Can HSBC do this?

sourcrates

Honestly it makes no difference what HSBC say, they can rant all they want, the debt vests in your bankruptcy and that is that, you should really have faith in the bankruptcy system, after all that is why you went bankrupt, and is exactly what the process is there for.

B_U_Stead

sourcrates said:

Honestly it makes no difference what HSBC say, they can rant all they want, the debt vests in your bankruptcy and that is that, you should really have faith in the bankruptcy system, after all that is why you went bankrupt, and is exactly what the process is there for.

Absolutely. But, you'll forgive me for my lack of faith in anything right now. Bankruptcy was my sole option. To hold my hands up in honesty and declare that I was unable to pay my debts was the only way forward at the time. Writing off my retirement nest egg in the process. Then, after eighteen months of pain, slowly scraping life back together, HSBC hit me with this crap. They are wrong, I know this, and I'd love to see them punished for the unnecessary additional pain, but that won't happen. At best I'll get the Financial Ombudsman to uphold my complaint against them and they will write off the shortfall as an unsecured debt. Then they'll turn around and inflict similar pain on someone else, and they'll do this many times over. 

ManyWays

At best I'll get the Financial Ombudsman to uphold my complaint against them and they will write off the shortfall as an unsecured debt. Then they'll turn around and inflict similar pain on someone else, and they'll do this many times over. 
I am not sure what else you want to happen? Unless HSBC agrees with your FOS investigators decision, in which case it will at least be quick, it will go to an ombudsman and it will be published, and you may also be able to get some compensation for the hassle.  

B_U_Stead

@ManyWays - I am not sure what else you want to happen?
Hmmm - let's see now 😁

Seriously, let's look at what wrong has been done.
Since starting this post on the 16th December I have discovered a great number of facts.
Firstly, any debt I had at the point of bankruptcy is relieved. That includes the secured mortgage. This is stated in the Insolvency Act and has been confirmed by the Official Receiver. HSBC are therefore pursuing a debt that no longer exists. Yet the HSBC complaints handler assured me by email that because the trustee didn't disclaim the property until after the bankruptcy discharge the debt reverted to me.
This is fiction.
This untruth from HSBC may have been due to lack of knowledge on the part of the complaints handler, maybe he should have confirmed the facts before committing incorrect passages from the Insolvency Act in written form in an email.
Alternatively, the complaint handler could have been following HSBC policy in the pursuit of debts.

Either way the level of behaviour is something you would expect from a small loan company, not from a high street bank.

I would want HSBC to train their staff, or make resources available to them, to confirm that the advice that they are giving is legally correct and the debts that they are chasing actually exis

B_U_Stead

**UPDATE**

Success. The Financial Ombudsman has found in my favour.

Quote - "I appreciate a notice of disclaimer was issued by the trustees following the discharge of bankruptcy – but I don’t necessarily agree with HSBC’s rationale this now means you are liable for the mortgage debt. As mentioned, due to it being part of the bankruptcy this essentially defaulted your obligations towards the mortgage once entering the bankruptcy. "

Quote - "HSBC were sent the same copy of my findings as you did - so they are aware of my comments surrounding liability and that it was the incorrect position. "

Quote - "HSBC are aware of where they have gone wrong and this will be noted for future instances for HSBC if the same issues occur again. "

I'm not sure why I feel so pleased with an outcome that some said was inevitable. Thanks again @sourcrates and everyone else who chipped in.

RAS

Glad to learn it went well, and the knuckle rap for HSBC.

TripleH

Sadly incompetence and ignorance help keep making the world go round. Until governments make it too painful for parties to continue this behaviour they will try it on. Also you get some clever Rick who has read a little law who spins their own interpretation hoping to squeeze one past the courts.

Glad you got the correct result though.