Barclays First Plus Loans interest rates

amersall

Cheers, fingers crossed 🤞 

Bearwash

After an over protracted time and I have finally had a response from the FOS who are coming out on the side of FirstPlus regards a settlement on my loan.
Basically they say the settlement from Firstplus is fair and that they can only consider the 6 years from the time of my initial complaint rather than the whole loan as regards unfair interest rates.
There are a lot of inaccuracies in the rates stated by Firstplus
and I don’t intend to accept the FOS findings.
Any advice on the direction of my next step would be appreciated,I would consider legal representation as I think I have enough proof to show their interest rates were unclear,irregular and unfair.Furthermore I still to this day do not know how they arrive at their interest rates,FHBR has now gone but I have not been notified in writing how the rates are now applied.

amersall

Remind me what the offer was.
You need to contact them, say you don't agree with their response.
In light of the offers being made regarding these loans with the same complaint reasons as you,  tell them to escalate your complaint to whoever is dealing with these at FOS with barclays.
Don't go the legal route, barclays have made offers as goodwill gestures and not accepting the interest rate is unfair, you are on a hiding to nothing with this. Trust me on this, you will end up with nothing.

amersall

Just read your original post, what did they offer you and did it clear the loan and give you interest on that. The 6 year rule was applied to all, offers given included the loan paid off the charge removed and interest at 8%. For six years.
Some have fought this for 12 years, in the grand scheme of things these offers are decent, the relief of the loan paid off and compensation was a big relief 

jcookebx

amersall said:

Just read your original post, what did they offer you and did it clear the loan and give you interest on that. The 6 year rule was applied to all, offers given included the loan paid off the charge removed and interest at 8%. For six years.
Some have fought this for 12 years, in the grand scheme of things these offers are decent, the relief of the loan paid off and compensation was a big relief 

Hi amersall, thanks for your hard work and perseverance on this issue.
I have an active loan with Elderbridge/First Plus started in 2007 due to finish in 2024.
After coming across this thread  I put in a complaint re the unfair interest clause.
I received a goodwill offer from Firstplus. The offer is a refund of some of the interest paid to reduce the balance based on the previous 6 years leading up to the complaint as it considered the complaint was out of time.
The refund amount is very minimal (less than £2000) compared to the interest paid.
I opened a complaint with the FOS as I don't agree with the offer and have just been allocated an investigator.
When I opened the complaint by phone I asked if there was a specific person or team dealing with the First Plus complaints but was advised this was not the case.
Can you advice on my next step with the FOS

amersall

That is curious, what was the name of your investigator? Most likely someone who hasn't got a clue that this is happening behind closed doors. 
What complaint did you put to FOS? That's insulting that offer, a lot of us were by the 6 years rule but still got more than that

rubylou72

Hi I have just submitted my complaint to the Ombudsman I originally sent my complaint in 2022 to Elderbridge but heard nothing 🙃 re Interest rates... do we know how long they have to reply and what if anything I'll be looking at re compensation? Thankyou

amersall

Can't make any guess as to any compensation 😁
The FOS will take time, leave it with them  they'll keep you informed all the way.
Have you let them know you made the complaint to elderbridge last year and had no response?

rubylou72

Hi Amersall I did thankyou I sent them a copy of my email to Elderbridge ... thankyou for your advice 

jcookebx

amersall said:

That is curious, what was the name of your investigator? Most likely someone who hasn't got a clue that this is happening behind closed doors. 
What complaint did you put to FOS? That's insulting that offer, a lot of us were by the 6 years rule but still got more than that

The investigator is Kate Range 
I complained about the offer only considering the previous six years (I realise now that has been the case) and the compensation offered being too low. When making the complaint on the phone to the FOS  he did comment that he thought the offer was a bit light.
I have the opportunity to add to the complaint or arrange a phone call with the investigator. Should I mention the other settlements and ask for referral to a specific team/investigator 

Many thanks