Vanquis Card

stu_beefy

I was redeployed at work due to a restructure and my salary reduced by £3142 per year.
I informed Vanquis of this and i maintained minimum payments.
I also cancelled the Repayment Protection which cost £36 pcm.
They have now stuck me on the highest interest level "to clear the card quicker" & now state my minimum payments are £187 pcm.
I have stated that as i cancelled my repayment protection if i paid the last minimum amount of £162 then i would be clearing the balance just as quickly.
They don't seem to understand this concept.
They are insisting on £187 per month yet surely its up to me how quick i desire to clear the balance, never missed a payment and have cleared the account previously on 2 occasions.
Has anyone had this done to them by Vanquis or another card provider?
Can you stop them doing it?
Has anyone reclaimed the Repayment Option Plan from them?
They have also failed to reply to a couple of questions i have asked about the statement.
Cheers

[Deleted User]

No it!!!8217;s up to them.

You owe them their money back.

A4445

They can change the minimum payment but I would speak to them and say they are putting pressure on you financially, they have a duty of care to assist you.

dresdendave

If you were in a position to continue making the minimum repayment after your salary cut why did you feel the need to contact Vanquis? Informing them of this seems to have set off alarm bells as they perhaps see it as a precursor to you defaulting.

Regarding the higher interest rate, I was under the impression that you can reject a rate increase although it would mean no further spending would be allowed on the card. Have you considered this?

stu_beefy

Gary Dexter, not disputing I owe the money back I am disputing why they randomly decided to charge me the highest rate of interest.


Dresdendave: I informed them months ago of the salary cut and advised them I would continue to make payments on time every month, never missed a payment and always paid either min amount or above. By cancelling my repayment Option Plan I can reduce the balance quicker but they don't seem to understand this.
I did reject this increase but they are taking no notice.


A4445: I have tried talking to them but its like hitting a brick wall. I have made a complaint against them and will go to the FCA if I need to.

Carrot007

Telling them you are possible in dificulty and canceling the propection (that no sane person would have taken out in the frist place but..) is like waving a big red flag at them.


You option now for cheaper repayments is defaulting. Which may be a good idea.

SnowTiger

stu_beefy wrote: »

A4445: I have tried talking to them but its like hitting a brick wall. I have made a complaint against them and will go to the FCA if I need to.

You've told Vanquis your income has gone down by £3,142 a year.

Your credit limit and APR were based on your previous income.

Now that your income has decreased you're a higher risk to them. Your new APR reflects that.

[Deleted User]

From the Vanquis website:

How do you work out my interest rate?
We use risk based pricing and when you apply to us we assess the information on your application form and any information we have on your credit history from credit reference agencies.

Why might my interest rates change?
When you borrow money on a credit card, the credit is !!!8216;unsecured!!!8217; because it!!!8217;s not linked to your property; and !!!8216;open ended!!!8217; because the account is not set to last for a specific length of time. This means that we face more risk than other types of credit product, such as personal loans and mortgages. Also, your financial circumstances can change over time, which means there may be a higher risk that you will not be able to pay back the money you have borrowed.

Changing the interest rates allows us to respond to expected changes in: the economy; the cost of providing credit; and your financial circumstances.

If we didn!!!8217;t adjust interest rates in this way, we might have to take your card away, or you may have to pay new charges.

How often do you change my interest rate?
We will not increase your interest rates within the first year as a result of risk based re-pricing. This means your interest rates would only increase within the first year because of, for example, changes in the economy which lead to a change in the base lending rate.

If we do increase your interest rate we will not do so more than once every six months.

When we tell you about an increase in your interest rates, we will explain in clear language how it is changing, what it will cost and the options available to you.

If you ask, we will give you information on how and why we have changed your interest rate.

Can I keep my interest rates on their current rates and pay off my debt to you?
If we do increase your interest rates we will write to you to tell you about an increase in your interest rates. If you are unhappy with the new interest rates, you must contact us within 60 days of the letter and inform us you do not accept your rate increase and wish to close your account. You will then be able to clear your outstanding balance at your current interest rates, after which your account will be closed. You will not be able to make further use of your account once you have told us you do not accept your rate increase and wish to close your account.

Vanquis_Bank

Dear Stu Beefy,


I'm very sorry to hear about your experience. Please contact Vanquis Bank directly on [EMAIL="customer.relations@vanquisbank.co.uk"]customer.relations@vanquisbank.co.uk[/EMAIL] so we can assist you further.


Thanks

T-G-C

SnowTiger wrote: »

You've told Vanquis your income has gone down by £3,142 a year.

Your credit limit and APR were based on your previous income.

Now that your income has decreased you're a higher risk to them. Your new APR reflects that.

In black and white terms, it was the "correct" thing to do, by telling them about the income decrease, however personally I wouldn't have. There is no benefit to it and the minimum payment or interest rate won't decrease to ease the pressure, it has the opposite effect, as you have observed. As far as they are concerned, you owe them money and now that your income has decreased, they are more anxious than ever to get it back from you.

In terms of the minimum payment increasing, this is the same for all Vanquis customers from August onward. An email was sent out by Provident Finance in June and again this week, explaining that everyone's minimum payment will be on the increase to help clear customer balances faster and reduce the amount of interest paid.

The cash interest rate is also being consolidated with the purchase rate on all Vanquis accounts, therefore you will now pay less for cash transactions than before, as there used to be around a 10% difference between the cash and purchase rate.

T-G-C

KerryLethbridge wrote: »

Dear Stu Beefy,


I'm very sorry to hear about your experience. Please contact Vanquis Bank directly on [EMAIL="customer.relations@vanquisbank.co.uk"]customer.relations@vanquisbank.co.uk[/EMAIL] so we can assist you further.


Thanks

You are not allowed to act as a representative of Vanquis on here, as your account has not been authorized by the forum team.

You should avoid using wording that indicates you represent Vanquis Bank on your posts.

OP: Please use the official contact page https://www.vanquis.co.uk/contact-us to speak to them, as the email address provided by the previous poster may not be valid.