My Confession

badmonkey82

I've heard a lot in the press about how the banks are committed to helping their customers in these difficult times

Lies!

Up until recently my bank loved me, I was paying the minimum on my credit card and I have one of those current accounts you pay to get a host of 'extras' like free pet dolphin insurance etc that I've never really used

Despite the fact I was on a modest income and only pay the minimum the bank would increase my credit limit every few months it seemed , and I was happy to spend spend spend , cos everyone was at it and I got a buzz from it . I know no-one twisted my arm. My fault , but my bank has to share some of the blame

The bank was making a fortune out of me, they've been lumping over limit charges on my account since I was 18

Now I've found myself 10 grand in debt, my overdraft wiping out my salary , constant bank charges

the bank even withdrew my overdraft and charged me £70 in total for the please, I had to beg the bank to put it back on until I could start to pay it off , otherwise I wouldn't have been able to pay my mortgage - queue more charges

I approached my bank for a loan, they pretty much threw them at me in the past, I know if I could restructure my finances by paying off my 3 credit cards and overdraft, declined

Despite the fact that I had a relationship with the bank , and had been with them since I was 8 year old , and this would clearly allow me to move into the black, they weren't interested , I got some snotty girl on the phone telling me she couldn't help me

So I have to laugh when I hear the banks crow on about helping customers affected by the credit crunch

I know a lot of people aren't going to feel sorry for me, and my stories one in thousands but I just wanted to get it off my chest!

My suggestion is Relationship Managers for the poorer customers - someone with your best interests at heart rather than sales targets, and government banks should be making an effort to help people who want to pay bank their debt (interest free loans?) and start a fresh with the lessons learned

Hindsight is a wonderful thing.

elantan

i can understand your frustrations ...can i ask what you intend on doing about your situation ?...whilst moaning (either rightly or wrongly not my place to judge) helps us all get things off of our chests it doesnt solve the problems ...it helps if plans are made so that we can see a way forward ...so what are your plans to solve your problem?

staffie1

badmonkey82 wrote: »

Despite the fact that I had a relationship with the bank , and had been with them since I was 8 year old , and this would clearly allow me to move into the black, they weren't interested

Loyalty counts for nothing in today's world

badmonkey82 wrote: »

My suggestion is Relationship Managers for the poorer customers - someone with your best interests at heart rather than sales targets, and government banks should be making an effort to help people who want to pay bank their debt (interest free loans?) and start a fresh with the lessons learned

Never in a million years. If they can't make money out of you, they're not interested. They are businesses, not charities, and they're all the same I'm afraid.

badmonkey82

elantan wrote: »

i can understand your frustrations ...can i ask what you intend on doing about your situation ?...whilst moaning (either rightly or wrongly not my place to judge) helps us all get things off of our chests it doesnt solve the problems ...it helps if plans are made so that we can see a way forward ...so what are your plans to solve your problem?

Good Question!

Well i've taken small steps

I've arranged to pay back my overdraft gradually with my bank

I've cut my spending right down, closed my credit cards

im making my lunches and im saving lots that way and im planning to sell a load of my stuff on e-bay

I'm not really sure what else i can do !