Legal advice URGENTLY needed

olly300

Geogie_joe and everyone else the FSA states on it's website that insurance auto-renewal may be an unfair term under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contract Regulations 1999.

Please if you have come across a company being difficult about auto-renew even if they give in the end can you report them to the FSA via their website -
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/Pages/Doing/Regulated/consumer/tackle/index.shtml

Zelie

I would seriously consider whether it would be useful to make a formal complaint to Lloyds and if that is not satisfactorily resolved then fire it off to the ombudsman. Their conduct seems bizarre!

Fungas

Well, think about what's happened....

I'm going to complain to Lloyds: 1) for making a payment that was unauthorised, for a sum of money far in excess of anything else that comes out of my monthly bills account, and for not confirming with me that I was happy for the payment to be made (and ultimately providing me with no protection as their customer); 2) for handing me to a useless disputes call centre with an expensive 0845 contact number, and a 20 minute waiting queue. Calling from a mobile at, say, 40p a minute for a, say 30 minute call would have costed me £12 on top of the £800 I'd already been swindled for!

I'm also going to complain to Swinton for claiming a payment that was not authorised, and not in the spirit of the original agreed payment (as a one-off). To have lost £100 would have been bad enough, but £800 was disgraceful. And to make matters worse, it was right before Christmas and threatening to ruin Christmas for a family of 3. I think Swinton actually broke the law, so I'm then going to pursue the case via the Information Commissioner on a Data Protection basis, and possibly via the FSA on a financial impropriety basis.

zzzLazyDaisy

Good for you! Keep us posted and let us know what happens.

ampersand

Print out this Thread as a Chrimbo present for brother-in-law.
I'd also put it to the Grauniad's or The Times' Money columnists.
If taken up there, it will ensure you DO receive a refund. A letter stating this may help Swinton and/or Lloyds keep their eye on ball before 25/12.
Let us know.

Fungas

0800 this morning, money still not back in bank account, despite reassurances at 1400 on Monday that it would be.

Anybody know how long a money transfer should take? Surely no longer than a couple of days? I don't want to put lots of undue pressure on the Swinton branch if it's going to take, say, 3 or 4 working days.

Thing is, now, we're right up to the overdraft limit with payments due. If any of those are bounced, I'll have to go to Swinton to pay the charges, so more battles on the way!!

ampersand

As I suspect a number of us feared for you, Fungas.
'I don't want to put lots of undue pressure on the Swinton branch if it's going to take, say, 3 or 4 working days.'
Why on earth not?
It's YOUR money - YOU are under pressure.
PLEASE TELL THEM TODAY that you are about to send this to Tony Levene at The Guardian: [EMAIL="capital.letters@guardian.co.uk"]capital.letters@guardian.co.uk[/EMAIL] (include a daytime 'phone no.)
This is already dragging on too long - the possible postal strike will give them some other kind of excuse.
Good wishes.

itsnever2lateisit?

So refreshing for an OP to return and tell us of the outcome, well done Fungas:j .
If as stated above the FSA consider this practice to contaven the Unfair Terms of Contract then it's about time the ABI put their members house in order.

Maybe Mr Martin Lewis would be able to find a bit of time in the New Year to take this up (PLEASE!)

In the meantime I think I will write to the Assoc of British Insurers and the papers as well (keep me out of mischief this xmas ) see if we cant start something

Fungas

The money was returned to my bank account yesterday morning!

Now I start the process of compensation, which I will pursue with the same vigour as I pursued the return of my fraudlently aquired (according to Lloyds TSB) money!

There is a wider issue here, without doubt, as more companies are getting in to more disputes with individuals because of reducing disposable funds for people to pay their bills; this leads to family members helping with payments; further disputes can lead to this sort of thing happening again and again, so yes I agree - Mr. Lewis, there should be some sort of exposure of these shady and probably illegal practices by big firms in retrieving money from third parties.

The law, if tested, is probably on the side of the non-customer (me in my case), but is clouded by previous payments made on family members' behalfs, and T&Cs between firms and third parties (my brother-in-law in my case).

I'm sure I won't be the last to go through this, until such unauthorised payments are outlawed in legislation.

ampersand

Hoorah and jolly hockeysticks all round fungas - many thanks for letting us know.
Hope to hear from you on the next round's outcome eventually.