Director’s Personal Guarantee through Financial Ombudsman Service complaint.

If you are contemplating making a complaint for a director’s Personal Guarantee debt claim or ‘call’ on a PG to the Financial Ombudsman Service - make sure you are aware of the ‘downside’ to making such a complaint - and if you do make a complaint do not wait until a ‘Final Decision’ is made against you - which is then also binding on you.

IBAS response to an enquiry where the Financial Ombudsman Service had been used for a Personal Guarantee Debt ‘call’ complaint is below :

You say in your enquiry that: 'the bank have lied blatantly to the court stating that I was an experienced company director and my husband’s also an expert in company matters – but I have only ever run a very small business and my husband is in IT. The Financial Ombudsman Service was only interested in the fact that I had signed a guarantee - so they said I should pay the guarantee - they wouldn't consider anything else I had said.'

If you've read our web site you will be aware that that is what banks do - and the FOS decision is what IBAS would have predicted because from our experiences any ‘investigations’ by the FOS on these matters are extremely limited (if they even start) and therefore the FOS actions (or inaction) serve the bank’s purpose well.

Had you come to IBAS some time ago (and before the FOS final decision was provided) we might have been able to properly argue your case and establish a defence and to argue it correctly - but IBAS needed to be involved before matters reaches the stage you have reached now – you are now facing a ‘summary judgment’ – once the court judgment is provided the bank will seek a charge over your property and exert further pressure - which may be by an ‘order for sale’ by the bank for payment of the debt then owed to them.

On the IBAS web site you will find our members' testimony to what IBAS can do and what it has done for them. 

IBAS know what is possible and also know how it needs to be done, for the best results to be gained - equally we know how easy it is made for the banks when individuals do 'DIY defending'. Unfortunately, you have now found to your miss fortune that when you defend against a bank you need much more than a DIY complaint to the FOS and that banks don't 'fight fair' - IBAS already had that information (about 19.9 years ago).

IBAS start with that knowledge and work with that knowledge at all times on every case. IBAS was formed to provide business banking customers with our collective experience which has been gathered from the last 20 years from the many IBAS banking case investigations. Everything we have gained is used in helping our members win or negotiate their cases to a conclusion.

IBAS provides members with very specialist knowledge and experience under membership. Unfortunately, by using the Financial Ombudsman Service and by ‘DIY defending' you have helped the bank to win their case against you. Because of that - you have now lost any opportunity to deny or argue against the summary judgment - because the Financial Ombudsman Service has already ‘found’ for the bank and that will be used against you.

Inevitably, that means a judgment in the bank’s favour plus all extra costs and interest (and the ‘extras’ will cost much more than any IBAS membership would have cost) but most importantly all opportunity has now been lost to negotiate the amount claimed by the bank. Sadly, your actions have left nothing with which to argue or negotiate your position. You are now at the 'mercy' of the bank.

As there is nothing left with which we can assist you it also means it is now too late for IBAS to become involved.

Note: IBAS receive more of these enquiries now than ever before - The moral of our response is:

IBAS cannot help you - if you do not help yourself – it also shows that IBAS cannot accept membership from those with ‘lost’ causes. The FOS may appear to be a very ‘cheap option’ but not cheap if the FOS’s ‘Final decision’ then means you lose any opportunity to negotiate with the bank and also possibly lose your home.

email IBAS today for help

IBAS is the most experienced organization in this field with almost 20 years 'track record' in Banking cases and resolving Director's Personal Guarantee issues. Our aim is to provide the best professional and personal Banking and Personal Guarantee advice service to protect our members at a low and affordable annual membership. IBAS offers specialist and individual Banking and Personal Guarantee advice and assistance and will assess your personal position to establish how your banking dispute or Personal Guarantee may impact upon you and also your family. Our first action is always to protect your personal position and prevent it being compromised further, by any ill advised actions with regard to the banking dispute or Personal Guarantee you have already signed.

IBAS early advice on Personal Guarantees, Personal Guarantee debt claims, Bank Guarantees, Personal Bank Joint Guarantees, Personal guarantees and Indemnity, Personal Guarantees for SFLGS - prevents costly mistakes and even greater risk of losing the marital home from ill informed actions.

Find our 2012 national newspaper comments (plus many more over many years) in the News and archives sections of our site - these prove that IBAS can be relied upon and has been in existence helping business bank customers with their personal guarantees and personal guarantees demands since 1992. IBAS has also featured in BBC TV and ITV News items and programmes on UK banking and business banking issues many times since we were established in 1992.

Independent Banking Advisory Service (IBAS) is a national, independent, non-profit, unique specialist banking customer membership organization which resolves banking complaints and disputes and which has campaigned on UK Banking customer issues since 1992. We provide bank and business banking assessment, analysis, bank comment and content for BBC TV News, ITV, Radio and national newspapers'.