Any advice

Aggy_2

Hello,

I opened a littlewoods account many years ago, I thought I closed it and cancelled the direct debit but two months ago I noticed a sum of money had been taken from my account by them, when I challenged them they said it was an error and the money would be refunded within 10 days.

I also contacted my bank and explained I had cancelled that direct debit and that money has come out of my bank by mistake, the woman apologised profusely and said it was their screw up as the direct debit was not cancelled as per my request.

Two months later the money is still not in my bank, I've sent them several letters and emails and they continue to fob me off with it will be back in your account within 14 days, I sent a complaint letter and they said they never received it so I sent it again recorded and they again said they never received it so sent them the proof of delivery and still they claim not to have received it, so being their offices weren't that far from me I took it there myself and handed it to the receptionist and made her sign for it.

And now they claim it will take 28 days to investigate and even more time to refund my money. And this isn't a small amount which is why I am more than annoyed about it.

What should I do next as they..?

McKneff

If it was a screw up of the bank then the bank should have refunded the DD and then claimed it back from the company.

This is the DD guarantee, contact your bank again. Stand your ground and dont let them fob you off.

All being that it was a DD and not a standing order that is

Littlewoods

Hi Aggy,

We'd be more than happy to investigate this for you. If you email your details to us at [EMAIL="help@littlewoods.co.uk"]help@littlewoods.co.uk[/EMAIL] we'll look into your account and email you back directly.

Hope this helps

Chris

Littlewoods Company Rep

Aggy_2

Hello McKneff,

Thank you for you reply, this is purely the fault of littlewoods, they had no reason whatsoever to take the money.

Hello Littlewoods Rep, sorry but I do not trust littlewoods any more as they have lied to me twice, refused to response to my letters and emails and when I ring them and give my account number I am hung up on. And I have this on recording as well, I've contact the police on the advice of the FOS as it is now apparent Littlewoods refuse to refund my money they have stolen and due to little woods constantly refusing to respond to my requests for information.

unholyangel

Aggy wrote: »

Hello McKneff,

Thank you for you reply, this is purely the fault of littlewoods, they had no reason whatsoever to take the money.

Hello Littlewoods Rep, sorry but I do not trust littlewoods any more as they have lied to me twice, refused to response to my letters and emails and when I ring them and give my account number I am hung up on. And I have this on recording as well, I've contact the police on the advice of the FOS as it is now apparent Littlewoods refuse to refund my money they have stolen and due to little woods constantly refusing to respond to my requests for information.

Well its not purely Littlewoods fault though is it? If your bank had cancelled the DD as instructed, they wouldnt have been able to take the money.

As advised, the best (and least stressful) way to get a refund is via your bank using the direct debit guarantee. Under the direct debit guarantee, funds paid in error entitle the account holder to a full and immediate refund.

pmduk

If the bank now fail to refund the money immediately, make a formal written complaint.

Aggy_2

This is not just about who is at fault it is the lies and how Littlewoods have treated this situation, it borders on contempt to be honest and if they were just at the start put their hands up and say it was a mistake I wouldn't have reported it as theft to the police and complained to the Financial Ombudsman Service. And as Lloyds have pointed out there should have been no money withdrawn in the first place as my account owed nothing.

I hold Littlewoods completely at fault on this

shaun_from_Africa

I hold Littlewoods completely at fault on this

But all that will achieve is to ensure that it takes longer than it should do to finally get your money returned.

Yes, without a doubt Littlewoods did screw up, but if the DD had been cancelled as originally requested then all that would have happened is that their request for money would have been refused by the bank.

The bank have admitted that they were also at fault and under the DD guarantee it is their responsibility to refund you in full then reclaim the money from Littlewoods.

unholyangel

Aggy wrote: »

This is not just about who is at fault it is the lies and how Littlewoods have treated this situation, it borders on contempt to be honest and if they were just at the start put their hands up and say it was a mistake I wouldn't have reported it as theft to the police and complained to the Financial Ombudsman Service. And as Lloyds have pointed out there should have been no money withdrawn in the first place as my account owed nothing.

I hold Littlewoods completely at fault on this

There should have been no money requested by Littlewoods.
However, there should have been no money paid by your bank.

Yes Littlewoods are responsible for the problem originating, but they are now not solely to blame since your bank contributed by being negligent. We're not saying Littlewoods arent at fault. We're just saying your bank is also at fault. You can still go ahead with your complaints to Littlewoods etc, but if you want your money back then the easiest way to do that is under the direct debit guarantee.

We're only trying to help You said it wasnt a small amount of money and are annoyed at having to wait. We've given you advice on how to get a full and immediate refund.

If you keep chasing Littlewoods for payment instead of your bank, all it does is make things more difficult for yourself. I'm not really sure what else you expect us to advise you of?

arcon5

Aggy wrote: »

This is not just about who is at fault it is the lies and how Littlewoods have treated this situation, it borders on contempt to be honest and if they were just at the start put their hands up and say it was a mistake I wouldn't have reported it as theft to the police and complained to the Financial Ombudsman Service. And as Lloyds have pointed out there should have been no money withdrawn in the first place as my account owed nothing.

I hold Littlewoods completely at fault on this

The police won't help. They'll see it as a civil matter. I'm also not sure they'd be happy with you wasting police time when the resolution is one phone call away -- the DD guarantee scheme! You get your money back, Littlewoods are forced to reimbuse the bank! Simples..

You can still issue a formal complaint, irrespective of what route you choose.

I'm backing others suggestions here, contact the bank