Toothfairy - the ongoing sag

billinghamfan

Okay I have had an ongoing issue with Toothfairy

Brief summary

Took out a £300 Payday loan with Speed Credit

With that and other loans couldn't pay it back so entered into a DMP with CCCS in April.

Speed Credit passed the debt onto NDR then Marshall Halls Bailiffs (all toothfairy companies).

The loan stands at around £1700. I complained to FOS 7 weeks ago with regards to the charges and the consent calls/texts after I had asked them to contact me via writting/email several times with the standard letter.

I have now received the following email:

FOS REF: xxxxxx
OUR REF: xxxxx

Dear xxxxx,

I am sorry to hear that you have a complaint about the service you have received. The company attempts to treat its customers fairly in all circumstances and I apologise if you believe the service you have received falls short of your expectations in any way. I have been asked to respond to your complaint on behalf of MCO Capital.

In the first instance, please accept this email as acknowledgment of your complaint. I hope that we will be able to resolve the complaint within 8 weeks from today. To do so, however, I need to know the full details of your complaint AND details of what action would resolve the complaint.

If after 8 weeks you remain unhappy you will receive a Final Written Response setting out the company’s position. If you are unhappy with the Final Written Response and wish to appeal further you have the right to make a formal complaint with the Financial Ombudsman Service. You must make sure you do this within six months of receiving the Final Written Response or you may lose your right to ask the Ombudsman to review your complaint.

The contact details for the Financial Ombudsman Service are as follows:

Financial Ombudsman Service
South Quay Plaza
183 Marsh Wall
London
E14 9SR

Website: www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk
Email: [EMAIL="complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk"]complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk[/EMAIL]
Phone: 0800 023 4567 or 0300 123 9123

You may also be interested to read their pamphlet, “Your complaint and the ombudsman” which can be found at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/consumer-leaflet.htm

I hope that you find the information contained herein to be helpful and that we will be able to resolve your complaint to your satisfaction.

I look forward to hearing from you shortly.

Yours sincerely,

[Removed]
Senior Case Representative
Web Loans Processing Limited
Tel: 0203 476 0520

NOTICE: The contents of this e-mail are intended for the named addressee only.

It contains information which may be confidential and which may also be privileged. Unless you are the named addressee (or authorised to receive for the addressee) you may not copy or use it, or disclose it to anyone else. If you received it in error please notify sender immediately and then destroy it.

I have asked the FOS if they have another 8 weeks or if the 8 weeks started when my letter was sent.

But how should I proceed now??

Thanks in advance

fermi

It's 8 weeks from when you first complained.

http://financial-ombudsman.org.uk/consumer/form/complaint_form.doc

When did you first complain to the business you think is responsible?

The business has eight weeks from this date to send you its final written answer – before we can investigate the complaint.

If they have sat on their backsides and ignored things for 7 weeks, that is not your problem.

billinghamfan

Thanks

Does the below sound okay?

Hi Joseph

As I am sure you are aware the 8 weeks starts from the date of my complaint which was 6th July 2012 so you therefore have until Friday 31st August 2012 to give your final written answer.

As you know I have two complaints which were detailed in the letter.

1. In regard to the interest and charges applied to the debt which now account for approximently £1400 of the total debt the original loan amount being £300, please note via CCCS I have made 4 payments to this debt. With these charges it is making it impossible to pay back the debt in a resonable amount of time. Currently the charges placed and interest is more than I can afford to pay back with the current debts I have. Speed credit/NDR/Marshall Hoarse Bailiffs have all been made aware that I am in DMP with CCCS, all the other creditors I have agreed to freeze the charges, CCCS have access what I can reasonbly afford to pay and portioned this out pro rota, I am not trying to avoid paying off my debt and you will note I have made payments on a regular basis to speed credit to prove this. Therefore I request that current interest is frozen and that charges are removed as is the interest that has been placed on my account so I am able to pay off the debt in a reasonable amount of time, which with the current interest and charges I am unable to do.

2. I have politely requested that all calls and texts stop and to contact me via letter/email which as per the OFT regulations I am able to do, however this has been ignored, the staff have been rude and agressive on the phone and I have had no choice but to ignore both calls and texts as it is impossible to have an adult discussion with the advisors I have however put everything in writting and sent this to NDR/Marshall Hoarse via their online form and post.

On a final point I also feel that the company has tried to confuse me by sending emails and texts from three different companies on a regular basis all claiming that they own the debt I feel this is unreasonable and is causing distress.

I look forward to hearing your final written answer prior to 31st August.

Regards

Thanks

shedhead55

The correct process as I understand it is that you first complain to the company informing them they have 8 weeks to resolve the issue otherwise you will be referring the matter to the FOS. You do not contact the FOS at this stage. If 8 weeks after making that complaint to the company the matter is still unresolved you then contact the FOS giving them full details of the complaint you have already made and ask them to investigate.

If you simply complain to the FOS without first giving the company 8 weeks to resolve your complaint then the FOS will in thier own time inform the company that you wish to make a complaint which it looks like has happened here.

billinghamfan

Hi Shedhead55

I spoke to the FOS and they wrote a letter on my behalf which was sent 6th July this is what has happened not as you have suggested.

Thanks though

fermi

shedhead55 wrote: »

The correct process as I understand it is that you first complain to the company informing them they have 8 weeks to resolve the issue otherwise you will be referring the matter to the FOS. You do not contact the FOS at this stage.

Actually, you can.

You can make the initial complaint yourself, but the FOS will also sometimes help you do that if you ask them to.

Both count as the initial complaint to the creditor (with or without FOS help).

http://financial-ombudsman.org.uk/consumer/complaints.htm

It's important that you complain first to the business you're unhappy with – and give them a chance to look into your problem. They have eight weeks to do this. We can help by contacting the business for you, and telling them about your complaint.

Which is what appears to have happened here.

The 8 weeks run from that or you first complaint.

So Speed Credit only have 1 week left, no matter what they say in that letter.

billinghamfan

Thanks Fermi

Does my response look okay?

ta

headache999

i to have a ongoing problem with this company i have contacted in plenty of time before it as chance to go to the debt collectors but they refuse to accept a payment plan saying its the full balance or nothing
they have given me till the 07/09/12 to pay 700 pound or they will hand the debt over and add 400 on top
so i took out 400 loan and now i am looking at paying back 1100 expensive loan
i am in debt management program but they wont engage with them i have made a complaint also but heard nothing back yet
how are you getting on ?

billinghamfan

It continues!!

I received a message back on monday (odd seeing as it was a bank holiday) telling me that all contact had been frozen from toothfairy etc.. That didn't stop the two texts today!!
And he asked me to call to discuss the matter!

I replied politely telling him that I would like all contact via email/letter and that I still require their final written response by Friday.

I wait and see......

billinghamfan

I actually cannot believe the cheek of these people who do they think they are!!!

Dear xxx,

Thank you for your email.

You took out a loan of £300 on the 9th February 2012. The loan was a short-term loan designed to be repaid within 14 – 28 days and incurred interest at a rate of £72 every 14 days plus other contractually agreed charges. Your loan currently stands at £1,754.50 and, to date, we have only received repayment of £30.60. It is now nearly seven months after you took out the loan. I attach a full statement of account showing all interest and charges for your convenience.

It appears that you are making payments of £10.20 per calendar month through a debt management company. The last payment reflected on your account was on 19th June 2012. At that rate of payment it will take you two and a half years to repay the principal amount borrowed. Further, you have provided no physical evidence of your financial circumstances such that you are unable to fulfil your obligations in the time frame originally agreed.

I wanted to speak with you to better understand your financial situation and to try to tailor a payment plan which would be suitable and affordable for you. I have previously said that I may be able to come to an agreement regarding the interest and charges which have been added to your account. As are unwilling to speak with me to discuss the matter, I will need to see evidence of your financial situation if you would like me to accept a substantially reduced plan on your account.

I am prepared to accept a sum of £1,200.00 payable in instalments of £40 per calendar month with the first payment beginning on 30th September 2012 and continuing on the last day of the month until payment is made in full.

If you are unprepared to accept this offer and insist that you are unable to increase the payment through your DMC then please send evidence as above and I will consider it further.

I would like to resolve this complaint for you but this may not be possible if you insist on the strict timetable. Accordingly, I would like to ask you to extend the time we have to resolve your complaint by two weeks until 14th September. It is entirely your choice as to whether you grant this.

I look forward to hearing from you shortly.

I have gone back stating that the timetable is 8 weeks and it isn't my fault that they have taken over 6 weeks to get back to me and that it is not my timetable but the FOS. My SOA was sent to them when I stated my DMP but I will ask CCCS if they can send it again. Finally it would not be fair on all my other creditors who have frozen their interest to pay speed credit more!!! I am so angry!!!!!!!!!!!!

Heffi1

Stick to your plan, they will see sense eventually, even if it means the FOS have to wrap their knuckles. I am sure you are one of many people in this situation, but you may be only one of a few who have tackled their shoddy practice and now they are crying because you are acting within the guidelines and their threats are no longer working. They can no longer intimidate you into paying so are trying to get you to extend the deadline in the hope of getting more cash out of you. Keep strong it will eventually sort itself out.