AIB Credit Card Debt

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Peter54

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Wondering is there anyone else out there having problems with the AIB credit card department?

I've racked up quite a substantial amount of credit card debt with them. (I know, I know) but at the time I was able to pay them back. I've recently found myself out of work with very little entitlements to social welfare as I was working as a sub contractor most of my life.

I've wrote to them on umpteen occasions explaining the situation and telling them I will make every effort to pay the debt; if they would just hear me out and agree on a payment per month that I can afford and they are happy with.

I've received no letter from them acknowledging they received the letters I sent.

I rang them the other day to be treated in what I'd call a somewhat hostile manner.

The first person I spoke to on the phone was fine but when I was transferred to another level that's when all communications were lost.

They never told me they received the letters and also said I made a verbal agreement some weeks back that I could pay back a certain figure per month. I'll admit I did hesitantly agree to this figure which I still cannot afford.

Obviously this debt is heading to the courts. I have kept a copy of all letters I sent them and also I've been paying them weekly; not the sum they're looking for but I've still receipt that I've been making small payments. I've also returned the card.
 
I don't suppose you sent the letter registered? If not, I would send them another, enclosing your original as well as a new letter outlining your current position and your current offer and the fact that they have ignored your previous correspondence (herein enclosed), also state that you are aware that you had verbally agreed an amount but felt under duress to agree to it as you knew you couldn't afford it. The response may be no more positive but at least then they can't say they didn't receive it as it will have been signed for - harder for them to ignore and insist they never received (call me a cynic but I love the way it is so handy to blame the post office!). Oh and do NOT agree to any amount you cannot afford - I know you know this but all the same - it is worth mentioning! If necessary, refuse to discuss amounts on the phone, only the acccount as a whole - always refer to your written correspondence and keep discussions of numbers to that. It is harder to pressure someone who will only talk money in letters.
 
The phone is the main tool of the bank in the debt collection process. By forcing them only to deal in writing you take away their advantage in trying to pressure you.

Tell them you will only discuss the matter in writing. Do not phone them again. You may also consider changing your phone number if they are calling you.
 
Thanks guys. This morning I'm in receipt of a D/D mandate from the bank. They have already written on the form the amount they expect me to pay each month. This is the amount I stupidly agreed to paying.

It seems at this stage all communication has ceased and this is the final offer on the table.

It will be at least June before I can pay the money they are looking for.

Would it be OK for me to fill out the mandate to commence on June 1st?
 
I received one polite letter saying I needed to make a payment.

I contacted them by letter three times in response.

Then got a phone call to say they would accept x amount of money and that's been about it.

They haven't been inundating me with calls its actually me that's been doing the chasing of them!
 
Hi Peter,

I have managed to deal successfully with AIB and other institutions. Some guidelines:

1. Ok so you made a mistake running up debt but you didnt murder anyone and you don't deserve to suffer the way the bank want you to. You are not your debt and you deserve to be treated with dignity and respect as does any other human being. Move on from your guilt and your fear and you will deal with this way more effectively.

2. Only deal in writing with them. It's much less intimidating and you won't be tempted to make snap decisions under pressure. Tell them in writing you felt intimidated and request they or their agents do not call you again but only deal in writing with you.

3. There is no point in promising to pay something you cannot afford as the wheels will come off again.

4. Do a realistic spending plan for yourself of all your income and expenses and then see what you can actually afford to pay them. Don't forget to allow for all your important necessities including clothes, holidays etc. Don't be a hero for AIB. They wont be happy no matter what you pay per month but you can't help that. Please yourself not the bank. Once you can afford more then pay more.

5. Make them a new offer in writing and send it by registered mail. Tell them in the letter you were unrealistic about your first offer and that you were pressured into it by the heavy handed tactics used by them over the phone. (They won't like that letter being seen in court later on if it comes to that which is very unlikely).

6. Continue to pay them regardless of what happens i.e. honour your offer from now no matter how small the monthly amount is. Make the first payment asap. Don't wait until June.

7. AIB may well pass it on to a collection agency or a solicitor but that is because they are idiots. Don't let that worry you. Keep your story steady and say the very same thing to them and keep paying your small amount. Let them waste money if they want to by moving it on to someone else. I ended up dealing with my original manager, then an internal collection department, then three different collecton agencies.

8. Watch out for all the extras they will try to add on for the fees they pay to their collectors. Refuse to pay these. Keep writing them letters and keep registering them. Stay calm and firm. They tried to add €800 to my balance for this and I wrote asking them for breakdowns and asking how they could justify this considering I was willing to pay as much as I could. They dropped the charges.

9. In my experience they will accept eventually because they dont actually want to go to court where they wont get anything more from you.

10. Good luck and let us know how you get on.

bond-007 said:
I doubt they would wait that long. They would surely issue legal proceedings by then.

Have you received any letters from their solicitors? It is normally Crosskerrys with AIB credit cards.
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Thanks for the great advise RealDub. Well done for negotiating with these guys; by no means any easy task.

Since I last posted I have heard nothing from these people. Believe me when you owe a substantial debt its more worrying not hearing from the debtor than a debtor bombarding you with phone calls! The lack of response to letters I have sent them etc is bizarre.

I've been on the MABS website doing everything they advise but still nothing. I'm still making payments though.

To avoid going to court would it be best if I got a third party involved? I've been given the name of a reputable debt management company who I've been considering contacting.

MABS seem to have their hands tied and it looks like weeks before they could look at my case.
 
@peter 54

Follow realdub's great advice -you won't need a debt management company unless you have other debts. All they will do is write to AIB making an offer based on what you can afford -you can do this yourself without incurring debt manager fees.

Write making an offer and pay it even if you don't get a reponse and also ask for interest and fees to be frozen. It would be useful too if you could enclose with your letter an "income and expenditure statement" showing what your income is (social welfare) what your outgoings are and what you have left over to make payments.

MABS has a letter of offer than should work here:[broken link removed]

Be prepared for more letters and phone calls - each time gently but firmly refer them back to your letter of offer and payment committment being made.

Best of luck


Kaplan
 
Peter54 do you have any assets? Also are you addressing the issues that have lead you into this debt? Would you consider doing the money makeover section on this website to get advice on how to clear your debt.

Further to Realdubs great advice on how to deal with banks chasing you for debt there is a key post on how to write letters to banks, you should have a look at this.
 
RealDub said:

Don't forget to allow for all your important necessities including clothes, holidays etc.
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RealDub

That was a very good post apart from the above.

When someone is drowning in debt, they do not need a holiday.
When someone is drowning in debt, they do not have to keep up with fashion.

"Necessities" like holidays and clothes are probably the main reason people are drowning in credit card debt.

Necessities are food, utilities and transport to work.

You have to make sacrifices to deal with debt.

Brendan
 
I'm in receipt this morning of a letter from the bank regarding the CC debt I've accrued. I think this letter very much proves the banks are not listening and are still eager to throw money at people who are not in a position to pay back.

I returned card to bank, telling them I would be canceling my agreement etc; only this morning to be in receipt of a letter from them giving me 21 days to pay a relatively small sum of money considering the debt I owe. It also insinuates that if I pay this minimum amount within the time frame they wont cancel my agreement.
Come on, who would leave a person in my position with a card they cannot afford to pay back:rolleyes:
 
Peter, when you applied for a started using your credit card you effectively entered into a legal agreement with AIB.

In order for you to cancel this agreement, you would first need to have paid them any money owed by you to them, otherwise the agreement that you made still stands i.e. you owe them money.

You have returned the card to them, which is fair enough, but that in itself does not mean that you have terminated the agreement – it just means that you have decided not to use the card anymore. They would cancel the card anyway if you fail to make your repayments, rendering it useless.

Under the T&Cs of your agreement with the bank, if you fail to make minimum repayments they can terminate the agreement with you. If they do so, as soon as the agreement is terminated you would owe them the full amount of your debt, & the banker/customer relationship that presently exists between you would end, resulting in them eventually going down a legal route to recover their money.

So, basically what the bank is stating in the letter you received is that they are giving you the opportunity to pay the minimum amount that you refer to above within 21 days, & if you do so they will not cancel your agreement, & therefore not go down a legal route.

They are not offering you further credit, merely a chance to repay them a minimum amount off what you currently owe them.
 
I do know that Bank of Ireland and other banks do terminate agreements prior to going to court to recover debts. This is done for legal reasons in that the debt total must be fixed before seeking judgement. To do this they stop charging interest at the credit card rate.

The money is still owed and the bank will recover it by legal means.
 
RealDub said:
Hi Peter,

I have managed to deal successfully with AIB and other institutions. Some guidelines:

2. Only deal in writing with them.

 5. Make them a new offer in writing and send it by registered mail. Tell them in the letter you were unrealistic about your first offer and that you were pressured into it by the heavy handed tactics used by them over the phone. (They won't like that letter being seen in court later on if it comes to that which is very unlikely).

 7. Keep your story steady and say the very same thing to them

 8. Keep writing them letters and keep registering them. Stay calm and firm.
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Regarding the above, it is advisable to assume that your correspondence will some day end up in the hands of a Judge.
Therefore, it is vital that you phrase your letters in such a way that you come across as a reasonable, accommodating & decent person.
This will portray you in a very good light, making it easier for the Judge to appreciate your circumstances and consequently make a Ruling in your favour.
Best of luck anyway.
 
An update on the above:

Have sent letters by registered post making a monthly offer. These letters have yet to be addressed by collections.

The previous letters I did send - they are saying they did not receive them. I also sent back the card and they are also saying they did not receive this either.

Got speaking to an OK guy in collections and he said a lot of information was being held down stairs at customer care so my earlier correspondence could well be there:rolleyes:

Why oh why are they not passing information on to the guys who make the decisions:confused: Guy on phone didn't give an explanation.

I received a letter last week stating that they will either give this case to their debt collectors or solicitors.

I've heard some stories about debt collectors so am quite worried to say the least.
 
I've heard some stories about debt collectors so am quite worried to say the least.
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AIB will hand it over to Intrum Justitia who will send you 4 letters in total. 2 from them, 1 from a "solicitor" and 1 final one from them. They will not send out the goons to visit you or to break your legs. After the 4th letter they will tell AIB they failed and that is the end of the road for Intrum Justitia.

What stories have you heard about debt collectors? PM by all means.
 
I took the plunge and rang AIB today in connection with the cc debt I have with them. I actually cried when I got off the phone after dealing with a certain member of staff:eek:
 
This why you need to do everything in writing. By doing everything in writing you stay in control of the situation.
Never give them the chance to corner you on the phone. They prefer to phone people as they can put people on the spot, pressure them to agree to unrealistic terms etc.
 
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