Tooth fairy finance

[Daisy01]

Hi everyone, a newbie here just wondering if anyone could advise me about tooth fairy finance, who seem to be adding money on to my daughters debt like there is no tomorrow.

She borrowed £400 in mid may agreed to pay it back in 2 installments but only paid one installment of £354 as she lost her debit card and had to wait to get a new one sent to her by the bank.
TFF are now saying she owes £786 which they want within 5 days or else they will be fast tracking a CCJ against her. Can they add this much interest onto the loan?

They have also sent her an email saying she owes £0 but they are now saying this is a mistake. They have also written to 'her' saying that she has missed a payment but addressed it to my hubby instead who has never had a loan with them.
Can somebody please direct me where to go on this one. I have read the stuff on OFT and my daughter will be contacting them tomorrow.

Many thanks in advance for any help

[teaboy2]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

Hi everyone, a newbie here just wondering if anyone could advise me about tooth fairy finance, who seem to be adding money on to my daughters debt like there is no tomorrow.

She borrowed £400 in mid may agreed to pay it back in 2 installments but only paid one installment of £354 as she lost her debit card and had to wait to get a new one sent to her by the bank.
TFF are now saying she owes £786 which they want within 5 days or else they will be fast tracking a CCJ against her. Can they add this much interest onto the loan?

They have also sent her an email saying she owes £0 but they are now saying this is a mistake. They have also written to 'her' saying that she has missed a payment but addressed it to my hubby instead who has never had a loan with them.
Can somebody please direct me where to go on this one. I have read the stuff on OFT and my daughter will be contacting them tomorrow.

Many thanks in advance for any help

HI and welcome to Legal Beagles Daisy.

I assume this is another payday loan from tooth fairy from hell.

First things first, the chance of taking court action is less then 5% mainly due to the questionable tactics/methods used by payday lenders and the extortionate interest/APR rates.

Can you tell me how much your daugther was originally ment to pay back, if the issue with the debit card had not accured - please? Then we will have a better idea of the curent loan status.

Secondly - you need to send in a Consumer credit act Request with a statutory £1 fee (pay by postal order) also send a Subject access Request along with the satutory £10 fee (again use postal order) and post both off using recorded delivery so then you have proof of postage and a signiture of the person who signs for them. These will reveal all the details they hold on your daugther and provide a full breack down of the account etc. PLus the CCA request will provide you with a copy of the agreement (which you will need to post up here minus personal and account details, so i can then rip the aggreement apart in the legal sense.

And thridly - you and your daugther should not worrying about this, make sure they do not have your daugthers bank details and new card details (maybe worth changing bank accounts to be on the safe side) also the amount of money is most likely, going by my experience, the result of toothfairly attempting to take payments on various dates multiple amounts of time, without your daughters permission to take such payments from her card on such dates (which itself is theft and attmept to defraud if such payments were taken from your daugthers account without her permission). So as a result of all these attempted payments (which the SAR will show up) you wil probably find that they have been charging her between £12 - £25 per failed card payment, that they processed without your daugthers consent, which is also fraud in my opinion.

So you actually have a very strong case against them. Also if they are constantly phoning yur daugther, she needs to send the telephone harassment letter, also they will likely phone her at work, so it maybe best if she informed her employer prior to them phoning her employer. You will find the employer to be supprtive about the situation, or they are in most cases. If they do phone her employer then thats a breach of the Data Protection Act and they should be reported to the ICO.

IF you need any links to the letter templates let us know.

In the mean time, once you have the CCA and SAR request back update us on this thread so we can advise you of the next step to take.

Also you need to make a complaint to the OFT, Trading standards and ICO about the letter they sent to your husband, that is a clear breach of Data protection and ICO and OFT Guidelines. It also shows how desperate they are, and a sign that they less likely to goto court, plus they should not being stating they will get a CCJ as chance of that happening is slim for such a small amount that is largely made up of charges, so a complaint about that aswell wouldn't go a miss either.

[Guest]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

Hi everyone, a newbie here just wondering if anyone could advise me about tooth fairy finance, who seem to be adding money on to my daughters debt like there is no tomorrow.

She borrowed £400 in mid may agreed to pay it back in 2 installments but only paid one installment of £354 as she lost her debit card and had to wait to get a new one sent to her by the bank.
TFF are now saying she owes £786 which they want within 5 days or else they will be fast tracking a CCJ against her. Can they add this much interest onto the loan?

They have also sent her an email saying she owes £0 but they are now saying this is a mistake. They have also written to 'her' saying that she has missed a payment but addressed it to my hubby instead who has never had a loan with them.
Can somebody please direct me where to go on this one. I have read the stuff on OFT and my daughter will be contacting them tomorrow.

Many thanks in advance for any help

Hi Yes by all means send a CCA if you wish but do not hold out any hopes,(they dontt have to supply one in most cases) but you should be able to get hold of the terms and conditions anyway and we need to see them, an SAR is an excellent idea also.
What we need is a time line we need to know when the agrement ws taken out ,
when you recieved the mony and how much.
when the repayment was due, how much was due, and and how much was paid
what the stated APR onthe agreement was.
The length of the agreement.
If the agreement was rolled over was a formal new agreement executed
What charges where added, when and what for.

Peter

[Daisy01]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

Many, many thanks to you both for your support and replies, it is really appreciated and I now feel a bit more confident in helping my daughter through this.
I spoke to someone from a company this evening called Northern debt recovery who have now apparently bought this debt and they told me that they add £72 every other week in interest alone and the APR is at 9% they kept telling me that this was a good deal!!!
I asked if they had sent any paperwork for her to sign and they said that in this day and age an electronic signature was all they needed. I asked about any cooling off period and they said that payday loans were not subject to that requirement.

I will do as you have suggested and will post it on here. thank you both once more
daisy

[CleverClogs]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

Debt collectors tell lies.

That said, I am unclear how a "cooling off period" might apply here.

It hardly takes a mathematical genius to work out that interest on a £400 loan, of £72 per fortnight (£1872 per annum!) is somewhat more than a mere 9% APR.

Try 468% APR.

From their FAQ - link - they state they are ‘CIM Technologies Limited trading as Toothfairy Finance’.

CIM?

Do they expect one to spit, swallow or gargle? :tinysmile_grin_t:

At Companies House, I notice that their accounts are some six weeks overdue.

I do hope they're not experiencing any difficulties, or my name isn't Otis P. Cribblecobblis III.

[Guest]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

HI
Yes try not to worry these bullies can only threaten and bluster there is very little they can do other than that.
You probably have done then following already but just in case.
It is a god idea to get everything down in writing or better still on a spread sheet. Make a time line of events right from when the loan was requested up until the present day. Include all correspondence and contact of any kind with a brief description of what was said, and any payments made.
Do you have an address or method of payment for any legitimate money owed, I understand that you would have removed the access to your account from them, and you should under no circumstances re introduce it, do not give them your new details. But you do need another route to make payments. There bank details would be ideal but from experience they are generally loathe giving them.
I would ensure that the amount due on the original agreement was paid, this means the principle sum plus the interest agreed on the contract, do not pay any other fees or charges no matter what they say. In the same letter you need to point out that any other charges or fees will have to be objectively justified with reference to common law and statute. Tell them that if they wish to claim these sums they must send you a separate account and that no interest will be due to them on these amounts in the interim.
Peter

[Guest]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

Debt collectors tell lies.

That said, I am unclear how a "cooling off period" might apply here.

It hardly takes a mathematical genius to work out that interest on a £400 loan, of £72 per fortnight (£1872 per annum!) is somewhat more than a mere 9% APR.

Try 468% APR.

From their FAQ - link - they state they are ‘CIM Technologies Limited trading as Toothfairy Finance’.

CIM?

Do they expect one to spit, swallow or gargle? :tinysmile_grin_t:

At Companies House, I notice that their accounts are some six weeks overdue.

I do hope they're not experiencing any difficulties, or my name isn't Otis P. Cribblecobblis III.

HI
Just had a look at there website they do provide bank details so the OP should be able to pay the ligit amount via Fast transfer.

Th 9% interst is aparently 9% per week thats 2700% APR.

They go through a load of waffle before they actually quote the APR, i am sure that this would be none copmpliant to the precontractural agreement regualtions, it is totally missleading, this alone makes the agreement unenforceable without an order of the court, not that they ever intend going anywhere near one.
Peter

[CleverClogs]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

Do you have an address or method of payment for any legitimate money owed, I understand that you would have removed the access to your account from them, and you should under no circumstances re introduce it, do not give them your new details. But you do need another route to make payments. There bank details would be ideal but from experience they are generally loathe giving them.

Whilst they did not post those details on the home page of their website, they were not exactly concealed very well.
From the end of their FAQ - link:

Q: How do I pay back my loan?

A: To pay us back either

• click the Pay Now tab on the top of the screen to use your debit card; OR
• simply transfer the amount required to our Barclays account:

A/c number 93462382
Sort code: 20-50-94
Ref: YOUR MOBILE NUMBER

Either your bank will let you do this on-line, by telephone or at a branch or alternatively visit a Barclays Bank branch and they will take your payment over the counter.
PLEASE use your MOBILE PHONE NUMBER as the REFERENCE so we can match your payment to your debt and record it as paid off

HTH.

[Guest]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

Whilst they did not post those details on the home page of their website, they were not exactly concealed very well.
From the end of their FAQ - link:


HTH.

This is excellent, i have been helping someone one another forum who has a loan with another one of these providers, they are refusing to accept payment by any other means than by their debit card.
The reason of course is so they can take whatever they want out of the account.
But this is much better, it means that the OP has a degree of control.
As i said in my opinion they should just pay what they contracted for.

When they itemise their charges we can dissect them with the various common law requirements and the CCA to ensure they are legit.

Seems perfectly equitable to me.


Peter

[Markyy83]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

Hello I'm also having a high degree of problems with this company, I had a loan with them initially for £400 plus £96 interest for a 2 weeks, I couldn't afford to service any of my debts much longer so I joined CCCS and started DMP with them, My DM representives plus myself have attempted several times to coresspond with Toothfairy Finance/speed credit but they refuse to cooperate fully. Of course I know they do not have to accept reduced payments or freeze interest which can be troublesome but the main problem I have is, I believe in there correspondence so far they have broken office of fair trading Guidelines on Debt collection which they have been previously warned about and I wished to report them for these breaches to the relevant parties, because I believe companies like this should not be aloud to behave in such a manner and should be taken up about it.

Furthermore the pieces about my employment I believe are breaking data protection laws, if so could somebody please give me some advice, because a formal complaint to Information commisioners office will be sent out immedietely.

Below is the example document


Mr XXXXX

Ref Loan: XXXXXXXX - Sum outstanding GBP 703

We have made a number of attempts to contact you by email and SMS to discuss the outstanding balance on the short-term loan you took out on XXXXXX and you have made no effort to resolve these enquiries satisfactorily.

We have also warned you in advance of additional charges you have incurred.

As we make clear to all our customers our product is intended to be a short term financial solution. If the loan is extended this product can become expensive.

As we have not heard from you and not received payment we have been left with no alternative and are writing to advise you that this debt will be passed on to our Debt Collections Agency in the next 24 hours.

As per the terms of the contract between Speed Credit and yourself (see http://www.speedcredit.co.uk/terms.html) instructing the Debt Collections Team will add a further GBP 150 to the balance you owe. Debt recovery agents will call at the addresses we have on file for you until they are able to successfully collect the sums you owe. If our debt recovery agents, after a reasonable attempt at the addresses on file, cannot successfully recover the monies owed by you, we will issue a claim against you in the County Court for the outstanding balance plus the further charges and recovery costs that have been incurred.

You should be aware that a County Court Judgement against your name will remain for 6 years on the National Credit Records (NCR) accessed by employers, insurers and banks and may result in:-

a) difficulties in obtaining future credit
b) any current employers being informed so an application against your earnings can be issued
c) difficulty in securing future employment due t o an adverse credit history and credit score
d) difficulties in obtaining a mortgage
e) being questioned at a County Court as to your financial circumstances
f) a Warrant of Execution and bailiffs being instructed

We will apply for a County Court Judgement followed by a Warrant of Execution and a Bailiff order to seize goods from your addresses to be issued simultaneously to the County Court Judgement. This Warrant authorises Certificated Bailiffs to seize goods at the addresses held on file for you (including what may be your family home). These goods will be taken and put up for sale at public auction until the total amount you owe is satisfied.

The initial cost of issuing a County Court Judgement is GBP 45, this will be charged to your account on the date of issue.
The further court costs including solicitors time, application for a Warrant of Execution and the appointment of Bailiffs will also be added to what you owe.

As you can see this will ultimately cost you a great deal more if you do not deal with this matter now.

It will also cause you a great deal of difficulty for many years to come.

We strongly recommend that you settle this amount immediately to limit further costs, preserve your credit rating and your ability to gain full time employment.

Please immediately pay 703 by either:

1) Paying online by visiting ƒTƒCƒg‚ª‚*‚è‚Ü‚¹‚ñ and clicking Pay Now;
or
2) Make a bank transfer for GBP 703 to:
XXXXXXX Bank
Account number XXXXXXXXX
Sort code XXXXXX
Ref: Use your mobile number (XXXXXXXXXXX) as a reference so we can match it correctly

ALSO please EMAIL us confirming that this has been done to stop the debt being passed to the Debt Collection Team and further charges being incurred.

If you ignore this and our debt recovery agency is instructed it will be a short matter of ti me before the CCJ is issued and Bailiffs are instructed to seize goods.

We look forward to hearing from you confirming a speedy resolution of this matter.

If you have already repaid and this is not reflected in the above statement please contact us so we can investigate this further and correct your file.

Regards

[CleverClogs]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

My DM representives plus myself have attempted several times to coresspond with Toothfairy Finance/speed credit but they refuse to cooperate fully... I believe in there correspondence so far they have broken office of fair trading Guidelines on Debt collection which they have been previously warned about

Never mind having broken OFT guidelines, the company has broken the restrictions imposed on them in October 2010 - link.

Furthermore, they seem unsure about who they really are. In their terms (link) they state:

12. We are registered at Companies House as CIM Technologies Limited trading as Speed Credit. Our company number is 06144500. Our main business is consumer lending. We are regulated and authorised by the Office of Fair Trading (the "OFT") consumer credit license 615666

Yet, in their FAQ - link - they state:

Speed Credit is a safe and secure short-term loan service. We are fully licensed under the Consumer Credit Act 1974. As we offer only unsecured loans we fall under the regulation of the OFT not the FSA. Our Consumer Credit Licence number is 613263 , which is registered in the name of MCO Capital Ltd trading as Speed Credit. We have a compliance officer who would be happy to answer any further questions you may have on this matter. All applicants are treated with confidentiality when it comes to personal data. All identities are also validated and investigated against identity theft

This latter is a bit odd, as the nature of business to be carried out under that latter licence is merely cashing cheques Perhaps that might be why even the Office of Faffing and Twaddling is "minded to revoke" that latter licence?

More later...

[Markyy83]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

I agree they seem abit obscure; I really would like to start some kind of petition or blog where we can get as many people to upload evidence about the tactics this company employ which blantly disregard all guidelines under oft, if we could present a huge amount of affected people's to the office of fair trading from the hands of this company we could really begin to challenge there tactics.

[CleverClogs]

Re: Tooth fairy finance

The Office of Faffing and Twaddling already knows about those companies and their oppressive antics. The blog idea has already been tried - there's one here (link) which dates from 2005!

The official rationalisation or excuse for not closing down such usurers is that, with the licensed loan sharks out of business, some people would be forced to get short-term loans from criminals whose methods are even less pleasant and, worse, who do not pay any taxes. One might as well use that same rationalisation to suggest that house breaking and burglary should be "regulated" in a similar manner, with licensed burglars being obliged to conform with an agreed code of conduct...

Do you suppose it might work? :tung: