Lending Stream advice please

ExcludedCloud

Hi

Was just going through my DMP creditors and thought I would have a look at my outstanding Lending Stream account...

I originally had a loan of £415 with them back in March 2013, account defaulted in May 2013.

I have just logged onto the account and it is showing my outstanding balance as £1170! Surely this can't be legal, am I really going to have to pay back 3 times what I borrowed?

Had no idea it was this much as when it went onto my Stepchange plan it was only in arrears of £720 so has shot up rapidly at some point

Any help is greatly appreciated

Monkeyballs

Hi Cloud,

Bad news, if they continue to charge interest then the debt will continue to rise as I suspect that charges and interest each month will be more or almost as much as what Step Change send them each month.

1. Call them and confirm that they know you are on a DMP and ask them to freeze interest and charges AND to refund everything added since you started the DMP. If they agree, fantastic! Ask for it in writing...

2. If they know you're on a DMP and still refuse then you need to write a complaint to them asking for the interest and charges to be stopped and what you have paid to be refunded as you are in financial hardship and they are knowingly making it worse- they have 8 weeks to respond with an outcome.

3. If they reply rejecting your request then call the FOS and lodge a complaint with them, it can take another 8 weeks but if successful (which I suspect you should be) they will instruct Lending Stream of what to do... I.e. stop being d*cks and be more cooperative.

I'd also suggest you post up on the DMP Mutual Support thread as there are loads of other folk on DMP's and they may have other suggestions for you

Good luck!

MB x

peteuk

I would say pick up the phone and speak to them, but their customer service department is off shore!

I have had various problems with Lending Stream and I seem to get it resolved via the telephone. They have also just written off two of the three loans I had with them (£79 each loan) so I cant see why they wouldnt refund some of your chargers/interest.

ExcludedCloud

Thanks both

Just got off the phone with them, was a bit difficult to communicate as they are overseas.

Told them that obviously £1170 is a ridiculous sum of money to still be outstanding for a £415 loan (baring in mind I have already paid £120 through StepChange), to which her reply was "it is a bit on the high side, but we do make customers aware of the price before taking a loan"

I replied by saying yes and you also should treat customers fairly when they are in financial difficulty which you have not.

Explained what makes it more ridiculous is that I even have emails still from a year or so ago where they were offering me a 10% discount on my balance of £690 to settle the account! Which shows that they obviously knew about my situation!

They have told me they will phone me back by Tuesday and let me know if anything can be done so fingers crossed

sourcrates

Stay tuned to the news, things are a changing within the payday loan industry.


Personally I would tell them to stuff there interest and charges, I would not pay them, look at Wonga !!!!!!


My opinion, before long these clowns will be out of business.


The FCA thinks the business model is unfair, I would challenge the debt as such, the way things are going, all loans using the current business models will become unenforceable, if the regulator thinks there unfair, the end is fast approaching !!!!!

fil_cad

I hope VANQUIS BANK are next the have got away with this sort of thing for far to long and they are still giveng credit to none credit worthy people and trying to sell them there ROP scam. :mad: