AIB Aib ex staff - getting €1,650 compensation

Rarrrrrr

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Hi there
I'm just wondering if anyone has discussed aib staff mortgages here. I have a staff mortgage, I took it out in 2007. At the time I had the majority of it on a staff preferential fixed rate of 3% and then the balance was on a tracker rate. After a few years as far as I remember we were advised to move to a variable rate as we would no longer have to pay benefit in kind. I'm just wondering if we should have been offered a tracker rate as the other portion of the mortgage is on a tracker rate? I can't remember all of the details as to be honest although I'm staff I didn't really understand all of the terms and conditions at the time. I have requested a copy of my letter of offer and NY correspondence I signed/ received when I moved from variable. To summarise.. Has this been brought up before and if so what was the advice/ opinion. Thank you
 
I recieved a response from AIB. I went on to a standard 1 year fixed rate as it was lower than the staff rate. At the end of the 1 year fixed period they wrote to me and asked what my instruction was, I did not reply and was put on to a standard variable rate. No idea where this leaves me, any guidance is very much appreciated.
 
Did your contract provide that, in the absence of any election on your part, you would default to a standard variable rate as determined by the bank from time to time (sometimes known as the "reversionary" rate in the UK)?
 
I requested all my mortgage documentation and its available to collect. I haven't rang that number yet. But on speaking to staff mortgages they where adamant I do not have a case but I wouldn't trust them on past experiences.
 
My mortgage is currently under review with them, in the formal process. Staff business did phone me & tell me as I requested to come off the tracker myself that I not eligible under the redress scheme, but I'm not accepting that until I hear back formally from the review.
 
Yea I am the same as Rarrrrr. They apparently issued a letter on the 16th January 2009. I have a copy of it but I am unable to attach to this thread for people to see. If someone tells me how to attach it i'll do it straight away. It does not offer the option of a tracker or does not state that this was an option for the mortgage to move onto a tracker. It basically just gives you the option of standard variable, if you wish to stay on the staff preferential rate or you wish to to switch to a fixed rate. I wonder if the T&C's are the same as the people who have that clause 3.2 with the option to revert to tracker at the prevailing rates . They did not provide me with the T&C's although I requested them previously. They only sent Part 1,Part 2, Part 5 &6 but left out the other Parts in the letter of offer fr some reason.
 
Yeah well mine is slightly complicated wanted top up branch wouldn't do it so staff business would but ment giving up tracker!! Compliant logged also with the ombudsman at the moment so should have answer by mid February
 
So I became a little bit more pro-active about things over the coming days. I have reviewed my mortgage contract and contacted AIB. My story is the Following:
1. Drewdown on a staff Preferential fixed rate of 3%
2. Moved onto a ECB tracker
3. Moved back to 3% Staff Preferential Fixed rate of 3%

In January 09 AIB issued to all staff advising due to BIK that it was not beneficial to staff to remain on the 3% and they were rolling all mortgages to the SVR rate of 3.2%.
From reviewing my contract I have the clause 3.2 in my T&C's of:

"At the end of any fixed interest period, the Customer may choose between:
(a) a further fixed interest period, or
(b) conversion to a variable interest rate Mortgage Loan
(c) conversion to a tracker interest rate Mortgage Loan
"at the bank's then prevailing rates appropriate to the Mortgage Loan. If the customer does not exercise this choice, then the Mortgage Loan will automatically convert to the variable interest rate Mortgage Loan."

They never advised I had the option (c) of conversion to a tracker in Jan'09.
AIB content that the 3% preferential rate was not a fixed rate, however it states in the special conditions of the contract it was & that the breakage cost from the clause 3.3 did not apply if moving to a different rate from the staff fixed rate of 3%. I see AIB are offering 3.67% to people who have the clause 3.2 in other threads which is a crazy rate.
 
Sleven, did you make any progress with staff business? I'm in a similar situation and haven't yet done anything about it. I was automatically taken off the staff preferential rate in 2009 and put on standard variable. I was on leave at the time and never received the offer of a tracker as many of my colleagues did due to the fact that the offers were sent via internal mail rather than through the post!
 
I'm also staff at AIB, my mortgage is split - some on 3% preferential (I think at the time if it was over €190k it was 3% preferential & balance on tracker ) - tracker was higher at the time.. Was this ever explained to us?Why was it done this way?
Did we agree to this?
Did we sign anything to do with BIK or did the bank explain BIK to us?

How my letters of offer did we sign does anyone remember?

1 for 3% preferential & another for tracker? ( if your mortgages over €190k)
 
So I became a little bit more pro-active about things over the coming days. I have reviewed my mortgage contract and contacted AIB. My story is the Following:
1. Drewdown on a staff Preferential fixed rate of 3%
2. Moved onto a ECB tracker
3. Moved back to 3% Staff Preferential Fixed rate of 3%

In January 09 AIB issued to all staff advising due to BIK that it was not beneficial to staff to remain on the 3% and they were rolling all mortgages to the SVR rate of 3.2%.
From reviewing my contract I have the clause 3.2 in my T&C's of:

"At the end of any fixed interest period, the Customer may choose between:
(a) a further fixed interest period, or
(b) conversion to a variable interest rate Mortgage Loan
(c) conversion to a tracker interest rate Mortgage Loan
"at the bank's then prevailing rates appropriate to the Mortgage Loan. If the customer does not exercise this choice, then the Mortgage Loan will automatically convert to the variable interest rate Mortgage Loan."

They never advised I had the option (c) of conversion to a tracker in Jan'09.
AIB content that the 3% preferential rate was not a fixed rate, however it states in the special conditions of the contract it was & that the breakage cost from the clause 3.3 did not apply if moving to a different rate from the staff fixed rate of 3%. I see AIB are offering 3.67% to people who have the clause 3.2 in other threads which is a crazy rate.

Bump

Anyone have any thoughts on this. A family member contacted me last night and appears to be in the same boat as Selvin above (and a raft of other people).
They moved jobs to AIB and moved their mortgage to the staff mortgage in 2006.
As such they're loan was split between a portion on a tracker / and a portion on the "staff preferential rate". This "staff rate" had the same clause as Slevin listed above (from their memory - they've to dig out their docs yet).
When they removed the Preferential rate they were contacted and advised SVR or Fixed were only options. They specifically remember being told that the tracker option was no longer an option.

This issue would appear to fall into the AIB's wider stance re the "Prevailing Rate" of ECB + 3.67% (AIB reiterated this to the Finance Committee in Sept 27, 2017 - link at end).

I've a couple of problems with this:
- Family member was not offered this tracker + margin in Jan '09.
- The simplest argument is the prevailing rate should be the rate applied to the closest loan matching this loan - which of course would be the other part of their mortgage (the tracker part which is ECB+1.1%) i.e. same Borrower, same security, same credit history
- The wording is vague, and the attitude that seems to be gaining traction is that where wording is vague the Bank's should come down on the side of the Borrower/Consumer.

At the Finance Committee Bernard Byrne sought to justify the ECB+3.67% "prevailing rate" based on the disconnection between the Bank's funding costs & the ECB rate.
I'm not sure I fully agree with this argument.
The Bank's cost of funds is a separate issue to the "prevailing rates appropriate to the Mortgage Loan" i.e. the wording highlighted references "the Mortgage Loan", not a "Mortgage Loan Pool".
In this case the specific Mortgage Loan was - (i) performing, (ii) aged [as in the loan had been in existence for over 5 years], (iii) low initial Loan to Value (<80%) [what the LTV at the time was is a different question].

Anyway, I'm wondering if anyone has any thoughts on this (i presume there's a huge number of AIB staff affected). My cousin is going to get her docs together and get all her ducks in a row.

https://beta.oireachtas.ie/en/debat...diture_and_reform_and_taoiseach/2017-09-26/2/
 
Hi ,

I went through the whole complaints process with this but it was rejected due to the term stating that (c) conversion to a tracker interest rate Mortgage Loan
"at the bank's then prevailing rates appropriate to the Mortgage Loan. If the customer does not exercise this choice, then the Mortgage Loan will automatically convert to the variable interest rate Mortgage Loan.".

Needless to say I am very angry about the whole thing but I cannot believe more staff are not pursuing this like us. There appears to be a huge backlash from the Bank of Ireland staff .

I look forward to seeing more updates here . I anyone else is in a similar situation I think now would be a good time to submit the complaint.
 
Hi Gracie & Mr Brightside
I took out my staff mortgage in 2009 also with main portion on fixed preferential staff rate with remainder on tracker. Again, was taken off preferential and put on variable. I questioned my right to challenge this as part of the tracker scandal but was told by a colleague working on the redress not to waste my time, I hadn't a hope of getting anywhere with my complaint. Think I should log it at this point but don't even know where to start.
 
Hi well my complaint has been ongoing now for over two years. went through the whole process with staff business with no satisfaction. I then logged my complaint with the ombudsman last year who made contact with the bank. The bank asked then to keep my complaint on hold while then look at my complaint again. That was over a year ago now and have had no communication with tje bank whatsoever aragh!!! I basically have to wait now until I imagine the bank will reject my complaint again and then the ombudsman takes over very frustrating!!
 
I have just logged complaint with bank regarding my staff mortgage. Same issue mortgage spilt between tracker and staff rate. Not offered tracker in 2009 when we were taken off staff rate as Bik was no longer favourable. When I spoke to Dublin Today they suggested that the variable rate was a better rate than the tracker rate at the time and that the bank was giving the best options to staff at the time. Also tracker rate was not available in 2009. My complaint has been logged but I was advised that I really do not have a complaint but they will respond to me in due course! Not very hopeful☹️
 
Hi folks, I am wondering if there has been any update. I too am ex AIB staff in the same situation. I have written to AIB, my complaint acknowledged and I have also requested a copy of my mortgage documents from Adelaide Road, they say I can collect them from a branch once ready in 40 days. Wondering if anyone is having luck. I am also anxious about coming under possible vulture fund sell off purely because I have an investment property. I repaid all repayments through the celtic tiger downturn and carried on with heavy negative equity when AIB tried to force me to sell and carry the shortfall. AIB never seem to act to support us as customers any longer, is that not what banking was all about? Surely the Banks criteria is to support their customers wherever possible when they work 100% with them. We got these mortgages on the basis of higher income, how can we be penalised when we simply want to extend our mortgage term? Any update on ombudsman etc would be much appreciated.
 
Special Conditions in letter of Offer:

“While the customer(or if the offer is addressed to more than one person, all of them) remain in the service of the Bank, a staff preferential Fixed Home Loan interest rate of 3% will apply to the Mortgage loan”.



The fixed interest rate early breakage cost referred to in Clause 3.3 of the General Terms & Conditions will not apply if for any reason the interest rate applicable to the Mortgage Loan ceases to the Staff Preferential Fixed Home Loan Interest Rate”.
 
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