Cheque Centre - Irresponsible lending complaint.

Monkeyballs · 7 June 2014 at 7:49PM

Hi,

About a month ago I logged an official complaint with the Cheque Centre for irresponsible lending.

It wasn't something I was originally going to do but after reading recent success stories and recalling the help (or total lack of) that I received when asking for help or a repayment plan I decided to just go for it, nothing ventured right?

Anyway I explained in my complaint that over the course of 3 years I had been loaning and re-loaning between £750-1000 in part to fund a gambling problem. Also that despite asking for help and having provided bank statements which showed month after month of PDL's paying into and withdrawing from my account I was pushed around to the point of being humiliated in store when I had to repeatedly ask for help as a gambler looking to make a repayment plan only to be turned down and n fact be offered more, more expensive credit!

Regardless of all of this I was wondering if anyone had made any successful complaints and received compensation from Cheque Centre and could suggest what was involved and timescales it took?

I know my complaint has been received as I have had confirmation (along with an offer to be contacted whenever I'd like an update which is laughable as they ignore me) but would be interested to know if they drag their heels for the full 8 weeks or genuinely do what they an to resolve the complaint asap?

I called the FOS today and the lady I spoke to advised that as I have confirmation then I can escalate my complaint to them after 8 weeks (or after their final response) and coming to a conclusion without the FOS being involved is in their interest to avoid an investigation charge...

I guess I'm just impatient and would be interested in hearing other peoples experience in the meantime?

Cheers all!

MB

getting_my_life_straight · 7 June 2014 at 8:27PM

Often read these posts, but don't often post though:o
Will be interested to see how you get on with this one though, as I went through a period of reloaning pdl's every month, having to reloan after paying back just to have something to live on. Now looking back, I cannot believe that these companies increased the amount that I could borrow each month and sometimes even when I had missed payments/made them late, they still allowed me to reloan (often the same day).
Also had multiple loans from the same company. I know that some would say it is not neccessarily, irresponsible lending, but irresponsible borrowing. I have luckily got out of this cycle by firstly going on a DMP, and then pulling my finger out with ppi claims. Good luck.

Powered_By_Pies · 7 June 2014 at 9:34PM

I still get texts from Lending Stream every other day offering me up to £600 in a pay day loan. I went into DMP with them as one of my creditors two months ago.

Their systems must be totally disconnected from each other or something!

Monkeyballs · 7 June 2014 at 9:43PM

Hi,

LOL, I was walking past the Money Shop a few days ago when I bumped into one of the staff outside the shop having a cig break... We got chatting and I told her about my DMP and that's why I'd not been in to re-loan and she invited me in to see if I could still borrow!!!

I know a lot of people out there will bang on about irresponsible borrowing which I accept but loaning the same (or more) every month for three years must have been enough to start alarm bells ringing right? Even if not in branch but when I gave a bank statement to be reviewed by their HO that was littered with other PDL's all coming out on the same day!

I put my hands up and accept I played a part in my own downfall but equally they helped and while I also accept they serve a purpose, £7k interest on a £1k loan over three years which would have continued if I'd not sought help for gambling and debt is a tad excessive...

If I do get any compensation then the majority will be going towards my DMP after setting a small amount aside to replenish my recently depleted contingency pot

MB

dubs57 · 7 June 2014 at 11:06PM

MB, reading your experiences with PDL's has just brought it all back to me. Although for different reasons I ended up in a similar situation for about 2 years. It was a nightmare how could I (or anyone let it happen)but it did and does not sound completely an uncommon way of trying to survive and carry on with "normal" life at the same time. Thank goodness it is over. I just want to say best of luck with your complaint and hope it is successful.

happy_bunny_2 · 8 June 2014 at 8:30AM

Hard to tell how this will go.

Obviously they are just trying to make as much money as possible and don't really care.

I bet they offer a few quid in the hope you take it and 'go away'.

Unless it's a significant amount, I would go to the FOS as they will look into it fully, as long as you get one of the useful adjudicators.

Interested to see how it goes.

HB

fermi · 8 June 2014 at 8:59AM

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2631493/Loans-firm-exposed-Mail-Sunday-investigation-forced-shut-regulators.html

http://www.fca.org.uk/news/cheque-centre-stops-selling-single-repayment-payday-loans-fca-tougher-consumer-protection

So irresponsible it seems, that the FCA have stopped them doing payday loans now.

Kate_fixing_it · 8 June 2014 at 9:45AM

Good luck with this MB. I never really thought of the re-loaning cycle as one loan over months/years. It's a horrible and frightening position to be in. I remember, when in the cycle, that I'd asked for one amount and was offered more (stupidly) invreased a little only to be offered still more.

And will the PDL companies help??? Will they heck!

It took a near implosion of my life to open my eyes. I really think there should be a cap on the number of times you can reloan or a salary to loan ratio calculated to cap the borrowing. At one point I was paying out my entire wages to one company every month, I was literally working to pay them. Obviously, there's ways around this but I've never been dishonest about my income so those measures would have stopped me in my tracks years ago.

I'm lucky enough to have got out of the cycle but it almost cost me my marriage (combined with other debts) and some days I was sure I'd lose my mind too.

Kate x

getting_my_life_straight · 8 June 2014 at 10:41AM

Kate,dubs reading all this brought it all back to me. At one point I was paying off one pdl to reloan to pay the others off. Then was eligible fpr even more. Tighter controls are needed to deter others, but as kate said - I was at a point where I very nearly had a nervous breakdown and totally lost it myself during the mess. Even now I get the occassional text/email to loan, 6 months after paying the last one off!

Kate_fixing_it · 8 June 2014 at 11:17AM

gettingmylife_straight wrote: »

Even now I get the occassional text/email to loan, 6 months after paying the last one off!

Same here! Occasionally get emails/texts saying "we haven't heard from you...we can offer you £XXX in 15 minutes" and suchlike. I (eventually) lost a friend over seeing her responding to one of these and borrowing. Okay, so partly my fault for interfering but I could see the spiral beginning (she already had two loans) and god knows what mess she's in now, we haven't spoken in 6 months. No huge row just a difference of perspective - she saw a short term fix, I saw a long term problem and it cast a long shaddow.

I also think the cashback sites should boycott them (guilty here again) £50 paid out 3 months after starting a new cycle is just exacerbating the problem.

Kate x

sourcrates · 8 June 2014 at 11:48AM

Unfortunately the internet has good points, and bad ones, you may be able to talk to your brother on FB 12000 miles away, but it has also given PDL companies a shop window to the world, were as before this kind of lending did not exist, to any great extent, now its everywhere, and with irresponsible lending, as well as borrowing, its never been easier to get into a spiral of debt some people can never escape from, that's the price of a capitalist society I`m afraid, I can see the day when PDL companies will be forced to adhere to similar rules to Tobacco companies when it comes to touting for business, for example no blatant adverts, or texts offering cash, in a way its like drug addiction, you end up not been able to live without them !!!

Cheque Centre - Irresponsible lending complaint.

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