Article in The Times - Monday November 27th 2000.(posted 8549 days ago)Full Article Here:
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/0,,42130,00.html
Extracts:
ABBEY NATIONAL is going to the House of Lords to defend its right to charge interest on arrears on problem loans, a move that could push thousands of cash-strapped borrowers further into debt. Abbey National hopes to overturn a court ruling made in February, in which the bank was accused of unfairly charging interest to customers who fell behind with payments. The February hearing, which was brought by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), was the first time a UK bank had been taken to court over the way it charges interest to struggling borrowers. ....
.... Abbey National’s decision to fight the OFT comes just one month after the bank was named in a House of Commons early day motion put forward by Mike Hancock, the Liberal Democrat MP. He attacked Abbey National about its attitude to borrowers with mortgage arrears or whose homes had been repossessed.
Mr Hancock said: "This house denounces the unacceptable tactics used by lenders, specifically Abbey National Bank, to try to force settlements on debts which they will not properly substantiate."
He added: "Such tactics breach the Mortgage Code, while lenders are not being held to account." ....