Bank of Scotland overdraft

Winatron

So Bank of Scotland just informed me that they are cancelling my overdraft. It's £750, I get paid weekly and if they do that I won't be able to pay rent etc. They told me some nonsense about a money management team to call but I'm thinking they will just try and get me to have a loan. Any help would be amazing!

BillJones

Have they given you a date by which it needs to be repaid?

As others will tell you, overdrafts are repayable "on demand", which means with minimal notice, and so the bank is within its rights to do this. The first step is perhaps to call them and ask for more time to pay them back, but then the next step is to post a statement of affairs up on here so that people can help you identify ways to get your finances in order.

You are going to need to work towards getting back in credit.

Winatron

Well it's due today. I never received any letter from them and I had been in the bank recently and the advisor never mentioned it. I had just recently started to reduce my overdraft so could that have had any bearing on their decision?

FireWyrm

Winatron wrote: »

. I had just recently started to reduce my overdraft so could that have had any bearing on their decision?

Possibly, but I think it is more likely that the banks are reducing the wrong side of their balance sheets. ODs count as credit extended, so it looks like the bank is lending more than it really is - or actually is, depending on which way you look at it. Lately, there have been a raft of banks introducing punitive fees on ODs (looking at you Barclays) in order to make their charging more 'transparent' but with the effect that they are pricing people off the overdraft. Some arranged OD fees are starting to look more userous than even a PDL interest charge.

In short, there is nothing you can do about it except to pay it off immediately. More to the point, as soon as your wages go in there, they will use it to pay off the OD regardless leaving you with nothing. I suggest you move any money that is due to go in there to somewhere else urgently and deal with the closed OD as an unsecured debt to be paid as and when.

BillJones

Winatron wrote: »

Well it's due today. I never received any letter from them and I had been in the bank recently and the advisor never mentioned it. I had just recently started to reduce my overdraft so could that have had any bearing on their decision?

I don't know, but it doesn't really matter what bore on their decision, they've made it, and you now need to work out what you are going to do about it.

If you've not received any letter, how do you know that it is due today?

Le_Pip

The Lending Code states that before paying no priority debts you must have enough money to pay priority debts and reasonable day to day living expenses. If your wages have already gone in and you have no access to money then you should speak to your bank and tell them you need access to your money. If they refuse I suggest you escalate and quote the lending code.

If money hasn't gone in then pay the money to another account. If you don't have time exercise your first right of appropriation.