Letter from FOS

crawli1

Hi all, I have received a letter from FOS saying that they are not going to up-hold my complaint against Lloyds TSB for the bank charges. They have given me until 31st December to write back with "individual factors or circumstances particular to you - or to the way your bank operated your account at the time the charges were made - which you feel should be taken into account".

I want to write back to them as soon as possible. Can anyone help me to put a letter together please?

Thanks in anticipation

Alpine_Star

crawli1 wrote: »

Hi all, I have received a letter from FOS saying that they are not going to up-hold my complaint against Lloyds TSB for the bank charges. They have given me until 31st December to write back with "individual factors or circumstances particular to you - or to the way your bank operated your account at the time the charges were made - which you feel should be taken into account".

I want to write back to them as soon as possible. Can anyone help me to put a letter together please?

Thanks in anticipation

I'd like to help you with this and it would be really helpful if you could post:

1) The text of the letter from the FOS in full.

2) The text of your original complaint to the bank.

3) The text of your complaint to the FOS.

I know it's a pain but it's crucial in order to know how to proceed.

If it's easier to scan it to an e-mail (removing your personal details of course) PM me for my address.

orc_2

Hi Alpine Star,

as you are aware, there will be a deluge of people getting this letter from FOS- Everyone who used a template claim based on the old conditions and not relying on hardship.

crawli1

orc wrote: »

Hi Alpine Star,

as you are aware, there will be a deluge of people getting this letter from FOS- Everyone who used a template claim based on the old conditions and not relying on hardship.

I didn't go down the hardship claim route - as soon as the banks knocked me back (approx 2 and half years ago) I wrote to FOS from the standard templates on this website. I have until 31st December to write back to them, so I don't have much time. Would it be a good idea to write back to them asking them to keep my complaint open until I can get the right advice?

Thanks

orc_2

I would have to say yes.

If you have hardship issues and priority debts, please focus on them.

You must have been very unlucky not to get paid out 2 1/2 years ago- sorry about that.

Alpine_Star

crawli1 wrote: »

I have until 31st December to write back to them, so I don't have much time. Would it be a good idea to write back to them asking them to keep my complaint open until I can get the right advice?

Thanks

The right advice would be heavily dependent on the details of the 3 letters as the letters coming from the FOS differ from claimant to claimant.

crawli1

orc wrote: »

I would have to say yes.

If you have hardship issues and priority debts, please focus on them.

You must have been very unlucky not to get paid out 2 1/2 years ago- sorry about that.

Well, it is Lloyds TSB I'm dealing with, so I wasn't expecting them to just pay out, having read some posts on here years gone by!!

I'm on my own with 2 children - but I don't think I'm in hardship, like some people on here are. I have a part-time job and get tax credits. I should soon be receiving Housing benefit too after the recent change in the law.

I just want to know how to deal with this letter from FOS

orc_2

Is it possible for you to post the either the original letters or the text of the letters mentioned by Alpine?

That way, you will get better advice.

crawli1

orc wrote: »

Is it possible for you to post the either the original letters or the text of the letters mentioned by Alpine?

That way, you will get better advice.

My letter from Lloyds in May 2007 was the normal "Thanks for getting in touch with us. We think charges are fair, etc, etc"

I then filled in a complaint form for FOS stating everything that this website told me to put on that form.

FOS wrote back in August 2007 - they told me they could not progress my case "as normal" because of the issues being referred to the High Court. They then go on to say they will keep me updated.

Do you want me to type out the full letter I have received Dec 2009 from FOS??

Alpine_Star

crawli1 wrote: »

Do you want me to type out the full letter I have received Dec 2009 from FOS??

Yes please but what's also important is the details of your original complaint to the bank and the subsequent complaint to the FOS. It's important we know the legal (and otherwise) arguments you put forward as it is likely the FOS are progressing or not progressing complaints that were based particular criteria.

If it helps you can e-mail any scans of letters to here [EMAIL="admin@legalbeagles.info"]admin@legalbeagles.info[/EMAIL]

crawli1

"I am writing regarding your complaint to us about the unautorised overdraft chares made to your current account.
The Office of Fair Trading brought an important legal "test case" to establish if it could assess whether the amounts the banks were charging were fair. As part of this legal "test case", the Court was also asked to consider whether these types of charges amounted to "penalties".
As you know, we decided not to deal further with bank charges complaints until the outcome of the Office of Fair Trading's "test case" made the law clearer. This letter is to tell you what happened during the legal case, and to let you know why it now looks as though we will be unable to help you with your complaint.
Put simply, during the course of the legal "test case" the Courts ruled that these sorts of charges:
1. did not generally amount to penalties; and
2. cannot be challenged on the grounds they are too high.
This means the the Office of Fair Trading lost it's case. The legal action ended in a decision by the Supreme Court - the highest court in the United Kingdom - on 25 November 2009. The decision, and a summary of it, can be found on the Court's website (at www.supremecourt.gov.uk)
In the light of these decisions by the Courts, and the information you have already provided I do not consider that the Ombudsman could uphold your complaint, and so I propose to close our file on your case.
However, if there are individual factors or circumstances particular to you - or to the way your bank operated your account at the time the charges were made - which you feel should be taken into account, then please write and let me know by 31st December 2009, so we can assess whether they are likely to make a difference.
There is more information about our approach to complaints about bank charges on our website (at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/faq/bank-charges.html).
Yours sincerely