MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Should Angela give the old lady extra time to pay?

Pee

It sounds like little old lady is having trouble paying her mortgage. She could do with a financial review within the bank and maybe an equity release mortgage where the interest is rolled up would be better for her than trying to find her mortgage payment each month...

flossy_splodge

outofstock wrote: »

Angela is weak,she favours borrowers who can spin a good sob story and look pathetic. If you borrow there are repayment rules,if you don't pay there are consequences.That's how an advanced economy works.
I do hope you find yourself on the other side of this sort of situation real soon.
What goes round comes round, soon I hope.
If that's sounds harsh let's cancel our debts (and the financial system that underpins and depends on obligations being met) and watch 65m people scrabbling around in the woods for berries and firewood.

I prefer to live in a compassionate world rather than in an 'advanced economy'.

TristanWhite

Hmmm, she should be lenient but it's a tough call. Perhaps she should be looking to find a new job where she can be a nicer person to customers.

Sixteen/seventeen years ago, when I left University, my first job was working at the DSS as a fraud officer. It was a 6 month temporary position, but was likely to be extended full-time. Towards the end of the 6 months I had this sad Colombian lady come in with loads of kids. Her fortnightly girocheque hadn't arrived, she'd rung up for a replacement, and somehow both giros were cashed. She claimed that she only received the one. I looked at the signatures, they were similar but not identical, but seeing her there with these screaming children in our little smoky room (yes, we could smoke then at work, seems so long ago...), she was penniless, she didn't speak good English (I am fluent in Spanish), repaying would have crippled her financially, so I helped her write her statement (to be honest, I genuinely felt there was a strong chance that she was telling the truth, as the signatures weren't that similar and she did live in a house with a shared letter box). But mainly, it was my first ever job and I was completely naïve.

Well, a month later I was on leave and she had to come in again, though I didn't know. Someone else was dealing with my clients while I was away. The Colombian woman came in with all her kids, and someone else saw her. The stupid Colombian bint said, "excuse me, can I please see Mr White, he let me off last time".

Of course, my 6 month contract was not renewed, even though I had done a pretty good job apart from that, and I did genuinely believe her story (well, kinda believed it, I guess her situation made me want to believe it more than with my other clients).

I put it down to naïvete. And a good heart. I would never do a job again where I had to be such a heartless person. And if I did, and I were ever in that situation again, I would have to pass it on to the managers!

Cerisa

Yes she should. She should point out to her boss that people don't trust the banks and that a little kindness here and there will be good PR.

TighterThanTwoCoatsOfPain

If its company policy and Angela doesnt have the authority to over rule it then of course she shoulnt...

Sorry, but the little old lady isnt worth Angelas job! She doesnt make the rules, just enforces them.

Obviously depends on how far behind she is as to if its reasonable.

Augustus_the_Strong

Don't fall for that 'sweet elderly lady' scam - she's probably a professional con-artist.

andyelcomb

Sorry, but this isn't really a MORAL dilemma - more a procedural one.
There isn't nearly enough information to make any sort of decision.
As has been posted earlier, repossession isn't taken lightly and would only even be considered after months of arrears and possible non-communication.
Definitely not something that would be within the brief of a 5 year service "grunt"!

Not the best dilemma Martin, you can do better than that! :think:

RuthnJasper

Why did the lady fall behind? Presumably her pension, etc., went into her bank account by Direct Debit and her mortgage went out that way?

It would depend on the circumstances but I'd say yes, help the old lady. I'm assuming she has a genuine reason for falling behind, as opposed to someone who has not budgeted appropriately - for example, spending all her 'mortgage money' on treats for her 97 cats;). The customer deserves her chance - perhaps Angela could negotiate a higher repayment rate until the arrears are paid off. I would say no to a person who had just bought themselves a flashy new car or been on an expensive holiday, or been otherwise extravagant and fallen behind with repayments - but this particular customer couldn't help her hospital stay.

It is Angela's job to make these decisions at her discretion. If her boss is making threats and alluding to the quality of her work then it is a disciplinary issue and should not impact on customers who fall into problems through no fault of their own.

If I was Angela, I'd probably start coasting around for another job. Her boss sounds like a real git - perhaps she could discuss this with him and HIS line manager; if he has employed her to do a job, he should trust her to do it. If it's clear that she cannot perform at her level, she should be told straight out, rather than be subjected to thinly-veiled threats and sniping.

hellywelly5

Whether the old lady has been in hospital or not, her income will be the same and anyways she shouldn't still have a mortgage if she's really old. I think she's trying it on and should be encouraged to make a part payment if nothing else. That way everyone's kept happy!

imeldanash

Investigative work required before a decision could be made:

a) why is such an elderly lady still paying a mortgage - most companies would require repayment before retirement. Has she had so many episodes of non-payment that the debt has extended past her working life?
b) does the mortgage have a "payment holiday" clause, and if so cannot the debt repayment period be easily extended?
c) what was the nature of her condition - will it recur, thus making her susceptible to future non-payment? If so, what contingency could be put in place to alleviate the problem.
d) could she work with a an equity release company to pay off the remaining debt?
e) what provision does she have to fulfil her commitment - how has this changed due to illness?

etc. etc. etc.

A decision matrix should be created to ensure that all cases are dealt with equitably and fairly. Overlaid on a common-sense model should be compassion and contingency to ensure that all avenues are followed before any dire action becomes necessary.

One person should not be held responsible for such a potentially extreme outcome - recommendations can be made based upon protocol and policy but final authorisation/decision should be with the most senior employee available.