Remortgage and the Outstanding Balance Question

ajoneill

Hi

I am extremely annoyed by my existing mortgage lenders (a rather large Scottish institution) approach to mortgage redemption and would like some urgent advice!

I recently decided to switch mortgage lenders after waiting for redemption penalties to expire. I duly completed the paperwork during early Jan 2007 with my new mortgage lender. My new mortagge lender used a 3rd party solicitor who contacted me during Feb 2007 to get my details including the outstanding balance from my current mortgage lender ( a large, supposedly respected Financial institution). After checking statements from Jan 2007 I though I'd be wise to still contact my outgoing mortgage lender and ensure I I knew the up-to date outstanding balance which I got verbally over the telephone on 23rd Feb 2007. I was totally open with them and was dealing with a "mortgage redemption" dept. I told them what I was doing and that I required the outstanding balance so that I could complete a form to send to the solicitor. I indicated that I wanted this to be accurate.

I was quoted an outstanding balance figure on the 23rd Jan 2007 of £114,971 GBP.
My next mortage payment was still due at the time of the call on the usual date (the 28th day of each month). This had been the arrangement for over two years by direct debit. During the call I told the person from the redemption department that I was aware that the mortgage would not complete in time for the end of the month and therefore a further direct debit monthly payment would be made by myself. I told the person that I would complete the form with an outstanding bal of £115,000 GBP to ensure that it covered the outstanding figure and also mentioned that as I knew that a further payment was due by myself in a few days time, this figure would ensure that I was covered by a surplus rather tahn the other way around. The person taking my call agreed that this was so (and I believe they record their telephone exchanges)

I duly completed the form and sent it to the solicitor. Some time passed and I felt the need to contact the solicitor to ensure progress. I did this on 12th March. I was told verbally that everything was progressing as normal. Then out of the blue I received a telephone call from solicitor on the 14th March informing me that the outstanding balance quoted by my outgoing mortgage provider was some £981 pounds in excess of the figure I had been quoted on 23rd Feb and that I had duly written on the form to solicitor.

I immediately contacted the outgoing mortgage lender and was told that they had received the request for an outstanding balance on the 26th Feb from my solicitor. I was told that although the solicitor had requested a figure to be dated for the 7th March 2007, they had turned this request round immediately on the 26th Feb and had quoted an outstanding balance on that very day that had assumed that I would not make my next normal monthly direct debit payment two days later on the 28th Feb 2007. By doing this not only was the balance figure completely out by the monthly payment (£806.00 GBP) but they had added daily interest which also assumed that my monthly payment would not be made thus adding to the outstanding balance.

I spoke to the outgoing mortgage lender yesterday (14th March) and voiced my anger at the manner in which thay have processed this redemption. I spoke to the team leader and after some bitter words made a request to escalate this as a complaint to his superiors. BAsically he told me the process that had occurred and that they had acted quickly to turn this round and had neglegted to include my next monthly payment because they could not be sure that I would actually make the direct debit payment two days later that I had set up over two years earlier (and I have never defaulted on).
I told him abou the telephone converastion that I had made to ensure an accurate balance and that I had talked about paying the next monthly payment as normal.

In all of this process the solicitor used by my new mortage lender has not escaped my blame either. They apparently received a statement containing the higher outstanding balance from my outgoing lender on or near the 7th March. Although they claim that they sent me this information I did nor receive this from them. They only raised the problem with me after some delay. They did not highlight any problem at all when I called to check progress on the 12th March. Two days later they called to say that there was this problem with the outstanding balance I had provided and the one they had received sometime in early March (dated for the 7th MArch).

Due to the delay I will not be able to complete until sometim earound the 24th March and will incurr extra ineterest from m,y outgoing lender as a result and this is at a higher rate than my new lender.

Can anyone advise how best to progress this. My old lender is charging daily interst and so has everyting to gain fro this delay.

JoeK_3

Oh dear, slap dash from your previous lender and the solicitor.

Official complaint in writing to both indicating your losses should help to redress the balance.

But be quick

JoeK