Rip-off Christmas time late defaults Sums

Gord_of_Thunder

Has anyone else had this happen to them and does anyone know if the Financial Ombudsman takes up cases such as this.....
I like paying my credit cards via a cheque through the post and always do it before the time stated and 5 Days required so I don't incure charges. I like doing it this way as I feel more in control, and have done so without many problems over the years.
But just lately I have been getting late payment defaults on some of my credit statements. When I phone up to complain they remove the £12 late charge but still charge the interest :mad: and then charge a further £5+ the next statement.
My last cheque I posted on 14/12/10 to arrive before 29/12/10 and the statement says it was cleared on 07/01/11, so they again charged me Late Sum and Interest, what a rip-off. I have to suffer because of the Bank holidays their offices were closed and they've blamed me for posting and not using other methods.
Firstly I think it's a con....secondly I think they are deliberately bullying people who pay by cheque to use another method.....thirdly they must be making Thousands or even Millions as it is Christmas time when people use their credit cards more and are ripping people off through this type of default with the interest rates.....

ILW

Use DD or bank transfer. Problem solved.

rb10

The Christmas post is notorious for being slow - surely everyone knows that?

But the snow that we had just delayed things further.

For important, time-sensitive things like this, it's never a good idea to wholly rely on the post. Especially when the banks give us several different alternatives that are guaranteed not to fail!

Gord_of_Thunder

Some of my friends who use these methods you say have had problems with these methods...especially one when they Changed his monthly payment date and then started to charge him interest and late payment it took ages to get it sorted and he still had to pay the interest.

I paid by cheque and post over the last ten years and have had relatively no problems until recently when there seems to be a concerted effort by credit card companies to stop this form of payment by cheque, probably due to the cost.

madmittens

If you're usually a good payer, phone them and ask them nicely to remove the default charge (worked for me when I got caught out last easter )

opinions4u

Gord_of_Thunder wrote: »

Has anyone else had this happen to them and does anyone know if the Financial Ombudsman takes up cases such as this.....

You have the right to take your complaint to the FOS once you have exhausted the company's complaints procedure.

I like paying my credit cards via a cheque through the post

Why would you choose to pay the cost of a stamp to make a payment to a credit card in this day and age? Money saving tip one: use an electronic method of payment. That should save you £4ish a year.

and always do it before the time stated and 5 Days required so I don't incure charges. I like doing it this way as I feel more in control, and have done so without many problems over the years. But just lately I have been getting late payment defaults on some of my credit statements. When I phone up to complain they remove the £12 late charge but still charge the interest and then charge a further £5+ the next statement.

So it's happened more than once. Are you learning that this method of payment is becoming unreliable.

My last cheque I posted on 14/12/10 to arrive before 29/12/10 and the statement says it was cleared on 07/01/11, so they again charged me Late Sum and Interest, what a rip-off.

I got a Christmas card yesterday. It was posted at a similar time. I'm not going to blame the banks for this though. Can you see where the problem that is costing you money sits yet?

I have to suffer because of the Bank holidays their offices were closed and they've blamed me for posting and not using other methods.

Electronic methods have timescales that are easier to define. A backlog of Christmas post, adverse weather and a postal service that is not run for the benefit of the customer are your problems here.

I tend to suffer with bank holidays too. Mrs o4u can be hard going at times and full days with her are stressful if she says "let's go shopping". But they are clearly marked on most calendars and diaries. And as such are clearly signposted to you and this gives you the opportunity to make your payment in good time. Unless you didn't realise that such things happen around December time?

Firstly I think it's a con....

No. It's a useless Post Office.

secondly I think they are deliberately bullying people who pay by cheque to use another method.....

They're not bullying. But I cannot believe you are using a method I binned off 20 years ago.

thirdly they must be making Thousands or even Millions as it is Christmas time when people use their credit cards more and are ripping people off through this type of default with the interest rates.....

Use a direct debit. Pay by online banking. Ring up and ask the to charge your debit card. Quicker, cheaper and significantly more reliable.

Can you imagine, in this day and age, coming up with a brilliant new communications system that is based on:

1) Write an instruction on a piece of paper.
2) Put that instruction in an envelope and write on the envelope where you want this instruction to go.
3) Pay a small amount of money to the provider of the communication service.
4) Walk or drive to a box in a public area and stick the envelope in the box.
5) Pray that one of the local yobbos doesn't dispose of his or her cigarette in the same box.
6) Wait for a man to come and empty the box.
7) Same man to drive the contents of the box to a location that is usually in the nearest city.
8) Lots of machines and men to sort your envelope out.
9) Put your envelope on a train to the city nearest your preferred destination.
10) Have it sorted again.
11) Put your envelope in to a sack and pass the sack to a man or woman and ask them to walk it to its destination.
12) Put the envelope through a hole in the door at the preferred address.

Do you think it has a future?

It ain't the card company's fault if the post office are rubbish. Change the way you pay.

[Deleted User]

opinions4u wrote: »

4) Walk or drive to a box in a public area and stick the envelope in the box.
5) Pray that one of the local yobbos doesn't dispose of his or her cigarette in the same box.

Eloquence beyond belief. :T

jen245

Sorry, I dont understand how paying by cheque gives you more control?! Royal Snail are a nightmare at the best of times, but seem to go into meltdown every time there is bank holiday. So really, you are giving them control, on whether or not they actually deliver your cheque, and then you have to wait for it to be processed, then cleared.
The best way for you to have control, is make a manual payment yourself through internet banking from your bank account, or with a debit card, that way you know the payment will reach the account, and as most banks now support faster payments, a lot of the time your payment will credit your account the same day. Or you could set up a dd.
I personally am not very fond of dd's and do my cc payment manually through my online banking, and havent had a problem in the last 6 years ive been paying this way.

Gord_of_Thunder

madmittens wrote: »

If you're usually a good payer, phone them and ask them nicely to remove the default charge (worked for me when I got caught out last easter )

Thanks, I already phoned them and they gave me the £12 late payment back but not the Interest.

But I think what is annoying me is I have always been able to pay on time using this method and but only just recently
since November has this become a problem with two different
Companies.

How do I know who is causing the problem ?
Post Office or Credit Companies.

7roland8

Well I like paying the cards by cheque too - everything else is by direct debit but don't see why we can't use this method if we want?

Re - Royal Mail - am stuck in so ordered stamps online on 4th - they said to allow 7-10 days for delivery (which is barmy)_ but still not arrived after 10days -a nd wehn I rang they said computers down so ring back Monday! (Have now fired off an email.)

redpete

Gord_of_Thunder wrote: »

I like paying my credit cards via a cheque through the post and always do it before the time stated and 5 Days required so I don't incure charges. I like doing it this way as I feel more in control,

You might feel more in control but you are dependent on the Post Office delivering the letter in the time you expect, the CC company dealing with the post in the time you expect, the cheque reaching the CC's bank in the time you expect, the cheque clearing through the banking system in the time you expect. You will only know this has worked when you get the next CC statement.

Pay it by DD for the min payment and you are dependent on the automatic bank payment going through which you can check online. Pay anything above this by SO or direct fast payment online and again you are dependent on automatic bank systems which you can check online within a day of it going through.

Firstly I think it's a con

Where's the con? Do you think that the CC company are lying about most of their employees not working over Bank Holidays? Do you think that the Post Office are lying about the postal system being stretched over the Christmas period?