hi

[markiemark]

I have a credit card with Barclays. Over the years Barclays kept raising my credit limit on the card without notifying me until the day came when I had a debt of £8000. I always paid the minimum payments every month but with the interest the debt was growing instead of decreasing. I entered into a Formal Arrangement with Barclays to pay £80 permonth with no interest. I have been doing this and have brought the debt down to £6000. I received a letter From Barclays saying that this arrangement was ending and to ring them to discuss and reach solution which I did. I was told that they could not enter into another formal arrangement but that they would agree an informal arrangement and could continue to pay £80. A week later I got a letter stating that I was about to default on payments and that Barclays would issue a default notice to my credit file if I did not contact them to reach a solution. I rang them and they stated that an informal arrangement always brings with it a default notice. I explained that the operative who ffered me this did not explain this and for them to go back and listen to the call as all calls are recorded. They did this and accepted that I was not told about the default notice. However they said that I did receive a letter telling me this. I agreed that I got the letter and contacted them as was asked in the letter to seek a solution. The only solution offered was that I start paying the monthly minimum repayments of £135 with the interest building. I explained that this would take me back to square one after the good work that I had done to bring my debt down - they agreed with this and stated that I could continue to pay the £80 and they would still default me. There was no compromise or willingness to discuss any other option. They stated that if I was not happy that I would have to make a complaint to which I said that I did not want to make a complaint. I was pt through to the complaints dept anyway where I was told that legislation had changed which mean that Barclays could not enter into a formal agreement twice. When I asked what the legislation as and if I could get a copy of it, I was told that she did not have to tell me what the legislation was. I asked several times what the legislation was - the complaints manager refused to tell me so I said to go ahead and raise the complaint. About ten minutes later I was phoned back by the complaints manager who told me that as I had made a complaint in the past that she would not be opening this up as a new complaint but adding it to the one in the past, which had been closed down. I would really appreciate some advice on how to go about dealing with this.

[Debt Camel]

Re: hi

You have two problems here - how to deal with the debt and the effect on your credit record.

Sadly the effect on your credit record has to take second place. if you can't make the contractual repayments to a debt a lender has the right to mark the debt as defaulted on your credit record when the arrears (compared to what you should have paid) reach 3-6 months.

Ignore all the stuff about legislation changes and not being able to make a second formal agreement - they sound like poppycock. But barclays is right to default you and complaining won't change this.

BUT you can ask for the default to be backdated to when you started this arrangement, see https://debtcamel.co.uk/debt-default-date/. The default will drop off your credit record after 6 yeasr - this will actually be better for you in a few years than continuing to have arrangement / arrears markers every month.

ANOTHER THING TO THINK ABOUT
It sounds as though Barclays should have increased your credit limit. Only paying the minim payment is a good sign sign that higher debt may not be affordable and they should have thought about this before each increase. Not handed them out like confetti.

Read https://debtcamel.co.uk/refunds-catalogue-credit-card/ and see if you think you have reason to complain. Yiou would have to show that the higher minimus were unaffordable and that barclaycard should have realised this. These types of complaints are pretty new, so don't go into it expecting it to be easy - expect this sort of complaint to be rejected by Barclaycard and take it to the financial Ombudsman - and don't bank on winning, but there is a chance you may be able to get back some of the interest you have paid - which would reduce your outstanding balance.