Citicard v Andyace

[andyace]

Got my reply today, usual fare that others have had but some interesting points.

 

1. Steve O'conner says how sorry he is that I have had cause to complain ( not sorry enough obviously).

 

2. He mentions about the reduction to £12 by the OFT and these should be a maximum. (so we know which end of the scale they will be using then).

 

3. They will be watching market conditions and will reduce their charges accordingly in July.

 

4. He did not actually say that they will not refund anywhere in the letter.

 

5. He understands that this is not the reply that I wanted (your telling me).

 

I'm not sure how he knows that this is not the reply I wanted because a reply to my request has not been given. As they have not said no to a refund can I take that as a maybe if I keep on pestering.

So I will send off my LBA tomorrow and mention a few points. That if I do go to court and win they will be liable for costs and interest.Also to settle before any court action would be favourable because the level of charges match the balance on my account, so to settle would actauly cost them very little.

 

Just written this in my lunch break post a copy of my LBA for your approval later.

 

cheers

andyace

 

( 5% any day now )

[MICHFERGIE]

Keep persuing them this is rubbish they have paid me £140 and I am persuing the other £140.

[andyace]

I've just put this together for my LBA any comments would be helpful.

 

LBA

 

Dear Mr O’conner,

 

I have received your letter dated 12 June and have noted its contents, with this I am surprised that you have not responded more favourably in your reply to my initial request for repayment of the charges on this account.

 

I would again like to draw your attention to the terms of the contract which you agreed to at the time that I opened my account. It is an implied term of that contract that you would conduct yourselves lawfully and in a manner which complies with UK law. I would like to restate to you that the regime of 'fees' which you have been applying to my account in relation to overlimit and late payment charges are unlawful at Common Law, Statute and recent Consumer regulations.

 

The recent OFT report regarding a reduction to £12 is a maximum that they recommend; this does not necessarily mean that they are a fair reflection of the costs to you. Only that a higher limit may be described as a penalty charge and therefor unlawful for the reasons I have already stated.

 

I once again request that you repay charges totaling £625 to this account or alternatively I will accept closure of the account and my liabilities to you will end. Closure of this account would be the best option for both parties because the cost to you would be negligible. This is because the charges are added automatically by computer at midnight on the day of the alleged offence; this was admitted to me by one of your operators.

 

So I will give you another 14 days to reflect on my request for repayment, after that no more correspondence will be entered into and I will commence proceedings against you in the county court. As you are aware this will incur further costs to yourselves including interest on the amount of claim.

 

cheers

andyace

 

( i can smell the 5% )

[andyace]

The 14 days are up on Friday and then then LBA goes off,but I had an interesting phone call tonight from Citi.

 

The woman on the phone asked why I hadn't made a payment and I explained why.

I said that I am disputing the amount owed and told her why; i then asked if the call was being recorded and she wasn't sure.I then challenged this and got a collections manager on the phone.

 

He told me that as I have defaulted the debt it will be sold on and I will have to deal with a debt collection agency. I then asked for how much (no answer) and I pointed out that as I am in dispute it will have to go to court anyway.

 

He then asked me how much I could pay to clear the account i asked how much they would accept "i am not going to get into an auction" he said.

So I will phone tommorrow and offer a pound or see you in court.

 

They knew exactly what I meant when I talked about charges and I can't wait untill the LBA.

 

cheers

andyace

 

(5% just wait and see)

[adamski]

Hi Andy

Any news on this one?

Regards

adamski

[Tinkerbelle]

That's good. Keep to your timetable. Once they receive the court summons they'll pay up pretty sharpish

[andyace]

Just an update, been busy this weekend with a wedding and a sporting event. I have just put my LBA in the envelope tonight it will be sent special delivery tomorrow. I didn't phone Citi back because I couldn't be bothered, anyway I will see them in court either way. Its a shame that they wont default and take me to court cos a counter claim would be an interesting defence.

 

I will keep you posted on developments.

 

cheers

andyace

 

( still on for 5% )

[andyace]

Well I recieved a reply to my LBA today offering me a partial settlement. They have refunded £338 to my account which represents the difference between the OFT figure of £12 and their £25 charge.:mad::mad:

 

One paragraph reads

 

"I have refunded this amount to your account and I consider this to be a final resolution to this matter. In the event that you reject this offer and litigate the matter then please be aware that we will rely upon this offer in any court hearing as being fair in all the circumstances given that the OFT did did itself agree that default charges are fair in principle"

 

Now given that the OFT say a figure of £12 should be a maximum but not actualy be a fair reflection of their costs, it seems that they have taken the £12 as gospel.

Obviously I am rejecting this offer: should I now write back and tell them or just go to court.I was thinking of asking what their true costs are then offering to settle on the difference of the £625 and their actual costs.

 

Anyway nearly there on this one.

If any mods are reading this can you add "partial settlement" to my thread title.

 

Cheers

Andyace

(5% of £338 is not enough, sorry)

[andyace]

Here is my reply let me know what you think.

 

Dear, Mr. O’Conner

 

ACCOUNT NUMBER:

Thank you for your letter regarding my request for the refund of charges levied on the above account. I am pleased that you have responded in principle to the request but were unable refund the full amount, or complete the closure of the account.

 

As you are aware the OFT have stated that charges of this nature are not unreasonable for breaches of account conditions but should only be set at an amount to cover any costs incurred. The £12 figure suggested by the OFT should be a maximum but is not necessarily a fair amount.

 

I am prepared to accept £338 as a partial settlement repayment of charges and will continue with any action that I feel necessary to reach a satisfactory conclusion to my request.

 

However if you can provide me with a breakdown of the costs incurred to you in respect of overlimit and late payment fees and can demonstrate that they are a true reflection of your losses, I will reconsider any action in respect of recovery through the County Court.

 

I look forward to your reply.

 

 

Yours sincerely

 

cheers

andyace

 

(5% of that amount is not good enough)

[andyace]

RESULT

 

Havent had a reply to my LBA yet ,they got the letter on Monday. But I thought I would phone and check my balance after the offer of a partial refund. Guess what I am in credit by 46 pence and they are going to send me a cheque for that amount. That I can tell you will be in a frame on my wall.

So I recon I should get a letter tomorrow.

Thats £650 of debt gone for the cost of £12, thank you very much for all the help. So £650 X 5% = £35 in my book. I will send that on Tuesday (payday).:):):)

[asharon]

That is great news and a perfect end to this thread.

 

Well done !

[Tinkerbelle]

Well done and congrats!! Great feeling innit

[andyace]

Cheque for 46 pence arrived today. Still no letter regarding my refund,but as they have refunded the amount I am in credit I will consider the matter closed.

Thanks again for all your help 5% on it's way next Tuesday.

LBA to Alliance and Leicester on Monday.

 

KEEP ON KEEPING ON:):):)

[andyace]

Donation sent thanks again. :):)

[andyace]

I have had my settlement from these but I have question. I have had a look at my credit report from a well known agency and its not good. I am not too interested in getting any more credit but they show me as missing 6 payments one after the other which looks bad. The whole balance was made up of their charges and they have paid this back. Is it to late to ask for any adverse info to be removed from the file.

[jonni2bad]

It's not too late, no. Having information removed is another fight for you, but it might be achievable. However, late payment marks, whilst not pleasing, are relatively minor if the rest of your credit files are generally in good order.

 

If you start a claim, you will have to base it on the DPA - have a read of it, in particular section 14. It's in the library section.

[andyace]

Thanks for that my credit ref is shot to bits big time, I just want to get rid of these debts.This is the refund that really lifted a weight of my shoulders and I have learned a valuable lesson about debt.:):)

[andyace]

I have finally got a letter today informing me that my account is now closed. They even said how sorry they were to lose me as a customer, not as sorry as I was to actually be one of their customers.

So bye bye Citicard you won't be missed.

[andyace]

This topic was closed on 10 March 2019.

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