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!
