Bit of a tricky one..

laure86

Hi, just wondering if someone can give me advice on this...

I had a student account with Lloyds TSB when at University and let's say, I wasn't the most sensible student with my money. The year before I graduated (2008) I had my bank account closed due to going over my agreed overdraft limit. It was 1700 and I managed to rack up 2200, so quite a bit over. It should never have been allowed but I spent it and am prepared to deal with the consequences.

Over time however, this sum has escalated to a WHOPPING 4,500 in total. That's what I spend plus an astronomical amount of charges. So I refused to pay it and because the account was closed, it lay dormant for quite a while. Then they sold the debt on to a company called Apex and they pestered me for a little while and got nothing from me due to the fact I sent a request for the credit agreement and they obviously couldn't provide. They passed it back to Lloyds who then sold it on again to the latest bunch of crooks, Robinson Way Ltd, based in Manchester. They bombarded me with calls at sometimes 11pm and sent letters and even emails to me until again; I requested the credit agreement and they couldn't provide. A week later I had a letter saying they'd taken me off their files and I would have to deal with Lloyds.

Have contacted Lloyds and have asked for all my statements so I can work out exact figures of what I spent and how much was charged etc. What I would like to know if any of you lucky folk can assist me, is.. Can I negotiate with Lloyds and agree to pay back what I actually spent? It's an ultimatum really because it's been sold twice so has lost considerable value, plus Robinson Way said I could pay 2700 to them and be done with it. I know sometimes debt agencies have a way of agreeing a figure and then conning you into eventually paying the sum but if I deal with Lloyds and offer them WHAT I ACTUALLY SPENT.. I'd be happy to get it sorted once and for all.

Sorry for the lengthy post.. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

MyLastFiver

Firstly well done for standing up to the DCAs. I would not pay the charges either.

Are you in a position to make regular payments to Lloyds? If so I would consider writing to them, telling them you are prepared to make an offer to make repayments to the capital, but only if they agree to waive the £2300 in charges, as these are excessive.

No idea how far you'd get though.

Poosmate

I don't mean to be funny Laure86 but you openly admit to spending more than you should have then burying your head in the sand so you can't lay the whole blame for the debt increasing to over £4k solely with Lloyds, they're not a charity and are perfectly within their rights to charge defaults and interest. You may be able to claim back some of these charges and have the debt reduced if they are deemed to be excessive.

Having said that, well done on finally realising that it's time to do the right thing and pay back what you owe.

I would negotiate with them, as it's possible that they will waive some of the charges (if they are excessive and they realise you intend to reclaim them) and so you may only owe them legitimately £3-3.5k.

You really can't expect to spend someone elses money and not have to pay interest on it having had the benefit of that money for 18 months or more.

I make no apology if you are offended by my response, nobody on here judges the why's or wherefors of anyone's debt, but peoples attitudes to their debt and repayment are a different matter and there are many people on here who are genuinely struggling and have got into debt for circumstances beyond their control and your flippant "I'm the victim here" attitude is somewhat irksome and offensive.

The fact that you want to pay it back is commendable and you will get all the help and support you need on here.

Poo

Tixy

Hi Laure

You will probably find they will come to a full & final agreement with you - see here for information about what to ask them for in return and a template letter to send - http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wales/factsheet.php?page=24_full_and_final_settlement_offers

laure86

Thanks for all your replies, really appreciate it. I've saved up quite a bit in order to make a final payment and can extend this if necessary. I don't want to ordeal to go on and on, month by month so after finishing Uni and working full-time I've been able to budget far better and plan ahead.

I'm not offended by your comment at all Poosmate; I was a naive and spoilt little brat and admittedly buried my head in the sand. The post wasn't to rub anybody's face in it as I know there are plenty of people struggling.. it's to put my hands up and say "Yes, I was wrong but now's the time to fix it once and for all". I had other credit cards and another overdraft which are now all paid off, I was getting rid of the smaller ones first so I had time to save and plan to get rid of the big and final one in one swoop.

Thanks again all

Poosmate

Yay! That's brilliant that you've been able to pay off your other CC's and overdraft. Sounds like your head is well and truely screwed on right and nowhere near the sand! lol

I think you are doing the right thing in asking for all the statements and finding out about the charges/interest. I can't say what are deemed to be excessive charges as luckily, although I have debt, I've been managing it without incurring any charges (except Nov 2008 due to Gritish (robbing) Bas(t*rds)) so there is nothing to claim back for me.

Hopefully someone more knowledgeable on this issue will be able to advise you on this or you could check out the "Reclaim You Bank Charges" articles/threads (?).

Good luck anyway and hope you get it sorted.

Poo

I knew it was here somewhere:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.html?f=102

never-in-doubt

Poosmate wrote: »

Poo

I knew it was here somewhere:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.html?f=102

Here's a little extra linky too: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/bank-charges

laure86

Aw thanks for finding those for me

Can't wait to get all this out of the way! Will get writing my letter to Lloyds tomorrow! I've been doing a bit of homework tonight and have read some statements from other people who have negotiated a settlement fee so it's not an entirely 'pie in the sky' idea... fingers crossed anyway! I could kick myself for letting it get this far but now I'm on a roll with sorting it all out, this is my final hurdle and the more time I spend kicking myself; the less time I spend taking action lol!

Will let you know how it goes x