I have just found this site and it is EXCELLENT - WELL DONE!

I have a long-standing "ordinaire" interest-only mortgage with The Woolwich. Some time back I decided to buy something else, arranged to remortgage, and asked for a redemption statement. The next thing, I got a phone call pitching me on the new Woolwich "Openplan" Current Account, and I could have a huge secured overdraft instead of remortgaging and leaving The Woolwich. I signed up (and loads of shit went down, but eventually I got the darned thing). I gaily bought the things I wanted.... and then lost my contract and my major source of income.

I have now fallen into arrears with my Woolwich "ordinaire" mortgage and also let my "Current Account Reserve" run over its limit.

The Woolwich have rushed to law - TLT in Bristol (actually they seem all right but dangerously clueless about the flippin "Openplan" thing. They can't tell me how much The Woolwich are claiming yet!! This is of course not at all funny.

Do any other surfers of this site have any experience of The Woolwich trying to repossess on one of these deals?

Did you know, by the way, that for every pound I go into arrears on the main mortgage, they dock a pound off the allowed overdraft facility, so it looks as if each month I go almost twice as far into the red? (My contracted mortgage amount is £370, and the interest ont he overdraft is running at roughly £280. Each month I haven't paif them, you would think I go backwards £650k. WRONG - they take £370 from the allowed overdraft and hence I actually add £280 to the overdraft, take £370 from the permitted "facility", and add £380 to the arrears. SO, the gap that they report to the lawyers (and I guess, to the Court in due course) is widening by £650 plus £370 or £1020 a month! (Actually, it is more, but I can't account for the £30 or so, it is probably some fee or other.

Do any of you have a similar experience?

Does the Virgin One Account work the same way?

What will the Court try to collect? The entire fifty grand or just the mortgage arrears, and how can I discover this before I get before the judge?

Sue MAXWELL SMITH

-- sue MAXWELL SMITH (suemax@btinternet.com), June 21, 2003

Answers

When the claim form is sent in to the court by your mortgagees solicitors, it will have to set down among other things, the monthly payment amount and specifically state how much of this you are in arrears.

The claim will seek possession on the ground of the arrears - when you fill in the response form, you will have to say how you intend to pay these arrears and will have to admit the claimant's right to a possession order.

You absolutely MUST attend the hearing - the judge will then suspend the possession order on terms that you pay £x per month off the arrears plus the ongoing monthly payment. Also, a judgment will be handed down for the full amount of the outstanding mortgage including the arrears and costs - this, like the possesion part of the order is suspended and will not take effect if you keep to the terms of the order which becomes unenforceable once you have cleared the arrears at which point both orders lapse. The judgment will not appear on your credit file, neither will the repossession as they are both suspended.

If you can show there is confusion over what is actually due, and that there was delay in the mortgagees solicitors advising you of the correct amount of arrears they want, you might be able to argue that they were wrong to take you before the court and have the case thrown out - but this is an unlikely step if you have clearly missed say three months payments and should know you are in arrears even if not by the exact amount.

-- David J. Button (davidjohnbutton@supanet.com), June 22, 2003.

Answer to david button - many thanks - hope I am posting this right

Thanks SO much for such a quick and such a long reply. I have realised that The Woolwich cold-called me and sold NOT a new mortgage called "Openplan" - when I posted that I really believed I had a mortgage called "Openplan", but they had sold me a simple secured current account ovrdraft when I wanted more mortgage money. Now I am in arrears on the old mortgage (which has run continuously since 1990) and I am over my overdraft limit. I thought it was treated as a mortgage. Hence I am pretty sure that in order to get out of this mess I will have to repay the entire overdraft of £54k and the arrears on the mortgage of £3k. I am actually over my overdraft LIMIt by £2k, so had I a mortgage I would be "in arrears" by £5k. A bit easier to find, eh?

Sue

-- sue MAXWELL SMITH (suemax@btinternet.com), June 23, 2003.