Credit card - Financial Ombudsman

December14

Problem with a purchase on M&S credit card. Used Section 75 template to complain; no reply by 11 weeks although M&S did cancel my credit card without telling me (embarrassing at checkouts). Then per process escalated my complaint to the Financial Ombudsman who say that because I did not complain I have to write to credit card company saying I am complaining about my Section 75 claim & which then gives M&S a further 8 weeks to think about that letter.
This is what Which says
"Going to the ombudsman

If your credit card company doesn't accept that you have a
claim and refuses to pay up, ask for a letter of deadlock so
that you can refer your dispute to the Financial Ombudsman
Service (FOS).

If more than eight weeks have passed since you submitted
your claim to your credit card provider, you can refer your
claim to the FOS without the need for a deadlock letter. "


Why then is the FOS not following it's own rules (8 weeks not a peep from M&S) and now the Section 75 template letters are not enough?


Vonney

[Deleted User]

Is template letter you used a proper complaint letter?

December14

Thank you for replying ...
I used the MSE template for Section 75 claims
V <eom>

Sparx

1. Section 75 claim is not a complaint

2. As FOS mentioned, you now need to write and complain the claim isn't being responded too or upheld

3. You haven't asked / received a deadlock response

PeacefulWaters

The absolute key is that Section 75 request for reimbursement is not a complaint.

They haven't refused your claim have they?

You have two complaints you can make. One about the speed to resolve the claim and another one that they cancelled your card.

Call them. Use the John Cleese line just to make it clear to them.

December14

Sparx wrote: »

1. Section 75 claim is not a complaint

2. As FOS mentioned, you now need to write and complain the claim isn't being responded too or upheld

3. You haven't asked / received a deadlock response

Thank you for replying:- what you say is what the FOS say. However, nowhere on any consumer sites which gives out template letters/process information is this part made clear. What this means for me and doubtless countless other people is that the 'complaint' should be included in the original section 75 claim as to not do so means a further 8 weeks to wait.

The FOS can be contacted within 8 weeks if the company fail to respond, which is what happened here...all M&S did was to stop my credit card without telling me.

/V

December14

PeacefulWaters wrote: »

The absolute key is that Section 75 request for reimbursement is not a complaint.

They haven't refused your claim have they?

You have two complaints you can make. One about the speed to resolve the claim and another one that they cancelled your card.

Call them. Use the John Cleese line just to make it clear to them.

Thank you for replying - the problem is that nowhere on the consumer template/process information does it say to use the word 'complaint'. My claim is 11 weeks wasted for this.

(So I can complain about both the issues) I do not know the John Cleese line - please could you elucidate?
/V

PeacefulWaters

"I wish to register a complaint"

https://youtu.be/4vuW6tQ0218

bigadaj

December14 wrote: »

Thank you for replying:- what you say is what the FOS say. However, nowhere on any consumer sites which gives out template letters/process information is this part made clear. What this means for me and doubtless countless other people is that the 'complaint' should be included in the original section 75 claim as to not do so means a further 8 weeks to wait.

The FOS can be contacted within 8 weeks if the company fail to respond, which is what happened here...all M&S did was to stop my credit card without telling me.

/V

No, you need to wait for the eight weeks, as inconvenient as that may be.

Stopping the credit card or closing your account might be considered a separate issue, so that should be raised as a separate complaint, and would have to wait eight weeks for that, there's no way of short circuiting the system and trying to do so hurts your case.

December14

That is funny
Thank you
/V

Ben8282

You made a section 75 claim in respect of a purchase made using your M$S card. You received no reply in respect of this claim but instead of replying to you M&S cancelled your card without warning causing you embarrassment at a check out.
Obviously there may be no connection between the two events. It may well be that the conduct of your account was such or the info contained in the feeds received from the CRA's was such, that M& made the decision that they did not want you as a customer any more and therefore cancelled the card without warning. This usually occurs when the issuer gets panicked and needs to stop you running up any more debt on the card or fraud is suspected.
Equally the events may have been connected which would imply that there was something very wrong, possibly fraudulent, about the section 75 claim. Perhaps if you were to give us more details about the nature of this section 75 claim .....
Presumably you called M&S after these embarrassing incidents at check-out's. What did they say? Did they offer any explanation of any sort for the cancellation of your card? Before you go complaining to M&S, the Financial Ombudsman or anybody else, these questions need to be addressed so that you don't waste any more of your time or make a fool of yourself.