AIB AIB restoring my tracker - but at 3.67%!

Hi Balfour,

Did you consider whether you or some of your group would be entitled to be deemed impacted by AIB because of Clause 3.1 (b)?

I've been reading this thread for a long time but never posted. I've had three AIB mortgages reverted to Tracker, two by FSO in 2012, and one recently which I had lost in the FSO. It just strikes me that nobody is talking about Clause 3.1 (b) which would apply to people who drew down on Fixed Rates.
 
Thanks Balfour.

So, the condition provides that in the absence of any election on your part you default to a variable rate at the end of the fixed rate period. The condition doesn't actually say that AIB must notify you of your options at or prior to the expiry of your fixed rate period but AIB seem to be accepting that as implicit in the way the condition is drafted – which is certainly good news from your perspective.

Where it gets interesting is the definition as to what constitute AIB's "prevailing rates" for the purposes of this condition – "…prevailing rates means the interest rates then current and available at the date that a customer's fixed rate period expires".

If you fixed in 2008, I assume that trackers were no longer generally offered to new customers by AIB by the time your fixed rate period expired. So what was the tracker interest rate "then current and available" at the time your fixed rate period expired?

I would argue that in this context it must mean either: (i) the average margin over the ECB refi rate charged on the existing AIB tracker book at the time that your fixed rate period expired; or (ii) the average margin over the ECB refi rate that was widely marketed or offered to new customers immediately prior to the withdrawal of this product by AIB.

I can't see any contractual basis for AIB simply pulling a tracker margin from thin air on the basis of their own assessment of the market today or determining a tracker margin by reference to their current SVR.

If I was in your position I would reject this offer and, if necessary, appeal to the FSO (copying your complaint to the Central Bank).

Hope that helps.

Sarenco has highlighted an important point, this is what the average consumer would reasonably expect the particular clause to mean and from a legal perspective this is important point to highlight. Well done.
 
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What i find very interesting is that in 2007 before AIB stopped offering the tracker mortgage rate they treated the Variable and Tracker Rate the same within AIB's Home Mortgages Regulatory Information i.e. "A typical EUR100,000 20 year variable interest rate mortgage (Standard Variable or Tracker rate) for an Owner Occupier Residential Property will have monthly repayments of EUR664.30 APR 5.21%. If the APR does not vary during the term of the mortgage, the total cost of credit i.e. total amount repayable less the amount of the mortgage, would be EUR59,432.00. The effect of a 1% increase in interest rates for such a mortgage will add EUR56.13 to monthly repayments."

Does this not suggest that the "prevailing rate" should be at the very least in line with the variable rate at the time the tracker rate should have been offered and not this made up rate of 3.67%?
 
Got my SARS documentation for all info on my AIB mortgage, funny part 4 of mortgage contract missing which has the 3.2 clause in it. Can’t believe they are still omitting this part after already saying I’m included in redress. What body could I highlight this with please?
 
Just got mine also, exact same issue....wrote back to the bank asking.for an explanation and am awaiting reply
 
I wrote to bank saying missing parts in sars request and got a copy of the full offer of mortgage today via registered post, GDPR seems to have kicked in!
 
Got mine also albeit the ink on the copy they sent me is so faded you need a strong light and magnifying glass to read it. Also regarding the letter of expiration for my fixed rate that was referenced in their screenshots, their explanation............they sent it to me but didn't take any copies
 
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