Natwest Credit Card CPA

[FairyReaper]

My understanding is when I close an account it is closed e.g. no funds available and no liability; not according to Natwest following closure of my credit card account. I have told them I consider all CPA's that may have existed to be cancelled but they have responded "although the account is now closed, we may still be required to honour a transaction on your behalf". WTF! Surely this is counter to FSA guidance and common sense. Effectively there is an open ended liability.

 

How should I respond, I have already quoted FSA regulations at them?

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

You are obliged to inform the creditor that the CPA is to be stopped.

[citizenB]

Please see the article in this month's newsletter.

 

 

 

OFT issues rules for continuous payment authorities

 

The OFT has issued a set of principles for businesses using continuous payment authorities (CPAs) amid concerns that customers are not always being made aware of what they are signing up to and may be misled about their rights to cancel.

 

They have clarified that customers can cancel a CPA with either the company taking the payment, or with the bank or card provider.

 

Once a customer has told the bank or card issuer that they have stopped permission for the payments, the bank or card provider must halt payments and has no right to insist that you agree this first with the company taking the payments.

Read more

 

xx

 

As you can see, there is NO need to tell the company taking the payment - although it would be in your interest to do so.

[FairyReaper]

Thank CitizenB it was the newsletter that prompted this post. As far as I am aware there isn't anyone with rights to charge my ex card. What concerns me is the card is still a liability if someone made a fraudulent claim on the account or a charge was made for something genuinely forgotten even though it is "closed". If I genuinely owe someone I will pay them with my active account but I don't want to be left in a position of developing a bad credit rating because Natwest created a debt on a closed account and then added a stack of interest and admin charges to it. As I see it Natwest should logically return any demand for payment to the retailer and advise them that the account is closed, but this isn't how Natwest see it which to me is an escallation of their failure to act on CPA cancellation instructions.

[citizenB]

I am not sure what else you can do other than to perhaps have a read of the BCOBS articles in my signature and highlighted in Green.

 

You need to point out to NatWest that by failing to act on your instructions has caused you problems and you believe they have not treated you fairly . They have also failed to follow not only their own lending code, but have acted in contravention of those rules set out by the FSA and OFT.

 

You should make an official complaint to the bank - send it to their head office.

 

Tell them what they have done wrong and how you want them to resolve this issue.

 

They will have 8 weeks to either resolve the situation to your satisfaction or to send you a final response letter where you can then take your complaint to the Ombudsman.

 

HTH