Very.co.uk Store Card - do I have any grounds to complain/challenge/claim?
ansteygirl
Posts: 1 Newbie
in Credit cards
Hi all
This is my first post but many of times MoneySavingExpert has come to my rescue, so thanks all.
I opened a Very.co.uk store account in October 2006 and it became my best friend, seeing me through our first home, wedding and second home. I was a lose cannon and kept buying items in denial and I soon racked up an account of £5k plus...
I recognise my stupid and regret the way I managed finances back then. Money was really tight and we were really scraping the barrel. Unfortunately I couldn't keep up payments and it resulted in a default in October 2013, an extra £2k interest (£7k total) and a transfer to a debt recovery company which to date I am still paying.
Totally my fault here and I have no blame in this regard to Very, however I do have two niggles that have been pestering me to date and I am looking for some advice on if I should take this further......I have my head screwed on now and really starting to recover from bad credit scoring and financial management.
1) Buy Now Pay Later
I unfortunately used this frequently, but the amount of spending was not clearly visible on my Very statements. For example, it would say I had a balance of £500 but this did not include the £2k buy now pay later items which took me some time to appreciate. My niggle is that the paperwork did not accurately identify my account balance. There was no total buy now pay later amount, instead on page 2 or 3 of the statement it would list the individual product and when it was due to be paid without incurring interest. Is it worth raising this in a complaint and if so where would I start? Surely, this should have been included in my balance or as a separate total?
2) Snowballing
Due to my stupidity and the point above, I still have a large outstanding default debt. This clearly was snowballing out of control back in 2013- my credit limit was stuck, I couldn't keep up repayments, we could hardly pay the rent and buy food!! I contacted Very frequently asking for help and there was none on offer. Very would only listen if I had a Debt Management Plan arranged and we were not eligible to get one of these due to our debt amount (cant remember if we were over or under the required threshold). Looking at some of the topics on this site, do you think I have any basis on which to complain and claim back the high fines I was charged on a monthly basis?
I would really appreciate your advice and views.
Thanks
Tara
This is my first post but many of times MoneySavingExpert has come to my rescue, so thanks all.
I opened a Very.co.uk store account in October 2006 and it became my best friend, seeing me through our first home, wedding and second home. I was a lose cannon and kept buying items in denial and I soon racked up an account of £5k plus...
I recognise my stupid and regret the way I managed finances back then. Money was really tight and we were really scraping the barrel. Unfortunately I couldn't keep up payments and it resulted in a default in October 2013, an extra £2k interest (£7k total) and a transfer to a debt recovery company which to date I am still paying.
Totally my fault here and I have no blame in this regard to Very, however I do have two niggles that have been pestering me to date and I am looking for some advice on if I should take this further......I have my head screwed on now and really starting to recover from bad credit scoring and financial management.
1) Buy Now Pay Later
I unfortunately used this frequently, but the amount of spending was not clearly visible on my Very statements. For example, it would say I had a balance of £500 but this did not include the £2k buy now pay later items which took me some time to appreciate. My niggle is that the paperwork did not accurately identify my account balance. There was no total buy now pay later amount, instead on page 2 or 3 of the statement it would list the individual product and when it was due to be paid without incurring interest. Is it worth raising this in a complaint and if so where would I start? Surely, this should have been included in my balance or as a separate total?
2) Snowballing
Due to my stupidity and the point above, I still have a large outstanding default debt. This clearly was snowballing out of control back in 2013- my credit limit was stuck, I couldn't keep up repayments, we could hardly pay the rent and buy food!! I contacted Very frequently asking for help and there was none on offer. Very would only listen if I had a Debt Management Plan arranged and we were not eligible to get one of these due to our debt amount (cant remember if we were over or under the required threshold). Looking at some of the topics on this site, do you think I have any basis on which to complain and claim back the high fines I was charged on a monthly basis?
I would really appreciate your advice and views.
Thanks
Tara
0
Comments
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Without seeing the statements, it's very hard to say whether the layout is confusing.
But you have no basis to complain about interest or charges on the account, if they were applied in accordance with the terms.0 -
Hi all
This is my first post but many of times MoneySavingExpert has come to my rescue, so thanks all.
I opened a Very.co.uk store account in October 2006 and it became my best friend, seeing me through our first home, wedding and second home. I was a lose cannon and kept buying items in denial and I soon racked up an account of £5k plus...
I recognise my stupid and regret the way I managed finances back then. Money was really tight and we were really scraping the barrel. Unfortunately I couldn't keep up payments and it resulted in a default in October 2013, an extra £2k interest (£7k total) and a transfer to a debt recovery company which to date I am still paying.
Totally my fault here and I have no blame in this regard to Very, however I do have two niggles that have been pestering me to date and I am looking for some advice on if I should take this further......I have my head screwed on now and really starting to recover from bad credit scoring and financial management.
1) Buy Now Pay Later
I unfortunately used this frequently, but the amount of spending was not clearly visible on my Very statements. For example, it would say I had a balance of £500 but this did not include the £2k buy now pay later items which took me some time to appreciate. My niggle is that the paperwork did not accurately identify my account balance. There was no total buy now pay later amount, instead on page 2 or 3 of the statement it would list the individual product and when it was due to be paid without incurring interest. Is it worth raising this in a complaint and if so where would I start? Surely, this should have been included in my balance or as a separate total?
This isnt really correct,is it? Very remove the total amount including interest from your available balance. So if you have a £2k limit and you buy a widget for £1K and the interwst would make it £1750- if you dont clear by the end of the BNPL,it reduces your available to spend to £250.
2) Snowballing
Due to my stupidity and the point above, I still have a large outstanding default debt. This clearly was snowballing out of control back in 2013- my credit limit was stuck, I couldn't keep up repayments, we could hardly pay the rent and buy food!! I contacted Very frequently asking for help and there was none on offer. Very would only listen if I had a Debt Management Plan arranged and we were not eligible to get one of these due to our debt amount (cant remember if we were over or under the required threshold). Looking at some of the topics on this site, do you think I have any basis on which to complain and claim back the high fines I was charged on a monthly basis?
I would really appreciate your advice and views.
Thanks
Tara
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to be honest, they are probably legally complaint and there isn't much you can complain about. These financial companies have build the sales ad, sales & marketing material using the very best bankers, psychologists,sales people and most importantly LAWYERS.
Unfortunately most people in society are very impulsive and buy things on impulse far too easily without seeing through all the details, and their sales methods are meant to exploit that tendency.
I believe this is a learning lesson for you, and so it is for most people when they first get a 0% way to buy things and the fool themselves into thinking 0% interest means FREE for now.
unless they're idiots of course.0 -
they always say the buy now pay later balanceDon't put your trust into an Experian score - it is not a number any bank will ever use & it is generally a waste of money to purchase it. They are also selling you insurance you dont need.0
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Do you know or have any idea what your credit situation was like when you applied for a Very account?
I am unable to post a link (as I am a new user) which I believe you will find very, very (excuse the pun) useful however I suggest you go to google and type in 'Debt Camel Very.co.uk'.
From what I have read I believe you may have decent grounds for a complaint.0
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