Mortgage Exit Fees successes and failures

danielley

Just called the Abbey National up on the number on Martins link.

The lady who answered asked what my call was regarding, when I said I wanted to enquire about reclaiming my mortgage exit fee, she quickly went quite snotty and seemed to go into a script!

She said she would post me out a form to fill in. Once I returned the form it would be upto 4 weeks for a reply and after that if a refund is due a cheque would be sent.

I took out my mortgage with the Abbey in December 1998 on a 5yr fixed rate
In January 2003 I moved house and had to increase the mortgage amount.
In December 2003 the 5 yr fixed rate expired and I took out a 1 year fixed til Dec '04
Then it went onto the SVR for a few months before selling the house in April '05.

Im not sure whether the original agreement would be classed as that I took out in 1998 or at the time of the remortgage in 2003 or when the 5yr fixed expired in Dec 03 or when the 1yr fixed rate was agreed in Dec 04!!!!!

I dont want to count my chickens before they are hatched, but if anyone has any ideas what the refund expected would be I would be very pleased to know.

pixxyco

Northern Rock have just offered to pay my £250 MEAF. They rejected my first letter, but their reply to my second letter was that they would rather pay £250 than enter into lengthy correspondance.
I have only had my mortgage 3 years and the £250 was in the contract. I argued that they wanted to get rid of me at the end of my deal so why should I pay the £250 to close the account, as well as asking for a breakdown of the cost of closing my account.
:beer:

pixxyco

Northern Rock have just offered to pay my £250 MEAF. They rejected my first letter, but their reply to my second letter was that they would rather pay £250 than enter into lengthy correspondance.
I have only had my mortgage 3 years and the £250 was in the contract. I argued that they wanted to get rid of me at the end of my deal so why should I pay the £250 to close the account, as well as asking for a breakdown of the cost of closing my account.
:beer:

emmashel

hi this is the first time i've posted on this website although been recieveing weekly e-mails for months, and i'm just wondering, i got my first mortgage with the halifax then moved to nationwide when my first deal ended, then we moved back to halifax and then i remortgaged with the halifax again last year, so will i have paid one of these fee's each time i've changed, including when i actually stayed with the halifax and might i be able to claim something back for each time?

ybm69

Hello. This is my 1st time posting! Please excuse if this question has been answered elsewhere but couldnt locate it.

I have swapped and changed mortgages on several properties over the last couple of years. I assume that the reclaim applies to cessation of the specific mortgage, but how many years back can I go?

For instance, I closed an if.com mortgage in Aug 03, and a Cheltenham & Gloucester in May 2001, to name a couple from the past plus a couple of more recent ones?

Do all lenders apply a time limit? Or is it a case of trying my luck on all of them??

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

dunstonh

I assume that the reclaim applies to cessation of the specific mortgage, but how many years back can I go?

As far as you like. However, most of the increases started around 2003.

There is no time limit at the moment.

Victoriajayne

Have just read about this, so have dug out my paperwork regarding a previous mortgage with Halifax.
Mortgage was taken out in June 1994, and redeemed in August 2006, when
I was charged £175 repayment admin fee and £50 deeds despatch fee.
The booklet entitled 'Information about your Mortgage' that was in place when I took out the mortgage in 1994 states Mortgage discharge fee £40 (waived if the mortgage account has been open for 10 years or more or if the mortgage has run its full term if less than 10 years), and Despatch of title deeds £15.

So will be on the phone to them tomorrow, hoping to reclaim £210 !!!

MarkyMarkD

If you redeemed in 2001, or any earlier, you will have been overcharged by either nothing or next to nothing. Lenders didn't start increasing these charges significantly before 2003 - which is coincidentally as far back as you can go, legally.

If you want to spend your time writing to C&G in case they might bung you £20 or so (or maybe nothing), then you are free to do so. But I wouldn't hold your breath for a lot of money.

wattsj

Does this rebate still apply if you changed mortages but stayed with the same provider?

I've been with the Woolwich for 6 years and have changed 3 times (now on lifetime Tracker) and pretty sure I had to pay £250 to change to a different mortgage.

dunstonh

Does this rebate still apply if you changed mortages but stayed with the same provider?

yes and no.

The charges that were in place the last time you changed the mortgage deal apply. Not the start date of the original mortgage/first deal. So, if you use Victoriajaynes example in post 2852 (3 up). She said it was taken out in 1994. Now if she didnt change deals then the charges in 1994 would be the base point. If she changed deals during that period (maybe a few fixed rates etc) then its the charges at the point of the last deal that matter.

pretty sure I had to pay £250 to change to a different mortgage.

That isnt the same fee that is being talked about here. If you buy a new deal then you pay fees to buy that product. These are retails fees and they are fine, acceptable and valid. Its when you redeem the mortgage and pay the exit fee that you have the potential to reclaim the charge if that charge is higher than you were told at the time of the last contract letter you signed.