Does anyone have any experience of repossession with UCB?

-- Si (debonai@ukonline.co.uk), April 29, 2001

Answers

I and a joint owner gave the keys back in a voluntry repossesion in 1991. He settled for £6,300 (shortfall on sale of £25K), I told them to use the MIG. They tried again in 1996 and went away. They finally came back this year and I have engaged Peter Walker of Concept Management to finalise things. They have obviously handed the matter to a debt collector/ solicitor called Lean & Co and the gloves are off. They now say the debt is £44K and have sent a summons. I have SARNed everyone in sight and sent a copy of 1997's threatening letters to the data protection officer (asking for my wife's income and threatening court if not forthcoming - naughty, naughty). I am counter claiming agaist them on the grounds of mis-selling (MIG), negligence (not producing MIG when repeatedly asked), harrasment (I & E), and I am trying to work out another one based on lying to me that subrogation is the law that lets them claim from the MIG and then come after me for the money themselves.

In general UCB have been sloppy and just sent sent my file to another bad mannered desk jockey for years. This has only come to a head because I want it finished! It has been going on for so long now that I am deriving some kind of peverse enjoyment at finally spending some time going to war against UCB - We were originally told and always believed the MIG would protect us from negative equity, so definately a case of miss selling.

Alistair

-- Alistair (alistair.hill1@virgin.net), April 30, 2001.

Alistair - you may wish to email me. I have some information which may cause you to re-think using the person to which you refer.

-- Too scared to say (iwasduped@yahoo.com), April 30, 2001.

Thanks for the info, I have a repossession hearing on Thursday. I have had a UCB mortgage for 10 years. The property was only a one bedroom house and when we had kids we tried to sell. I discovered the property had negative equity and UCB would not allow us to sell at a reduced amount. We had to move out into a bigger house and have been renting. I was made redundant last year and have not paid the mortgage for 6 months, However I restarted payments last month. UCB seemed very keen to repossess the property even though the arrears are only about £1000. Part of the problem is I payed a lump sum in March last year from the sale of my endowment policy. This payed my mortage for several months, however UCB are claiming I have not made a payment for a year (which is true, but the lump sum was to pay my mortgage up to August 2000. So in fact I am 6 months in arrears, not 12)

-- Si (debonair@ukonline.co.uk), April 30, 2001.

ucb have tried to repossess our house on three occasions at each court hearing ucb claimed for extra costs that we had no knowledge of and we had been paying our mortgage plus extra to pay off 2 months arrears the judge was not impressed with ucb and told them to go away and learn how to deal with customers properly!!!we are still under threat we are trying to sell our house for £350k our mortgage is £180k we cant pay the mortgage of £1500 per month and now they want to repossess so here we go again iwill keep u up to date.

-- jeremy westcott (jerwestcott@aol.co.uk), August 02, 2001.

UCB.... My father died leaving my mother an interest only UCB mortgage and various debts and unable to meet repayments. UCB launched repossession action within 9 months (3 months of which were non-payment) Despite trying to get them to talk, negotiate, or even acknowledge her existence, other than on the first of each month was not easy - in fact it took a court hearing. I am hoping they slip-up on the coming repossession - I find them slipshod at the best.

-- Chris Gill (cjrgill@talk21.com), September 29, 2002.