Credit Cards To Restrict Lending

[RichM]

Credit cards to restrict lending, BBC 2/12/2005

Phew, the credit cards are coming to their senses. Perhaps the UK won't run up obscene amounts of debt now...

[IPOD]

Anyone else been suffering from daylight robbery btw? Who can I really complain to regarding these sharp practices?

I think your first port of call would be the Office of Fair Trading, as they seem to be the ones charged with oversight of the credit card industry:

http://www.oft.gov.uk/News/Press+releases/2005/135-05.htm

http://www.oft.gov.uk/News/Press+releases/2002/PN+10-02.htm

The OFT wrote to the credit card companies under its Stop Now powers which speed up action against businesses which do not comply with a range of existing consumer laws.

3. Under the Stop Now Regulations, the OFT can apply for a Court order against traders who breach or are threatening to breach a number of laws harming the collective interests of consumers covered by those laws. It can seek written assurances in lieu of court action. The Regulations cover the following areas: doorstep selling, timeshare, unfair contract terms, consumer credit, distance selling, package travel, package holidays and package tours, misleading and comparative advertising, sale of goods rights, TV broadcasting activities and advertising of medicinal products for human use.

[laughing_goat]

Just as I logged on today to make sure that I still don't owe them anything. What did I find? A transaction for the sum of £29 for card protection which I never applied for!

What makes me mad is that even if the card had been stolen, how would you have been able to use this protection if you didn't know you had it?

I had this with HSBC, also when I cancelled the card, I had to separately cancel this unknown protection. When I called the card protection company, they asked me for my new card detail, so they could transfere it. When I said I didn't want them to cover my new card, they told me I had to, which is rubbish of course. In the end I was forced to tell them that I would put in writing that I wanted the protection cancelled (I faxed it so I could prove I sent it) and that they would receive no more money from me as the card they had taken it from had been cancelled. Then I hung up, this was the only way I could ensure it was cancelled. And all this for card protection I had never asked for!

They are like those tele marketing firms, when you say you don't want their product they ask "why?", and then become agressive when you refuse to engage with them. I find this distressing enough and I'm more than able to tell them where to go. What I worry about is people like my Mum or Gran, who will undoubtedly get confused and end up signing up to something costly that they neither want nor need.

EDIT (I always miss something): The OFT is a good place to start, I wrote to the HSBC and copied the letter to OFT. In the letter I listed all the other things that had gone wrong for me while I was their customer, such as taking money from my current account, cancelling my switch card 2 day after I called to cancel it when it was stolen. I also, listed web adresses to simular complaints on the net (I think this is very important). I told them to either return the money or provide proof that I had knowingly consented to this, giving them a definate time frame to sort it out. I got my money returned as, I think, they didn't want the hassle.

I find the 'all out assalt' is the best policy when you know your being ripped off. I had to do this with Europcar recently, they changed me £200 for damage to a hire car, yet they couldn't tell me where or what the damage was. After a letter simular to the one described above copied to the finacial ombusman and BBC watchdog, I got my money back plus a little extra for my trouble.

Edited December 2, 2005 by laughing_goat

[Mushroom]

Heard on Planet Rock news at 11.

Four credit providers are to share info to "help" stop people building up too much debt.

Erm, Egg, Coop and can't remember other two.

It'll appear elsewhere no doubt.

Oops just confirmation.

Edited December 2, 2005 by Mushroom

[SarahBell]

Will they drop people's credit card limits?

Or just cancel them?

[Mushroom]

Will they drop people's credit card limits?

Or just cancel them?

I think some of this may to be to stop "stoozing".

Also, if like us, you just shift from one longterm interest free on purchases to another, never paying interest this system may also be used to stop that.

Of course this has the potential to be used as a cartel.

It would be easy for the lenders to "share" out borrowers perhaps equalising risk.

So might be seen as anti competition?

[Guest Time 2 raise Interest Rates]

On the subject of credit cards, just had my Barclaycard bill and

on the bottom of the statement there's a cheque attached and

written alongside it says, "Use your Barclaycard cheque for even

greater flexibility. It may be accepted e.g. payment of utility

bills, local tradesmen and school fees." And it just gets better

all the time. If you use this cheque, they're offering a miniscule

interest rate of 21.9% per annum. How could you resist?

[Raven]

My experience is they have already tightened thier lending, I've been knocked back by Capital One and LloydsTSB for a 0% Balence transfer card. Bit miffed

I have a good credit rating (I think) never been in arrears, have £20k+ in the bank, have had loans and paid them off. only thing I can think of is I've moved into a new flat and maybe the address has a bad rap. Have had a balif come round looking for a previous tennent already!

Any ideas?

[Guest]

On the subject of credit cards, just had my Barclaycard bill and

on the bottom of the statement there's a cheque attached and

written alongside it says, "Use your Barclaycard cheque for even

greater flexibility. It may be accepted e.g. payment of utility

bills, local tradesmen and school fees." And it just gets better

all the time. If you use this cheque, they're offering a miniscule

interest rate of 21.9% per annum. How could you resist?

My Barclaycard chequebook gets ripped in two as soon as it comes through the door. I can't imagine why anyone would ever want to use it.

[the_duke_of_hazzard]

My experience is they have already tightened thier lending, I've been knocked back by Capital One and LloydsTSB for a 0% Balence transfer card. Bit miffed

I have a good credit rating (I think) never been in arrears, have £20k+ in the bank, have had loans and paid them off. only thing I can think of is I've moved into a new flat and maybe the address has a bad rap. Have had a balif come round looking for a previous tennent already!

Any ideas?

They're not allowed to rate on the basis of address apparently. It's more likely that the loans you have paid off have dropped off the radar (2 years I think?), and you have a low credit rating because you have no debts.

They all have different criteria for acceptance/rejection. I've been denied 0% cards for years, and I paid back a 13K career development loan about 6 years ago..

[enworb]

My experience is they have already tightened thier lending, I've been knocked back by Capital One and LloydsTSB for a 0% Balence transfer card. Bit miffed

I have a good credit rating (I think) never been in arrears, have £20k+ in the bank, have had loans and paid them off. only thing I can think of is I've moved into a new flat and maybe the address has a bad rap. Have had a balif come round looking for a previous tennent already!

Any ideas?

There are plenty of agencies that can post you your credit rating.Search for "credit rating" on Google, click the "I'm feeling lucky" and you should get a site called Equifax. I would have posted a link but i'm not sure if that's allowed.

I used them when I had a problem with a mortgage. Not a big deal,my Dad had a loan for a car which would have been a problem had I not used Equifax. I'd never have known the reason.Told them the reason and everything was fine.

[DTMark]

Speaking of Egg...one thing to watch:

I repaid by direct debit and the payments were due and debited on the 1st of every month.

Except they weren't. Not always. Every so often it would slip a day, soon the 2nd, then on the 3rd, until it got to about the 5th of the month.

This however backfired when I moved current accounts, waited until the 3rd til all debits had cleared (or so I thought, that was how I'd planned it) then shut the old account, and they couldn't get their money because the account was closed and I hadn't yet set up the DD on the new account, since there was no rush at that time, it wasn't due for another month so plenty of time.

I presume this moving of the date gets them extra debit interest (as well as breaching the direct debit agreement)