One Account rates cut

DickDastardly_2

I have had a reply from the Ombudsman now that say they are too busy at the moment and my complaint will be dealt with at some point in the future. Ha! No surprise there then.:rolleyes:

And just for your interest regarding Virgin and them offering new mortgages, etc, I really am disappointed with the whole Virgin brand and Mr Branson to boot.

We had life insurance with Virgin which they without discussion or approval sold lock stock and barrel to another provider overnight. We left immediately.

I am just moving my savings from Virgin Direct Saver to ING as guess what? ALL Virgin savings accounts are now RBS. I was told this on the phone, no official notification as yet.:mad:

Seems the game is set up a company with Virgin on it, get customers then sell it on as a going concern regardless of loyalty, etc. So far from Virgin, it really should be branded Slapper as anyone can buy it!

sodamhall1

To whoever said the one account is being run down where did you get that information from as they are still actively looking for business. There is now loads of adverts on sky tv they have only stopped selling through mortgage brokers, customer have to ring directly and not go through a third party.

Everyone else the product compares very well to what is on the market im not sure why we are all moaning about the rate, it is very good you just want more and more and more. This cant happen in the current market companies need to make money the customer needs to save there must be some middle ground.

Brice

sodamhall1 wrote: »

To whoever said the one account is being run down where did you get that information from as they are still actively looking for business. There is now loads of adverts on sky tv they have only stopped selling through mortgage brokers, customer have to ring directly and not go through a third party.

Everyone else the product compares very well to what is on the market im not sure why we are all moaning about the rate, it is very good you just want more and more and more. This cant happen in the current market companies need to make money the customer needs to save there must be some middle ground.

Ok, the Oneaccount is still competitive compare to other products on the market. But that's because most of the banks do not pass the rate cuts in full.
It is not that we want more and more ... but it is a fact that the BOE had chosen to reduce the rate more and more and more and, as I understand, the objective is to encourage people and companies to borrow money cheaper, spend the money (in house market, etc.) and so, aid economic recovery. I don't think the goal is to increase banks margin. If the banks don't pass on the rate cuts, the effort from the government and BOE is useless.
There is no middle ground, on one hand, the banks in difficulty have got a rescue plan from the government and on the other hand the government tries to aid the economy by lowering the rate (not to rescue the banks).

I am not an economist but it is how I understand the thing.

Of course, this is without talking about writen promise from OneAccount to always follow rate cuts, etc.

mr_jolly

Looking ahead I have concerns that each time the BOE announces a rate cut they're just sowing the seeds for unfair mortgage rate rises when their base rate eventually goes up again. I expect that when BOE rates do go up again each increase will be passed on *in full* by mortgage lenders, and on the same day, of course! Then we'll watch RBS and other lenders' margins increase further still.

I wish the BOE would stop announcing rate cuts. The only affect on consumers of any more rate cuts is to reduce their savings rates and increase bank profits (both now, and more worryingly, in the future).

In the medium / long term the banks will make a packet out of the crunch and the current low rates.

Nail_Lad

I didn't think The One Account had much if any affiliation with Virgin anymore, apart from a link on its website and maybe a domain name pointing back to the One Account.

Virgin are a front, always have been. They're just a brand. When they launched Virgin cola all those years ago only 3 people actually worked for Virgin so you can get suckered into the brand ideal if you like or you can keep open minded.

Quite frankly over the last 5 years The One Account has allowed me to borrow when I needed to (divorce, equity split) so I ended up just paying interest. Merge equity when I needed to (new partner equity join). It allows me to massively overpay or underpay simply and easily. I see no other product on the market that offers me anywhere near this level of flexibility at what I consider to be a decent rate. I'd go on to say that had I not been with The One Account then I probably would never have been able to keep my house.

I check constantly for competitive mortgage deals (it's the money saving way afterall) but as yet I've found nothing that gives me what the One Account does without ridiculous tie ins.

I've never taken umbridge with their level of service and I think the passing on of the rate cuts has been reasonably fair given the product they offer.

Imagine for a minute how difficult it must be to analyse and predict accurately the business activity on the One Account as a product. There isn't a statistical model that exists that is able to help forecast their business based on the unique flexibility that their product offers. That we still have the One Account available in these turbulent times should be reward enough. I think those who complain about the lack of decision making on rate cuts should consider this for a minute and if you're not happy then simply move on or utilise the account more effectively to take advantage of the brilliant flexibility it has to offer.

DickDastardly_2

IN reply to Nail-Lad

I wholeheartedly agree with your summing up of the current situation with the one account and your usage f it. I to really could not survive in the way I do with a more standard mortgage.

I am happy pretty much with the service I receive, although I have noticed a change since RBS took over and some facilities such as 365/24/7 banking no longer apply. But this is a minor niggle.

What I think most people on this thread are arguing is not against the One Account but merely to get the bank, RBS, to admit that since they took over from Virgin they have made a fundamental alteration to the nature of the way interest rate changes are worked and that is that they no longer promise to follow the BoE base rate the day it is changed. This was made big by Virgin when launching the product and was one of the deciding factors in many people's decision when taking out the product.

From a personal point of view I am not surprised that RBS do what they do. Their goal is to make profits at all costs, I understand that. I also know that no amount of moaning will really change anything. BUT I also firmly believe that any transaction between two parties should be fair and of mutual benefit and currently the RBS position has changed from what I originally agreed with them and as such it has become an unfair transaction - they can change the rules, I cannot.

That is why I choose to raise the issue both with them and the ombudsman, no other. And I have made it clear throughout that I am perfectly happy with the One Account as a product, with the staff and service. I am not happy about being told one thing one day and something else the next when it suits RBS in their pursuit of profit over and above what they are already making out of each and every customer. Let's be very clear on this, even with a rate of 1% RBS make a tidy amount out of a 100,000 mortgage over 25 years.

Its the greed, the shifting goals posts, and the lack of fair trading that upset people and to my way of thinking they are quite justified in that. Sure we can all walk away, but why should folk give up a product which as you point out so eloquently, is a good one, merely because RBS want more and more and more?

I have made it clear in my correspondence to RBS and now the Ombudsman that all I am asking for is a public admittance that RBS have renaged the intial sales promises made by Virgin regarding interest rates and that they no longer follow or pretend to follow the BoE base rate. Furthermore, they should publicly admit that it was wrong to say that they would when the actual fine print of the T&Cs say otherwise. Then people can make a clear choice as to whether to stay or go, once RBS have publicly made their postion clear.

Just my view!;)

karanda

DickDastardly wrote: »

IN reply to Nail-Lad

I wholeheartedly agree with your summing up of the current situation with the one account and your usage f it. I to really could not survive in the way I do with a more standard mortgage.

I am happy pretty much with the service I receive, although I have noticed a change since RBS took over and some facilities such as 365/24/7 banking no longer apply. But this is a minor niggle.

What I think most people on this thread are arguing is not against the One Account but merely to get the bank, RBS, to admit that since they took over from Virgin they have made a fundamental alteration to the nature of the way interest rate changes are worked and that is that they no longer promise to follow the BoE base rate the day it is changed. This was made big by Virgin when launching the product and was one of the deciding factors in many people's decision when taking out the product.

From a personal point of view I am not surprised that RBS do what they do. Their goal is to make profits at all costs, I understand that. I also know that no amount of moaning will really change anything. BUT I also firmly believe that any transaction between two parties should be fair and of mutual benefit and currently the RBS position has changed from what I originally agreed with them and as such it has become an unfair transaction - they can change the rules, I cannot.

That is why I choose to raise the issue both with them and the ombudsman, no other. And I have made it clear throughout that I am perfectly happy with the One Account as a product, with the staff and service. I am not happy about being told one thing one day and something else the next when it suits RBS in their pursuit of profit over and above what they are already making out of each and every customer. Let's be very clear on this, even with a rate of 1% RBS make a tidy amount out of a 100,000 mortgage over 25 years.

Its the greed, the shifting goals posts, and the lack of fair trading that upset people and to my way of thinking they are quite justified in that. Sure we can all walk away, but why should folk give up a product which as you point out so eloquently, is a good one, merely because RBS want more and more and more?

I have made it clear in my correspondence to RBS and now the Ombudsman that all I am asking for is a public admittance that RBS have renaged the intial sales promises made by Virgin regarding interest rates and that they no longer follow or pretend to follow the BoE base rate. Furthermore, they should publicly admit that it was wrong to say that they would when the actual fine print of the T&Cs say otherwise. Then people can make a clear choice as to whether to stay or go, once RBS have publicly made their postion clear.

Just my view!;)

Well said - summed up succinctly. This is exactly why my complaint was submitted to the Financial Ombudsman some months ago. I understand that I can expect a final response from them shortly. It is precisely the lack of clarity that has angered so many customers. Once we know EXACTLY how RBS intend to run this account in the future, we as customers can take action (or not). I still cannot understand how a bank can get away with playing such an obtuse game with customers for so long. The Virgin product was superb - everyone understood how, and on what basis, the accounts would be operated. At the moment, RBS appear to take random decisions, at any time - they need to be held accountable. And unfortunately, the only way to get the clarity we need is to go through this tortuous complaints procedure.

To sum it up - it really is not the interest rate itself that is the basis of our collective complaint, or even the account itself. It is the breathtaking arrogance of a bank that believes itself to be above accountability, honesty and integrity. A bank that has ridden rough shod over its customers has to be challenged - thank goodness there are some of us who have done just that.

Browntoa

see its made the money part of the Daily mail today , bit about them not pasing on the full cut again , page 43, right column

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/mortgages/mortgages/article.html?in_article_id=466029&in_page_id=58


• One Account customers have again seen their mortgage rate cut by less than borrowers at parent firm RBS/Natwest.
The bank cut its standard variable rate by 0.25 percentage points - but One Account customers got just a 0.2 point reduction. In the past year base rate has fallen from 5.5% to 1.5%, but those in the One Account have missed out on 1.3 points of cuts - meaning an extra £1,212 a year interest for those with a typical £150,000 mortgage. Loans now start at 3.9%.

malocao

malocao wrote: »

Their "initial response" letter talked about not a tracker, not a SVR, we can do what we like within the contract terms, etc. Which was all very revealing, but it didn't address the points I actually made to them, regarding LIBOR differentials and their attempt to jack up profit margins at our expense.

Their "final response" letter just repeats the initial response at greater length, and it still ignores all of those points.

I am now in the Kafka-esque position of having a "final response" letter, thus case closed from their viewpoint, but not having a reply to my actual complaint ...

I asked OA to try again with their "final response". On the second attempt, their letter does relate to my actual grounds of complaint.

But they don't accept that Treating Customers Fairly has any bearing on their interest rate decisions. They still assert that they can do whatever they like, as long as (a) it's within the contractual terms, and (b) they communicate it clearly.

In short, they are reducing TCF to nothing more than "keep customers informed". I don't believe that is a viable interpretation of the TCF principles -- let's see what FOS thinks.

Regards

musicegbdf

Well said all of you.... It is a fact for nearly 9 years they have conducted themselves correctly and in line with the promises made and now for the last 9 months they feel they can just ignore both promises made and the "custom and practice" that they have established.
It is both the promises and the custom and practice that I will be taking to the FO not so much the interest rate itself . I like others on the site am concerned at what happens when the "bust" is over and we go back to "boom" with rates rising. Will they hold back then increasing below the variance of the base rate and delay everything a month! I think not ....