halifax are crap?

Question

my other half had a account with halifax. he used his halifax card to pay aol through direct debit. we was getting a really crap service from aol so we went into the bank and asked one of the guys who works there to cancel the direct debit, we asked is there anything else from aol on his card for a direct debit and the man said no. coz we went with another internet company we didnt have anything more to do with aol. but we started getting letters from halifax saying that they were still paying aol, even though my other half had no money in the account or he never had a overdraft. we kept going back to the bank and they said there is no direct debit from aol, so we asked why was they getting paid they said they had to honor it or something. so my othe half didnt use the account anymore then we got a letter through from a debt collection agency calling them selves Blair, Oliver & Scott saying he has to pay the full amount otherwise they will take it further. what should he do??

Answer 1

I used to work for Bank of Scotland Halifax. Blair Oliver Scott are not a debt collectors they are Bank of Scotlands own inhouse credit control department. Blair Oliver Scott=BOS=Bank of Scotland!! So don't worry.

What I would do is contact AOL and cancel the payment. Then I would ask the Bank for the unpaid charges back.

You will have heard of people taking their banks to court and getting their charges back. I am doing this at the moment and it is easy to do. It rarely gets to court and because it is in the small claims court you wont have to pay legal costs etc if you loose.

Go to www.moneysavingexpert.com & www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forums they will tell you the steps you need to follow. If you start a claim now you should get your charges back for christmas!!!

Good luck

Answer 2

This is a bit confusing. As I see it you paid AOL by direct debit through you Halifax card. You went into the Halifax and cancelled the Direct Debit - did you fill in the forms? Did you also inform AOL that you had cancelled your account? They could be automatically taking the money still, which is more than likely. If you did all these things then Halifax are very much in the wrong. Go to the Citizens Advice Bureau and get their help. If you followed the correct procedures there should be no way that this money is coming out of your bank, especially as Halifax says there is no standing order apparent.

Answer 3

This has little to do with Halifax I'm afraid.

It looks like you had a contract with AOL for supplying internet services. You need to cancel that with AOL, not the Halifax.

If it's gone to debt collection then it looks likely that Halifax have done what they said they would - cancelled the Direct Debit, causing a debt to accrue with AOL.

As, from what you have said here, it doesn't look like you cancelled anything with AOL then AOL have continued to supply the service you signed up for (at least in theory). Sadly, it looks like you may have to pay up. Best course of action would be to discuss this with the debt collection agency.

Answer 4

try blagger.com they have lots of advice on banks and such about how much they rip people off and they know the legal side of consumers rights as well. phone the debt company and tell them we cant owe you money we cancelled its aol fault, it will give you a bit of breathing space so you can figure stuff out. halifax has probably sold the debt onto the debt agency, they want their pound of flesh and will use every legal loophole and trick to try and steal the money from you. be ready for them, but make sure you know your rights too

Answer 5

I had the same sort of problem with halifax, they carried on paying a direct debit when i had no money in the bank and no overdraft.
And in the i spoke to citizens advice but still had to pay it back.

Answer 6

I'm not surprised to hear your problems with the Halifax. I used them for a personal loan 2 yrs ago and they recommended taking an insurance with it. I have been ill since last December and they have used every trick in the book not to pay out. I have had to fight all the way and i keep winning, only for them to find something else the following month. When you are ill you don't need any hassle like this. I hope you go on to fight them and i hope you get back what was yours all along.......good luck.

Answer 7

Go back to the bank and raise hell. It seems to be the only way of getting anywhere these days. If the cashiers are delivering their usual useless service then demand that you speak to the manager and you're not leaving until you speak to someone! You cancelled your direct debit, so they should have done as you asked. I don't have a high opinion of them either cos they keep losing bloody forms and then they send me more and more letters asking for me to send them the form that i've already filled in god knows how many times!!!

Answer 8

Tell the debt collection agents that you wish to take it to court. Hire a no-win no-fee lawyer. Take AOL and/or Halifax to court and sue them for harassment and psychological torment. They will drop the charges, pay the court costs and pay you punitive damages. At least the legal threat would put them off!

Answer 9

did you owe aol or do they owe you a refund, if you have a problem with staff never be afraid to go to the next level and speak to a manager. This should never have got to the stage of a debt colection agency do nothing and you will have bailiffs - go to the citizens advice and know where you stand. if it needs paying then sort out a repayment shcedule.

Answer 10

i agree totally...halifax are crap!...my sister had loads of problems with em...they have theese ridiculous adverts on telly with all theese so called offers!....dont have ote to do with em anyone!...my advice is stay well clear.