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I'm starting this thread to basically see what sort of treatment people are experiencing when their mortgage term has ended. I am with the C & G which unfortunately is now part of Lloyds TSB. I know this is an extremely long post but it’s an insight for others to see what can happen and to hopefully get some input from others people’s experiences.
Our term was automatically extended a couple of years ago and although having every intention of paying extra, it just hasn't happened apart from one lump sum of a few hundred pounds.
They wrote last year asking for proposals to pay the outstanding amount and I spoke to the 'end of term' team to explain that we were still supporting a student and funds were very tight but would improve later in the year (2013)
In September, we supplied an inc/exp, as requested by them so that they could assess affordability and advise what options were open to us. I asked them to contact me on my mobile should there be any query and nothing more was heard.
Moving on to April 2014, having still heard nothing from them (of course I should have called but it’s one of those things you keep meaning to get round to!) I received a call on my mobile and deduced from the message that it concerned our mortgage. The caller left a name and asked for his call to be returned he didn’t state where he was from but added that we should have had a letter. I returned the call and he wanted to make an appointment to call and discuss our mortgage.
I advised him that C & G had all our details and I was waiting for their response and that no letter had been received from them, which he said seemed to be the same for other people he was calling. I refused to discuss anything else with him and said that I would contact the C & G.
I called them the same evening and after nearly an hour of talking to someone, I realised that I was getting nowhere! She confirmed that they had received the inc/exp but because I hadn’t completed it on their form, there was information missing and that they had tried to contact us to discuss this. I know that this was incorrect because I simply copied it onto a spreadsheet and answered all the questions. Their form didn’t have much space to fill it in, hence my reason for doing my own. No messages had been left on mobile or landline and if they couldn’t get me then why did they not write? She could not answer this question.
I asked what was missing and she couldn’t tell me but just wanted to go through it all again in case anything had changed, I told her that nothing had, but she still seemed to be reluctant to go any further. I eventually got to the point where she gave me repayment figures for extending the mortgage on the maximum term available to us and another amount based on our disposable income which would clear it in half the time.
I asked for this to be confirmed in writing and she insisted that this couldn’t be done, but she was really trying to help me! I have to say that I was starting to lose the plot and she asked if I wanted to make a complaint and when I said yes, she wanted to put me through to the complaints dept and go through it all again with them! I declined this and told her to pass the details to the dept to deal with accordingly.
Roll on to today, we have received a letter advising a £40 fee for ‘external field agent charges’, which can be paid immediately or if it is not paid, they will add to the mortgage balance, which of course I am not happy with so I am now planning to draft a letter to them to vent my utter frustration at their inability to deal with what should have been a fairly straightforward situation.
The direct debit remains in force and the interest payments are still being paid and never missed.
I have decided that I will set up a standing order which I can adjust each month depending on our finances but it will be for at least the minimum figure which I was given over the phone and continue to wait to hear from them.
Our term was automatically extended a couple of years ago and although having every intention of paying extra, it just hasn't happened apart from one lump sum of a few hundred pounds.
They wrote last year asking for proposals to pay the outstanding amount and I spoke to the 'end of term' team to explain that we were still supporting a student and funds were very tight but would improve later in the year (2013)
In September, we supplied an inc/exp, as requested by them so that they could assess affordability and advise what options were open to us. I asked them to contact me on my mobile should there be any query and nothing more was heard.
Moving on to April 2014, having still heard nothing from them (of course I should have called but it’s one of those things you keep meaning to get round to!) I received a call on my mobile and deduced from the message that it concerned our mortgage. The caller left a name and asked for his call to be returned he didn’t state where he was from but added that we should have had a letter. I returned the call and he wanted to make an appointment to call and discuss our mortgage.
I advised him that C & G had all our details and I was waiting for their response and that no letter had been received from them, which he said seemed to be the same for other people he was calling. I refused to discuss anything else with him and said that I would contact the C & G.
I called them the same evening and after nearly an hour of talking to someone, I realised that I was getting nowhere! She confirmed that they had received the inc/exp but because I hadn’t completed it on their form, there was information missing and that they had tried to contact us to discuss this. I know that this was incorrect because I simply copied it onto a spreadsheet and answered all the questions. Their form didn’t have much space to fill it in, hence my reason for doing my own. No messages had been left on mobile or landline and if they couldn’t get me then why did they not write? She could not answer this question.
I asked what was missing and she couldn’t tell me but just wanted to go through it all again in case anything had changed, I told her that nothing had, but she still seemed to be reluctant to go any further. I eventually got to the point where she gave me repayment figures for extending the mortgage on the maximum term available to us and another amount based on our disposable income which would clear it in half the time.
I asked for this to be confirmed in writing and she insisted that this couldn’t be done, but she was really trying to help me! I have to say that I was starting to lose the plot and she asked if I wanted to make a complaint and when I said yes, she wanted to put me through to the complaints dept and go through it all again with them! I declined this and told her to pass the details to the dept to deal with accordingly.
Roll on to today, we have received a letter advising a £40 fee for ‘external field agent charges’, which can be paid immediately or if it is not paid, they will add to the mortgage balance, which of course I am not happy with so I am now planning to draft a letter to them to vent my utter frustration at their inability to deal with what should have been a fairly straightforward situation.
The direct debit remains in force and the interest payments are still being paid and never missed.
I have decided that I will set up a standing order which I can adjust each month depending on our finances but it will be for at least the minimum figure which I was given over the phone and continue to wait to hear from them.
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