Tesco say they paid money in my account but did not.

builders_bum

Hi

Can anyone tell me where I stand? I have a tesco loan. They say they put money in my Halifax bank account in error and have given me 7 days to pay it back. I checked my account and no payment was made. Apparently I have to send them my Halifax statement to prove this. But, does this mean they have no way of checking the status of my account? Can I trust that they are running my account properly? What can I do if they are not?

Thanks

Gothicfairy

If they didn't put the money into your account then send them your statements and prove it. As for your account, why other then this one thing would you think they were not managing your account correctly ?
Ask them for a statement of your account and go through it with your records as that should show all payments made etc.

builders_bum

Hi

Thanks, I will send the statements. As you might have guessed this is not the whole story. At the moment I am on a payment plan. Last year June and July they did not take DDs from my account for repayments as they changed sort codes. I seem to remember though at that time there was a bit of fuss as Tescos reorganised their arrangements. I talked to them at the time and made a card payment over the phone. Through my own stupidity I did not spot that it was two months in arrears and thought that I had settled. In actual fact it took another month for the DD to be reinstated and is did not spot that the August payment was my DB rather than the DD. So we ended with me still being two months in arrears (I was distracted at the time as my daughter was getting married and I was then chasing a builder through the high courts for running away with £23,000 of my money. Still haven't got it, and this situation has a bearing on the current situation).

But, two weeks ago (6 months after the above) Tesco decided to tell me that I was (still) two months in arrears. I could not settle immediately, as I am suffering quite severe hardship through chasing the builder, and have entered into a payment plan for the arrears. But during my recent conversations with Tescos they asked ME how much I thought I owed. Now happen to know for a fact, as I've been through my statements with a fine tooth comb, that I two payments in arrears. The lady at the other end insisted that it was only one and later in the conversation changed her mind and thought it could be three. She said thaqt she would have to investigate and get back to me and that investigation is still going on. In the meantime I got the letter (not connected in any way to the my previous conversations) asking for an additional £130 which was supposedly paid into my account in error. I can only get out off paying it if I produce evidence that the money was not paid into that account. I'm not sure why they cant be made to prove that they put the money into my account, which, if I let them take me to court over it they would have to. But, given these issues, how can I believe Tescos know exactly how much I owe them? I am particularly annoyed as I have checked my Equfax report and find my record has been adversely affected since last June.

I hope that makes sense, and I hope you can understand my concern.

Apples2

If you haven't caught up then it could be as simple as Paying in Jan, but you are actually paying Novembers (because you are always in arrears), this is why your credit file is reflecting badly and it is so important to "catch up".
I'm sure there will be late fees etc added to compound the problem.

You would only get one DEFAULT on your file for this account but that doesn't seem to be the case, you are simply always playing catch up.

Everything should be easy enough for you to see on your online banking although,of course, it is for them to prove, not you to disprove.

You can ask for a complete brakdown of all payments relating to your account from them (it is, afterall, how they will catch you out). This would show every transaction.

builders_bum

Hi
I understand that I have been in arrears since June. My point is that I do not believe that Tesco know how much I owe. The lady on the phone did not know if I had missed 1, 2 or 3 month payments and that was compounded by the fact that they think I owe them another £130 although they are willing for me to prove them wrong. So, that means if I asked for a settlement figure it could be any figure in a band of about £900. Obviously I would have no intention to pay any more than I do owe but, surely Tesco have a duty of care to manage my account properly with some level of accuracy. How different is this to a plumber who cant solder properly? There is an expectation that a loan provider can accurately monitor their lending and Tesco are not it seems doing that and that exposes me to a certain degree of risk. And like the plumber who cannot solder, Tesco who cant maintain their accounts, they should be challenged. If its a plumber you can demand your money back. What happens in the case of a bank that you are tied into because you cannot repay the loan. I cannot get more credit because I have a poor Equifax rating because (essentially) Tesco forgot to take money out of my account 8 months ago, so I certainly cannot move away from them. So my question was essentially what demands can I make of the bank if they do not maintain accurate accounts of my loan?

Apples2

Ahh, I see where we're going.

Eonel

The issue of Tesco crediting your account in error is standalone & resolvable. Send them the statement that proves there was no credit.

Do not link it to your concerns over how Tescos run your account, or any suggestion that a mis-managed account need not be paid.

builders_bum

Ok, so I'm sounding like I am trying to work the situation to get a payout. I'm not really fussed about that, (however nice that might be). I am just really frustrated that my life is dictated by companies/people that do not do their job properly. I lost a battle with Tmobile who would not take liability for a phone that never worked from the day it was delivered. The only tool I had to put pressure on them was my contract payments and you all know where that led, a black mark on my credit. I have been a year chasing a builder through High Court for a huge amount of money (like 2 other local clients of his) and it seems nothing can be done if he does not want to pay back the money. And now it seems Tesco are playing fast and loose with the bottom line of my loan. They do not know how much I owe them... do I just tip my cap and say "s'alright guvnor" ? They forget to take money out of my account and I end up with a stain on my credit report. Ok, I know I should have monitored my statements more carefully, but when you are in and out of court trying to chase £23,000 checking Tesco is doing their job properly is the last thing one has in mind. And now they are demanding money that I certainly do not owe them and I should not challenge their practise or link it to the fact that recently they have shown they have no idea what arrears I owe?

I'll just go with the flow then, that's your advice?

bigadaj

We can see you are frustrated but after a brief rant you have to try and look at things objectively. Not paying your bills or obligations will land you in more problems than them. After exhausting their complaints procedures then go to the ombudsmen/ trade bodies by all means, however what really worries them is bad publicity so go to the papers, tv etc if you think you have been shabbily treated. In relation to builders, and having little information available to me, the key is always to retain payment, up front payment for anything apart from materials in your control is always a bad idea. Having cash is almost always the only leverage for either party.

builders_bum

Thanks bigadaj. I wont go into the builders thing save to say we did have all the proper arrangements, staged payments etc. I am not alone, I find out now, in being hoodwinked by a serious con man. I'd never experienced someone who could so purposely manipulate a situation with lies and deception to gain a financial advantage. The man is a robber who manages to steal under the guise of a building company that does not really exist. I listened to a judge spell out to him in no uncertain terms that his deception (and lies to the court during our hearings) were serious. But, the police and CPS do not want to know. I am one of 3 clients he owes over £60,000 to and the police say these are unrelated events. Anyhow...

Back to the Tescos thing. I am not after any financial adjustment, although if they offered it would be nice. My concern is broader. I received the statement of account I asked for this week. It clearly shows them trying to readjust my account based on the arrears I said I thought I owed during my conversation with them. During and soon after our conversation there were 11 adjustments in and out of my account. The bottom line of my account is therefore the sum of records of payments into and out of my account that did not involve me paying in or receiving money. The bottom line of my account should ONLY be the result of real transactions surely? My statement is not a record of truth as it contains fictitious transactions. You may say so what, as long as I make sure I pay the correct amount as for my part I should be expected to retain the means to monitor my account accurately.


But, if I die before the loan is satisfied what checks might there be to ensure the loan is settled correctly by my estate? Secondly, this error has cost me time and money and contributed to a degree of stress. I am just about keeping my head above water, or to be more accurate, spend most of the month with my head under water but still manage to surface for a week each month. I am not sure how long I can sustain this. I am really struggling maintaining the borrowing incurred when the builder ran away leaving me to finish building a house that I had already paid for. I am struggling to get the HEO to act upon the Writ of Fi Fa I have against the builder as the builder has secreted his levied assets. My partner and I are under continual financial stress. Receiving a demand (the only one issued) for arrears incurred 6 months ago swiftly followed by a more urgent demand for a random £130 that was never placed into my account has been stressful. I am sure that you might appreciate that I am constantly looking for ways of streamlining our finances and moving my borrowing to cheaper loans is something I have to take seriously. I have juggled and rearranged to ensure that I have an Excellent credit rating (999) with Experian. But, having been recently had refinancing refused I checked out my Exquifax score only to find that I have only a Fair rating with them and that the Tesco arrears are the only issue on my record. Tesco have made my life harder in very real terms.

Lastly, if I have received a demand for money that Tescos have erroneously claimed to have paid into my account others will have as well and I wonder how many will have paid?

It really is not good enough. Plumbers need to be able to solder to be called a plumber, bus drivers need to be able to drive to be called a bus driver, Bankers need to be able to keep a record of transactions to be able to be called bankers. So I think I need an apology and more importantly some kind of trustworthy document that confirms the current extent of my loan and I need them to contact Equifax have the issues on my record either settled or marked as subject to a query.