£1700 early redemption charge for paying off mortgage 6 days early

Slinky

Our 2 year fix was due to end on 30th April. Husband wrote to Bristol & West and asked how he went about settling the outstanding mortgage (capital +£195 fee). He clearly said he wanted to pay this at 1st May after the fix ended (as there was an early redemption fee in the paperwork if settled before 30th April). He had the figures and sent off the cheque so they would have it in good time to clear it on 1st May (however he did date it prior to 1st May ). They presented the cheque on 24th April, then refunded interest which was overpaid to 1st May.

Today we have received a letter demanding nearly £1700 for early redemption.

Any advice please?

dunstonh

If the letter sent in with the cheque clearly said that it was to be redeemed after the redemption period then you have grounds for complaint. If it didnt, then you dont.

(assuming it did say after the redemption period) I would suggest you phone the lender and ask them why they did not follow your instructions. I would expect them to check the letter to make sure it had the instructions of when it was to be redeemed and waive the fee due to error. There is no need to go straight to complaint at this stage when a simple phone call is all it should take.

Slinky

Not sure at this stage if the accompanying letter said that (husband is at work and has paperwork with him), but the email he sent asking about redeeming in the first place definitely did:

Dear Sirs,

My fixed rate period end on 30-Apr-08 and I wish to pay off my mortgage on 1-May-08, therefore incurring no futher charges (other than the principal sum and the redemption fee (£195)).

Please provide the following, by return e-mail to this address:
a redemption statement confirming, or otherwise, my above assumption;
the mechanism by which i may make my final payment;
any addition information relevent to this closing transaction.

Many thanks for your assistance with this enquiry. Please do not hesitate to contact my on XXXXXX should you require anything further

Slinky

Husband has just phoned, the letter he sent with the cheque clearly said it was to settle the mortgage at 1st May.

I will let you know what happens.

Slinky

Husband finally got through to somebody at B&W who seemed to be really interested (not) in this problem. He seems to think he may have it sorted, but has to phone back on Thursday to be sure.

dunstonh

Lets hope so. Keep us updated with the outcome. Too many threads end without the OP telling us what happened next.

Slinky

Just to close this one off, we got a letter from Bristol & West saying they are not going to pursue their claim for the £1667 early redemption charge.

Phew.