The bank has lost my original loan agreement

Purplebay

I recently made a successful reclaim of my PPI payments, during the course of which I received a letter from the bank stating they could not find the original signed agreement. Can't help wondering, if they do not hold an agreement with my signature agreeing to the loan being set up, can they still enforce it? Then again, does accepting funds in to my acount ratify the contract with no need for signed agreements?

fermi

When was the loan taken out?

If it was before April 2007, then they would have difficulty enforcing an agreement through the courts without a signed copy (if you challenged them).

Section 127(3) of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 says that a court should not make an enforment order on an agreement (pre April 2007) that does not contain certain terms or is not signed by you.

If the agreement was made after 2007, then a court can enforce the debt without said agreement if the are satisfied that the debt is owed.

Bob_the_Saver

What's the odds that it would be 'found again' if it suited them?

Purplebay

The loan was taken out in 2002, as this was 7 years ago, and the actual account of that name has been phased out, there is a strong chance the agreement is lost. Might be worth challenging it, just to teach them to take more care of our stuff, we pay them enough in interest. Anybody any idea how to go about this

ILW

Purplebay wrote: »

The loan was taken out in 2002, as this was 7 years ago, and the actual account of that name has been phased out, there is a strong chance the agreement is lost. Might be worth challenging it, just to teach them to take more care of our stuff, we pay them enough in interest. Anybody any idea how to go about this

Currently you can stop paying, and when they come after you claim unenforceability. Problem may be that until it is all sorted one way or the other, your credit file will be wrecked.

Purplebay

Thanks ILW, this could be what may happen. Both of us have been made redundant recently, so it is getting to the point where we will be unable to pay, in which case our credit file will probably be spoilt through no fault of our own. So if we could make this unenforceable, would at least be one less debt. Seems a bit wrong, but then again, it is the greedy banks and there irresponsible behaviour that is a the bottom of the recession that is causing these redundancies, so perhaps they deserve it.

ILW

Purplebay wrote: »

Thanks ILW, this could be what may happen. Both of us have been made redundant recently, so it is getting to the point where we will be unable to pay, in which case our credit file will probably be spoilt through no fault of our own. So if we could make this unenforceable, would at least be one less debt. Seems a bit wrong, but then again, it is the greedy banks and there irresponsible behaviour that is a the bottom of the recession that is causing these redundancies, so perhaps they deserve it.

Seems you have nothing to lose.
Bet you wish you had kept the PPI now. Cest la vie.