Financial difficulties/hardship case

princess007

Thanks for your reply. Financially at the moment im ok. I live with my partner but as were not married do I need to inform anyone of his earnings? Can I just say im single?

sineadgraham

when you claim tax credits, you will need to inform them of your OH earning's even although you are not married you are cohabiting.Again i was unmarried when i had my first and remember this as we were living together. Child benefit will be in your name but again i think hubby will go on that as well. Hope this helps

Ex-Spendaholic

Sorry to hear you are having such a nightmare time - congrats on the baby btw. I would certainly give it a go, you have nothing to lose. You mention £640 charges - one of the new criteria refers to £500 or more charges in one year so it looks like you fit that one anyway. Good luck.

sineadgraham

Thank you for your reply:T.have actually had over £1300 in charges this year alone so will definitely apply.Can you point me in the right direction for the template:o

Edinburghlass_2

From Martin's article here.....

Q. I think the financial hardship guidelines apply to me, what should I do?
A. Contact your bank urgently and tell it that under the FSA’s waiver rules you believe you fit the financial hardship criteria and would like your case to be dealt with straight away. This applies whether you've already started your reclaim and it's on hold or if you haven't started it at all.
It is likely to send you a financial statement to complete before deciding if you fit the criteria, so fill this in and send back as soon as you can.
If the bank does decide you’re having financial difficulties all it has to do is consider your reclaim. If it does of course, it could still argue that the charges are lawful, but in the current climate this is unlikely and it will possibly offer you a partial payout as a ‘goodwill’ gesture.
Importantly this does not stop you chasing the remaining charges once the test case has ended so you’ve nothing to loose by trying this route. The FSA has also suggested banks consider stop adding future charges and/or stop any debt enforcement action against hardship cases which are futher

mike_ken

Hi, I need to know when to claim for Financial Hardship status. I am just about to send a letter to my bank asking for the charges to be re-imbursed, do I send them a letter now claiming Financial Hardship or when? Anyone know the answer? Mike

sineadgraham

mike_ken wrote: »

Hi, I need to know when to claim for Financial Hardship status. I am just about to send a letter to my bank asking for the charges to be re-imbursed, do I send them a letter now claiming Financial Hardship or when? Anyone know the answer? Mike

i sent my bank the letter this morning and included a statement of affairs and a letter re court action as i believe it will help my case.if you are experiencing financial hardship send the letter in now rather than later

techspec

For those who believe Financial Hardship means definately getting your claim dealt with - it doesn't. It just means the bank has to help you out until the test case is over. They may offer you an overdraft, a loan, reduced payments on a credit card etc. They should also stop making further charges to your account. They don't have to give you your money back, as many believe. However, they may be persuaded by the FOS to make you an offer. I understand that this is rare, and the bank is still under no obligation to do so.

In answer to your question Mike, you should point it out form the very start IN BIG LETTERS, as the banks just read the frist line, and send you a standard letter if you don't make it glaringly obvious.

theladyknows

Okay so maybe I'm missing the point here but as the money on a credit card or overdraft is money you owe for a service to put this on your account is just like saying pay me this.
If you haven't paid them the money yet and dispute it surely it is the banks job to proove you owe it. How can you reclaim money that you have never had?
How do the county courts view such disputed debt?

Sol00

Just had my claim for hardhip for RBS been turned down.