Lloyds Bank Hardship Claim - Lloyds Keep Putting Off/Going Round In Circles

thelazytrumpeter

Hi,

I am a student and put in a claim for Lloyds bank for £256 worth of bank charges which I had between about February and June 2008. Not very much money, but it is a lot to me (one months rent!).

I filed a moneyclaim court claim around last August and since then realised I would be able to claim financial hardship, because of my situation.

After many phone calls and branch visits, Lloyds eventually send me an income and expenditure form to fill in, which I did and sent back to the address on the front at the beginning of this year. Since then I have called them many times and received many standard 'we're looking into your complaint' letters however I now appear to be going round in circles. Every time I call them they ask me again over the phone about my financial situation, and I read out again what I filled into the income and expenditure form I sent them in January.

Once i've done that they try and flag me off with some Debt Councilling advice (which I don't need, I accidentally went overdrawn one week when I was in Ireland on tour and didn't realise until I got back so I got charged...i've not got any other problem with money!...stupid people). They also tell me that someone will call me back in 5 days. Often they don't and if they do they are still no use and don't know what to do, or need more information I've told them time and time before.

Has anyone else had any problems like this, I just seem to be going round in circles. I have done this 4/5 times now.

Do I have to be more authorative? Have other people managed to claim hardship cases from Lloyds? or is eveyrone having this problem?

It just seems so silly. It has probably cost them the same in their administration costs to talk to me on the phone over the past year as the bank charges I had. It's pennies to them but so much to me.

Hope you guys can help.
Matt

thelazytrumpeter

Hey I forgot one other thing..

I was also told at one point the reason why I couldn't get my bank charges back on financial hardship was because I had an open court case, and if I cancelled the court case I would get them back.

I still haven't cancelled the court case as I am not sure how to, but does that work. However I don't want to cancel it, to find out is hasn't worked, to then be at the bottom of the pile again when it comes to repayments if the courts win that big case.

Matt

samantha147

Hi,

I put through a claim for the same thing, about £311.00 or something. I sent a letter about three months back and got their bog standard reply. Very generalised!!!! ALthough I used a template from one of the moneysaving letters to use, I took out the bit about financial hardship, just to say that I've had to take a lower paid job. The standard reply set out that as I was going through financial hardship they would contact me... to this day I'm STILL waiting for that call, so I wrote back to them and said that I hadn't heard from them, AGAIN, I got a bog-standard reply just yesterday, with the added paragraph about not being contacted and they "were looking into why I wasn't contacted" - I'm tempted to write back and say "DON'T TALK ABOUT IT - JUST FLIPPIN CALL ME!!".... they are CERTAINLY dragging their heels in the sand about this....

Does anyone know a better way to combat this, to make them a little bit speedier without the cost of having to issue Court proceedings?????

Can anyone else help????

natweststaffmember

thelazytrumpeter wrote: »

Hey I forgot one other thing..

I was also told at one point the reason why I couldn't get my bank charges back on financial hardship was because I had an open court case, and if I cancelled the court case I would get them back.

I still haven't cancelled the court case as I am not sure how to, but does that work. However I don't want to cancel it, to find out is hasn't worked, to then be at the bottom of the pile again when it comes to repayments if the courts win that big case.

Matt

I gotta say to you Matt, that on the face of what you have written I would if I was in their situation decline your financial hardship claim on the basis that you are not in financial hardship today, and on the face of it do not have priority debt arrears(mortgage/rent, council tax, utilities).

The FSA Waiver itself suggests £500 in charges over 12 months as indicative of financial hardship. On that basis in itself, is one reason to say no as well.

Apologies if you do not like the post but I have probably saved you wasted time.

natweststaffmember

samantha147 wrote: »

Hi,

I put through a claim for the same thing, about £311.00 or something. I sent a letter about three months back and got their bog standard reply. Very generalised!!!! ALthough I used a template from one of the moneysaving letters to use, I took out the bit about financial hardship, just to say that I've had to take a lower paid job. The standard reply set out that as I was going through financial hardship they would contact me... to this day I'm STILL waiting for that call, so I wrote back to them and said that I hadn't heard from them, AGAIN, I got a bog-standard reply just yesterday, with the added paragraph about not being contacted and they "were looking into why I wasn't contacted" - I'm tempted to write back and say "DON'T TALK ABOUT IT - JUST FLIPPIN CALL ME!!".... they are CERTAINLY dragging their heels in the sand about this....

Does anyone know a better way to combat this, to make them a little bit speedier without the cost of having to issue Court proceedings?????

Can anyone else help????

I would see the post above in response to Matt.
Do you have priority debt arrears(mortgage/rent, council tax, utilities)?
At the moment I can't see hardship, I can see them not calling you....is your telephone number up to date with the bank?

thelazytrumpeter

Hi natweststaffmember and all,

Thanks for your input. I don't want to say exactly how I feel I fit the criteria, but I just phoned Lloyds TSB again and they said that they are putting all financial hardship claims on hold as well - saying they don't pay anyone back their charges for financial hardship claims as that only helps in the short term. They failed to say what they actually would do to help in the long term, except for sell one of their products to me, but it sounds like from what the woman said, they are not paying any claims out at all..

Is that right, or was I fobbed off?

Matt

natweststaffmember

thelazytrumpeter wrote: »

Hi natweststaffmember and all,

Thanks for your input. I don't want to say exactly how I feel I fit the criteria, but I just phoned Lloyds TSB again and they said that they are putting all financial hardship claims on hold as well - saying they don't pay anyone back their charges for financial hardship claims as that only helps in the short term. They failed to say what they actually would do to help in the long term, except for sell one of their products to me, but it sounds like from what the woman said, they are not paying any claims out at all..

Is that right, or was I fobbed off?

Matt

You need to ask the to WRITE wi th a FINAL RESPONSE if they are declining financial hardship. If you have priority debt arrears(mortgage/rent, council tax, utilities) and they are not being repaid you may have a case otherwise you haven't.
I appreciate you do not want to post your details on the forum so the last sentence is a guide so that you do not go to the FOS on a wing and a prayer

thelazytrumpeter

Cheers. Are there any template letters anywhere for a final response letter that you know of?

Thanks

natweststaffmember

thelazytrumpeter wrote: »

Cheers. Are there any template letters anywhere for a final response letter that you know of?

Thanks

The bank send you the final response or to be blunt it is a closure of financial hardship claim which should outline their reasoning for it(they were reminded on 19th March 2009 by the FSA with regards to this).

thelazytrumpeter

Ah Okay.

They haven't done that. Should I chase that or is it better to leave it without getting a final response?

I initially started the financial hardship claim around 6 months ago.

Matt

natweststaffmember

thelazytrumpeter wrote: »

Ah Okay.

They haven't done that. Should I chase that or is it better to leave it without getting a final response?

I initially started the financial hardship claim around 6 months ago.

Matt

Yep, if they are not looking at your claim on financial hardship then they have to issue a letter to you explaining why.