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1st January 2023 Independent Banking Advisory Service (IBAS)
After 30 years investigating and resolving UK business bank customer's banking disputes my thoughts are mixed on what bank customers face in the new year and onwards.
It is much tougher now when banks raise rates, change their position on your borrowings or your business loses momentum or cash flow. Banks are predators. When they smell weakness they tend to inflict more damage and increase their profits from your business.
Banks have created many problems for customers over the last few years which we have 'covered' on our web pages and news items. Many of those problems were due to Banks inflicting higher charges, interest and fees to overburden businesses and 'advising' businesses to enter into SWAPS and other interest rate hedging products which have ruined many businesses and only made more profit for the banks.
Nevertheless and despite the many fines imposed on them by the FCA, banks continue to make exceptional profits whilst their bank customer service continues to deteriorate, more branches have been shut and banks now seek to cut even more jobs to save costs.
Personal banking and personal contact with a human at a bank (often to correct bank problems and mistakes) now appears to require a great deal of customer's time and effort on a telephone or computer. Often, hanging on and just waiting for the call centre to decide whether they will let you speak to someone!
Internet Banking has not been trouble free either - as old banking systems have been adapted and others just broke down - sometimes for weeks.
We continue to help business banking customers in whatever way we can and we always respond to emails (providing they also provide details of your banking issues or dispute).
We have helped many business banking customers to survive, hold onto their assets or to help defend the bank debt claims. We also guide those businesses coping under banking pressure/s.
We look forward to helping more business banking customers during 2023
But, please do not wait to contact us until your 'back is against the wall' or you have decided to contact the banks's debt recovery unit to attempt to 'negotiate' - and then given away your position and lost your defences to their claim (if they existed).
By that time the banks are moving much more quickly to legally take your assets or dispossess you.
So, any help you have provided them at Debt Recovery will make that legal claim arrive even more quickly.
Contact us first - what have you lost by doing that?
Eddy Weatherill ceo IBAS email us at IBAS
IBAS has featured on BBC TV, BBC TV News, ITV News, Meridian TV and Sky TV News since 1992 and also contributed banking editorials and business banking articles for the Sunday Times, Times, Daily Mail, Daily Express, Telegraph and Daily Mirror.
Thursday, 16 December 2021
Independent Banking Advisory Service (IBAS)
UK Business Banking Dispute Help
UK Business Banking Resolution - Totally Independent - 30 years experience
IBAS acts only for UK Business Banking customers - IBAS do not act for Banks
If you have a disputed Bank claim for payment email IBAS for our assistance
IBAS investigate Directors Personal Guarantee Disputes and Business Banking Debt Claims and we can help defend bank legal claims or director's personal guarantee debt claims and help them avoid personal guarantee debt judgments
IBAS has been providing exceptional results for business banking customers since 1992
For immediate help and assistance: use the email contact and provide us with your banking dispute situation.
For help, assistance or advice talk to IBAS or use the Contact Form on the side bar.
Last amended: 5th September 2023
Monday, 1 February 2021
What does IBAS Membership Offer You
Summary
Independent Banking Advisory Service (IBAS) - has continuous business banking dispute investigation negotiations with all UK lenders since 1992.
We provide independent, professional, confidential and tactical guidance and direct assistance to UK directors and proprietors.
IBAS specialist business banking investigations knowledge provides experience and knowledge for business banking customers.
IBAS business banking account investigations and analysis of business bank loans, business bank current accounts, business banking contracts, business banking account facilities, plus our knowledge of business banking debt recovery strategy since 1992 provides extremely valuable insight and expertise for IBAS investigations.
We provide IBAS business banking investigations for UK bank business banking disputes and Submissions to Regulators and Independent, confidential, specialist business banking advice and direct tactical guidance on business banking accounts and facility documentation, business banking secured, unsecured lending, liquidation, receivership and debt claim disputes to UK Company Directors and UK companies.
IBAS is a unique specialist Business Bank customer membership organization which has dealt with large numbers of UK business banking case dispute investigations and resolutions since 1992.
IBAS acts for UK Business banking customers with business banking account concerns, disputes, issues, problems and business banking litigation disputes.
IBAS does not act for Banks
IBAS specialist Business banking knowledge and our experience in business bank account analysis, enables effective and economic business banking resolutions for business banking customers.
UK bank business debt claim demands or Director's Personal Guarantee Debt Claim demands from Limited Company debts, UK Director's Personal Guarantee debt claim demands and director's personal guarantee debt claim disputes are independently investigated, negotiated and resolved by IBAS.
It would be impossible to show our experience and knowledge from 30 yrs of banking cases in a few web pages
If you have a UK Business Banking Dispute please email IBAS with your specific questions - we will explain what can be done.
IBAS protects bank customers from the bank's often hostile intentions and actions.
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Banks possess very distinct advantages over their customers.
Those advantages include legal knowledge, experience of ‘complaint casework’ and knowing what is effective (for the bank).
IBAS will carry out fully independent investigations of business bank accounts based on relevant customer complaint.
IBAS will provide tactical guidance and guide you with your 'case'
IBAS will use historical banking account errors/bank charging mistakes and bank overcharging claims evidenced by IBAS account investigations and calculations to enable effective current business banking account complaint progression.
IBAS has been calculating business bank account and overcharging complaints since the mid 1990's
IBAS account investigations will enhance the customer's complaint with substance and evidence bank errors to the customers advantage.
IBAS will provide the business banking customer with essential expertise which is required for successful business banking complaints.
If you truly believe you have legitimate complaints in your business banking dispute or your business banking account debt dispute IBAS knowledge, our bank information from current and historical case work since 1992 and experience is essential.
If you have a business banking case and are being threatened by the banks recovery team and also a legal claim based on the bank's claim or demand or by Receivers or LPA Receivers then an IBAS investigation will substantially improve your chances of obtaining the best possible result for both you and your business.
Changes to regulation and the bank regulators from Bank of England - FSA - FCA and historic voluntary codes of conduct - IBAS have been around for all of those regulatory changes. We have recorded the changes as they occurred for our own records and IBAS use in business banking case work. In some cases that specific knowledge has been the vital cog in the wheel of a very good resolution.
IBAS is a professional, confidential guidance and direct assistance organisation providing UK Businesses with business banking account problems and disputes assistance and IBAS is an organisation which can help you with bank litigation.
IBAS provides good specialist advice and resolution and when IBAS is involved immediately after bank demand for payment, we aim to obtain all information which we know is necessary to assess legal arguments against existing case law.
As a Director, Partner or Proprietor with a UK business banking dispute or business banking debt claim you may have already received 'conflicted' advice, maybe from the bank, your accountant, Insolvency professionals or solicitors.
IBAS will know from many years experience how best your dispute may be 'handled' and offer value for money services.
IBAS experience with audits on bank interest overcharging has meant many bank debt claims have been considerably reduced or dropped once we have concluded our investigations.
IBAS lay the groundwork for successful defences - by first preserving defences which exist
and yes, we have been involved in cases which have been won by our members in the County Court, High Court and the Court of Appeal.
ILA (independent legal advice) Confirmation Certificates - provide banks with additional assistance. Banks and other lenders rely heavily on a solicitor providing them with their signed confirmation that they have provided independent legal advice to the bank's customer - which if correct then prevents the customer saying later that they relied upon bank advice or misrepresentations prior to signing documents.
But, in our investigation those specific documents may not be what they first appear - as banks are required to provide truthful information for ILA to be properly obtained - IBAS has found that careful investigation can find an ILA Certificate to be unreliable.
Waiver of ILA (independent legal advice) - bank customers signing a waiver of ILA provides the bank with confirmation that the customer has been offered ILA but has refused ILA (by the customer signing the waiver).
Banks and lenders use the signed ILA waiver document as evidence of their security position and in order to eliminate many of the misrepresentations claimed by bank customers. Again, the waiver may not be what it seems - IBAS investigations have provided evidence to discount dubious ILA waivers.
An IBAS member wrote in: "Just for information we have recently reduced the balance outstanding to the bank and now have a better relationship with a new manager who many times, has apologised for the actions of others that have gone before him. We would like to thank you for your assistance in bringing the matter with the bank to a conclusion. It would have been far easier if we had known about your organisation in the first instance and the corner the bank backed us into would probably never have transpired.
We could not recommend strongly enough to anyone struggling with the overzealous banks how helpful IBAS have been. When we consider how the bank treated us when we hadn’t done anything wrong, never missed a payment and had good loan to value rates, I can only surmise how aggressive they must be to others.
Once again many thanks for the help IBAS have given us both over the past two years. In the nicest way we hope never to require your services again! "- GL
Many solicitors and barristers have approached IBAS for assistance since 1992 - with many clients claiming the bank had acted dishonestly, incorrectly or very badly to the detriment of the customer
- often factual information was lacking and IBAS business banking investigations were then required to provide facts and the precise calculations to prove the facts.
Example One: Home possession case: The bank sought possession on the basis of an amount they claimed was owed to the bank after demand on a personal guarantee debt which was supported by a bank mortgage over her home.
However, the customer believed the debt was inflated by bank overcharging.
The barrister sought the facts to undermine the bank case for possession. IBAS carried out calculations requested by the barrister to establish the charging for the previous six years based on the banking facilities provided by the bank.
IBAS investigation of the 6 years of business bank statements and facilities up to the bank demand showed no evidence of overcharging.
However, our team perceived anomalies just prior to the six year period and we requested the instruction to proceed further.
Our further investigation beyond the six years proved that the bank had been overcharging interest on balances and that the bank had inflated the balances shown by previous overcharging.
Therefore, the debt claimed by the bank was totally incorrect and there was a substantial defence to the bank debt claim
Conclusion: The overcharge and the defence to the bank claim would have remained concealed without IBAS investigations - which provided the evidence for the barrister to counter the bank claim for possession.
Example Two: Mrs H was deceived by her husband who borrowed funds against their home - the bank attempted to enforce against the wife for the secured debts on their home because of the husbands business debts.
Mrs H was introduced to a solicitor by CAB but he proved to be unable to protect her position and his competence was questionable.
IBAS investigation of Mrs Hs position led us to conclude that her case was much stronger than her solicitor had attempted to put forward and her solicitor appeared to be accepting the bank position much too easily.
Our conclusion was that she required much better representation and we offered our assistance.
The case was eventually heard in the Supreme Court and Mrs H won her case on appeal.
Conclusion: IBAS knowledge, input and guidance was instrumental in this case reaching a successful conclusion in the Appeal Court.
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IBAS has featured on BBC TV, BBC TV News, ITV News, Meridian TV and Sky TV News since 1992 and also contributed banking editorials and business banking articles for the Sunday Times, Times, Daily Mail, Daily Express, Telegraph and Daily Mirror.
Independent Banking Advisory Service (IBAS) - IBAS launched in 1992 as a specialist business banking membership organization assisting bank customers with UK business banking account loan disputes and business banking debt disputes with their bank.
Our analysis and investigation of business bank loans, business bank accounts, business banking contracts, business banking account facilities and business banking debt recovery information is instrumental in our member's success.
Last modified: 31st January 2023
Wednesday, 20 January 2021
Personal Guarantee Advice on Demand for Payment
UK Directors Personal Guarantee Advice on Demand for Payment
UK Directors Bank Personal Guarantee Debt Claim Demands
For the most up to date information on UK Directors Bank Personal Guarantee Debt Claim Demands visit the page shown above.
Tuesday, 12 November 2019
IBAS Christmas warning
Directors UK Bank Personal Guarantee Debt Claim Demands and the IBAS Christmas Warning Post
- Christmas 2019 is now fast approaching and Banks will use their normal strategy on legal claims.
- That means they will be already preparing their Christmas legal claims.
- Many are prepared deliberately to drop through your letterbox just before 'close of business' on Christmas Eve.
- Getting 'advice' for a Director's Personal Guarantee Debt Claim around Christmas and New Year is extremely difficult.
- Banks know that and whilst they have easy access to solicitors at all times their customers will not.
- Between Christmas Eve 2019 and 2nd or 3rd January 2020 is a normal holiday period for most in the UK.
- Therefore, good strategy (although extremely unfair) for banks to issue a claim ready for Christmas Eve.
- The 'service' on you will be deliberately timed for maximum effect for the bank's benefit.
- The legal clock starts ticking once a claim is 'served' and it puts the customer under extreme 'time' pressure.
Losing 10 days in the Christmas - New Year period does not help someone with a legal claim to obtain help.
- Banks know that customers are forced to react - which means many customers will also attempt a DIY response.
- Banks love DIY responses, as they know they will normally lead to the bank obtaining an 'easy judgement'.
or
The customer just doesn't react at all and judgement is obtained by the bank by default. DIY responses also miss possible defences which may be effective for a legal argument to avoid 'strike out'. We would suggest that anyone who already knows there is a bank claim 'lurking' against them obtains help.
The customer just doesn't react at all and judgement is obtained by the bank by default. DIY responses also miss possible defences which may be effective for a legal argument to avoid 'strike out'. We would suggest that anyone who already knows there is a bank claim 'lurking' against them obtains help.
Do not get 'rushed' into answering a bank's legal claim without any help at Christmas.
Drop IBAS an email and we will explain what can be done.
Eddy Weatherill - Independent Banking Advisory Service (IBAS)
Monday, 8 July 2019
The FCA must stop making excuses and act to avoid another GRG scandal
The FCA must stop making excuses and act to avoid another GRG scandal
Baroness Bowles is a Liberal Democrat peer in the House of Lords and her views were published by City AM on 27th June 2019:
“It is six years since the damning accusations came to light that the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) had been decimating small businesses for its own benefit.
It was in fact a businessman, an adviser at the time to Vince Cable as business secretary in the coalition government, who uncovered and pulled together the dossier accusing the bank.
Following a five-year investigation, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has now produced its report on the scandal. It is disappointing: its conclusion finds no one guilty, and its only answer to what happened there is a gap in our regulations. Not exactly ground-breaking. So, today my Liberal Democrat colleagues and I have secured a debate in the House of Lords to urge the Conservative government to join us in demanding action.
The scandal started with Global Restructuring Group (GRG), a unit which sat within RBS. GRG was in theory set up to help turn around the fortunes of struggling businesses which had taken out loans with RBS.
But the reality was far more sinister; RBS bullied business customers to move to GRG by demanding instant repayments. Customers were then stripped of their assets in order to benefit GRG’s own bottom line.”
“GRG dealt with large companies as well as small ones, but, as has been widely reported in the media, it was for the most part the SMEs which were “mistreated” at the hands of RBS – 92 per cent, in fact.
“Mistreated” is an understatement. Lives were ruined as RBS customers lost their livelihoods, their homes, and in some incredibly tragic cases, their lives. A leaked training document for RBS staff stated: “sometimes you need to let customers hang themselves”.
The FCA’s report, although damning about RBS’ conduct, is shamefully weak on plans for enforcement. It presents a catalogue of excuses of why action cannot be taken both against RBS now, and to prevent this from happening again.
Neither of these is an impossible ambition. Under the FCA’s existing Principles for Good Regulation: “a firm must take reasonable care to organise and control its affairs responsibly and effectively, with adequate risk management systems”. RBS’ behaviour clearly falls short. This has been used before to pursue banks for the unregulated activity of foreign exchange, so why can it not be used for commercial lending for SMEs?
It is equally outrageous for the FCA to imply that commercial lending to SMEs is not systemically important. There are 5.6m SMEs in the UK employing over 16.2m people – they are a crucial part of our economy. And RBS was the largest lender for them.
The FCA also claims that because RBS’ activities are unregulated, with no standards set, there is nothing to measure “fit and proper” against. But, undeniably, the actions of those working at GRG fell well below what can be seen as fit or proper.”
“Finally, the FCA has said that it was previously powerless to investigate GRG because the unit was outside the regulator’s remit. Now, new powers mean that if a similar situation were to occur again, the FCA might launch a probe, but apparently it would be “inappropriate” to look at the GRG scandal using those new powers, and it is far from clear that the powers would lead to significant enforcement.
This is simply not good enough. Not only does the FCA owe it to victims to launch a thorough investigation, but it should be implementing regulations to ensure that this cannot happen again, not merely focusing on giving itself powers to investigate if it does.
GRG unfairly destroyed lives, repossessed homes, acted aggressively and without transparency or proper control. What happened at RBS cannot be repeated, and the FCA must be at the forefront of ensuring this.
The Liberal Democrats demand better and the victims of the scandal deserve it. Commercial lending for SMEs must be regulated. The FCA must stop making excuses and act. To fail to do so is to leave all those vulnerable to the same treatment that caused this scandal in the first place.”
Baroness Bowles opinion follows the FCA publishing their report on the 13th June 2019 (as shown below):
FCA slammed over ‘whitewash’ RBS GRG report - The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today published its report into why it was unable to take enforcement action against senior individuals within the GRG, which has been accused of stripping its customers assets to shore up its own balance sheet at the time of the financial crisis.
Kevin Hollinrake MP, co-chair of the APPG on fair business banking, said: “This report is another complete whitewash and another demonstrable failure of the regulator to perform its role.
“The FCA must publish a full account of its findings including naming those responsible for the shameful mistreatment of thousands of UK SMEs.”
“Phase two of the FCA’s own final requirement notice was supposed to ‘consider the root causes’ and establish whether ‘the causes of such treatment were known about, authorised by and/or sanctioned by management within RBS Group’. They have manifestly failed to do this. - City A.M. 13th June 2019
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