Does complaining to the FOS reset the Statute Barred clock?

[highwire]

Hi all,

As the title asks, I am wondering if raising a complaint against payday lenders for irresponsible lending will reset the SB clock?

By complaining in this way and escalating it to the FOS, you are effectively acknowledging the debt, but even if no payments are made, does this acknowledgement suffice under the Limitations Act?

I'm not sure whether it's worth complaining against some lenders or just wait it out another 3 years..

Thanks in advance

[EXC]

Re: Does complaining to the FOS reset the Statute Barred clock?

You can only complain to FOS within 6 months of first complaining to and receiving a response from the lender so any complaint about irresponsible lending would reset the clock at the point you complained to the lender.

[Nibbler]

Re: Does complaining to the FOS reset the Statute Barred clock?

A court may well decide that the initial complaint, as per EXCs post, does.

[nemesis45]

Re: Does complaining to the FOS reset the Statute Barred clock?

You can only complain to FOS within 6 months of first complaining to and receiving a response from the lender so any complaint about irresponsible lending would reset the clock at the point you complained to the lender.

No! Just remember not to make any admission of liability for the disputed debt.

nem

[highwire]

Re: Does complaining to the FOS reset the Statute Barred clock?

No! Just remember not to make any admission of liability for the disputed debt.

nem

Ok so there are different answers here. Two people think it will reset the clock and one doesn't! It's hard to know who's right on forums!

[Nibbler]

Re: Does complaining to the FOS reset the Statute Barred clock?

Perhaps I was not clear enough.

Not saying it will or won't, but depends on what you wrote and what a court may make of that.

From Halsbury's Laws of England

An acknowledgment must be in writing and signed by the maker or his agent 1, but, subject to these require-
ments, need not be in any particular form. All that is necessary is that the debtor should recognise the exist-
ence of the debt or other liquidated amount outstanding and unpaid or that the person who might rely on the
statute of limitation should clearly recognise the rights against himself. Whether a document is or is not an
acknowledgment depends on what the document states.
In determining whether a document is a sufficient acknowledgment, the court will look at the circumstances in
which it was written, and will construe it in the way in which the writer intended it to be construed by the per-
son to whom it is addressed.

[Debt Camel]

Re: Does complaining to the FOS reset the Statute Barred clock?

I think it would be quite hard to word a letter of complaint in such a way that it does not reset the statute barred clock.

Let's suppose complaining would reset the clock and look at the different cases so you can consider if complaining now or waiting is better.

1) you complain now and the Ombudsman rules in your favour and the outstanding debt is wiped out. Obviously the resetting the clock issue is now irrelevant. This is quite a likely scenario - the fact that you have defaulted on the loan suggests it was unaffordable!

2) you complain now and the Ombudsman rules in your favour but orders compensation which isn't enough to clear the debt. That's a nuisance but you could use the compensation to reduce the debt or to make a full & final settlement offer to it

3) you complain now but the Ombudsman doesn't rule in your favour. How strong a case do you have? Have you seen my article on how to ask for compensation - go through it and see how many of the points there apply to you: http://debtcamel.co.uk/payday-loan-refunds/

4) you don't complain now and the payday lender or a debt collector takes you to court within the next three years. If this happens you will wish that you had complained earlier. "Waiting it out for 3 years" is not a very reliable strategy!

5) you don't complain now, the lender/debt collector doesnt take you to court before the debt becomes statute barred and after that you complain. If you win your complaint, the redress may just be offset against the debt - just because the debt is statute barred doesn't mean it doesn't still exist.

Overall, unless you feel you have a very weak case, there doesn't seem to be much chance that you will get a better result by waiting. If you were a couple of months away from the statute barred point, then definitely wait. But three years????

ALSO

Did you have other loans with the lender that you repaid on time? You can also complain if you think these were unaffordable. See the comments at the bottom of my article - redress is being paid for loans that were repaid in full on time.

[highwire]

Re: Does complaining to the FOS reset the Statute Barred clock?

I think it would be quite hard to word a letter of complaint in such a way that it does not reset the statute barred clock.

Let's suppose complaining would reset the clock and look at the different cases so you can consider if complaining now or waiting is better.

1) you complain now and the Ombudsman rules in your favour and the outstanding debt is wiped out. Obviously the resetting the clock issue is now irrelevant. This is quite a likely scenario - the fact that you have defaulted on the loan suggests it was unaffordable!

2) you complain now and the Ombudsman rules in your favour but orders compensation which isn't enough to clear the debt. That's a nuisance but you could use the compensation to reduce the debt or to make a full & final settlement offer to it

3) you complain now but the Ombudsman doesn't rule in your favour. How strong a case do you have? Have you seen my article on how to ask for compensation - go through it and see how many of the points there apply to you: http://debtcamel.co.uk/payday-loan-refunds/

4) you don't complain now and the payday lender or a debt collector takes you to court within the next three years. If this happens you will wish that you had complained earlier. "Waiting it out for 3 years" is not a very reliable strategy!

5) you don't complain now, the lender/debt collector doesnt take you to court before the debt becomes statute barred and after that you complain. If you win your complaint, the redress may just be offset against the debt - just because the debt is statute barred doesn't mean it doesn't still exist.

Overall, unless you feel you have a very weak case, there doesn't seem to be much chance that you will get a better result by waiting. If you were a couple of months away from the statute barred point, then definitely wait. But three years????

ALSO

Did you have other loans with the lender that you repaid on time? You can also complain if you think these were unaffordable. See the comments at the bottom of my article - redress is being paid for loans that were repaid in full on time.

Thank you very much for the comprehensive reply! I have about 6 outstanding payday creditors, and have had some success with complaining against others. I just know these ones will be harder. But I've got nothing to lose I suppose, and as you say, 3 years is a long time to wait it out.

I think I'll take them all further and see how it goes.

Thanks for you help!