Have the banks got 8 weeks to reply?!!!

verem

Hi there!
New to the site so hello everyone.
I sent my letter off to Abbey with my ten quid cheque. Got everything through. Sent second letter off claiming fees and interest (template letter 3) specifying that I want a response in 14 days. They replied with a standard letter (my wife got the same letter for her claim) saying that it was being investigated but would take up to 4 weeks. Are they playing for time and should I wait for them to investigate or simply go to the next stage if the 14 period elapses?
Thanks for any advice in advance and all the best, verem.

guardian2020

Hi every one great site very very informative...
Right i have followed the basic letters to my building society..Nationwide (lovely pps lol) 1 asking for statements with 10.00 cheque..(which they bounced because i would have been 2.47p over drawn) anyway the sent me a list of all charged for the six year period i had asked for..2 wrote and asked that all charges be repaid, 3 got standard letter saying i wasn't entitled and the fees were exceptible bah bah bah..4 sent letter asking again that fee be repaid and threatening court action giving then 14 day to reply..that was on the 23rd may..nowt, not a dickie bird back..the fees total 2,169 that was at the begining of may they have since take another 120.00 in charges ..what i am wondering is..do i push this to the court stage or ring the bank and ask why they haven't replied or do i write again asking for a reply..i am a single a parent on income support and cant really afford to pay court fees..please help guys i need some advice from you guys that have been here. i am wondering if the bank is stalling or maybe the letter has gone astray...omg i am not sure what i should do..2,000 is a fortune to me it would clear a great many of my probs if i were to get it back, but if i lose and lose money trying..its scarry help!!!! thanks Carol

guardian2020

lol i asked the same about my building society they havent replied either threaten court on 23rd may..nothing like me your not sure what to do next..best of luck to you hope we all get our money back x

Stephen_Leak

The letters saying that they are investigating and have until the next ice age to respond are little more than acknowledgements of receipt and attempts to make you give up and go away.

Your first claim letter should give them 14 days to respond. If you have not received an acceptable reply by your deadline, send them the second “Letter Before Action” letter. If you are threatening to refer your claim to the Financial Ombudsman, give them until 40 days from the date of your first letter to respond. If you are threatening to start court proceedings, give them 14 days to respond. If you have not received an acceptable reply by your deadline, then refer your claim to the Financial Ombudsman or start court proceedings on Money Claim Online.

Please read the Reclaim Bank Charges Help thread for information and the Reclaimed Bank Charges Success Stories and Reclaimed Bank Charges Success Stories II threads for inspiration.

verem

Cheers for that. As Im new here Im still navigating the site. Thanks again

Edinburghlass_2

Under the FSA guidelines the bank has 8 weeks in which to deal with a complaint and they must let the complainant know if they think they can't deal with the complaint within this timescale and give them an approximate date as to when they will have completed their investigation.

If you receive such a letter giving a second "date" as to when they will be dealing with your complaint this is a holding/stalling letter.

By following Martin's step by step guide you give the bank 14 days to respond to your initial letter and if no response you can send out the letter before action on day 15 and give that bank a further 14 days or you will take them to court. If you decide to file court action at either court or via MCOL you can then expect the bank to acknowledge your claim and file a defence and should read Beate's post in the Reclaim Help Thread as to the timescale for this next step.

Should your bank send you a letter giving a definate no to paying your claim or indeed if the bank suggest you take your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman you can go straight to the FO alternatively you have to have been dealing with your bank for 6/8 weeks before the FO will take on your complaint.

HOWEVER, personally, I would advise you to read the bank thread relevant to your particular bank, you'll find them all linked in the Reclaim Help Thread, as some of the banks when they say they are dealing with your complaint and will reply in 8 weeks they do in fact do this and will at that stage offer to pay the whole of your claim.

You'll also find in the relevant bank threads just which banks will take it to the wire and won't make any offer nor are open to negotiation.

trevorjdaniel

Hello,

I am in the middle of trying to reclaim about £2k from Barclays relating to bank charges.

I have already received my copy statements, added up the bank charges and sent them a letter asking for my money back... Basically, step 3 in the process described on this site.

This morning I received a letter saying the following:

"thank you for your patience..... blah blah blah... Unfortunately we remain unable to resond fully to your concerns at present. However, we will contact you again as soon as possible, and certainly no later than 11th July... blah blah blah"

Frankly, I am not inclined to wait another month, it seems that they want to run this at their speed for their advantage. Im am inclinded to now proceed to the next step of threatening to take them to court.

Any thoughts? What should I do? Am I weakening my position by not allowing them the time they have asked for?

Thanks in advance

Trev

Edinburghlass_2

As the above posts, follow your timescale and send off the next letter according to Martin's step by step guide.

3princes

mumof3cheekymonkeys wrote: »

Can anyone advise me......I think I'm being messed about by my bank?

I'm in the process of taking the Royal Bank of Scotland to court (sent 2nd template letter 3 weeks ago) and after I telephoned them for an update, they have advised me that they are "investigating my case and that they are legally allowed 8 weeks to deal with my enquiry/claim"?

Has anyone else been told this by their bank and should I wait this l ength of time (i.e 8 weeks) or proceed now with the court letter?

Would appreciate any feedback/advice, thanks.

Hi,we had same reply,and we were going to send Lba but after reading rbs forum,and taking the advice from edinburghlass,which was if you give rbs time they usually come up with the right offer.we received offer of full amount not including interest after 7 weeks.Good luck with your claim .

pilgrimshuffler

Hello,
This is my first post, i have been chasing HSBC for bank charges, so far i have had my statements sent to me, i have since sent the total charges amount back to HSBC, 2 weeks last Friday i received a letter from HSBC regarding the letter, how long do i wait for them to come back to me? Please advise, Thank you