Charged Wrong APR by HBOS

thequant

Hi all I got a CC out with Halifax in 2004, at the time there APR's ranged from 9.9%-17.9% depending on credit rating.

I was accepted with a credit rating of £3k and an APR of 15.9 %, i.e. one level below the highest level.

over the next two years halifax kept increasing my limit to over £10k.

However I had no intention of using the card if I had such a high rate, so i phoned them and asked if I could have a reduced APR and after consulting their computer it said yes.

However over the next couple of months I failed to see the new reduced interest rate on my statement so i phoned them up.

I got through to an operator who checked and said yes that it had been agreed for me to be on 9.9% i.e. the lowest tier of interest but due to operator error it had failed to have been actioned and they would fix it ASAP.

next month same thing, reduced rate failed to appear on the bill and i had similar call.

this went on for about a year, when the phonecalls changed to "we cant find any record of it being agreed for you to be on 9.9% APR", i would press them that this would be the case, they would say "can i put you on hold while we check", after a few minutes they would come back and apologise and say that had found the agreement and records of my previous calls and that this would be DEFINTELY rectified this time.

but it wasnt and then for the next 6 months I would have a repeat of the above phonecall many times.

then eventaully in 2007-2008 they would now tell me they is NO RECORD of it being agreed that i was to be on 9.9% APR and NO RECORDS of my previous phonecalls. Expecting that I had an experinced operator I pushed them to look further but they could find no record at all. so I thought I would try another time with another operator who would be able to pull the records of what I was saying.

since that time I have yet to find an operator who can find the records and in the meantime my APR has been pushed upto 29.95 % APR.

As I have carried a balance of £5k on this card for two years this has cost me a considerable amount of interest charges.

What can I do ?

Paul_Herring

thequant wrote: »

What can I do ?

Are you actually carrying a balance on the card?

If so, I'd suggest looking for another card (0% BT + fee?) and transferring the balance and closing the card.

If not, close the card anyway, and find one that gives you some form of rewards.

If you're wanting to take this further with Halifax themselves; do you have anything other than a verbal agreement that this was the rate you were given? Since they're denying having phone/other records on the phone you're not going to get much further there.

How much (extra) interest do you think you've incurred as a result of not getting the reduced interest rate?

Is that amount worth pushing any complaint?

thequant

Paul_Herring wrote: »

If you're wanting to take this further with Halifax themselves; do you have anything other than a verbal agreement that this was the rate you were given? Since they're denying having phone/other records on the phone you're not going to get much further there.

How much (extra) interest do you think you've incurred as a result of not getting the reduced interest rate?

Is that amount worth pushing any complaint?

because of the earlier phonecalls where they could find the record of the phonecall, I know that it does exist somewhere. I'm guessing when time had gone on so long and I had made SO many enquiries about the issue that it had ended up in the "older transactions" or something similar.

Having worked at a financial instituion last year, I know this is probably the case. In fact, the place where I worked at, despite having nice modern PC's with flat screen LCD's, the software was very similiar to 1980's teletext.

My partner was having a problem with the company I worked for, he had a dormant account with them which had some money in it.He rung up and they said they had no records of him being a customer.

Sneakily, I went into work and found his records and they were a !!!!!! to find but they did exist. Next time he rung up, I gave him the instructions to give to operator to find his records,e.g. "select option this on this page, next page select ......."

anyway I'm starting to drift off topic. The point is the record of phonecall must exist somewhere, so i need to get.

Due to information laws I have a right to these, how do I go about doing this.

If I do obtain the proof of what I'm saying, will I have the basis of a claim and if so, how do i about it ?

I went through my finances at the weekend and I calculate I have overpaid between £2k-£3k worth of interest!

Paul_Herring

thequant wrote: »

Due to information laws I have a right to these, how do I go about doing this.

If I do obtain the proof of what I'm saying, will I have the basis of a claim and if so, how do i about it ?

You can put in a DPA request for all information they on you (specify that you want "in particular transcripts or recordings of all telephone conversations they hold, and any notes on your file due to same phone conversations") and you can be charged up to £10 for it. I'd suggest posting a cheque for that amount with a paper copy of your request to avoid them delaying waiting for any amount they specify - the worst that will happen is they'll cash it, the best - they'll return it (or any difference.)

You should have that information within 40 days, and you can complain to the ICO if they refuse/take too long.

If you do eventually get the recordings...

I went through my finances at the weekend and I calculate I have overpaid between £2k-£3k worth of interest!

... you can then restart a complaint going through their (HBOS's) written complaints procedure (keep records!), and then onwards to the [strike]FSA[/strike] FOS if they drag their heels on that.

the_insider

The FSA don't deal with complaints, if you're unhappy with the financial institution's response to your complaint you can refer it to the Financial Services Ombudsman.

Paul_Herring

Bother - almost right - post corrected.

the_insider

Paul_Herring wrote: »

Bother - almost right - post corrected.

Easy mistake to make Paul, the rest of your advice is spot on.

huafeihua116

the_insider wrote: »

The FSA don't deal with complaints, if you're unhappy with the financial institution's response to your complaint you can refer it to the Financial Services Ombudsman.

Great................................!!

the_insider

huafeihua116 wrote: »

Great................................!!

Erm......???