Can a loan company ask for personal medical records? 30 September 2022 at 4:15PM in Debt-free wannabe 9 replies 361 views

caravan_girl

Hello.

I was recently diagnosed with ADHD, and one of the symptoms of my undiagnosed and unmedicated ADHD, was that I made some pretty stupid impulsive decisions when it came to money.  More recently I had a bereavement and was also diagnosed with some health issues, so I have less money than usual as I'm on shorter shifts at work while I deal with everything.

Unfortunately before the ADHD diagnosis I took out three dodgy high APR pay day loans - just as my credit was improving - and I've taken on too much to pay back at the original agreed amount.

Two of the companies have been absolutely amazing and when I explained my situation they trusted me, and they set up payment plans which I can afford.  The third one however has sent a really snarky email back, asking for medical evidence, and asking why I have only offered to pay £50 per month when they can see I have £133 free on the income and expenditure budget I sent them.  The leftover cash on my income and expenditures is for emergencies, as I have no savings, and I don't feel like I should have to justify that to them.  I also don't think it's right that they have asked for personal medical records as proof of my ADHD etc.

I am not comfortable sending my private diagnosis report to a complete stranger, who hasn't explained why they need it or what they'd do with it, and I wondered if there was anything I could do to avoid having to provide it?  I get the feeling it's not illegal to have asked me for it, but it's morally very wrong as far as I'm concerned.

So far I have asked for their complaints procedure, but is there anything else that I can do?  I have very little bandwith for additional stress, and I really just need them to accept my offer which is the same amount offered to the other companies.

The good news is that I'll be back at work full time eventually, with a pay rise in January, so I know I can pull myself out of this but right now I really needed them to be helpful.

Any advice on how I can approach this would be very much appreciated.

Sncjw

They probably ask for it to prove you have ADHD and impulsive spending is a characteristic of your ADHD. 
Some people do actually lie about these things 

marcia_

caravan_girl said:

Hello.

I was recently diagnosed with ADHD, and one of the symptoms of my undiagnosed and unmedicated ADHD, was that I made some pretty stupid impulsive decisions when it came to money.  More recently I had a bereavement and was also diagnosed with some health issues, so I have less money than usual as I'm on shorter shifts at work while I deal with everything.

Unfortunately before the ADHD diagnosis I took out three dodgy high APR pay day loans - just as my credit was improving - and I've taken on too much to pay back at the original agreed amount.

Two of the companies have been absolutely amazing and when I explained my situation they trusted me, and they set up payment plans which I can afford.  The third one however has sent a really snarky email back, asking for medical evidence, and asking why I have only offered to pay £50 per month when they can see I have £133 free on the income and expenditure budget I sent them.  The leftover cash on my income and expenditures is for emergencies, as I have no savings, and I don't feel like I should have to justify that to them.  I also don't think it's right that they have asked for personal medical records as proof of my ADHD etc.

I am not comfortable sending my private diagnosis report to a complete stranger, who hasn't explained why they need it or what they'd do with it, and I wondered if there was anything I could do to avoid having to provide it?  I get the feeling it's not illegal to have asked me for it, but it's morally very wrong as far as I'm concerned.

So far I have asked for their complaints procedure, but is there anything else that I can do?  I have very little bandwith for additional stress, and I really just need them to accept my offer which is the same amount offered to the other companies.

The good news is that I'll be back at work full time eventually, with a pay rise in January, so I know I can pull myself out of this but right now I really needed them to be helpful.

Any advice on how I can approach this would be very much appreciated.

 In your situation yes its a valid request. 

 If they are to consider wiping or reducing your debt they want proof of what you are claiming.
 Anyone can say they gave been diagnosed with anything doesn't make it true. 

sourcrates

I would disagree, I would say it would be a reasonable request to ask for evidence of your medical condition, obviously you don`t have to comply, but then again, they don`t have to put you on a payment plan either.

I understand you may be uncomfortable providing personal medical information to an entity you see as a "stranger", money and morals are invariably good bedfellows, but in reality, they are just another creditor, most likely just following company policy.

If you really don`t want to provide any evidence to back up your request, then that is your right, but don`t be surprised if they reject it.

In reality, you don`t need them to agree to anything, you just pay what you can afford anyway, if they are that unhappy with the situation, they will just sell the debt on to someone else, it`s all a non-issue when you look at the bigger picture here.

Brie

by a diagnosis all they should need is someone officially saying you have ADHD.  They don't need anything more than that, how it was discovered, consequences, recovery prospects, whatever.  

MalMonroe

caravan_girl said:

Hello.

I was recently diagnosed with ADHD, and one of the symptoms of my undiagnosed and unmedicated ADHD, was that I made some pretty stupid impulsive decisions when it came to money.  More recently I had a bereavement and was also diagnosed with some health issues, so I have less money than usual as I'm on shorter shifts at work while I deal with everything.

Unfortunately before the ADHD diagnosis I took out three dodgy high APR pay day loans - just as my credit was improving - and I've taken on too much to pay back at the original agreed amount.

Two of the companies have been absolutely amazing and when I explained my situation they trusted me, and they set up payment plans which I can afford.  The third one however has sent a really snarky email back, asking for medical evidence, and asking why I have only offered to pay £50 per month when they can see I have £133 free on the income and expenditure budget I sent them.  The leftover cash on my income and expenditures is for emergencies, as I have no savings, and I don't feel like I should have to justify that to them.  I also don't think it's right that they have asked for personal medical records as proof of my ADHD etc.

I am not comfortable sending my private diagnosis report to a complete stranger, who hasn't explained why they need it or what they'd do with it, and I wondered if there was anything I could do to avoid having to provide it?  I get the feeling it's not illegal to have asked me for it, but it's morally very wrong as far as I'm concerned.

So far I have asked for their complaints procedure, but is there anything else that I can do?  I have very little bandwith for additional stress, and I really just need them to accept my offer which is the same amount offered to the other companies.

The good news is that I'll be back at work full time eventually, with a pay rise in January, so I know I can pull myself out of this but right now I really needed them to be helpful.

Any advice on how I can approach this would be very much appreciated.

Hi, I'm sorry this has happened to you. 

What I would do before anything else, and certainly before sending my personal medical details to anyone who is not a medic, is contact one of the free debt help agencies.

I used StepChange - details in this link : https://www.stepchange.org/
And they were very helpful.

Their number is also free to call - 0800 138 1111

If you just give them the details of your debts, as you have done here, they may well be able to advise you of a better or easier way to manage them without having to reveal personal information. Nobody wants to have to do that and you're right to feel uneasy about it. They will certainly be able to talk through your options with you. It sounds like you have already prepared a budget statement and that's good because StepChange will want to ask you for details of that. But NOT of your personal details.

Sometimes when an approved debt help agency such as StepChange is involved, companies are more willing to help customers who are having difficulties and I found StepChange's assistance and advice invaluable. They are not judgemental at all, many people have financial difficulties and they are friendly and kind. Just what you need when you are feeling a bit vulnerable. 

There are two other free debt help agencies you could contact - National Debtline  https://nationaldebtline.org/

and Citizens Advice. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/

Sounds like things are slowly improving for you, and I do hope that you can get the help you seek. Good luck.

caravan_girl

Thanks everyone, I see your point, I would never consider lying about something like that so it's maybe short sighted to think that other people would.

I'm not looking for any write-off or discount, just an affordable amount to pay while I work through my health issues and bereavement, and I'm frustrated that they can't take my word like the other companies.

I think for now I'll take the action of paying what I can afford each month, and if they sell the debt on, they sell it on.  Maybe I can provide a severely redacted report from my psychiatrist.  It just contains a lot of personal information about me, my life, related traumas, and what lead to my diagnosis and it's not something that anyone but my Psychiatrist and Dr need to see.

caravan_girl

MalMonroe said:

caravan_girl said:

Hello.

I was recently diagnosed with ADHD, and one of the symptoms of my undiagnosed and unmedicated ADHD, was that I made some pretty stupid impulsive decisions when it came to money.  More recently I had a bereavement and was also diagnosed with some health issues, so I have less money than usual as I'm on shorter shifts at work while I deal with everything.

Unfortunately before the ADHD diagnosis I took out three dodgy high APR pay day loans - just as my credit was improving - and I've taken on too much to pay back at the original agreed amount.

Two of the companies have been absolutely amazing and when I explained my situation they trusted me, and they set up payment plans which I can afford.  The third one however has sent a really snarky email back, asking for medical evidence, and asking why I have only offered to pay £50 per month when they can see I have £133 free on the income and expenditure budget I sent them.  The leftover cash on my income and expenditures is for emergencies, as I have no savings, and I don't feel like I should have to justify that to them.  I also don't think it's right that they have asked for personal medical records as proof of my ADHD etc.

I am not comfortable sending my private diagnosis report to a complete stranger, who hasn't explained why they need it or what they'd do with it, and I wondered if there was anything I could do to avoid having to provide it?  I get the feeling it's not illegal to have asked me for it, but it's morally very wrong as far as I'm concerned.

So far I have asked for their complaints procedure, but is there anything else that I can do?  I have very little bandwith for additional stress, and I really just need them to accept my offer which is the same amount offered to the other companies.

The good news is that I'll be back at work full time eventually, with a pay rise in January, so I know I can pull myself out of this but right now I really needed them to be helpful.

Any advice on how I can approach this would be very much appreciated.

Hi, I'm sorry this has happened to you. 

What I would do before anything else, and certainly before sending my personal medical details to anyone who is not a medic, is contact one of the free debt help agencies.

I used StepChange - details in this link : https://www.stepchange.org/
And they were very helpful.

Their number is also free to call - 0800 138 1111

If you just give them the details of your debts, as you have done here, they may well be able to advise you of a better or easier way to manage them without having to reveal personal information. Nobody wants to have to do that and you're right to feel uneasy about it. They will certainly be able to talk through your options with you. It sounds like you have already prepared a budget statement and that's good because StepChange will want to ask you for details of that. But NOT of your personal details.

Sometimes when an approved debt help agency such as StepChange is involved, companies are more willing to help customers who are having difficulties and I found StepChange's assistance and advice invaluable. They are not judgemental at all, many people have financial difficulties and they are friendly and kind. Just what you need when you are feeling a bit vulnerable. 

There are two other free debt help agencies you could contact - National Debtline  https://nationaldebtline.org/

and Citizens Advice. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/

Sounds like things are slowly improving for you, and I do hope that you can get the help you seek. Good luck.

Thank you so much for understanding. I'm going to check out the Stepchange website and I'll ring them in the morning when I'm calmer.

marcia_

 A short letter from your GP confirming diagnosis should suffice

sourcrates

Are you aware of the breathing space initiative?

It allows a 60-day hold on all unsecured debt repayments, it can be accessed via stepchange, just gives you time to formulate a plan, creditors don`t really need to know the ins and outs of your life in order to organise a payment plan, as I said previously, just pay what you can, all they will do is sell the debt on.

Debt purchasing companies are a lot more flexible.