something like a long severe illness or being in prison.
“as you have said you presumed they would’ve checked the finance was affordable”
did you say this?
Drea says
Yes, I explained that MotoNovo said I did not pay rent or mortgage as there was nothing on my bank statements or credit file. I have had a joint mortgage since 2001, which is in my file.
I explained that I presumed they did the required checks to ensure it was affordable and that was in my email to caseworker. He responded with the above.
I only found out that I could complain when I found your website I told them that and I was complaining within 3 years of finding out. Their argument is I should have known before this date and complained during term of finance.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you go back and say you had assumed they had made the necessary checks but you did not know what these were until recently. You has assumed that the finance was “affordable” because you managed to keep paying it. But you have recently come across this article and having read that realised that Motonovo’s checks must have been inadequate and you complained at that point.
Ernest says
Good afternoon Sara .. pls l need your help on my irresponsible lending about car finance … l have three car finance complain together (2015 paid off) ,(2018 paid off )and still paying 2020 till date.. l just received Adjudicator email now about the 2015 car finance that is too late. And they have to look at 2015 complaint first before looking into other 3 complaint because the three complain come together.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 loan was taken in July 2015. You made the complaint about being given the agreement on 21 March 2022 – more than six years after the agreement was taken out. I’m therefore satisfied the complaint was made too late for the six .
Sara (Debt Camel) says
you are familiar with the 6 year rule and also making complaints within 3 years. It’s up to you if you want to ask for the decision about the first loan being out of time to go to an Ombudsman.
Ernest says
You have told us you recently found out that a car finance lender should have checked the loans were affordable for you. You saw this when you were trying to find information about another claim and came across the debt camel website which has a page on car finance. I have also gone on to consider whether you had cause to complain sooner.
As the complaint is about the affordability of the loan, it would be reasonable to assume you would’ve had cause to complain at the outset when Marsh Finance granted you this loan. You have said that most of the time you had to take payday loans or borrow from friends and family to pay for the car loans.
Due to the passage of time that has passed there is limited information about this loan, from what you and the business have said it is more than likely payslips were collected before the loan was granted. This meant it was clear that the business had taken some steps to assess its affordability for you and when you had difficulty repaying them it is reasonable to feel the business may have been responsible for granting the loan which you deemed is unaffordable.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You can argue further that you have only just become aware you can make these complaints. For most people that is straightforward.
But as the article above says, “Older complaints can be harder to win as there may be less evidence about your financial situation when you took the loan.”
I don’t know what evidence you have about your finances at the time you took out the first loan in 2015.