Category: Miscalculated Mortgage Claims

A Miscalculated Mortgage Claim: Are you a Victim of Bad Advice?

Posted on April 30, 2020 by - Blog, Miscalculated Mortgage Claims, Uncategorised

A Miscalculated mortgage claim can be a nightmare if it isn’t handled correctly. There are so many reasons why you may have received a bad mortgage. It can be quite difficult to figure it out on your own, after all the reason will be quite personal and depend entirely on your own financial situation. That’s why it can be useful to learn whether or not you have been the victim of bad financial advice with the help of a mortgage claims specialist.

The more information you know about your claim, and how your mortgage may have been mishandled by your bank or broker, the more likely it is that you are going to have a successful claim. So, let’s learn about some of the reasons why your case may not have been personalised for your needs. They are not as complicated as you may think!

The Basics of Miscalculated Mortgage Claims

So, before we jump into some examples of how bad financial advice may have landed you with an inappropriate loan, let’s learn some context behind UK mortgages in general. This should help ground you before you move forward to make your claim. Let’s start off with a general description of what mortgages actually are.

Now, according to The Money Service Advice, and their fantastic beginners mortgage guide, a mortgage is a

“loan taken out to buy property and land.”

This loan can run on for about 25 years, however it can be shorter or longer depending on your personal circumstances. Now, a mortgage loan tends to be secured by the bank or broker by having it placed against the value of your home until it is actually paid off. Any payments will have interest on them.

Sounds simple, right? It is if you are careful with your payments. However, things are never that simple. If it was then most people would be able to afford their repayments without any worries. However, things can get extremely tricky if you get bad financial advice from the get go.

The Definition of Bad Financial Advice

As you can see, miscalculated mortgage advice can be more complicated than it seems. Most people simply assumed that the amount of their payments are incorrect, therefore they might get a refund out of it. However, if that was the case then may just have to accept that you made a bad investment. Instead, it is more about the concept of help.

You went to a bank or broker to get the best mortgage for you, only to find that they were not the ultimate source of monetary and mortgage knowledge. The advice you were given has put you in a worse financial situation than you would of if you had not taken it. Therefore, you are due compensation. How much you get depends on how much was put in.

How do I know if I’m a Victim of a Miscalculated Mortgage?

Now, there are many different ways that you could be due a miscalculated mortgage claim, especially if you mortgage has caused you to suffer from:

  • An inappropriate interest rate
  • Negative Equity
  • Being unable to pay your mortgage
  • High Fees

If you have noticed this happening to you, then you may have fallen into the trap of having a miscalculated mortgage. So, you may be asking yourself “But how did this happen to me? I was so careful!” Well, there are a number of examples of what may have happened to you. Take a look at our top 5 routes to being mis-sold mortgages for your home. Who knows, you may find that you have fallen into one of them yourself!

Example 1

Not all of us took out our mortgage back in 2004 when the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) first came into play. Some of us had taken out poor mortgage advice from a bank or broker before “M Day’s” regulations came into play. Before then, mortgages were sorted through The Mortgage Code Compliance Board (MCCB) and were based on the trust of the loaner. With the emergence of M Day, mortgage advisors now needed to be completely qualified and had to provide customers with a satisfactory amount of evidence to show that they understood what they were getting into. Usually this was illustrated through a Key Facts Illustration (KFI.)

If your mortgage was taken out before 2004, then this could give you the grounds to claim compensation. This is because your lender did not follow the proper rules and procedures to helping you. You did not have proper advice on your mortgage and may have been overcharged. Therefore, you have every right to raise a complaint and seek out the help of a miscalculated mortgage claim specialist.

If you have also passed by your retirement age or your mortgage is due to pay out, this may be another reason why the old mortgage man may have a claim. It if it clear (at the time you were given advice) that you were not meant to carry on paying your premiums after you retired, you definitely have a claim on your hands.

Example 2

Although the Financial Ombudsman has stated that:

“If someone’s told their lender they can’t afford to pay off their mortgage, we’ll check the lender has responded sympathetically and constructively – even if they didn’t give advice about the mortgage.”

Not everyone has a lender that will do that. Some lenders may advise their clients to self-certify (aka. Borrow money without having to prove your income) or overstate their income in order to borrow more. This means the amount you need to pay back may be too much, even if you pay back your mortgage through monthly payments.

If this has damaged your standard of living, or perhaps it is making it harder to pay back the loan altogether, you may be able to make a mortgage miscalculation claim. This is because it is clear that you have been ill-advised and have not had a recommendation based on your personal situation. A specialist mortgage claim solicitor can help you figure out what you can do next!

One more thing that may be forcing Over-Charged Ola to pay more than she should be paying is due to a sneaky PPI tax. PPI (Payment Protection Insurance) is usually placed on top of loans as a form of protection against illness or death. Even if it’s refunded, there may be some tax taken out of it. If you think you have a PPI claim, make sure to check out Gowing Law Solicitor’s blog and PPI form to get specialist advice on how to get your money back.

Example 3

You’ve probably noticed a theme running through these types of claims: They all happen because a financial specialist has given a client some bad advise. This is the same for Sammy Switch. When he first took out his mortgage, he may have had his doubts about it. So he was advised to switch lenders to get a better mortgage deal. Whilst this may have sounded good in theory, he was not told about the different fees and penalties that went along with this change. So, he did not realise that he was being over-charged for his early exit from his original agreement.

This could mean that you are basically paying for the exit fee of your original mortgage, as well as any fees that come along with your new mortgage. If you have been ill-advised on how to handle this, you may have the opportunity to make a claim for a miscalculated mortgage.

Example 4

Now, there is a bit of a sneakier way that brokers and lenders can squeeze some extra money out of you. This is through a commission fee. Most lenders won’t tell you about this until the mortgage is decided upon and then this fee is included in the paper work. You do not have to pay commission fees to a legitimate bank or broker. In fact, it is just a way that the lenders can ”legitimize” themselves. You should not have to pay this fee. That is why you may be able to make a claim in order to get this fee back, as well as secure some extra costs from your mortgage miscalculation.

Example 5

Originally, you may have been like Frank. You received a fixed-rate mortgage, which meant that the rates stayed the same. You were able to pay back a respectable amount per month. However, on the advice of your bank or broker, you may have been told to re-mortgage in order to find a better deal and payment plan for the future.

However, like Sammy Switch, they have not understood that there are fees in order to change mortgages. Frank did not realise that he would have to pay additional costs and penalties for leaving his fixed rate early. So, that means not only is he trying to pay his new mortgage, but he is currently “out-of-pocket” trying to end his older contract. It is a messy situation that means that financially Frank is losing out. This is why he has every right to ask for help filing a miscalculated mortgage claims from a law specialist.

Do you recognise yourself in any of these claimants?

All these claimants have clearly received incorrect information when choosing a personal mortgage. If you think that you are in a similar situation to them, then it may be time to look through your different mortgage contracts to see if there is any small print you are not sure of. You can complain to the Ombudsman Financial Services or FCA.  However, complicated mortgages can leave you unable to confirm your case without a specialist’s aid.

How much can I claim?

Unlike PPI claims, mortgages tend to be more focused on your own personal situation. You need to consider how much you have put into your mortgage, any additional fees and how much you could now be sitting on without the mortgage draining your finances. Win your entitled money. In other words, the money that you have overpaid to the lender.

How can Gowing Law Solicitors help you?

You may be wondering what your next steps should be in reclaiming your miscalculated mortgage. Well, you don’t need to do that on your own. With Gowing Law Solicitors, you can leave all of the tricky paperwork to us. We have experienced mortgage claim advisors on hand, ready to help you organise your information and inform you about whether or not you have a claim. All you need to do is contact us through our miscalculated mortgage page and fill out our contact sheet with your name, phone number and email. Our miscalculated mortgage page contains tons of useful information that will help you better understand whether or not you have a claim. So, why not go and have a look for yourself! Send your claim in to our specialists and you can end up with a fantastic result, aka. Compensation for your miscalculated mortgage.

Contact Gowing Law Solicitors today: The Top Miscalculated Mortgage Claim Experts in Manchester

We want to hear from you today about your claim! We offer expert advice for free and work on a “no win, no fee basis”, meaning that there are no hidden fees when it comes to handling your claim. You can contact us at 0800 041 8350. But also feel free to email us at info@gowinglaw.co.uk. or use our contact form.

We look forward to hearing from you soon about your claim!

Miscalculated Mortgage Claims: What you need to know!

Posted on April 28, 2020 by - Blog, Miscalculated Mortgage Claims, Uncategorised

Miscalculated mortgage claims are a bit of a headache for clients to deal with. No one likes being told that they are paying more for their home than they need to. After all, you could have been using that money for bigger and better things, plus it’s quite disheartening knowing that banks and brokers (who are meant to have years and years of experience in the industry) aren’t as perfect as you think they are. But don’t worry! Whilst your bank/broker may have mis-sold you a mortgage that didn’t suit your needs or your home’s condition, Gowing Law Solicitors is here to help you learn why you may be entitled to a claim.

Before we dive into the world of mortgages and their miscalculations, our specialist mortgage solicitors in Manchester are here to assist you in your claim. They are trained to take on the most challenging of claims and make sure that you get the pay-outs that you deserve. With their help, you will be supported throughout your legal journey to ensure you fully understand how your claim is being processed. That being said, the best way to understand whether or not you have a miscalculated mortgage claim is to learn about mortgages in general. In this guide, you are going to be informed about how you can tell if you have a claim, what you need to know about mortgages and how the miscalculations happened in the first place, additional mortgage issues and what you need to do claim back your money.

Of course, if you have any additional questions then feel free to contact our miscalculated mortgage claim experts in Manchester. They would be more than happy to offer you their specialist advice about miscalculated mortgage claims free of charge!

What is a Mortgage?

Okay, so we are starting off with a pretty obvious point. But sometimes it’s essential to list the basics so we can round off some of the more complicated points. According to The Money Advice Service mortgages are loans “taken out to buy property or land.” The majority are secured against your home and can last for around 25 years (however this is flexible, depending on the type of mortgage you take out). The value of said loan is made secure against the value of your home until it is paid off. To understand a little more about mortgages, take a look at this video made by Wall Street Survivor. It is full of useful tips to help you get to grips with the topic:

It’s important to only make reasonable payments to ensure you can keep paying back small amounts of your home. However, your broker/bank may not always be able to help you get the perfect payment plan for you. This is where mistakes are made, and why you are paying more than you should be.

What is a Mortgage Miscalculation?

To put it simply, when someone decides to take out a mortgage to afford a house, business residence or land, they will go to a bank or a broker. From there, a set amount of interest is decided on, depending on how big the loan is and the amount the house/land is worth. This is agreed between the bank/broker and the client. However, when a bank/broker overcharges their client for their loan, rather than stick to the intended agreement, this is when you have a miscalculated mortgage claim on your hands. Our specialists in financial property claims can then step in to get your money back.

Are there any other reasons why I could make a miscalculated mortgage claim?

Of course, things are never simple, so some mis-sold mortgages can be difficult to spot. You may be wondering to yourself, ”Can’t I just look at my mortgage statements and compare them to how much I’ve been paying?” Well, yes you can, but a miscalculation can also be due to the fact that your bank/broker gave you bad advice in the first place.

Back in the olden days (aka. Before 2004), there weren’t any regulations that had been put in place to supervise and regulate mortgages in the UK. Instead, lenders tended to follow a voluntary code, known as the “Mortgage Code Compliance Board”, also known as MMCB. However, after the 31st October 2004, now known as M Day, the FSA (predecessor to the FCA) decided to regulate each mortgage and make sure that all advisors were qualified.

Unregulated Rules

As the rules were not previously regulated, if your mortgage was not fully agreed on under the new rules, that means that you could have a miscalculated mortgage case on your hands. You may also have a mortgage claim if you have been affected by the following:

  • Your mortgages end date commences after you have retired.
  • Advisors told you to that it would be wise to overstate your earned income so that you could borrow more.
  • Advisors told you that you should self-certify, aka. Borrow money without proving that you earn a specific income.
  • Your advisors told you that you should switch lenders but did not tell you about any potential fees or penalties
  • Your bank/ broker gave you a fixed-rate mortgage but then told you to re-mortgage later on when a better deal with offered. That meant you incurred penalties for leaving your fixed rate earlier than what was agreed.

As you can see, there are a lot of reasons why you may have had a mortgage miscalculation claim. That’s why before you move forward to making a claim, make sure to look through all of the documents you received about your mortgage. If you read them carefully, this should give you an impression about whether or not you were treated fairly. Additional feedback and assistance can be given if you show your mortgage claim specialist in Manchester this information. They can help you understand if you are owed anything from your lender.

Who can be affected by a mortgage miscalculation claim?

Honestly, anyone can be affected by a mortgage miscalculation claim. Whilst it may be easier to make a claim if you have had a mortgage for a longer period of time, if you have taken out a mortgage recently, you may already been the victim of financial miscalculation. This isn’t because the policy itself is bad, it’s just because it isn’t a policy that will suit you. To put it more simply, have a look at this example of mis-selling:

As you can see, it’s not as complicated as you think. The mortgage policy simply did not fit you and now you need to claim compensation. Whether you have had it for several years or have recently taken out a loan on your home, it’s better to check whether or not it is the right fit for you. That way you can make sure that you are not paying more than you need to.

What could happen if your mortgage has been miscalculated?

Naturally, if you are dealing with a mortgage miscalculation claim, your trust in your bank/broker may be a little shaken. You have expected that your bank/broker is acting in your best interest, yet here you are having been forced to pay far more than you originally expected.

Your miscalculated mortgage may have also caused you to endure the following outcomes:

  • An inability to pay your mortgage
  • High fees
  • Negative Equity
  • Unsuitable interest rates

However, what you really can expect from an incorrect mortgage calculation is financial compensation. Whilst some people can expect a large remuneration, it’s important to understand that mortgage mis-calculation compensation’s main goal is to return you to the same position you would have been in if you had not been mis-sold your loan in the first place. Again, let’s put this in a simple way that should show you how the process works:

If you come to a mortgage mis-claim solicitor from Gowing Law, please bring as many details as you can about how much you have paid into your mortgage, as well as any information on whether anything has changed. The more you tell your mis-sold mortgage specialist, the better the outcome of your pay-out.

PPI claims and Miscalculated Mortgage Claims

According to the FCA, all financial services (including mortgages) must be sold to the client in a “fair, clear and not misleading” manner. So, to think that you may also have an additional potential payment on top of your mis-sold mortgage is disgraceful.

PPI (aka. Payment Protection Insurance) was an additional policy placed on top of loans or any sort of financial borrowing services. It was used as a safety blanket, so if you got sick or couldn’t repay the loan due to an emergency, this would cover the costs. However, a lot of these claims were mis-sold. For example, they were given to people who were self-employed, which didn’t make a lot of sense since they weren’t being employed by a firm or company. A lot of people tried to get their money back through a PPI claim, however they discovered that they were taxed on top of this.

There is a way to claim back this tax with the help of a specialist PPI solicitor from Gowing Law Solicitors. Check out our blog on the basics of PPI for more information! Better yet, if you think you have a claim, why not fill out our simple PPI form to help get you started. Our experts are here to offer you free advice on you PPI and miscalculated mortgage claims.

Deadlines for claims

According to the FCS, you have around 6 years to re-claim any sort of compensation from a mis-sold mortgage claim. So, if you want to claim a payment for a mortgage taken out in 2014, you are probably too late as the deadline for that would be at the start of April 2020. However, don’t panic if you have not managed to hit this time frame! A claim deadline can also be calculated 3 years from when you realised something was wrong with your policy. As long as you hit one of these deadlines then you should still be able to make a claim. Ask a Gowing Mortgage expert for their advice if you are unsure about whether or not you can make a miscalculated mortgage claims.

Corona Virus & Miscalculated Mortgage Claims

Now, this is a topic that may worry you about your claim. The corona virus (aka. Covid-19) has made it quite difficult for law firms to continue with regular claims thanks to social distancing and the imposed quarantine. However, the corona virus should not be a reason why you cannot make a mortgage miscalculation claim.

The first thing that you should have a look at is the FCA’s guidelines about mortgages and the corona virus, making sure that you check up on how payment holidays can help you to keep paying your mortgage, as well as information on what you can do if you are behind on your payments.

Don’t worry! If you still have a claim then Gowing Law Solicitors is here to help you get the money you deserve. We completely understand that you cannot come in to see us right now, however we can process your claim remotely. All you need to do is let us know your situation. You can then fill out our compensation form and then let us take care of the rest. It is that simple!

How do you make a Mortgage Miscalculation Claim?

Now, the first thing you need to do is figure out whether or not you have a claim. Of course, you can put in a claim on your own. After all, according to the FCA over 75,000 individuals have managed to do the same. The Times have eveen stated that these claims could total up to £150 million! However, the best advice can come from the top specialists for miscalculated mortgages. This includes the experts from Gowing Law Solicitors.

We have created a special mortgage claim contact form that will simplify the claims process. All you have to do is let us know your name and contact details. From there, we will contact you and ask for specific information about your case. Our specialists will use their expertise to let you know whether you have a claim. You don’t have to go through this claim on your own. We are ready to work with you and help you receive any owed payments.

Ready to learn more about the law?

We are dedicated to informing our clients about a variety of law topics in simple terms. So, if you have finished looking at our latest mortgage miscalculation topic, why not check out a different topic? We have information on the basics of UK immigration visas and PPI tax reclaims. These blogs are a great place to get started!

Ready to contact us about your miscalculated mortgage claims?

Remember, no matter what sort of mortgage you have, Gowing Law Solicitors is ready to assist you with any claim. You can seek our advice for free and we work under a No win- No Fee basis. That means that there will be no hidden fees!

If you want to contact us about your claim, please call 0800 041 8350, email info@gowinglaw.co.uk. or use our contact form.

Let us know if you have any questions!