25/01/2010
On 24th Jan, “The Sunday Times” published an article which claimed that over 400,000 mortgage borrowers exposed to unfair arrears charging by mortgage lenders and more than 80,000 homeowners in arrears could be due compensation after the FSA cracked down on unfair fees being charged by lenders.
The Financial Services Authority ordered GMAC to pay a fine of £2.8 million and refunds to customers of £7.7 million. GMAC was found guilty of "serious failings" between October 2004 and November 2008, including excessive and unfair charges that did not reflect administrative costs, failing to take into account customers' circumstances when ordering repayments, inadequate training of staff and failing to consider alternatives to repossession.
The fine imposed on GMAC was partly due to the £45 monthly charge that a borrower receives for going into arrears. The £45 is charged every month until the borrower goes into the black. However the FSA have deemed that charge to be illegal.
One source says: “It was common practice for lenders to follow each other when it came to charging for arrears. Everyone was around a similar market and this will be a question of when, not if, this will apply to other lenders.
The FSA has stated that it proposes to take immediate action on the monthly arrears fee as they deem it unjust and unfair.
For example a borrower repaying £50 per month of his arrears could see the whole £50 allocated to fees and therefore would never pay off the arrears.
The regulator is consulting this month and industry insiders expect it to become law by the summer while insiders expect it to fine a further five mortgage lenders.
If borrowers feel they have been overcharged they should in the first instance write to their lender. If they are unhappy with the response they should contact the Financial Services Ombudsman. These are regulated mortgage contracts so all the protection provided by the FSA Mortgage Conduct of Business rules apply.
Back to Latest News