Bank acc overdrawn due to fees/interest

O

Overdrafted

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Hi guys, hope all is well.

Back in 09 or so I set up an account with UlsterBank. I used the account fairly regularly up until 2013, at which point I stopped after opening a bank account with another bank.

Recently I was contacted by Ulster Bank's Collections Dept regarding my account being overdrawn. I denied having knowledge of this and said I would first discuss this with my local branch after having received my transaction history. I received it just a few days ago and I can see that I had approx €7 left in the bank (Oct 2013) when I stopped using UB altogether.

To the best of my knowledge, they brought in fees/interest charges in 2013 for certain accounts - I believe it was accounts that had less than €3000 in them, though I could be mistaken - and as such my account was affected by this. The first fee knocked me down to €3, and then the next fee put me in the red. Since then it has accumulated to the point where it has been handed over to Collections, as stated above.

I will admit that I should have been more on the ball and it is my own negligence that resulted in it getting to this point. I did receive occasional letters that advised me to log on or check in with my local branch, and I did receive emails twice every month that also said I should log on.

As such, if I have no leg to stand on, I will pay. However, I did not consent nor sign my name to any fees on the account. Part of the reason I'd originally chosen UB was to avoid dormant fees and I had specifically queried this when opening the account. I understand given that it was public information and announced that I may not have needed to sign anything, however I'm unsure of what my standing is given that it was their fees that not only knocked me from a positive balance into the red, but also subsequently stacked up the debt thereafter. They had my phone number the entire time and it was only brought to my attention once Collections got involved. (Realistically they can't contact everyone about these issues - I understand that)


I'm just wondering if I have any grounds to refute this. Any thoughts or advice is appreciated.

tl;dr Ulsterbank account left with a positive balance, fees knocked it into the red and now collections want to propose a payback plan.
 
Were they sending you statements? Had you signed up to paperless statements?

When you opened the account, you signed up to the terms and conditions. There was probably a clause somewhere in there regarding charges and how they needed to be communicated.

Have you asked them if you can just close the account without paying the fees?
 
Write to them stating you were unaware of the account and assumed it to be closed. Ask them to waiver the fees. If they don't then negotiate re-opening the account and using their services if they waiver the fees. If they still give no offer, exhaust the complaints procedure and state that you had moved address and they had your phone number all along but didn't call until arrears had grown. You should eventually get a result.
 
By all means try to negotiate with them but I wouldn't recommend pretending you've changed address. They are likely to look for proof of new address and may identify you from this thread.
 
elcato said:
Write to them stating you were unaware of the account and assumed it to be closed. Ask them to waiver the fees. If they don't then negotiate re-opening the account and using their services if they waiver the fees. If they still give no offer, exhaust the complaints procedure and state that you had moved address and they had your phone number all along but didn't call until arrears had grown. You should eventually get a result.
Click to expand...
Have you read the OP? I don't think encouraging someone to lie is an appropriate way to find a solution. It might suit your purposes, but I doubt it sits well with the majority of posters. The OP states they were aware of the account, that they've ended up in this situation through their own negligence, no ifs, ands or buts.
 
Seagull said:
Were they sending you statements? Had you signed up to paperless statements?
Click to expand...

Every few months, I believe. I need to go over my mail and verify - truth be told I can't quite remember getting UB letters over the years, only when my account became a 'problem'.

Also likely true re: the clause. I haven't asked them directly if they would close the account while waiving the fees - the collections agent on the phone was adamant I set propose a repayment plan.

elcato said:
Write to them stating you were unaware of the account and assumed it to be closed. Ask them to waiver the fees. If they don't then negotiate re-opening the account and using their services if they waiver the fees.
Click to expand...

I was unaware as you said, but I believe their rebuttal would just point me toward infrequent letters and the emails. Re: negotiate reopening the account - I can't. The account is still technically 'open' - they claimed they were going to close it but couldn't due to the fact that it is in the red. What they neglected to mention was that their fees put me in the red - I had to pull statements to find that out.

I haven't changed addresses and I'd prefer not to falsify anything. It'll be difficult and maybe won't result in a win on my end but I'd rather try and get this sorted cleanly.
 
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