Irresponsible lending?

fatbelly

Doobedoobedoo said:

My query isn't just about my son. This will go one of two ways for him. He will get a job and slowly pay it back, probably agreeing a payment plan via CAB or similar...or he won't! He will not get another job, he will not get out of the fix he is in at present and the banks will not get their money because he will have none to give. 
Is that what we consider responsible lending? 

Possibly.

It's a bit clearer with loans but still possible that a bank should have seen earlier where this was going and been more helpful

Give it a go

https://debtcamel.co.uk/get-refund-overdraft/

There's really no downside. If the bank doesn't agree, then you refer to FOS, who might.

At the end of the day your son will still have debts, albeit smaller, and should post on debt-free wannabe where we are more familiar with this sort of thing

The mental health issues give another angle for dealing with this.

Grumpy_chap

Doobedoobedoo said:

There was no money went into his bank from mid November until Mid February when he got £280 from Department of Work and Pensions. I think that would indicate there was a cash flow problem. 🤔 

Many people have complex finances and pay is not always linear.
The bank have the visibility of transactions into that account, but not anything held at other institutions.
PLUS, your son may have made statements to the bank that gave a rosier picture than reality.  You have said upthread that you don't know on that point.
This might not be wholly on the bank.

Doobedoobedoo

@Grumpy_chap no, definitely not all on bank. My son has got himself into this mess. He did not need money for food, shelter or travel costs because I provided them all. He could have hunkered down for a while, ridden it out. However, he has an addiction and at this moment in time, he is needing to feed this addiction. Hopefully he will get the better of it somehow. 
I suppose I just think it is immoral,  in the same way that bookmakers and casinos can make money out of addiction. 

Thanks for input everyone.

fatbelly

Actually the bank do have responsibilities as laid down by the FCA and particularly the Consumer Duty that came in July last year, though I guess a lot of your son's case predates that.

Each case is dealt with by the FOS on an individual basis. It's definitely worth getting them to look at it though you do have to make the complaint to the firm first and give them 8 weeks to respond.

macman

Your son has minimum income, but, on the other hand, he does not have many outgoings if you pay for his food and accommodation. Is he actually in debt, or is he financing his addiction out of UC?

Doobedoobedoo

macman said:

Your son has minimum income, but, on the other hand, he does not have many outgoings if you pay for his food and accommodation. Is he actually in debt, or is he financing his addiction out of UC?

Both. He is in debt of at least £3000 and he is financing his addiction with UC and an overdraft. 

HampshireH

Perhaps he needs to take some responsibility for things like rent and travel as until he is given some responsibility and consequences he will just carry on

Doobedoobedoo

HampshireH said:

Perhaps he needs to take some responsibility for things like rent and travel as until he is given some responsibility and consequences he will just carry on

When he works, he gives me 20% of what he earns for rent and he buys all his own food,  pays his own travel. When he had no money, he had none to give me. I paid for a bus pass so he could go for interviews. When he got UC, he gave me 20% of that and pays his own bus fares. I took this money in the hope it would give him less for alcohol but he got money from the bank! He is not a greedy or selfish lad, he is a lad with a mental illness and an addiction. 

macman

Banks can only rely on the info available to them. If applicants lie to them or falsify information, then what are they supposed to do? Neither we nor you know exactly how he was able to obtain further credit from them. Only he can tell you that.
If you were to shop him to the bank and they find that he falsified his info, he will simply face the prospect of having his account closed and a CIFAS marker applied. Is that really what you want?

prettyandfluffy

macman said:

Banks can only rely on the info available to them. If applicants lie to them or falsify information, then what are they supposed to do? Neither we nor you know exactly how he was able to obtain further credit from them. Only he can tell you that.
If you were to shop him to the bank and they find that he falsified his info, he will simply face the prospect of having his account closed and a CIFAS marker applied. Is that really what you want?

I think it's quite clear that the OP is trying to provide good support and not cause problems.