Bank of Ireland increase differential on tracker rates

Bank of Ireland increase differential on tracker rates

10:32 AM, 28th February 2013, About 12 years ago 1862

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The story of the Bank of Ireland decision to increase to the differential (interest rate margin) on  tracker mortgages started on this forum when a professional landlord contacted Property118 within minutes of a letter from Bank of Ireland landing on his door mat. What ensued was outrage from landlords and affected residential mortgage borrowers. The story was quickly picked up by the National Media as it wasn’t just the 13,500 affected borrowers who were worried.

Will this set a precedent for other mortgage lenders to follow?

Property118 reacted by using funds donated to The GOOD Landlords Campaign to underwrite the cost of a barristers opinion on the legality of the Bank of Ireland’s actions. The remainder of this thread,one of the most read and most commented threads of all time on Property118, continues to tell the story as it unfolds.

If you want to skip the story and cut to the chase simply CLICK HERE

Of the 13,500 affected borrowers, 1,200 have had the decision reversed by Bank of Ireland. With additional support and pressure we believe all affected borrowers can and will see justice done.

___________________________________________

Lee, a professional Landlord asks, “help! I have just received a letter from the Bank of Ireland stating they want to increase the differential on my tracker rates.

I have 12 mortgages with the Bank of Ireland previously Bristol and West. I have been on a base rate tracker of 1.75% above base, but now Bank of Ireland are using some fine print claiming they have to recapitalise and saying the ‘new differential will be 4.49%.

How can I fight back?”

The original policy wording seems to be:

6 INTEREST

Charging interest at a tracker rate

(j) Unless we change the differential (if any) under condition 6 (n), we will not change the tracker rate unless the base rate changes.

(m) in condition 6 (n):
– a “positive differential” means a percentage which we add to the base rate to arrive at the tracker rate; and a “negative differential” means a percentage which we subtract from the base rate to arrive at the tracker rate.

(n) We may reduce a positive differential or increase a negative differential at our discretion by giving you not less than seven days written notice. This means that we can change the differential in a way that is favourable to you.

The above seems to indicate that they can reduce the rate in my favour, but not give them the right to increase it. Am I correct?


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ian

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16:26 PM, 22nd May 2013, About 12 years ago

Congratulation Gary best news so far you going down the pub ?

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18:14 PM, 22nd May 2013, About 12 years ago

Hi Mark, is there anyway to check to see who is eligible for this u-turn by the BOI by looking at my original offer letter from the BOI. Do you know if this applies to the BTL mortgages.
I'm glad that at leas some people are getting the decisions reversed.
I look forward to your reply.
Regards
Colin

Mark Alexander - Founder of Property118

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18:39 PM, 22nd May 2013, About 12 years ago

@Colin Thody - all EasyFlex products sold by BOI had a product code. I am asking all the people who have received the u-turn letters to let me have copies and we will be cross referencing them with the product codes. Once we have them I will post here 🙂

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19:27 PM, 22nd May 2013, About 12 years ago

I've also received one of the letters, my product was a F9XM. I think the reason for the 'let off' was due to us using the drawdown facility back in 2008. I still have the letter and on it, it states "From the date of this letter until the end of the mortgage term, the interest rate we charge will be 1.20% above the BOE Base Rate". I believe it is this statement that has forced them to backtrack due to their promise to the FSA that they will not apply this rise to customers were they may have been led to believe the 'differential' was for life.

Mark Alexander - Founder of Property118

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19:39 PM, 22nd May 2013, About 12 years ago

@ResidentialBOI - it would be incredibly useful if you could email a copy of both of those letters to myself and Justin Selig please.

Our email addresses are mark@property118.com and justin@lawdepartment.co.uk

Many thanks in advance 🙂

With this additional evidence a very clear picture is forming, i.e. that even the Bank of Ireland themselves believed their tracker margins were fixed and they didn't understand their own small print. How on earth they can think they will get away with this charade is totally beyond me.

Back in February this year they wrote to you imposing a massive hike in the interest rate differential. As a result of complaints they realised they had shot themselves in the foot by sending a letter to 1,200 mortgage accounts over 5 years ago confirming their original intention for the differential to be fixed and they now think they can get away with dealing only with that wound.

We need to rally together even more now and let BOI know the gangrene has set in and the remaining 12,300 affected borrowers will be taking their legs off as a result!

Justin Selig - solicitor

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19:45 PM, 22nd May 2013, About 12 years ago

ResidentialBOI - in response to your last comment - you are correct. It appears that those people who utilised the Easyflex facility to draw extra funds from their mortgage account and then received a confirmatory letter are being let off the hook. Those that had the facility but did not use it are not.

This is great news for those people who used the Easyflex facility. This should also be good news for everyone else, as the advice we are giving is not based on the existence of this letter. This is an arbitrary decision by the bank to look like they are listening to the complaints without having to backtrack completely.

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21:03 PM, 22nd May 2013, About 12 years ago

Mark & Justin
I have emailed you both the copy of the letter from 2008, the one with the "ambiguity" as they are stating, and also the letter received today. I really hope everybody affected by this has this injustice overturned. What would an increase to 13500 mortgages have made the bank? 50 Million a year? What's that a handful of Executive's bonuses. What is it going to cost them in PR and loss of future custom. Anyway hope the letters help and again I hope this is overturned for everybody.

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8:31 AM, 23rd May 2013, About 12 years ago

A U-Turn on Tracker for 1200 customers! But what about the remaining Tracker customers and the customers who took a SVR B&W mortgage out prior to BOI takeover?

No recent threads on SVR customers who saw a hike of 2.99% to 4.49% last year. Has this seemingly unlawful hike been recently investigated?

Any advice on what I could do? It is obvious the BOI have realised the Tracker hike was not as cut and dry as they had planned!!!

ian

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8:44 AM, 23rd May 2013, About 12 years ago

Gary Smith

Are you planning to go back to the media to run a success story on you ? as this would give the publicity we need to give hope to others & hopefully get more signed up to the Class Action

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9:35 AM, 23rd May 2013, About 12 years ago

@ian - I've already been contacted by BBC Money Box, and will go back to The Guardian who ran an article back in March!

For reference my mortgage product: H4BM - Core EasyFlex Offset

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