Capstone Mortgages – Rip Off
UPDATE 12/01/2010
I am getting a letter a week at the moment from Capstone Mortgage Services telling me that they are charging me for my arrears. My insurance company have told me in writing that they faxed this years insurance documents directly to Capstone and yet Capstone have still forced me to have their Insurnace product.
The Ombudsman is weak and inept and companies such as Capstone are able to play on this, Capstone Mortgage Services will not be getting this money and I am now talking to a solicitor to see what my options are for sueing them direct.
I will update on how my capstone action pans out.
But ANYONE reading this must avoid using this company at all costs.If you are contemplating using Capstone Mortgages then you may want to read about my experience which is similar to many others, you may well want to think again.
UPDATE I am getting a huge amount of negative feedback on Capstone Mortgage Services, it must be time for some investigation with teeth into the practices deployed by Capstone Mortgage Services by official watchdog bodies.
Capstone have been the worst mortgage company I have ever dealt with and I am amazed they are getting away with the practice of trying to intimidate people into paying twice for home insurance and when they don’t pay twice then Capstone levy charges which I believe must be against the code of conduct.
How is this done?
Well its quite simple -
- First you must be one of the unlucky people to have taken a mortgage out with them or their other face which is ‘Preferred Mortgages’.
- Then what you do is get your own house insurance because the home insurance they offer is not competitive.
- Then on the anniversary of that insurance you renew your policy as normal because its value for money.
- About two months later Capstone start sending you letters telling you that your mortgage is in arears.
- Your name is then entered on an auto dialing system and their collections department start ringing you night and day but when you answer the phone hangs up immediately and you hear a message to urgently call them.
- You call them and stay on hold for up to 30 mins.
- When somebody answers you are accused of having mortgage arears and that your house it at risk if you do not pay up.
- After 15 mins you find out that what they have done is forced you to have their home insurance without you signing a single document and that the arrears is actually the £300 they have charged you for this privilage.
- After explaining that you have your own house insurance you are then told that you should of sent a copy to them and because you didn’t do this they can force their own expensive product choice on you.
- When you argue about this practice you are told that it is in the small print of your contract but when pushed they refuse to show you this.
- When by chance you discover that Capstone have a copy of your own house insurance on file because your insurance company sent it direct they still refuse to refund the money and continue charging admin costs.
When this happened to me I contacted the customer services manager after four months of Capstone telling me not to worry on the phone and then sending demanding letters through the post and threatening answerphone messages left on the phone.
This Capstone manager promised to sort it out and promised that the Capstone Mortgage Auto Dialing service and their collections team would leave me alone. He also promised that the charges that should never have been levied would be rescinded. Now almost a year on I am still getting the same letters, the same threatening phone calls and the same charges being levied, whats more today I had a big suprise!!!!
You guessed it, one year on from the first attempt at extortion Capstone Mortgage Services have sent me a new letter for this years insurance, even though Legal and General faxed the insurance policy DIRECT to the Capstone HQ and Legal and General wrote to me confirming this.
That is another £300 added to my ficticious outstanding account!!!!
I rang them immediately and was told by customer services once again that this was an error and that they would refund the cost of the insurance, however, they cannot refund the charges because that is the collections department who are independent. I then found out that last years insurance was refunded but only to the tune of 50% , the other 50% they requested from Legal and General who quite rightly told them to get stuffed so they levied it back on me.
Now considering that they cannot show me my original contract or where I am bound to take their insurance without signing for it, even though I have asked repeatedly to see this contract, also considering despite this lack of proof I have complied with their wishes and so has a leading insurance provider, how can this practice be legal and not outright extortion?
- When you investigate further it becomes clear that this practice is designed to bully people into giving Capstone Mortgages money under the pretence of mortgage arrears.
It does not make sense to avoid factoring this story into your decision making process when looking at mortgage providers – Capstone Mortgages would be the last company I would use and I will not roll over and just accept this immoral and unethical practice either.
Watch this space too…..
Capstone were called Preferred Mortgages in the old days, they have changed names 3 times at least.
does anyone remember or know what Capstone were before they changed their name to Capstone in about 2005? interesting to see they are up to even worse tricks , and getting away with it.
I have exactly the same case with this company, been marking me as 4 late payments for three/ years. Insurance company forwarded them policies direct and they still added insurance premiums. FOS made them refund the insurance and they still left the charges for the monthly management fees. I applied to the court for the case to be relisted as they attempted for possession proceedings and then backed out with liberty to restore, so i restored it.
They have made an application to strike out my defence 4 days before the trial was to start and despite me challenging this at the court desk, as the trial was put off behind closed doors(i wasnt invited).
Case was listed for 7th August at Liverpool County Court and on the morning of the hearing for their application, they sent some top barrister with a skeleton argument and a bundle of case law to support their claim. Judge nearly ruled in their favour, until it was claimed this would breach article 6 of The Human Rights Act 1998, she then agreed that they had tried again to blindside me. The matter is now listed for a Chancery Judge hearing on 2nd October 2012 at Liverpool County Court.
I am counterclaiming them for losses of around £45’000. Feel like i am not getting a fair trial though just the appearance of one.
Its took me over a year now to get the Police to investigate them obtaining money by deception as when i would not pay by direct debit and i refused to pay for insurance they sent me a letter stating that my mortgage payments had changed due to an increase in the libor rates from 750 something to 832, this included 79 building insurance premiums which they did not disclose.
Merseyside Police have refused to investigate the matter for a year and a half until complaints were made to Merseyside Police Authority, The Home Office etc. Finally they may get whats coming to them as theres also an FSA investigation
Capstone are now Ascendon Mortgages – still the same bullies though.
There is a website exposing the despicable practices of Capstone/Acenden at http://www.acendenactiongroup.co.uk/customer-care-at-capstone/
I too was burned by this deceitful company, resulting in my home being repossessed, very unnecessarily. The legal system really needs to pull its socks up with companies like this.
Hi Magaly,
Yes it has a lot of traffic especially for consumer issues.
Hi, I must say interesting website you have, I stumbled across it in Yahoo. Does it get much traffic?
Thanks! I’m impressed! When will you do another entry?
This is the American model can anyone here see any similarities?
1.Block insurance policy despite you and your own insurance company informing them you already have an insurance umpteen number of times,your account is then immediately in arrears with fees added?
2.Mysteriously lost payments putting your loan in default,exorbitant fees then added?
3.Bullied and threatened into paying lump sums as loan modifications in times of hardshipicon do not exist.?
etc etc
Introduction to the Mortgage Servicing Fraud [problem]. 2003
This is a game of heads they win – tails you lose.
• These are not “predatory lenders.”
These companies do not loan money. They operate in the lending industry after-the-fact. They take on a function that a lender doesn’t want – the backroom functions of handling payments, escrow accounts, annual statements, dealing with borrowers, collections, etc. The perpetrators of the loan servicing [problem] acquire the servicing rights to loans that other companies have already made. (Loans that were deliberately constructed by predatory lenders are ideal for processing through servicers that specialize in aggressive collections or rapid foreclosure processing, but the loan servicing [problem] can be operated against any mortgage loan if the servicer acquires the rights from the lender.)
• These [problem]s are designed and deliberately operated.
These situations are not errors, mistakes or situations where a servicer’s managers or employees failed to do their job. Their systems are well-designed and state-of-the-art in terms of analytical technology that helps them choose and process their victims. These [problem]s generate enormous profits from a business that is difficult to run, people and litigation intensive and normally only marginally profitable. Many have failed and been acquired (Fairbanks bought several).
• You, the borrower, are not their customer. Lending companies and investors are their customers. As a borrower being “serviced” in the [problem], you are simply one of millions in an ever-growing pool of what the financial services industry deliberately labels as “sub-prime” borrowers waiting to be taken advantage of.
• They have almost unlimited legal resources. If you had the financial resources to have effective legal representation and the documentation to challenge them, they would turn their attention to easier targets. Of course, because most sub-prime borrowers are not well off and don’t have an attorney, you’re a likely target.
• They have leverage and information and will prey on your fears. The fear of possibly losing your home is the key that unlocks your bank account for them. They know almost everything about you financially and even from an employment and income basis. They are made aware of your inquiries into other lenders about refinancing even without a request for a payoff and that shopping may lead them to target you before you can get out of the loan you’re in.
• They are experts with millions of successful cases behind them. The loan servicing industry, including those who founded and are running the servicing [problem] companies, helped craft the “standard” loan documents in widespread use. They are written entirely for the protection of the lending industry, not the consumer. That situation allows them to manipulate their processes and procedures to push you into a position where they can take funds from you or ultimately take your home, often within the terms and conditions of the loan. Some do go beyond the terms or even break the law and aren’t stopped because the borrower does not actually understand the agreement they signed or the laws and regulations.
The path toward losing your home to this [problem] is actually quite simple.
1. The first phase is designed to fabricate the default, and typically begins with one, or a combination of ways to arm the servicer’s records with false data:
2.When the servicer decides to manipulate the date the payment is received in order to artificially create a late payment.
3.When the servicer applies part of the payment to something other than principal and interesticon and creates a partial late payment or deficiency.
4.When the servicer decides to “force place” an insurance policy on the property by claiming thehomeowner has not provided proof of insurance.
When the servicer pays your property taxes late, then adds their late penalty to your account without your knowledge.
Any or all of those processes result in at least one month of the account being past due and a negative note is made in the credit report (which effectively prevents the borrower from refinancing). It also helps the Private Mortgage Insurance carrier keep the policy in effect on the loan, which is why these insurance companies have investments in servicing companies in the first place – a late payment or two allows the lender to keep the insurance in force.
If the borrower has anything more than about 10-15% equity in the property, it is to the servicer’s advantage at this point to not aggressively attempt to collect. In fact, if the borrower makes contact, the servicer will engage in delay tactics to avoid resolving the problem in time to prevent default. If the equity position is considerably less than 10%, the servicer does not have as much leverage, nor is the opportunity as great and they will typically be more aggressive in collection efforts and more willing to keep the loan in force.
In the case of force-placed insurance, it is to the servicer’s advantage to ignore the borrower and any proof of insurance as long as possible; again, to keep the borrower’s credit status in a negative light and to maintain their relationship with the insurer they contract with. These policies are extremely profitable because they provide absolutely no coverage for the homeowner. They protect ONLY the value of the loan, including interest if the property is destroyed.
If the servicer has analyzed the opportunity and marked the property for default and recovery, the next payment received will be rejected as being insufficient. If it is accepted, the application of the funds leaves the loan sixty days past due. Typically, the [problem] now moves toward formal legal notice of acceleration in order to coerce the borrower into signing a highly-profitable forbearance agreement to somehow “save the home.” The servicer rolls thousands of dollars in penalties and an incomprehensible combination of legitimate and illegitimate fees into the agreement and the homeowner is left with no choice but to sign it or lose their home. The amount demanded will be calculated to take as much of the homeowner’s equity as possible.
If the homeowner decides to sell the property to get out of the situation and take their equity, they will find the payoff amount (which in the last month of the [problem] will take longer to get than the amount of time left before foreclosure) strips them of their equity. That combined with their artificially-damaged credit rating helps keep the victim a victim.
If the borrower cannot pay the amounts demanded in the forbearance agreement, the servicer will have one of their network of specialized attorney firms foreclose and the property will be sold, typically at a county auctionicon or through their real-estate network.
If the borrower signs the agreement, they will soon be recycled through the process with yet more late payments and fees. But in the terms of the forbearance agreement, they may find they have signed away any legal protections they may have already had, including the right to sue the servicer for fraud or misrepresentation.
If the homeowner cannot find or afford competent legal representation to stop this fraud, they lose their equity and in most cases, their home. MSFraud.org
Hi does anyone please have any up to date email address’s for acenden please
Hi does anyone pleasehave any up to date email address’s for acenden please
Acenden Disgraceful Rip Off previously Capstone Mortgages disgraceful rip off.
Sean,could you consider changing the name of your exposure of this rip off company who are still continuing their predatory practices unabated after rebranding,no doubt to escape the huge outpouring of bad publicity,to Acenden from Capstone.Thanks in the main to your site and the now renamed Acenden Action Group.
Think a lot more people would be visiting the site all with more or less the same problems which they could share and find a way of fighting this reviled company..
i to had the same issues they were charging me for insurance when already had it after many phone calls they discovered they were sending my mail to a previous address not my fault. sent in my insurance paper work and after months of arguing got my money back and a twenty pound compensation they pass the book. When they try and tell you ,you have to pay to cancel something you havent even asked stick to your guns it pays off.
London Personal Loans ( LMC/Capstone/Acenden ) have a second charge on our house. We originally borrowed £45000. We fell into arrears with them to the tune of £4800. We decided to put our house on the market. Advised them that this was the case and that we had accepted an offer and that we were exchanging just before xmas. They have raised a possession order and are due to take us to court on 10jan. We are actually completing on 7jan. I sent all the paperwork they asked for when we originally accepted the offer on the house, also informing them of my solicitors details. When he wrote to them for a redemption figure, they eventually wrote back saying that I had not given them written permission to release the figure. I called them on 31dec and they confirmed that they had my solicitors details and that they would fax over the figure. As of this morning they still hadn’t done it, so I called them yet again and they promised to do it, but it would have to go to Lightfoots first ( their solicitors) so they could add their fees. I have told them to jog on and that I’m not paying them as they knew when they raised the possession order that we had sold the house. The thing is, they have given me a redemption figure of £52000. Bearing in mind that we only borrowed £45000 4 and a half years ago, plus we have made payments totalling £18000 over that time. so we are actually paying them £70000 which is daylight robbery. It is now too late for us to try and fight this as we complete in 3 days, so we will have to give them the money and try and claim it back afterwards. They have never sent me a copy of my original contract and never any notification of charges, so now I will have to fight them through my solicitor. Does anyone have any idea about the best way to deal with this? Thanks Lou
I have had exactly the same experience of the morgage company, I split with my ex over 3 years ago now and they still wont allow me to take his name off the morgage, as its not their policy to do that. GOd knows how many battles i’ve had with them about that, I hate phoning them as they are so rude and no=one ever seems to know what your talking about, do they not put notes onto the account. I have also fallen behind with payments due to job lose earlier this year, and they just dont care they just keep throwing charges at you. And does anyone ever look at the e-mails sent as I have sent several e-mails via the website which no-one every replies to, I havent even had a reply to the complaint letters i’ve sent in!!!!!!!!!!!
IMPORTANT NEWS
On Monday 22nd November, Capstone Mortgage Services changed its name to Acenden Limited.
NO DOUBT TO ESCAPE ITS CRITICS AND ALL THE BAD PUBLICITY
2 new articles on the mail please post your comments a great reponse last time.
.80 PLUS COMMENTS MAINLY GOOD ,LEADING TO A DIRECT FOLLOW UP
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/article-1331580/They-wont-flat-fight-says-Capstone-Mortgage-victim.html#ixzz15xG0FB79
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/mortgages-and-homes/article.html?in_article_id=518583&in_page_id=8
yes my husband and I did the same got a mortgage with prefferred mortgages and yes we did fall behind with our mortgage payment because my husband was ill and he was off work a few months we did ring the mortgage company but as you can guess they never listened or helped us thats way we fell behind we are now paying extra on our monthly but they are so rude when i talk to them.
Sometimes it’s hard to see what’s really going on in a company like Capstone, especially when you are being harassed about mortgage payments and the mind-blowing frustrations that are heaped on by unscrupulous companies who have “Call Centre’s” that are as helpful as some social disease.
I find many times that things are not what they initially seem to be. The following information might be food for thought!
————————————————————————————–
One source says, “Allegedly thousands of Capstone Mortgages have been liquidated, 28000 in less than 3 years about 25% of the entire loan book.
Me thinks that this stinks of rotting fish!
Why would any company wish to disseminate their mortgage book if there wasn’t some underlying reason? Have you heard of “Forclosuregate” in America, Google it and read all about the fraud therein. Karl Denninger, author of “Market Ticker” has some really mind-blowing information to read.
What started me thinking was this statement by Martin Frazer in some of Capstone’s PR spiel: “and in contrast to properties being repossessed it’s good for our clients, good for the people who own the loans and good for borrowers as it helps them to stay in their homes.”
Notice “people who own the loans”. You mean that Capstone don’t own the loans? Can Capstone reposses properties that they don’t own? Do they have the “Title” to the property? Seek advice from your solisitor if you are in this position! Forclosuregate isnt about people not paying their mortgages its about fraudulant applications to courts to evict people! The paperwork has to be correct to reposses!
Call me suspicious, but remember , These “Ascending Stars”, especially Capstone’s current chief executive, Amany Attia, was a driving force in setting up the original UK Lehman-backed mortgage businesses which went under the names Southern Pacific Home Loans, Preferred Mortgages and others.
The now collapsed USA Lehman Brothers failed to a great degree because of their “Off Balance Sheet” investments, not worth what they said they were. Similarly, Goldman Sachs, another Bankster Company, allegedly sold worthless, sub-prime mortgages, (for sub-prime read “Capstone Mortgages”) as triple “A” investments (AAA=without risk) to investment companies. This wasn’t a problem until the housing market collapsed and repossessions were the order of the day. Guess what? The mortgages were a pile of used dog food!
Why is the above relevant? Well, Goldman Sachs won both ways! They got paid massive amounts of money for supposedly “top dollar triple A investments” but when it all went wrong they also made massive profits because they “bet against these self same investments to FAIL!!” (I believe the process is called “shorting”). Why did they bet against the same product that they were selling?
BECAUSE THEY NEW WHAT WAS IN THE “MBS’s (mortgage backed securities) and they new they would explode!
Now, to the crux of my point, Amany Attia has some 20 years’ experience in the securitisation industry. She spent six and a half years at Citi and then moved to Lehmans where she worked in its mortgage and ABS groups until 2001. Then in 2001 she came to London to head Lehmans’ mortgage and securitisation business in Europe.
I am not saying that Amany is involved here but likely she new about this scam, by association, and I don’t know if there is anythin funny going on here, but back to the 1st parragraph, why would Capstone want to illiminate 25% of their mortgage book? Have Capstone Mortgages been securitised on block? Is there some massive financial benefit to be had should their mortgage book be reduced to “0”?
Perhaps the whole concept is to load on the charges, keep the scam going for months and then reposses, reaping large profits where there is some equity available on the property. If this is the case the Office of Fair Trading needs to know!
Who knows? Perhaps some investicative journalisim might not go amiss.
Ok, who am I? I am a Capstone Mortgage holder and yes we haven’t paid them or our 1st Mortgage, with Santander, for in excess of 12 months. The reasons, although traumatic to my family and me, are irrelevant. What hacks me off is this. Both mortgages have not been paid for the same period of time, however Santander (original loan £138,000) is in arrears by £8,000 but Capstone Mortgages (original loan £35,000) is in arrears by £ 10,750. Wow doesn’t that suck?
I write this piece simply because of a phone call Wednesday, from some “Rude Bully” who thought he could threaten me with repossession. My second mortgage with Capstone is 100% “under water” (will not be paid) because of the valuation of my property should it go to repossession and auction (because of its current condition). Capstone and this rude adviser are aware of my property circumstances because we had a personal visit from an independent adviser working for them.
I told him outright to reposses us, and then when he tries to take us to court, for their outstanding sum, including exorbitant charges, I/we would declare bankruptcy and they would forfeiture the full amount!
I suggested that he attempted, with his head, something anatomically impossible!
Guess what? A beneficial, to us, arrangement was made. LOL.
BREAKING NEWS,BREAKING NEWS!!!!
Shaun and all participants the insurance scam/scandal has been highlighted at last by the national press,this is really starting to run.
If you really want to see some direct action,please,please leave your comments/stories.
No interest = no action.
please see here:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/article-1327263/Ruthless-march-son-Lehman.html#addComment
To all with Problems I would like for you to gather all of your receipts and payment stubs and correspondence and take them to the state banking and finance department and they should be able to help you. Keep the faith and do not give up. Stay with it!
The answer to your question paul ewers is a big YES you can get the charges back and there may be other options open.
This cancerous firm is so malignant a special website has been created solely to help its victims.
Simply google capstone action group all the help ,information and advice is there including direct hands on advice from fellow victims.
If only you had found them earlier.
When was the repossession it sounds as though it was very recent?
If it hasn’t sold,could be a chance of getting the order set aside,could be worth a try,you sound like you’re in a no lose situation and have been badly let down by the benefits agency as well.
I took out a mortgage with Preferred/Capstone in 2003. By 2007 i was in financial difficulties and had mortgage and rent arrears which were added on two occasions between 2005 and 2009 which pushed my mortgage arrears up to £9700 by 2010. I was getting letters and calls even on saturdays to advise me what my arrears were. By February 2009 my wife had left and i’d lost my job and because i was unable to pay the mortgage for thirteen weeks due to government not assisting they whacked on £115 a month charges. In June 2009 i was not well enough to attend court and they got a re-possession order for October 2009. From October 2009 to September 2010 i attended court and fought the re-possession four times before finally having to give up due to the drop in mortgage interest assistance from the government. Every time we went to court Capstone whacked the solicitors fees on and all sorts of charges and should the house sell for its market value of £130000 i will be in profit by about £5000 i just think its unfair. From the time i lost my job i was in contact with them asking for help even restructing the mortgage and arrears together was refused and so the downward spiral continued. Can anyone advise of anyway i can complain and get those unjust charges removed?
PLEASE ALL READERS OF THIS SITE POST YOUR STORIES ON THE DAILY MAIL EPOSURE OF CAPSTONE.EVERY COMMENT MAKES A DIFFERENCE,THE MEDIA ARE INTERESTED LETS KEEP THEIR INTEREST WE MAY THEN GET SOMETHING STARTED WITH THE AUTHORITIES.
SHAUN YOUR STORY IS THERE AS WELL.
HERES THE WEBSITE
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/mortgages-and-homes/mortgages-features/article.html?in_article_id=516191&in_page_id=58&expand=true#StartComments
COMMENTS ARE STILL BEING ACCEPTED
EXPOSE THIS NATIONAL SCANDAL
OVER 100 REPOSSESSION ACTIONS PER WEEK
This company are a complete shame!!!!. not only do they not know what they are going,when they admit that they have made a mistake you are still made to pay pay pay.trying to get to talk to the person you need WHAT A JOKE! you get talk to a minimum of 3 people having to give your details again & again for the person that you need to talk to NEVER BEING AVAILABLE . you end up talking to the first person again. oh what joy.this company are a complete waste of time avoid at all cost all they will do for you is give you alot of headaches.worst company i have ever had the misfortune off dealing with.
I had same experience where they denied receiving details of my house insurance from Legal and General. Finally the manager phoned me and I explained that I would take legal action against them and obtained confirmation from Legal and General that they had faxed the details on 4 separate occasions. Too many complaints to make this a one off instance!
Just a quick note to say there is a forum called Capstone Action Group which not only affirms many of the stories recorded here, but also the inexplicable lack of action, and sparcity of comment by any meida watchdog exposes, M.P’s, government agencies, or other regulatory bodies.
Here is a fun one. My partner is under threat by SPPL/Capstone for a 2nd mortgage against his home, a parting gift from his ex wife by forging his signature on all of their documents when they separated. They claim he ‘ratified the contract’ because he made 6 payments to them. He paid them 6 months worth under threat of having his home repossessed. Court on Monday. Go figure!
I have posted on this site way back in March i think about the trouble we had with them. Once again they are claiming I am in arrears with them due to not paying Home Insurance which I dont require. I send them my renewal notice every year and every year i end up in arrears over it. With so many people in the same situation is their nothing we can all do together to get this company to stop trading this way, surely if we all filed a complaint against them to take them to court on the same day and all produced our evidence the judges would have to do something ???
I think it is fantastic this site is here and every other week i check in to see who else has unfortunately fallen into their trap, in the hope that something can be done
It is almost a year since Shaun first published information on this company. The government has changed, and so has the name of the company, but not apparently their methods and practices. Bumbling confusion and rudeness over payments, insurance, defaults, arrears – yet rutheless efficiency over the pursuit of repossessions.
The paradox is that if you have good legal advice you an win, but good costs money, and probably most people already in financial difficulty cannot afford any further debt. Unlike the criminal court system, there is no legal aid. It is obvious that people can be subdued by the simple process of attrition, and the company exploits this, but there are some good Judges who will understand your
case if you learn some of the lessons on this site should you be unable to afford a brief and ply your own arguments.
Politicians rehearse their rhetoric, and do nothing. The only hope is in the courage and endeavour of the individual.
I have just spent a frustrating 40 minutes on the phone with Capstone during which I was transferred from department to department.
Last year they lost my insurance documents, this year on my renewal date they sent me new buildings insurance policy which I did not require. I phoned and told them I was waiting for my policy documents and they told to me send them with their letter stating I did not require their policy as soon as I received it which I duly did.
Five months later I have received a letter to state that I was £208.28 in arrears on my mortgage account.
I phoned up and was told this was £128.28 for my buildings insurance which they acknowledged I had declined and offered to investigate. £50 was a cancellation fee for the insurance because I had been late returning my documents and then out of nowhere there was a £30 missed payement in 2008. Amazingly this is not shown on any of my last 2 annual statements and when the collections department looked they couldn’t see a missed payment.
They refused to let me speak to a senior manager – you have to wait 48 hours before they can call you back.
I wonder how many people would not query this and just pay it? Their excuse is it is system generated. What a load of rubbish.
I’ve threatened legal action and await their reply.
i would just like to say that there is light at the end of the tunnel IF YOU GET PROPER LEGAL ADVICE . my husband lost his job and we then had to rely on the goverment morgage payment scheme to pay our morgage. this took 6 months to kick in and got into alot of arrears , an although we kept in constant contact and made token payments when we could (we have a 2 and 5 year old so it was tough) , capstone took us to court to try and reposess our house. by that stage , we where able to show that payments where up and running and we had a payment plan to pay off 100 pounds a month off our arrears. capstone repeatedly claimed that we hadnt done anything to address the issue and that they had no contact with us or paperwork to prove payments were going through, EVEN THOUGH WE PRODUCED COPIES OF EVERYTHIN IN COURT. court dates were posponed 3 times by capstone and eventually when we got back to court , the judge had a damning verdict of capstone , calling them a shambolic , fear weilding machine who relied on bully tactics. the judge imposed a repayment plan which we agreed to , but capstone tried and failed to appeal it. the whole process took its toll on my health and relationship with my husband. as soon as the housing market picks up , i will sell my home just so that i never have to worry about this situation arising again. if you are considering getiing a morgage NEVER EVER TAKE ONE WITH PREFERRED /CAPSTONE
can only offer a word or two of comfort to say do not feel guilty. You need to get proper legal advice. Others have experienced their tactics and won.
All the mistakes that make you feel its your fault are well documented. Its the way they operate. Do not think they are bumbling and inefficient. It is a smooth operation.which makes money. operation.
hi i am currently putting complaints in against this campany and being charged 115 for arrears charges please keep me up to date can i also have permission to take this page to court with me on the 21st of september please thank you ??
I have a mortgage with capstone, fallen into arrears, phoned to give details of income and expenditure so I could make an agreement, they wouldn’t take any details. About a month later i got a card pushed thru door from a financial consultant asking to phone urgently, phoned him and capstone had asked him to contact me to determine my income and expenditure – he was lovely and shocked when told him what had happened, but couldn’t stop nearly £200 being added to my arrears for the privilage! An agreement was put in place and doesn’t run out until 30th September, but yesterday i received a letter from a solicitor saying i had 7 days to give details of my income and expenditure or they will start legal proceedings – i spoke to Capstone last month and they said i had until 17th September to do this! I’m terrified now, can’t increase my income as self employed and have a disabled child. Asked for mortgage payment holiday – don’t do this, asked for arrears to be added to my account – don’t do this! Does anyone have any suggestions at all – very frighterned!!!!!!!!!!
Hi to all,
I was somewhat surprised to read the content of this website when i was only searching for an email address for capstone (preferred).
It appears i am not on my own as i am suferring charges for insurance policies which i do not require at ridiculous amounts of money as well as £85 per month arrears management fees.
I have complained to the FOS and also the ICO.
Capstone are marking my credit file as 3 or 4 late payments because i wont pay the insurance as i have already paid for my own policy at a third of the cost i may add.
This behaviour is against the fourth principle of the Data Protection Act 1998 and they are not permitted to record information on your credit file that is disputed until a court verifies the fee’s.
I have also reported to Capstone that as they have taken out an insurance policy without me agreeing the terms i will cause deliberate damage to the property and claim for it on the insurance they have taken. A dirty tactic, however in accordance with the Marine Insurance Act 1906 they are bound by law to inform the insurance company of my intention or it renders the policy worthless. I have asked for information relating to the policy as i intend on sending the insurance company a copy of my notification and intention. If everyone does the same insurance companies may refuse to insure the company anymore. As Capstone are taking policies out without you signing for them to be effective they must take an all risks policy out. The fact that you inform the company of the intention to cause damage if they fail to report it they will be liable for the cost of repair. Something needs to be done about this company they cannot just simply keep getting away with this behaviour.
Just thought people would like to know that there is a substantial and scathingly critical Blog for Acenden Mortgage Services/Capstone Mortgage Services, which continues in detailed research what many contributors have voiced here earlier about their anecdotal experiences. where they mostlyexpress a feeling of powelessness against these large financiial entities.
Just thought people would be interested in the following from another google info sheet:
It makes all of the foregoing rather interesting:
Capstone Mortgage Services to rebrand as Acenden
With new ownership, Capstone Mortgage Services, a third party specialist mortgage servicer is to rebrand as Acenden, probably in the fourth quarter of 2010.
As it is no longer ‘captive’ to Lehman Brothers, it is launching thenext phase of growth with the Acenden name. The company says it will complete its emergence as a standalone, financially strong company with the highest S&P special servicer ranking of any mortgage servicing company in the UK.
Amany Attia, CEO said: “Acenden will be the most experienced new entrant the market will ever see. We have taken the best of Capstone’s demonstrated capability in residential mortgage servicing and brought it to a new level.
“We have been very busy in the last year focusing resources and energy to offer a market-leading proposition and we have a new and strengthened management team.
“Clients and customers will benefit from our significant investment in the company – we have a completely new servicing system, have upgraded our data management and reporting capability and improved our analytic tools. Furthermore, we have rebuilt and strengthened our balance sheet and improved our liquidity to ensure the financial strength of the company.
“As the markets deteriorated and arrears and repossessions increased, we have added resources, teams and solutions to help our customers and clients deal with these problems, including creating what we believe to be the first loss mitigation team in the UK. We have also made a significant financial investment in upgrading our servicing system and telephony infrastructure.
Martin Frazer, commercial director said: “This is a new and exciting period for us and we are looking forward to a real growth period. We opened an office in Dublin in March 2010, are already servicing clients there and are, for the first time, open for business for new clients in the UK.
“We have a lot to offer as a full service, integrated provider of primary, special servicing and related administrative services for all residential mortgages, but for specialist and higher risk mortgage loans in particular. We look forward to making an impact in the market.”
Just to add my voice to the debate – AVOID AT ALL COSTS!
Until February of this year when we moved our mortgage to a ‘reputable’ lender we endured 2 and a half years of hell with Capstone/Preferred – without boring you with the details, in summary:
- Of the 30+ payments we made 3 (yes THREE) were correctly processed by Capstone!
- On a regular basis they would take random amounts from our Direct Debit each month, alwyas less than our monthly payment amount. When we called we were told this was correct however I would insist on making a debit card payment to ‘top-up’ to our correct amount to ensure we didn’t get into arrears
- On one occasion (when we were on holiday in New York) thye decided to take the direct debit twice thereby runining our break
- Each year when we received an annual statement it would be nonsense and I would have to write to tell them what it should say!
- Twice we (successfully) took them to the Ombudsman who decisively found in our favour and awarded us refunds/compensation
The staggering incompetance of these people is incredible – I’m sure I know a whole lot more about mortgages than they do (and I was a first time buyer who works in a restuarant!)
So glad they’re out of our lives and I’m still getting over the shock of having made our first 4 payments to our new lender without any issues whatsoever…
I find the practice of Capstone pretty common place nowdays. I work in a corporation and have done in various ones for three years. Everyone should no by now a corporation has no conscience. The live to extort money out of you. Loyalty means nothing to them. Even if it dirtys their own name. I have noticed in various products in life, eg mobile phones, credit cards or loans.. they will try and bolt on hidden insurances or helplines which can be easy to miss and hard to stop. Especially when they hold your bank details. It’s all very crooked and very corrupt and our regulators have no teeth to stop it. It’s not just corporations as we have seen but banks and their own charges have joined the bandwagon.
Fortunately I always paid Capstone in time and am about to leave them. Interestingly though they tried to push their insurance on me recently. I have a leasehold house with service charges that cover insurance. I sent them the proof as I have every year myself but they are trying to dispute or get it rewritten saying it is no longer valid.
I am fortunate enough to be able to make payments on time and smart enough to fight them back at the first hurdle as watch my finances like a hawk and check all corespondence carefully. It was not always like this and it took me 6 years to rebuild my credit and finances (hence why I was with capstone in first place). Good luck to everyone and I hope Vince Cable can sort this out.
Hi,
Just had a letter from capestone saying the bank of England have put the base rate up i checked and its still the same, they have now put my morgage up by 50 pound a month and want to take this months payment out on the 30th and not the 1st of the month can they take the money a day early and can they lie about the interest rate?
I have often wondered where the practices and missison ideoolgy for many of our issues was developed. I have just been watching the John Jakes North and South (series III) on television about the American Civil War. They describe the practices of land grabbing in the southern states which were destroyed economically by the war, as well as unfair credit contracts which load an individual with hidden charges, or simply added charges that are difficult to dispute. There is something called “scrip” which further loads the contract unfairly. The plot demonstrates that this is big business and can often involve government officials with insider knowledge or influence.
It maybe explains a lot.
I have just read that Capstone’s? assets are being bought out. I do not know what this will mean, but I guess it completes a part of the metamorphosis.
I took the mortage out with Capstone / SPML and yet when the survey was done on my property they requested that work needed to be done on my property and so they would hold a retainer of apporx ~£2,500, until the work was completed. 18 months down the line the work was completed and I sent into them via e-mail / fax and post copies of the invoices.
This was 2 and 1/2 years ago and still no sign of my money back, they are now requesting to see proofs of working being completed and the paper work of the original quote. This has now long been gone and i am now in the process of contacting a lawyer to get my money reimbursed to me. All I can say is that I wish I had not gone to them now and as soon as banks start lending again I will be off and will not give Capstone or SPML a glowimng report. They are the biggest bunch of cowboys going
Hi, good day. Wonderful post. You have gained a new subscriber. Pleasee continue this great work and I look forward to more of your great blog posts.
But Capstone comtinue as an SPV created to’administer’ the assets – an innovative legal device which appears to allow them to Phoenix , then metamarphose into something. else.
you are professional.
s p m l are in liquidation
You can definitely see your enthusiasm in the work you write. The world hopes for more passionate writers like you who aren¡¯t afraid to say how they believe. Always go after your heart.
Long time reader first comment. Hey I love what I’m reading overlooking your site and must say nice. I have a little blog myself with this topic. I came across your blog through google I hope I recieve traffic as if your site soon. I suppose . Well basically good posts on health We have enjoyed. The comments really are a bit short I discovered your internet site through AOL.
Thanks for taking the time go over this, I’m strongly about it and love learning read more about this topic. If at all possible, when you gain expertise, does one mind updating your blog with more information? It is very helpful to do.
capstone must be stopped
Not sure what to advise on a personal front. It is yet another piece of evidence of how their cosy reltionship with some county courts, is used by solictors who are prepared to ruthlesly exploit innovative methods to obtain posession. I have written to my MP. There is an all party group of MP’s including Vince Cable who were working on the problem. The election seems to have put things on hold, but I am hoping this will be looked at in the pressures for reform.
You could try to find a good solicitor even at this stage. I have done so with a different and crooked organisation who acted in a similar fashion, I was succesful but the bill came to over 15K,(a High Court case begins at 50K) and I also had these clowns to contend with.
Had you been able to defend your own case before reposession – a good judge would have listened to your case sympathetically, and you may have had a different outcome.
I hope this is of some help. Do not feel guilty that they have succeeded so far.They do not fight fair, and have greater resources.It isnt because they hold the moral high ground. I believe you can still go to court yourself, though the odds are stacked in their favour as they have been granted posession.
But all the best, good people have every sympathy for you.
Just been reading these comments regarding Capstone and found the site very interesting.
I split up with my partner 2 years ago. She was an alcoholic. Capstone would not forward any letters to my new address. My partner failed to pay her share of the mortgage and so we went into arrears. While this was going on, my solicitor tried to get my partner to agree to sell the house and even tried to get an order to sell the house, but as she had two children from a previous relationship. This was a lost cause. I continually kept in contact with Capstone and even my solicitor wrote to them. The only replies we got were “if my ex signed and agreed to them sending me or my solicitor copies of any letters from Capstone”. They would. My ex never even bothered replying.
To cut a long story short. My solicitor received a mortgage redemption statement from them in March and when they contacted Capstone, they were told the house was repossessed on the 7th January and sold at the beginning of March. I had no idea any of this was going on. What amazes me is the fact I still have not received anything from Capstone regarding the repossession apart from a mortgage statement dated May 2010, which mentions nothing about the house being repossessed.
They could not write to me, or my solicitor before the house was repossessed, but now they can. I had no chance to make some kind of offer or even go to court and defend myself. I contacted Optima Legal and they are just as bad as Capstone. No help.
I’m really not sure what I can do. I’m not a finance guru. Just your everyday bod. Any advice would be helpful.
hi im just letting you no ive just lost my wife and been going through the paper work and just found out that we have been paying capstone for 4years this insurance it turns out they sent us no paper work on this i thourt that eurosail was the life insurance its not so i could louse my home
For Aileen,
Do not feel pressured by these people. It isn’t clear whether you have their internal eviction notice, or an offical notification from the courts of your impending eviction. If it is the latter you should have a bit of breathing space.
If you can make reasonable arrangements for payments, it is up to the courts to decide.A Judge would be foolish to sanction your eviction. If they get an order,(they are sometimes able to fast track things through) you can have it revoked by the Judge and they can be compelled to follow the NORGAN precedent. This means that you can agree to pay your arrears over the whole length of the mortgage, not just in a couple of years. You need to go to the court though to represent this yourself. Either get a good solicitor or CAB to help if you can. The latter are free of charge,
Much as they abuse the process, and like to present ithemselves in a position of authority, administrative staff at Capstome are not the law, and I doubt they have any real awareness of its provisions, You may find they use innovative ways or solictors to get you out of your home, but in the end you have posession and what seems like a good case.
I hope this helps
Thanks that was a fantastic article.
I’m busy all the time it seems and do not have time for all this nonsense, as I’m sure we all are but fair play to you all for putting this on the radar, I have scanned through and its clear that these are underhanded tactics that we are experiencing….Class action and exposure required, be back on this soon.
I have tried today to come to an agreement with them, they more or less said, unless I can come up with a token payment, even though they are getting money from the dwp on the 24th they will enforce the eviction notice. just started a new job and dont get payed for a month. i have offered to pay £70 – 100 a month on top of my mortgage amount and they have said because it will take 3 years to clear my arrears, then no arrangement can be set in place.
A superb take on this you have, while I don’t go along with every thing that has been explained I can see your case.
http://capstonemortgageservices.wordpress.com/about-2/
“The dedicated help site for capstone mortgage services victims that says it all and does it all!”
Thank you peter for a link to this excellent site which is new to me.It contains so much information on these dreadful scoundrels and hopefully if people respond and take the recommended action rather than sitting still these rogue traders will at last get their comeuppance which is long overdue.
Action is required not words.
My friend mentioned to me your blog, so I thought I’d check it out. Very interesting material, will be back for more!
http://capstonemortgageservices.wordpress.com/about-2/
THIS IS AN EXCELLENT SITE WITH ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THIS COMPANY,THE WAY THEY OPERATE AND HOW TO FIGHT THEM AND WIN.
IT ALSO GIVES DETAILS OF HOW TO GET BACK ALL THE ARREARS FEES THEY HAVE CHARGED YOU UNFAIRLY.
FOR ANYONE SUFFERING OR WHO HAS SUFFERED ITS A MUST LOOK.
Vince Cable is not the only MP aware of this. Our own MP has told me that there is all party concern. The problem as far as I can perceive is this: it would appear that the current government made the rules to allow all this to happen back in about 2004, and like the MP expenses scandal, it would be very embarrasing to let the cat out of the bag just before the election. The government seems to be trying to keep the lid on factual information about a still existing recession from interfering with the deluded sense of well being it is generating in the minds of the electorate.
The matter has been referred to the Lib Dems. i am waiting for our Parliamentary Candidate to get back to me. Vince Cable has received a pile of papers from me.
I suggest people look at this group of solicitors,Weil Gotshal in relation to SML/Eurosail, Barclays etc. Talk about conflict of interest.
The reasion that Capstone/SPML impose their Insurance on people, is because they don’t want you to know that your mortgage has been used as security and your property deeds could be anywhere in the world
if you take your own out, then your documents will be returned, insisting that Eurosail etc, be added as mortgagee. They are not a mortgage company.
This is also linked with Goldman Sachs, and the rest of the pirates
great stuff thx
Hi,
Just a quick note to everyone that all calls should be recorded for legal purposes so if there are any queries or things you do not agree with then request a recording of the conversation. Good idea to make a note of the date and time of each call. If they cannot retrieve the calls then you can report them to the FSA.
Would this be the Cartel Client Review recently suspended by the Ministry Of Jusitice and reported on by Andrew Penman in the Daily Mirror?
There are a number of negative Blogs on Google about this, so I would like to be clear about who you are recommending.
Although running a business sounds cool and all that. But in fact, I think you have to form a schedule so that you don’t get too involved. I liked that stuff you talked about “life is balance”. Maybe hiring someone do your work is a smart idea.
in haste, but i have been reading these various blogs/threads for a few weeks now and have found them invaluable (esp the CAG one) in providing content for addressing Capstone. Briefly, i am a dormant rep for Cartel Client Review BUT i get no financial benefit from reccomending that you get in touch with your local contact. Cartel are a claims company, one of the biggest; strong at taking on cases if pretty slow, but have the weight, finance and strength to take on this lot and they really hate them. If you are in the position of being repossessed they also have a special team to take on and prevent this, but they are heavily overloaded, but its worth knowing for a last resort. Given there are now no up front fees with Cartel i can’t see what there is to lose, except time, with putting the cases to Cartel and giving them enough joint ammunition for a group action. they already believe many of the contracts to be unenforceable.
over to you.
Hi All,
We have been fighting these people for 3 years now 20 times in court, The case with FOS and the FSA, Lender friendly is how I would put it, yet the courts at JD/DDJ/DG level are not much better, the more complaints the FSA get the more chance you have of getting the right outcome. The problem is that they have been funded now and are a going concern 6.7billion turnover, joint action by 26000 homeowners in the High Court is what is needed (the amount of
homeowners currently in arrears out of 79860 loan accounts).
For those facing a repossession date, apply to the court to set-aside and offer a payment of
£50 on top your monthly payment. Check you contract read all the small print (you will find things that will act in you favour) There is more but you need to read it.
This is one company that needs to be closed down, or at least fined by the FSA in the millions
of pounds, since the loan to value is not more than 60 percent most of the homeowners cannot
get out of this mess.
It is also soundly based on contributors experience of other real blogs set up after shaun started this, and have been mentioned by followers of this tale: Capstonewatch, Consumer Action Group, Modern times in Mudshires by Boz, and occasional references in online news such as the Telegraph and Mail.
I cannot put the websites in but you can google them.
Good luck with Thursday Kerry. You can still challenge the reposession if you instruct a good solicitor on the basis of some of the content of the above sites.Capstone are very experienced at rushing proceedings through a naive DJ. I guess though you may not be able to afford one to take on the might, poltical influence and hidden wealth of this group, but some people appear to have experienced success..
Interesting article. Where did you got all the information from? Wiki?
Shaun – Nope this is a real blog not a spam compilation.
we are being repossessed on thursday by capstone and there is nothing we can do about it apart from pay off anything we owe. But when you have mortgage debt who will loan you the money.
This is a very important point. I think almost everyone complaining here is affected, although they may not realise they are, nor the sheer nastiness that pervades the business strategy of this organisation. It means they can hold you to a bad credit record indefinately which is against the principals of insolvency. I am looking into it myself but we need some professional guidance.
Sadly the regulatory bodies, even investigative journalists, have frequently been called into question for their inaction over most of the cases reported on this and similar blogs.
I’ve read the posts here and would like to thank people for sharing their experiences. I have been an unwilling customer for about 5 years and have suffered in the same way as others before me. I am contributing today only because I am currently undergoing a problem with Capstone that is not previously documented here. I was in arrears for a couple of years but cleared my arrears in full over a year ago. Capstone are refusing to update my credit report to show that my account is now well managed;payments are made satisfactorily and there are no arrears. They state instead that it is their ‘policy’ to continue to record a default on a monthly basis once recorded. This policy should be distinguised from the fact that a default shows on a credit report for 6 years. This is a transparant attempt to hold customers in a relationship when they would normally be able to move lender. Given that customers are typically paying several interest rate points above the base rate, it means they can hold onto you against your will. I am not suggesting that the default should be totally removed but a credit company is responsible for providing the credit reference agencies with the most up to date and pertinant information in relation to that account. There are a number of codes that can be used to show the status of the account and the most appropriate one should be used to help other lenders make a decision based on the recent transactional history on the account. Despite having no arrears and maintaining my payments satisfacorily the status of mortgage account on my credit report is [8] which meana: account in default; and arrangements to service the debt not kept. This is inaccurate and designed to mislead and deter other lenders from offering me a new mortgage, which is what has happened.
My period of debt was relatively short and all my other credit accounts are well managed and satisfactory, yet due to the actions of this company I am to be treated as though I am a current debtor .
Like others here I am using the FSA and the Information Commissioner to see if I can challange this policy. I have complained to the FSA before so I’m not holding my breath. The company will do nothing and stand by it’s ‘policy’, so much for the Fair Treatment of Customers!. I think the suggestion that this company is trading in insolvency in very exiting and I am closely monitoring the media and Companies House website for further info. If anyone is interested, I’ll be happy to update on my issue as it develops.
I am just about to write a letter on behalf of my friend who suffers with depression, she has constantly been called and bullied and overcharged by this “Vile” company who totally “kick you when your down”. I am appalled at how she has been treated for such low arrears. With all the charges they continually slap on she has no way of reducing the arrears unless she borrows from someone.
Where are the Regulators?
STEER WELL CLEAR.
Sarah
http://capstonewatch.wordpress.com/2010/02/19/who-are-capstone-mortgage-services-why-watch-them/
IF YOU NEED TO FIND ANYTHING OUT ABOUT THIS COMPANY WHO ARE STILL TRADING WITH IMPUNITY THE ABOVE LINK TELLS IT ALL.THOUSANDS OF ILLEGAL REPOSSESIONS AND NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE ABOUT IT AND STILL DESPITE THE OUTCRY THE AUTHORITIES HAVE TAKEN NO ACTION,THE FSA IS FRANKLY A JOKE.
IF YOU WANT TO RECOVER THE ILLEGAL CHARGES THEY HAVE CHARGED YOU OR NEED HELP FIGHTING REPOSSESSION OR ANY LITIGATION LOG IN TO THE CONSUMER ACTION GROUP UNDER THE SPML THREAD AND YOU WILL RECEIVE ALL THE HELP YOU NEED.
Got up early this morning to track recent breaking news and commentary on Lehmans, their auditors Ernst and Young, and the private phone calls between Washington and Downing Street about the proposed takever by Barclays. It makes compelling reading if you are able to keep up with it.
I cannot understand how losses of billions have acrued from people defaulting on mortgages. Looking at figures quoted earlier, they should only have had about 2,500 cases over a critical period of two years. if the cost of reposession is £1K in court fees, that only amounts to £2.5 million for the whole of the UK, and then they can claim it back from the debtor. Loss of equity is not technically an issue as courts will not allow negative equity in a reposession defence.
If we repeat that figure by multiplying by a factor of 52 for all the atates of the USA, it only amounts to £130 Miliion.(loose change for Dick Fuld) The state of California alone has lost $200 million and Lehman’s filed for $600 Billion on September 15 2008.
The more I read on this the less the truth is clear. If someone can explain how this has all led to a global crisis under the leadership of a chairman who like a serial killer threatens publicly on television to tear apart anyone who challenges the integrity of Lehmans, I think we would all like to know.
And still these guys walk away free from the offices of officialdom to their expensive limousines, while their victims have nothing but a cardboard overcoat, and a plastic sheet to cover them up at night. The news tonight understates the magnitude of this issue.
Hey peeps
Take a look at this. Looks like someone has been busy gathering info.
http://capstonewatch.wordpress.com/2010/02/19/who-are-capstone-mortgage-services-why-watch-them/
Good evening, I am writing this after receiving a letter today and 2 infuriating calls advising me that an £85 charge has been levied on to my mortgage with Capstone. I had a small amount of arrears on my mortgage of £102 in February. I had received a letter advising that my arrangement re the arrears (all of a few hundred pounds) had ended. I called them on the day of receiving the letter and arranged that the full amount of £102 was taken with my existing mortgage payment on the 1st March. This was paid as had every other payment on the arrangement. I have only ever missed 1 payment to my mortgage. I then received a call on the 3rd March to be advised that my account was in £85 arrears. I advised that the arrears had been repaid and was told that they could see that was the case and this would be referred to be rectified. I have now received a letter advising that I am still in arrears of £85. I called them immediately and was advised that the charges stand. I then requested to speak to a manager and explained the situation. I was advised that he would have to listen to the calls and i would receive a call back today. This never materialised. I have called them again and was advised that it had been reviewed again and the charges stand however no one can advise me where they have come from. I have a letter from them confirming the arrangement that was made. I then requested a copy of my conversations with them whereby i was advised that it would be rectified to be told that they wouldnt do that. You are entitled to request details of any data that a company hold about you including copies of calls and transcripts. I am currently waiting to speak with someone tomorrow with regards to getting these charges removed but having read all these previous posts I will not let this lie. Watch this space…..
The interesting aspect of this report is the upbeat attitude of the writers to the company they are reporting on. They do not seem to have challenged propaganda issued by the LB Phoenix subsidiary about their friendly positive and helpful attitude towards the poor souls they care for who are forced into such terrible arrears.
There seems a lot more which could be challenged if someone had the right phorensic skill to analyse the pronouncements and figures. It may then give a true picture of what they actually mean.
This issue is known about in the House of Commons. Several constituents appear to be writing to their MP’s. I read in an article that a member of the House of Lords had attempted to raise the matter officially. The crux of the question is why the impotence and silence from government agencies or even the opposition parties? Any action seems to be with individuals who with their own solicitors are going through the courts on a case by case basis, adopting an indomitable spirit, and getting some small concessions from the occasional Judge who happens to be well informed.
I sometimes wonder if the FBI has any interest or jurisdiction?(It is a subsidiary of an American Firm). Our own systems seem to have failed us.
Hi Shaun
Just read this:
http://www.standardandpoors.com/ratings/articles/en/us/?assetID=1245199060457
And this is what I make of it…
Particularly revealing are the following:
In more recent times as the economic environment has deteriorated, there has been more emphasis on special servicing, with increasing arrears/possessions and losses in the portfolios. Capstone is experienced in special servicing and has developed proven processes and tools for debt management and loss mitigation.
Capstone Mortgage Services was created in 2006 from the combination of loan origination and servicing operations of Southern Pacific Mortgage Ltd. (SPML) and Preferred Mortgages Ltd. (PML), which were wholly owned subsidiaries of Lehman Brothers Holdings PLC (now in administration). Now defunct, both the SPML and PML brands were active in the origination of U.K. nonconforming mortgages for a number of years.
We understand that the Lehman administrators intend to retain Capstone and develop and grow the business, by retaining control over the loans owned by Lehman and diversifying into third-party servicing. Thirty-five long-term servicing contracts are currently in place, giving greater certainty to cash flow.
CHART 3 (Organisational flow chart) shows that the have a TCF (Treating Customers Fairly) Manager. Yes I bet they do since the FSA started sticking their noses in. Get their name and apply the pressure because they need real help doing their job properly. What a joke.
Capstone employed 481 staff as of March 31, 2009. 65% (314) are employed in either customer services (104) or default (special) servicing (210). As a comparison, there was 140 staff in special servicing when we reported in January 2008, representing a 50% increase in headcount in this area.
That’s twice as many staff dealing with repos compared to customer services…
The work environment is positive, with culture-building in place through training, a company newsletter, and other activities such as philanthropy-related events.
That’s where we’ve been going wrong…they’re philanthropists not the abusive loan sharks we had them marked up as. All caggers should consider a serious attitude adjustment. They’re nice people really.
Training is mandatory for all employees and incorporates all regulatory and legislative requirements.
Well at least their training takes note of regulatory and statutory requirements.
The primary responsibilities of the compliance team are:
Supporting the business regarding all aspects of relevant regulation and legislation;
Primary liaison with the Financial Services Authority (FSA);
Identifying regulatory, legislative, and commercial impact on the business and assisting in implementing any required changes to processes and practices;
You wouldn’t know it would you…?
Capstone has provided its mission statement, which confirms a commitment to customer service. Its processes are established accordingly and give recognition to the concept of Treating Customers Fairly (TCF). There is a TCF manager/champion reporting directly to the director of servicing, who assists the business with ensuring that fair outcomes are delivered, and there is a steering group that meets monthly to debate issues arising and to maintain consistency.
Can we ask for a copy of the mission statement?
The general servicing team supports such key processes as indexing of scanned images into appropriate workflows, setting up direct debits and keying failed payments to accounts, and processing manual fees and refunds. The department deals with variations to customer agreements, e.g., lettings, deeds of postponement, and transfer of equity.
There we go. Clear as day. The great equity cash grab scam. Relieving people of the burden of looking after their own equity.
Capstone produced, on average, 3,847 redemption quotes per month in the first quarter of 2009.
Obviously we can’t know how many of these were people who managed to remortgage away from Capstone/SPPL/SPML/Preferred etc (probably only a small fraction) but on this figure extrapolated across all 4 quarters that in my estimate makes Capstone responsible for about one-qarter of all possessions in the UK. THIS IS AN ASTONISHING FIGURE.
With no new loans now being originated, the size of the portfolio has been steadily reducing as demonstrated in table 4. Since our last report, management focus has continued to be on arrears management and recoveries processes, particularly in light of the nonconforming nature of the pools and the current economic environment.
April 2009: 412 Repossessions
January 2009: 347 Repossessions
October 2008: 494 Repossessions
That’s 1200 families chewed up and spat out in the space of six months. Nice work Capstone. Hope you sleep at night.
TCF is embedded in arrears management to ensure that all customers, particularly those who have a genuine desire to resolve problems, are treated fairly and consistently
Anyone out there with any experience of such? I certainly can’t recall ever being treated fairly, despite raising numerous issues with them.
As an overlay to the special servicing team, there is a loan modification (LM) team whose responsibility is to assess loans that have either: (i) the potential to go into arrears?say, if a customer contacts Capstone to advise that their income has reduced and that they cannot afford full payments; or (ii) loans that are already in arrears. This team has the authority within a structured mandate matrix to agree modifications.
We should write to the loan modifications team and ask what the criteria are of the structured mandate matrix and specifically ask if they can modify 50 loans a month what can you do for me…
On Repossession:
If a loss remains on the mortgage account post-sale, there is a recoveries team that will ascertain the likelihood of obtaining payment of the shortfall from the debtor. This is done via debt collection agencies (DCAs), of which Capstone has a panel of three. The DCAs operate on a “no trace?no fee” basis.
There we have it. Absolute proof that repossession is the beginning of the horror not the end. They will pursue you for years after they have stolen your home.
In addition, a review of the file is undertaken to ascertain whether negligence action can and should be taken against professional advisers, i.e., solicitors and valuers. There were 363 new claims in the past 12 months. Going forward, all losses will be reviewed in the context of possible professional negligence claims.
Unbelievable…when they have pushed you to the wall they then going after all of the other people in the machine that helped in this criminal enterprise. Even the solicitors, estate agents and valuers who assisted capstone in robbing you of your home have strong reason to be very wary indeed of the blood sucking scum.
Hi Everyone,I cant believe i am reading your stories i am with LMC (london mortgage comapany) and they are about to sell my mortgage to this company ..i dont want to leave LMC can anybody help so I dont move from LMC??
Thanks
What a relief that I found this website. Thank you Shaun and thank you all the contributors. Having read all of the posts I dont think there is anything new I can add. I spent 4 hours on the phone today to Capstone, yes you read correctly, 4 hours!! The reason i called them is because I am over 5000 pounds in arrears, 4800 pound of this is various charges. The first man i spoke to refused to put me through to his boss, said they were all busy!!!!!! I almost lost mind. I asked what they do to justify their charges, one girl actually said “well,we have to pay our staff” I am lodging an official complaint on Monday to the Managing Director, Ken Burke. This person probably doesnt exist because as we all know they are unbelievable liars. They bullied me by threatening me with eviction before Xmas, i paid them 2000 pounds to get them off my back, it ruined my xmas because i was so angry. They are crooks without a doubt and id love to see them shut down and the liars and crooks jailed but i fear in this liberal country where criminals have more rights than the victims we have no chance.
Im sorry to read about everyones misfortune at Capstones hands but do not give up,keep fighting,hassle them, threaten them with the FSA,FOC,OFT etc. I hate to admit it but sometimes if im bored while on a long drive Ill ring Capstone just to abuse them and ask them awkward questions, I then marvel at their extraordinary tactics. I’ll post again if i have any luck with my claim for getting charges back. Has anyone else had any luck with this by the way???
Thank you,keep fighting and if youre not fighting then get started NOW!!
Hi Tessa
That is very interesting that Companies house have contacted you. SPML have just had their accounts posted on the companies house website (you can download a copy for £1) and they make for very interesting reading.
It appears they and the other Lehman parasites i.e pml &sppl and not solvent and say they are in the process of winding down.
You will get some fantastic help re your court case on cag so do start a thread on there.
TESSA
LOG ON TO THE CAG AND SIGN UP. THERE’S A WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE IN FIGHTING REPOS THERE.
ITS THE SPML THREAD ABOVE. POST 46.
We have problems with Captsones mortgages and are facing a repossession hearing next week. All the arrears cited in the POC cited are for ficticious fees and charges and we have had unsatisfactory responses to our letter before claim regarding this situation. Capstones have tried to wrong foot us by seeking a repossession. We are dealing with this but last Friday we were contacted by Companies House Criminal Investigation Team asking for information about our Capstones/SPPL mortgage. Does anyone know what’s going on? We have since done some internet searching and came up with information from your site and CAG but still not entirely clear. We are submitting a complaint to the OFT and FSA and share the pain of the other contributors.
Well where do i start. I hate this company with a passion. I have been with them for about 5 years now and they have done nothing but rip me off, lie call every other day and generally pester me.
We had 1 months arrears due to work problems and they called us every other day until it was paid off, then we made sure we kept up to date. In dec i noticed our payment hadn’t been taken, so i called them to let them know. They said it had been paid, i left it 3 days then called again on the 6th to say it still hadn’t been paid, they again said it had. I then called a third time and was told again that it had been taken. We then received our mortgage quarterly statement which said that the direct debit had been paid. On 22nd Jan 08 we got a letter saying we hadn’t paid dec payment and as we hadn’t bothered to contact them they were going to be adding interest to our arrears. As you can imagine this was a kick in the teeth as we had done nothing but contact them!!
Well we have just finished off paying the arrears through gritted teeth.
Also we had duel home insurance, they have acknowledged and we have been entitled to a refund of nearly £450- they took this off our arrears despite telling us the cheque was in the post and as of today i am still waiting for a call regarding another refund of home insurance £250 this time, which again they say they have taken off out “arrears”. We have a statement now to say we are in credit, yet they wont give our money back…..my complaint with them is so lengthy these are just some of the main points, i would love to see them brought to justice, i also have knowledge of another person who wants to.
I have a solicitors appointment on Monday
I will keep you posted but am glad i found this site, i thought i was the only one
We thought we were the only ones going through this mess the distress this company has been causing us is getting too much to bear. We have been served with another eviction notice but it turns up without any warning on a Saturday when you can’t contact anyone and have to sit on it for the weekend worrying about losing your home. This company is the lowest of the low and we regret ever getting involved with them. Redundancy forced us to miss two payments but arranged to pay £50 off the arrears each month only to find out they have been putting another £145 charges on top of what we are already paying. Charges alone have now reached £1100 and getting bigger each month. I thought the government had stepped in and warned these companies more useless fresh air coming out of gordon brown’s mouth. We went to the CAB who contacted them about the charges etc even they said what a dispicable company they were but could not help us any further. Surely someone out there can stop this company for the rip off tactics they are up to and to be honest I’m not sure how they can live with themselves never mind sleep at night. We will keep you posted and any help received is more than capstone will ever give.
Hi I am due at court on the 1st march as I have got into arears due to the economic downturn I have been in and out of work for the past 2 years but have still been making payments and have been keeping in contact with preferred mortgages throughout. I have 5 children and a wife to support and have made an offer of payment 2x what my new mortgage payment should be as my fixed term has ended now and am £160 better off per month to catch up with my payments I worked it like that so it would be payed off after 8 months, I got told that this would be going to the managers to approve and this would stop the application been made,I received a letter the next day stating that “due to the level of arears they are still going to persue legal action” I then recived the summons to court yesterday and once again contacted the litigation department to say I have made a proposal of £600 per month which will pay £308.88 off the arears each month plus the new lower monthly payment of £219.12 I will be making a payment of this befor the court date pluss have only just made a payment of £566 10 days ago so I am showing you I am serious about paying off any outstanding monies, there reply was once again that it would go for review before court on weather to accept my proposal or to go to court. Preferred have not been any help at all they have in no way tried to help me by suggesting capitalizing the arears or any other options available which I am told that they must do this by law,so not sure weather I can counter claim and get costs refunded as they have said it is un unregulated agreement, do the oft of fsa still govern mortgages or not if so what has happened to preferred mortgages treat customers fairly polocy that is meant to apply to comply wih fsa guidelines. Any help is gratefully received and will keep you updated.
I wonder if there would also be any mileage in naming the firms of solicitors who represent them. I know they hold a certain amount of client priviledge, but some must surely be acting in an unethical manner in the full knowledge of what they are doing. I suppose to do so would result in years of court cases where they would win by attrition.
Hi Shaun
Many apologies for not following up on this. However I will make amends now. Good luck with your quest. Read it and weep – all 220 pages of it. You are not alone.
http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/mortgages-secured-loans/170607-spml-london-mortgage-company.html
I am making it my life’s work to bring this scumbag organisation to account.
Hi Shaun
I would just like to say that I too have had many problems with this company but I have found the putting everythin in writing seems to work.NEVER bother speaking to them on the phone.
I have also been successful in getting charges refunded via the Financial Ombudsman and am in the process of my second complaint to them.
If any of you are interested there is a wealth of info on the dodgy dealings of SPML/PML and capstones on the consumer action group website.
Also of interest is Companies house website check the details of you mortgage company on there. SPML are late filing their accounts and their one remaing director is facing prosecution.
I could go on but as there are so many victims it would be really good if all the various sites to get together and collate the experiences of people and put together some sort of joint action.
The FSA are supposedly due to make an announcement on the 4 sup-prime companies they have been investigating (GMAC have already been fined} but they seem not to be rushing.
ive just read in the daily express that there has been much injustice done about bank charges, and capstone aka kensington mortgages have been mentioned, anyone know how you go about getting your charges back??
my mortgage was with their sister company and now with capstone in previous years i too have had arrears cleared them and also told that i have insurance ihave now been served with an eviction notice withn 2 young children and no partner they are just not interested i hope you get the justice you deserve in shaming them good luck it may have come to late for me
Good for you Shaun. We personally have nearly lost everthing, and have been where many of your contributors seem to be now. The ‘innovative’ solicitors of Capstone seem to be able to entrance the courts, or at least the junior officials who they work through. It costs money to oppose them in court, and they very well know that somebody already having financial difficulty will have little money available for proper representation.
The watchdog bodies as you have discovered…just give the impression they are not interested and hope it will all go away when the recession ends.
Hi To Everybody Who Has Posted
I have today written to The Mail to see if they could get involved in any way, in addition I have found Martyn Woodison on Linkin so will contact him there, for those of you who don’t know him he is head of customer care.
Hi Helen,
I am sorry that you are experiencing the same problems as I am, I cannot believe what they are doing is legal and am currently talking to a solicitor about it.
As soon as I make progress I will let you know, I am hoping there could be a case for harrassment.
I contacted Watchdog but heard nothing, there seems to be no teeth with any consumer body any more leaving us all to the wolves!!
Shaun
Hi Shaun,
I remortgaged with Capstone in 2006 and I must say that it has been the biggest regret of my life. I have been in arrears previously, it even went to court and an arranged amount was agreed, but yet they still kept on phoning. I hope that you will be successful in suing them. Capstone should not be in business at all. Let us hope that they will be struck off and we will be mortgage free. Please let me know how you get on. They are a disgusting firm. Lydia
I also have had the same problems Capstone Mortgages insurance products forced upon me. I have taken out my own home insurance as this is much more competitive than what Capstone have to offer. I was written to and asked for a copy of this. My insurance company twice faxed copies of the documents to 2 different phone numbers given by their customer service department. I then recieved further letters saying they had not heard from me and that I had to provide copies otherwise they would enforce their own expensive insurance on me. I called them yet again and explained that I have my own insurance (you would be mad not to have home insurance) and that this time I would send a copy myself. I sent 2 further copies and both they claimed not to have recieved! I finally scanned a 5th copy of the document and emailed it across to somebody who finally applied this to my account. In this time they started writing to me claiming I had now taken out their own expensive insurance, this is like most other people without me agreeing or signing anything! I didn’t actually think it would be a problem as I would ignore their requests for payment however they started taking payments through my direct debit I pay for the mortgage payments. I called the customer service department and spoke to some idiot who said it was in the small of my agreement. I like the previous replies haven’t seen any evidence of this? Are Capstone Mortgages allowed to force their own insurance onto their customers even when they already have insurance and have provided evidence of this on several occassions? It doesn’t seem right to me and I suspect this will happen once again next year when the years anniversary is up. One suggestion is to send a copy recorded delivery that way you can prove it’s been recieved. I’ve contacted the ombudsman who weren’t that helpful, is the FSA much better then?
I did everything I could to provide evidence that I had my own insurance to Capstone Mortgages yet they still took money from my account. I’m now out of pocket and will not let this drop until I recieve my money back. Any advice would be welcome? Helen
Dear Shaun
I really hope you can name and shame this company. Unfortunately due to lack of work over the last few months we are in arrears but every time we speak to somebody (they say they cannot ring me on a mobile!!) we get somebody different who tells me another story. Despite payments to the arrears it seems to be going up. Please, please can we stick together and try and stop this bullying urgently. It is such a nightmare and they shouldnt be allowed to get away with it any longer. I am so relieved to find I am not the only “victim”
I used to work for this company they are so geared towards profit that customers loose. Capstone are just the servicing company for your mortgage they buy them in bulk and then when you cant pay they hit you with fine after fine.
When the recession hit the company was having a new kitchen fitted on each floor (3 of them) and loads of new members of staff to cope with the demand of debtors……… The company was glad there was a recession.
Hello
My family and I have had a horrific experience with capstone.I got into errears for various reasons tried to sort it out with them but they would have none of it all they kept saying was how much they were going to charge me.Back in 2007 I found out there was a court date for a repossesion order. The afternoon before, we agreed a figure to pay off the arrears and they said its all sorted it wont go to court but guess what it did and as I was not working I went to court to make sure. everyone was shocked to see me but the biggest shock was I got charged £2000 for less than five mins explaining to the judge what was going on.This was more than the arrears.I tried to pay more but struggled.When I got a statement I noticed I was being charged £140 a month which was more than what they advised me to pay on the arrears so my arrears were climbing.Then in Jan 2009 we recieved an eviction order there was no warning just the letter giving us seven days,I managed to swap a life insurance in and after capstone changed my offer three times i had to borrow more money they eventually stopped the eviction.I asked if I could have a letter faxed to say they had stopped the eviction as i did not trust them as i did not want them turning up at our house as my wife is disabled and did not want to put her through any more distress the manager said we wont do a letter you will have to phone our solicitor so i did he said im off to dinner so i cant do it i will do it later he did a few hours later.In may my fixed mortgage came to an end so March time on the advice of a financial advisor i rang them and asked to put my mortgage to interest only for a year she refused this straight away saying i asked in Jan and was refused then (this is a lie)I said my mortgage is due to change on 1st may as interest rates have dropped she said no its june as weve moved the goal post and changed things. my rate actually changed in july.Ive been struggling to make payments then in november i spoke to them and was told theres no prob your paying your mortgage then 2 weeks before xmas we were told we were being served an eviction order when i rang all they wanted was a proposal of payment I made a proposal and was told wait 48 hours but it was turned down I explained about my wife and we were having the house adapted for her and it was also xmas why do this to us now she said that doesnt come into it and whats my wife got to do with it i said 4 years we have fought to get the house adapted we got a grant from the council and also had to get permission from capstone to do the adaptions so they tnew about the works and how much it was costing she just said so.I asked when and where it was going to court she said i dont know.My wife phoned them and was told it will be weeks before it goes to court for eviction date that was 18th DEc 2 days later we got eviction notice it went to court on the 16th 2 days before we spoke to them so who was lying ?Also their solicitor lied about it? I then made another proposal which was about half the arrears told wait 48 hours that was 22nd Dec I eventually spoke to them on 4th Jan You can imagine what sort of xmas we had.he said the proposal had been refused so to stop the eviction I have had to borrow the full amount then i was told a fee of £800 was put on our mortgage for it going to court then another £115 because i paid the arrears after the 1st.THIS COMPANY MUST BE STOPPED as they are criminals and getting away with it.We will be pleased to help in any way to show what this company are doing.
Many thanks
Brian & sandy
The Daily Mail has a commentary site on this. What concerns me is the slowness with which the Government seems to be acting, compared with the rapidity with which it introduces ministerial regulation and investigation in other areas that are so close to its heart.
There appears to be a misconception that the ‘clueless’ victims of this group are a bunch of hopeless debtors who have only themselves to blame. This is not so, as anyoone who has had dealings with them can testify.
The Key issue perhaps to reflect on is:
Your company is now bankrupt, and our country is in a state of crisis, but you get to keep $480 Million. I have one very basic question: Is that fair?
Henry Waxman questioning Lehman Brothers CEO Richard Field.
As an issue of natural Justice, it is perhaps a question that many people could or should be asking.
I have had a multitude of issues with Capstone. I have written to the FSA, my MP, and a government minister about them. I want to track the directors down and personally ask them what they think is going on with their outfit.
I cannot believe they are getting away with it…..
Hi,
I need some advice, my mum has just passed away suddenly and she has a mortgage with Capstone. She is in litigation and they are threatening to repossess even though she has been maintaining her payments on the arrears. When we contacted them to advise that she had passed the advisor was so rude and demanded payment or they would enforce the repossession order. She refused to even listen to me and I had to ask for a manager. It was only when I mentioned contacting FOS that they allowed me a month to get mums affairs in order.
I understand that my parents are in arrears but my father really does not want to lose his home. Looking at the paperwork they had refused to transfer them to interest only and not offered any other hardship tools and caused my parents so much stress.
Therefore, I was just wondering if you guys had any suggestions on what I can do. They really are the most heartless company I have ever dealt with and I really could do with some help.
Thanks
I give up with this wordpress software. It is really mucking around today – hence my errors with website
I have copied your post here onto a new ‘blog’ page I have set up which has the sole aim of becoming a vehicle to obtain publicity to attract people wishing to see these devious mortgage lenders sued in a test case.
We would hope compensation from these thieves disguised as mortgage providers will be ordered by the courts.
This has already happened in the USA !
This blog is located atHomeownersforjusticeagainstmortgageracketeering.wordpress.com/ have a look and join in.
Shaun,
I have copied your post here onto a new ‘blog’ page I have set up which has the sole aim of becoming a vehicle to obtain publicity to attract people wishing to see these devious mortgage lenders sued in a test case.
We would hope compensation from these thieves disguised as mortgage providers will be ordered by the courts.
This has already happened in the USA !
This blog is located atHomeownersforjusticeagainstmortgageracketeering.wordpress.com/ have a look and join in.
yes i am having the same problem with capstone i am in arrears and now they are trying to get a repossesion they are not helpfull at all on the telephone, they wont even reduce my payments or come to some sort of agreement to pay it of they want the full monthly payment or nothing
I just had another letter asking me to ring about my ficticious arrears and at the same time I have a phone message asking me to ring about my refund.
The letter is quite menacing and has really got under my skin, currently I am testing out the legality of my contract, I have requested and received their copy plus a copy of my original application form from Preferred Mortgages, both are with a high quality lawyer.
I will keep you informed but I am looking at whether the original contract is legal.
That’s a very interesting perspective James, and the detail is illuminating. I suspect this is happening with my old house. It has been on the market with them for nearly a year now, and we have heard rumours from friends of sales under way, and then withdrawn. No doubt they are people who have been enticed into the contract you describe on the basis of a bargain because a substantial property is advertised at a very favourable price.
When trying to purchase a house through Capstone they said they were willing to accept my offer as long as i use their solicitors and that we must exchange in 30 days. As it turned out there was a clause imposed on the property that they must have known about saying that an option must be given to the council and remain open for 8 weeks, meaning that this was impossible and subsequently the deal would be cancelled and the solicitors fees paid to capstone.
I was lucky by refusing to use their solicitors, however, the day after they agreed they said that i’d been gazump and i incurred fees of nearly £500 seperatly.
I have now found that countless others have fallen foul of this and suspect they are using the property to generate solicitor fees.
The question is, how can this be proved? any whistleblowers out there??
It is enough to say that the 30 days is a con in itself?
I have a partial answer to my query. Price Waterhouse Coopers are the official administrators for Lehman Brothers UK. There is such an apparently complex situation that they have given pages of explanation. There is a contact website http://www.pwc.co.uk/eng/issues/lehman_faq_1008.html# if you want to study their information.
I hope this helps people in their search for greater clarity.
I cannot understand the trading position of Capstone. They are a subsidiary of Lehmans, so I would have expected that it would be included as part of the assets of the bankruptcy. As it is they appear to have taken over the ownership of the assets rather phoenix like, and are trading on the value of those in their own portfolio. They claim that they are administrators. This is ambiguous because in a bankruptcy as i understand it the court appoints its own independent administrators. I would appreciate it if anyone could resolve my apparent confusion.
I AM CURRENTLY PUTTING A CASE OF MY OWN TOGETHER REGARDING CAPSTONE/PREFFERD MORTGAGES. I HAVE HAD TREMENDOUS PROBLEMS WITH THIS COMPANY LOOSING MY PAYMENTS, CHARGING ME EXESSIVE FEE’S, RUDENESS OJN THE PHONE AND THREATENING LETTERS TO NAME BUT A FEW. I RUN A COMPANY CALLED BRANTWOOD GRANGE CONSULTANTS AND DEAL WITH CONSUMER PROBLEMS IN THE UTILITY INDUSTRY, SO I HAVE A GOOD KNOWLEGE OF CONSUMER LAWS ETC. I AM PUTTING TOGETHER A CASE TO SENT TO THE OFT AND THE GOVERNMENT (AS WELL AS TAKING CAPSTONE IN FRONT OF A SHERRIFF FOR ALL THE PROBLEMS I’M HAVING WITH MY OWN MORTGAGE. I WOULD GREATLY APPRECIATE IT IF ANYONE WHO HAS HAD DEALINGS WITH THIS COMPANY E-MAIL ME AT BRANTWOODGRANGE@BTINTERNET.COM AND LET ME KNOW OF THEIR EXPAERIENCES, AS I AM WANTING TO GET EVERYONE WHO HAD PROBLEMS WITH THIS COMPANY TOGETHER TO PUT A STRONG CASE TOGETHER TO PRESENT TO THE GOVERNMENT AND THE OFT, SO THIS COMPANY CAN BE EXPOSED FOR WHAT THEY ARE.
Hi,
Thanks airing your experiance,s with Capstone,SPML, Preffered really appreciate it.
Yes we too had a Mortgage with SPML/Capstone,my husband had to give up work wearly as he was being bullied. I worked away from home Sunday evening to Friday evening,72 hrs a week, no life for us at the weekend as exhasgted.
They were making our life a misery. we did however managed to sell our property before they gor their hands on it.
Thers was hardly any capital left as we had taken this mortgage out with hem to subsidise my husbands loss of earning, I know now we should not have done that.
Now we are in sheltered accomodation.
We worked hard all our lives, we adopted a little boy from 6 weeks old, he is so cleaver,went to Private School, then to Oxford, now gained his Doctorait. Drained us financially but would not change a thing as he brought us more pleasure than anything else in this world.
I hope that something is done very quickly with these Cowboys, so others don,t have this mental abuss that we have all have suffer.
I wish you all well, things can ony get better.
Lynn
As a former Capstone employee, i feel your pain. They are the most unorganised company imagineable. If I was still working there, I would happily help you guys, unfortunately the majority of people there do not take ownership, therefore your disputes never get sorted. The insurance is a joke, they argue they apply the insurance because they need to ensure the property is insured. What kind of homeowner would not have insurance, and why dont they request a copy of the insurance every year before levying a charge. I really do feel sorry for you guys, you dont deserve such poor service
Shaun,
I have the same aims as you but lots more anger – probably !
I would really like to get together with others like me/you/et al to organise a co-ordinated campaign of publicity about certain issues like this.
I am a public relations consultant as well as journalist by training, so I know how to go about these things (hopefully).
Meanwhile I will re-post this on my blog Modern Times in Mudshires at http://rocketspage.wordpress.com.
If you look at my blog you will se it is full of my blatherings about injustices of one sort or another. And I haven’t even started on any blathering about my astonishing mortgage (Capstone included) experiences !
Very specifically, I really would like to learn from you more about how to use SEO etc. My knowledge of these things is not good – despite using computers for decades !
Hi Shaun
I cannot understand how a company like Capstone can carry on treating people like they do. And what the Regulatory bodies are doing about them seems to be zero. They are causing people and their families total misery with no conscience and if there’s any company that should be closed down it should be them and exposed to what they are doing. I myself cannot understand why the media is not interested in these people.
Hi Shaun
I had the most horrific experience by them as well. I will join you in your mission of taking them to the cleaners as I really don’t want to mention on this public website about my experience with them.
If you care to email me I will share that with you and discuss strategies with you as they cannot continue in this manner on innocent citizens!
Kind regards
Mina
There are several concerns about this group on a forum called Consumer Action group which is available for customers to add comments. It is diffult to make a critical comment publicly I hope this helps if anyone is looking for detail. It is all to easy for the small individual to be buried in the sand.
I see this resource on Capstone building, there are many Capstone Mortgage comments that I cannot allow due to their tone but what is obvious is that I am not alone with my contempt for this company.
What I want is to get this post higher in search so I can raise the level of publicity higher, Capstone really must become accountable for the way they treat people.
I hope the tightening of mortgage criteria puts the brakes on the type of business this company does and that maybe if they have a shrinking client base they will turn their attention more towrds client service.
I am keeping a steady watch on this company’s continued survival despite the ambiguity of their status as so called administrators of Lehmans. If you contact consumer agencies or television programmes they do not seem to be terribly bothered. I must admit to being a little perplexed.
I had my home repossessed by capstone/spml or what ever they are calling themselves……I have just found out that my home was sold for £25,000 pounds more than was owed….when i rang them to question this, i was told the information I was given was wrong….I have contacted land registry and got a copy of the file and capstone still say its wrong…..well I am taking them to court…..When I had my mortgage through them they screwed me left right and centre, with insurance as has been spoken about on here, and interest on arrears etc and illegal charges that I am almost positive they made up….anyway I have been told I have a very strong case against them..STAY AWAY FROM CAPSTONE/SPML/PREFERRED THEY ARE RIP OFF B***ARDS
Hi Dennis,
Of course you may post a link, I have not finished this by a long shot, my original plan was to use my blog as an SEO resource, SEO is about positioning websites in search engines and its what my company does for a living, that has changed because I am fed up of rip-off Britain, I am now using my power to shame those companies and government institutions that survive by good public relations and am going to continue doing this.
As far as Capstone goes I am still awaiting for two refunds and the refunding of my charges, Capstone are a complete ripoff company and my aim is to highlight this as much as I can.
I have just got married and so the lead up to that meant Capstone Mortgages were getting off lightly due to time constraints. Now I am back at work and will now use resources at my disposal to become a thorn in their side.
Please feel free to publicise and get people to link to this post using anchor text Capstone Mortgages, I aim to push this higher in profile now.
Best of luck.
Oh and as a caveat, the only reason I am with Capstone in the first place is because I got divorced a few years ago and for a short while I had to maintain two mortgages, the second one ended up with Preferred as the High Street was reluctant. I dont mind in those circumstances paying extra for the risk they took even tho it was slight but I am not going to be ripped off by Capstone because they feel they can ride over peoples rights.
Capstone Mortgage Services.
I can categorically reaffirm all the negative reports about this Third Party Administrator. They ‘administer’ loans and mortgages on behalf of the now defunct Lehman Brothers. The FSA and the OFT are well aware of their unlawful conduct but have been painfully slow to take action. I have written extensively on this subject and have been published on it.
Well done Shaun on bringing this to a wider audience. MAy I have your permission to post a link to a forum where the issues surrounding this firm have been extensively debated?
I have had a similar problem with this company each year since taking out a policy. Really the only way to progress this is for everyone to complain directly to the FSA regarding this practice. I think it is great that Shaun has highlighted this issue.
If you are thinking of taking out a mortgage, avoid Capstone / Preferred at all costs.
If you already have one and are being bullied in this way, make sure the complaint reaches the FSA. Eventually the weight of complaint should force action.
Capstone mortgages are harrassing me for insurance payments too. I have my own insurnce and always have, they should be taken to task by the ombudsman but of course they know they are safe from the toothless self regulating body.
Capstone mortgages are calling my insurance premium mortgage arears? That is to scare people, they are bullies and need sorting.
I cannt begin to explain the pain i have had with this company, my wife is at near-breaking point with it all, their fictiscious charges are a complete joke and now we are in danger of losing the home we love. Please somone give us some advice on how to tackle these bullies.
We lost our home through these people at two days notice, depite the fact we had a purchaser. We can elaborate, but do not want to make a litany of our harrowing experiences in public. The Law it seems is on their side.
Sorry the message about Capstone came too late for you, lets hope that others see it now the post is page one in Google.
This is great advice and am really glad I read it, Capstone hassled me just the same and they bullied me into paying up because they were affecting my credit rating.
I now wish I didnt pay them, I hope they all lose their jobs one day and then see how being rude doesnt get you through life in the real world.
Capstone or Preferred – stay away
Thank you for your comment Wendy,
I will be taking this further but I do have the power to shame Captone Mortgages publicly which makes me very fortunate as often action will be swifter.
Thats why I started this letter because I will now ensure that it gets to the top of Google in a search for Capstone Mortgages and this will hurt them publicly.
Once that happens and it is in the public eye there will be a large volume of comments posted as people get to read it, in addition I will next week feed this into Google News as well and that will be embarressing for Capstone.
As I said watch this space.
The contents of this letter should be shared with the Financial Services Authority, the Office of Fair Trading, the Financial Services Ombudsman and the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee.
This sort of bullying behaviour should be stamped out.