Morning all
I'm hoping that some of you here will be able to offer some advice and clear up the confusion around the issue. I've sought advice from a number of sources and fora and they all offer contradictory positions!
The facts are as follows:
1) I was in a DMP with Churchwood which ran successfully for 3 1/2 years (I know I could have done it myself but at that time I hadn't discovered things such as LegalBeagles or MSE). The only pain was MBNA which eventually asked that the payments to it increased but I wasn't in a position to do so. I continued to make my payments and MBNA received the previously agreed amount but would claim that the account was in default because the minimum payments (according to them) were not being met and charges accrued.
2) Around 2 1/2 years ago I fell ill. I was unable to work etc. due to the number of tests, scans, etc. and to be honest I spent what little time I had available completing my PhD. Eventually, I was diagnosed with a long-standing genetic disorder. To partially resolve this I would require major surgery. This would mean that I would be unable to work (and still am). I continued to make my repayments to Churchwood for as long as possible.
3) Eventually, I bit the bullet and in January 2011 I filed for bankruptcy under the Low Income Low Asset Scheme here in Scotland. I was discharged from the bankruptcy in January 2012. I'm still recuperating from my operations. My debt was just short of £40 000.
4) To pass the time over the last year or so I've reclaimed the PPI for my parents, members of my family, etc. and sorted out some of their problems. In so doing, it's come to my attention that I had PPI on at least 4 loans that were included in the bankruptcy and 3 credit cards.
My questions are as follows:
1) Can I reclaim the PPI? My grounds for complaint are a) I didn't know about the PPI and it was certainly never discussed (in fact, on one of the loans it was added on by the same account manager that told my parents that their PPI was compulsory); b) the cost of the PPI added to the cost of my debt and put me in a financially deleterious position; c) as I had a long-standing genetic disorder it's highly unlikely it would have been covered by the PPI.
2) What will happen to any money from a successful PPI reclaim? I've read that it will be used against the debts included in the bankruptcy and pay them off, ie. if MBNA were owed £10 000, the debt was restructured to £5000, and the PPI and interest was £4000, the balance of the debt to MBNA would be £1000. Is this correct?
3) I've also read that if the PPI claim is successful and refunded, the creditor could claim that you still owe them money because they've lost out (I presume because they haven't restructured the debt). This has been discussed in this thread.
4) What happens if the PPI and interest is sufficient to negate a bankruptcy? I don't think it would be but I had been in the DMP successfully for 3 1/2 years at £460 per month. That's £19 000 over the term yet due to interest and MBNA, etc. being awkward, the amount escalated rapidly prior to the bankruptcy. My point is that having paid as much as I did up until the bankruptcy, if the loans were restructured, etc. and PPI refunded, where does that leave me vis-a-vis what I actually owed and what I'd already paid off?
As I know many of you will ask, Churchwood did ask me about PPI at the time of starting the DMP but I was not certain it existed, etc. and it's only recently that I've become aware of it. I'm not sure they contacted the companies regarding it.
I think that Bill-K might have a good idea about some of these issues as I read his experience and his post in the thread I've linked to above. As I've said, there seems to be so much conflicting information about and lots of different experiences. The important thing that I noted from Bill-K's comments were that there was a meeting at which point I was discharged and these companies agreed to this matter. Any advice would be useful.
I'm hoping that some of you here will be able to offer some advice and clear up the confusion around the issue. I've sought advice from a number of sources and fora and they all offer contradictory positions!
The facts are as follows:
1) I was in a DMP with Churchwood which ran successfully for 3 1/2 years (I know I could have done it myself but at that time I hadn't discovered things such as LegalBeagles or MSE). The only pain was MBNA which eventually asked that the payments to it increased but I wasn't in a position to do so. I continued to make my payments and MBNA received the previously agreed amount but would claim that the account was in default because the minimum payments (according to them) were not being met and charges accrued.
2) Around 2 1/2 years ago I fell ill. I was unable to work etc. due to the number of tests, scans, etc. and to be honest I spent what little time I had available completing my PhD. Eventually, I was diagnosed with a long-standing genetic disorder. To partially resolve this I would require major surgery. This would mean that I would be unable to work (and still am). I continued to make my repayments to Churchwood for as long as possible.
3) Eventually, I bit the bullet and in January 2011 I filed for bankruptcy under the Low Income Low Asset Scheme here in Scotland. I was discharged from the bankruptcy in January 2012. I'm still recuperating from my operations. My debt was just short of £40 000.
4) To pass the time over the last year or so I've reclaimed the PPI for my parents, members of my family, etc. and sorted out some of their problems. In so doing, it's come to my attention that I had PPI on at least 4 loans that were included in the bankruptcy and 3 credit cards.
My questions are as follows:
1) Can I reclaim the PPI? My grounds for complaint are a) I didn't know about the PPI and it was certainly never discussed (in fact, on one of the loans it was added on by the same account manager that told my parents that their PPI was compulsory); b) the cost of the PPI added to the cost of my debt and put me in a financially deleterious position; c) as I had a long-standing genetic disorder it's highly unlikely it would have been covered by the PPI.
2) What will happen to any money from a successful PPI reclaim? I've read that it will be used against the debts included in the bankruptcy and pay them off, ie. if MBNA were owed £10 000, the debt was restructured to £5000, and the PPI and interest was £4000, the balance of the debt to MBNA would be £1000. Is this correct?
3) I've also read that if the PPI claim is successful and refunded, the creditor could claim that you still owe them money because they've lost out (I presume because they haven't restructured the debt). This has been discussed in this thread.
4) What happens if the PPI and interest is sufficient to negate a bankruptcy? I don't think it would be but I had been in the DMP successfully for 3 1/2 years at £460 per month. That's £19 000 over the term yet due to interest and MBNA, etc. being awkward, the amount escalated rapidly prior to the bankruptcy. My point is that having paid as much as I did up until the bankruptcy, if the loans were restructured, etc. and PPI refunded, where does that leave me vis-a-vis what I actually owed and what I'd already paid off?
As I know many of you will ask, Churchwood did ask me about PPI at the time of starting the DMP but I was not certain it existed, etc. and it's only recently that I've become aware of it. I'm not sure they contacted the companies regarding it.
I think that Bill-K might have a good idea about some of these issues as I read his experience and his post in the thread I've linked to above. As I've said, there seems to be so much conflicting information about and lots of different experiences. The important thing that I noted from Bill-K's comments were that there was a meeting at which point I was discharged and these companies agreed to this matter. Any advice would be useful.
Comment