To consider ‘going to the papers’

[Hellorhighwater]

Three years ago, after my husband died, a major financial institution really cocked up my life. They have (finally) admitted responsibility, but are fighting me over compensation. The ombudsman is involved, but has now said they don’t cover all ‘consequential losses’, and I may have to sue for some of them. I can’t face it. It’s been utterly awful. Obviously it’s complex, but I’m missing £60k in equity I should have realised and about £800 a month ongoing. The damages add up to about £70k, so it’s not inconsequential amounts they’ve cost me. I’m trying keep my shopping budget under £20 a week this month for me, DD and two dogs. I’m penniless and they make millions in profits. It feels like they have all the power here, and it feels deeply unfair.

I’ve always thought that taking to the media is a low blow, but I’m so exhausted by the whole process I don’t know what else to do. I can’t carry on like this. ) I thought the ombudsman would be the end of it (they’ve been dealing with it since August last year and everything takes forever) and I thought perhaps a bit of bad publicity might push them into being a bit more amenable. Not that I actually have any idea how to do it. Email ‘The Sun’? (I don’t even read the news!). What do people think?

Contact FSCS/ action fraud and the SFO

@Rainbowshine

The broadsheet papers have a consumer/money section usually, might be worth contacting those as they contact the company and intervene. Better than having to do a Daily Fail sad face photo for the tabloid ones. And please not the Sun, after Hillsborough and phone hacking I couldn’t bear having any association with them.

Oh Gods, not actually The Sun, just one of the sensationalist rags. I normally have nothing to do with them, and it’s hypocritical I know, but I’ve a child and I’m on my own with this and I’m getting desperate.

Oh did you lose your home - I’m so sorry. Do you have some who can help you put your case together if that is not your skill set? The ombudsman are good but it will
Help you to put everything together clearly - eg my financial loss is that I had to sell a key asset (selling costs etc) now paying rent so not paying off capital as with a mortgage etc. I imagine it might be seen as reasonably foreseeable that if the insurer didn’t pay up this sort of financial loss would occur etc. as someone said you will get a very healthy interest rate from the ombudsman.

I think the reality is that the papers don’t care about the overwhelming majority of complaints and you’ll need to have a sob story to sell as well as be agreeable to posing for multiple sad face pictures for many papers. The company will give a statement apologising and saying the Ombudsman has investigated and they consider the matter closed.

Go to court. It’s reasonably straightforward.

@Ericabro

Contact FSCS/ action fraud and the SFO

This for sure but I’d also say Martin Lewis. I’d double check the legal implications of getting the media involved just in case it stitches you up in the long term. Good luck x

@cornflakedreams

Yes OP please don’t listen to posters like this ‘the media’ is not a single entity there are many hardworking decent journalists…sure, don’t contact the Sun but a lot of other people have suggested really helpful outlets. Would also suggest local media teams for BBC or ITV

The op is perfectly capable of weighing up information herself.

The points that I and others have made about the op's private information ending up in the public domain forever are equally valid whichever outlet we are discussing.

Stop trying to make this about you and whatever chip you have on your shoulder about "hardworking decent journalists" .

I’m not sure I am any more. But I appreciate the credit, thank you.

My first thought was Martin lewis or your MP too. Good luck. I'm sorry they've done this to you.

OP, have you ever watched Rip Off Britain? I reckon they would be interested in a case like yours:

mailto:[email protected]

Best of luck, and I echo what other posters have said, don’t go to the press unless it really is the last resort.

Have you spoke to Citizens Advice Bureau for some free legal advise.

Sounds like an awful situation.

*advice 😳

@Getoffmyshoes

In fairness the ombudsman are usually pretty good at remedying financial losses. If by consequential losses you mean “if I’d had the 60k I could have invested in XYZ and made double” then no they won’t enforce that because it’s very theoretical and speculative. The ombudsman will usually order the company to rectify the financial loss plus a healthy 8% interest.

Not quite. It’s more ‘if I had had the 60k I wouldn’t have had to increase the mortgage on my house and sell my motorhome in a hurry for less than I’d have held out for if I hadn’t desperately needed the cash. I’ve asked for the interest I’ve been paying and 8 percent on the capital. But there are other things that are less clear cut. Like a contract I couldn’t take,

Agree with others, MP and contacting guardian/telegraph money section would probably be more productive than a tabloid sensation.

Sorry for your loss OP, and I hope you get some resolution soon.

Relative has Mail on Sunday. There's a bloke in the financial section who to be fair, does seem to sort out problems with a good success rate. It's probably the only decent thing in the whole newspaper!
No photos at all, you would be referred to as Ms/Mrs H.

The Guardian "Money" section with Miles Brignall, seems very effective. You could try them?

@cornflakedreams

The media are not on your side. They will make sympathetic noises to get you to trust them and share information - and then you have zero control over how they spin it to sell papers. If you think you feel powerless now, it'll be nothing next to having a newspaper publish trash about you.

If they decided to portray you as money-grabbing or stupid or unsavoury there would be absolutely nothing you could do about it. And it would be published forever. Come up when people googled you forever.

Why would you consider trusting an organisation that was vociferous in blaming the victims of Hillsborough for their own deaths? Along with many subsequent disgusting episodes.

You'd trust them to publish your private life in a fair way? They're in it to make money.

This is total bollocks. As long as you're sensible you should feel very comfortable using the press to get this sorted, and it might well be the only way to sort it out.

As other people have said, use a reputable broadsheet's agony aunt/ uncle, rather than going for a tabloid.

As someone who actually works in journalism, rather than someone who just takes potshots at the press, it's very possible to do this in a smart way. Key things are:

• Don't agree to be photographed (providing a photograph you like is fine if needed, but the Telegraph / Times type pubs probably won't ask).
• Ask for quote approval
• Ask for a read back of the final copy.
• Check the previous stories published by that section and that writer and make sure you're comfortable with how they've been handled.

Another option is just to get hold of their press office's detail and drop them a line saying that you're considering writing an article with a major publication and you'd like to give them one last chance to sort it out before you do so. I usually find that works a treat.

Trust me please do not get any media involved the legal route is the only way

DFIL had an issue with a company being arses and costing him money, he wrote to the Times money 'agony aunt' and everything got cleared up in his favour pretty quickly, with compensation.

However in comparison with the sums you seem to be talking about it was a pittance.

I used Jill Insley before and she was so helpful- two big financial institutions were disagreeing over who had lost track of a chunk of money when it had been transferred. It was one of their fault but the other just couldn’t be bothered to investigate and were just saying- we had a look and you’re wrong so tough luck. She sorted it within days and told them to give us a bit of compensation. Not much but we used it to buy two kittens and we always joked that we should have called one Hargreaves and the other Lansdown

You and Yours on Radio 4 if it falls under the "consumer" category of complaint.

Worth a try.

The Daily Mail (yes, I know) is good on personal finance.

Contact The Sunday Times. They are brilliant. Don't hesitate to call them out

@TheSnowyOwl

I think the reality is that the papers don’t care about the overwhelming majority of complaints and you’ll need to have a sob story to sell as well as be agreeable to posing for multiple sad face pictures for many papers. The company will give a statement apologising and saying the Ombudsman has investigated and they consider the matter closed.

Go to court. It’s reasonably straightforward.

The ombudsman’s hands may be tied because of the time scales involved. I really don’t think I have it in me to do this anymore. Not go to court and have my financial records scrutinised and take on a financial institutions legal department. And what if I lost on some crappy technicality? Then I’d be homeless, for sure, paying their legal costs. It could be hundred of thousands easily. The losses aren’t always easy to prove because of covid affecting everything.

Also, I'm not casting any aspersions, but be very sure of your story, because if they take the story and do their job properly, they'll investigate.

Which? Money maybe 🤔

As others have said, contact your MP.

I would start off with your local paper, they'd make a bigger story of it than the nationals, and I know a couple of families who've had help this way when it's been picked up . Go to your MP too .