Overdraft "expired"?????

Hotdog_2

Hi, I have a friend at work who banks with Halifax. Last week she sent her 1st letter asking for her statements then a few days ago discovered that her overdraft facility had dissapeared. She phoned head office and they said it had "expired!" When she asked why hadn't she been warned, they just said they had sent her letter at the beginning of may (which she didn't receive) and as they hadn't heard from her, assumed it was ok. They insist it is nothing to do with asking for her statements. They cannot set up a new overdraft for her so now she can't afford to pay her rent. They say its not their problem!!! She has contact OFT and will be reporting it to the financial obudsman but I would like to know firstly can overdrafts expire? And secondly has anyone else had this happen to them and what happened? :mad:

Mark7799

AFAIR it is usual practice for certain types of overdrafts to have a review date and the Bank will contact you before expiry to ask if you want it renewed or extended (which it seems that Halifax claim they did in this instance).

I would suggest your friend reads up on the T&C's before reporting to all and sundry to ensure she has her facts right first.

tom188

Not only can overdrafts expire they can also be withdrawn without notice. the bank has a duty to protect its assets. she will not get anywhere with the complaint because the bank was perfectly within their rights to stop the line of credit - it is a privilidge, not a right.

tom188

also even if there were grounds for complaint she would have to exhaust the banks internal complaints procedures first before she went to the ombudsman.

Hotdog_2

Seems like she was just unlucky then. Maybe a sweet letter to her bank might help?

tom188

Maybe, though if she is disputing charges with them i dont think they will look too favourably.

wills7

At what point are banks likely to withdraw their overdraft facility from a customer? i e if they keep going over the limit?

wills7

oh god i'm always in mine - will this stand against me?

wills7

i've never been over the limit tho i always make sure i always have about 500 befor the limit at the end of the month when i get paid but that barley puts me in credit and then i'm back in it again

olly300

wills7 wrote: »

oh god i'm always in mine - will this stand against me?

Depends on the bank manager or who ever is looking at your account and making the decisions.

Unfortunately the decisions seem to be made on an arbitrary basis. (See the complaints about Nationwide debit and credit cards.)

I changed banks as a student because the bank I was using at the time refused to increase my overdraft to the limit that set for being a student in that year. There as someone else I lived with managed to get his overdraft to be agreed to being £500 over it.

The staff at the counter were shocked when I went in and handed back my cheque book.

I then discovered that certain people where refused the limits and subsequently changed to the other bank.

RabbitMad

wills7 wrote: »

i've never been over the limit tho i always make sure i always have about 500 befor the limit at the end of the month when i get paid but that barley puts me in credit and then i'm back in it again

I lived like this for several years after finishing Uni (but I had a zero % interest rate.) so it didn't botter me too much.

Most banks love such credit worthy customers (especially if you are paying interest) why would they worry.