Do you have money worries and a loan or credit card with your bank?

berkshirelady

I am naming and shaming Lloyds TSB Lloyds TSB MasterCard. I have been a customer for 16 years.

My ex-partner left 3 years ago, I was homeless, skint and notified the bank immediately that I might be in trouble. Computer said no. I struggled to keep up payments for ages, and eventually went to CAB a year ago for help. Lloyds and Mastercard continued to offset against my already overdrawn current accounts, plus a joint account with my new partner, despite 6 months efforts from me & CAB to sort out a payment plan, earlier this year. I was still making payments as much as I could, pending an agreement (most of my surplus - a third of my take-home pay).

they ignored my template letters, and correspondence from CAB. They stonewalled me for months. As a result of their games, and more than £3k of my money in the past 12 months, I owe them more now than I did before. And a lot of it has been due to offsetting against accounts that are already overdrawn, and then adding penalty charges and interest on top of that, because the offsetting busts the overdraft limit. Each month they increase the overdraft limit, apply charges, bust the limit because they have offset, apply more charges, then increase the limit, ad infinitum. and so it goes on.

I closed the joint account (which was for essential bills, rent, etc) 3 months ago so they couldn't take any more of mine & my partner's money from that account. But despite refunding two offset payments as a result of my official complaint, they have continued to do it since then on the 2 accounts in my name. I would love to shut these accounts down but have been told I can't while they are still overdrawn. I have now lodged a complaint with the Banking Ombudsman, as I have had enough.

I am also seeking a refund of several hundred pounds worth of charges and interest on the 2 current accounts which have been dormant for a year, plus the credit card account (I tore up the debit cards and also destroyed my credit card last September). I was given a verbal promise about a refund in lieu of 4 months delay on responding to me & CAB but they are now denying it.

They state they can do this (offestting), but they have robbed my money, and that of my partner, which was set aside for essential bills (i.e. priority creditors, and they are not a priority creditor!) and this while I was already being represented by a third party debt advisor.

How bad does it have to get?!

I await the Ombudsman's adjudication!

BeenieCat

Hi - Barclaycard are currently chasing me for debt which at the minute i can't afford to settle.

I will be soon applying for my maternity grants and wondered if they are likely to swipe this money from my Barclays account, and if so, is there anything i can do other than opening another bank account eslewhere for the grants?

gilligansyle

I had a smaill amount of money in a separate account which I used for car repairs as I don't have a credit card. My salary went into the main account and always covered the overdraft. Lloyds cancelled the overdraft with no notice and then took the money from the savings account to cover it.

I know that I owed them but if they had told me in advance I would have made an arrangement with them to pay the overdraft over a few months not all at once.

marianne1_2

has anyone been daft enough to leave their ex on their bank account, him go bankrupt, then the bank take his credit card money owed from your account? stupid i know! If so, has anyone had any luck retrieving their money?

captainhaggis

I have had a current account with Lloyds TSB for about 14 years. I also have a loan account and a Visa account which are both on payment arrangements.

On two occasions I forgot to call Lloyds to re-establish my payment arrangements at the end of the six month terms and instead of continuing to take the agreed payments and calling me to set the arrangement up again they took the whole amount owed plus any arears.

On these occasions I found my bank account emptied, leaving my mortgage(s) and other direct debits to go unpaid.

Fortunately Lloyds were fairly forthcoming with a refund of the amount debited upon re-setting up the arrangement so I only once actually missed any payments but it wasn't a major one. Nevertheless, that they could simply take whatever money they want from my account was nothing short of shocking.

NOW, something that's really annoying me.

A couple of months ago I moved all of my banking to Natwest but the Lloyds account remained open without an overdraft facility.

Lloyds took a payment for their own Visa from my Lloyds TSB current account DESPITE my having cancelled the direct debit and set it up at Natwest instead. This put my account into an unauth'd overdraft for which I'm sure I'll be hammered with charges.

gemm42009

Barclays Bank did this to me, they took £1500 out of my bank account without me knowing to pay off my credit card which had me confused as i only owed them £500!!!!! When i phoned them they told me they had taken over sky card the week before so they took what i owed on that card also!!! That money was there to pay the mortgage and for christmas!! Surley this shouldn't be allowed especially the sky card, as they didnt tell me they had taken it over and they have taken more than i originally owed!!!!

Toe-Jam

Can RBS accounts be offset from Natwest accounts ?

gabriella90

Good Question Toe-Jam? I have a joint account with my partner at Natwest I'd definately like to know. I am hoping to god they don't do an offset.

RBS collections used the offset thing against me because. They hadn't made my current account inactive as they said they were going to and the Overdraft was nil and account in credit. So they took the months loan payment, from OD. i rung up and they credited it back it was a mistake GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!

Timbersnake

Barclaycard took money from my Barclays bank account to repay a defaulted credit card. However, they had already sold the debt on to Lowell Portfolio. Therefore, did they have the right to take the money?

Memory_Girl

Hi
I'm afraid that I too was caught out by this "rule". I was literally left standing in the bank with 71p, 3 nappies and no money to buy calpol for my DS who had a raging ear infection and fever. I had no access to any of my benefit funds whatsoever.

Incidentially - despite repeated requests I have still to receive the letter telling me that they intended to "freeze" the account.

My current account was also my mortgage offset account - and the "lovely lady" seemed to take great delight in informing me loudly ( in full hearing of everyone in the bank - but worst off all in front of my 9 yr old) that because the account was frozen I couldn't pay in any money to the account, therefore couldn't pay my mortgage, therefore they would reposses my house and my kids taken into care !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I still can't pay money into my account (that I still have to pay £12 pcm for the "honour" of running without a three day process of calling a friendly business banker, who arranges to take the "freeze" off the account for a couple of hours when I have to appear at the bank and pay in cash.

I have no personal debts with the bank at all and have always paid the mortgage (despite being on benefits since the business went in to Administration). The reason they took all the funds in the offset was to pay a £10K personal guarantee on a limited company. I was actually assured that they would not come looking for these monies until the business was liquidated and all debts paid off.

I could have died that day - even worse because they returned my Child Tax Credit payment I was left literally without any money for 2 weeks whilst it was recalculated. If Ihad known in advance I could have arranged the payments to go elsewhere.

I am now in major "revenge" mode. I fully intend to stroll into the bank five minutes before closing, one Friday before a Bank holiday, and payoff my mortgage in full, in used fivers and all my friends (my everyday angels) cheering me on and drinking champagne as they count off every blessed penny - well a grils gotta dream - LOL.

At least using the resources on this site I am clawing my way back - a pound at a time.

Memorygirl