Bank of Ireland before the Oireachtas Finance Committee

Ciaran Lynch

You are well below the others on offering split mortgages

Boucher: We are a commercial organisation. We look at our book. It has lower levels of arrears. The progress is reflected in the numbers

In 9 out of 10 cases, arrears and pre-arrears, we offer a solution. 86% of them are working.

WE have issued 693 split mortgages. Many are offered as part of early arrears or pre-arrears which is why so few appears on your questionnaire.

Lynch : 3478 legal cases doesn't include the threatening letters -
BoI: We regard the letter from a solicitor as a proposed solution, but we don't include the letter to the borrower telling them that we will begin legal action as a proposed solution. 50% of borrowers in receipt of that letter respond.

LynchHow many non cooperating letters have you issued?
BoI : We don't consider them as solutions

Lynch: Do you do debt write down
Boucher: No, it's not our policy

Lynch: What about legacy debt?
Mason: We would have engaged with them before the surrender. We would look for a contribution towards the residual amount if there is affordability.
Boucher: We want to recover the legacy debt in its totality

Lynch: How many PIAs?
We were involved in 22 protective certs
We have voted on 4. Some in favour and some against.

Lynch:

Senator Thomas Byrne:
Around 1/3rd of your solutions are legal proceedings

Boucher: 2,200 sfs outstanding (20%) - our desire for engagement is not reciprocated by the customer. Where we receive an SFS, we can offer a solution in 9/10 cases. Where we don't, we write to them, call them, text them, visit them and then write a final letter. It's only after that, that we issue proceedings.

[ I took a break here]

In answer to Regina Doherty

80 have been offered mortgage to rent by us. But most haven't worked out.

We voted for 2 PIAs. We voted against 2. But we were outvoted in one of the two. So we are in 3 PIAs.

This is a very small sample to judge from. But we vetoed them because of the conditions involved and the fees involved.

Liam Twomey

The consumer groups said you are going after borrowers in positive equity. You don't have the expertise to deal with the problems. The computer generates the solutions. Do you genuinely engage with the customer to sort out problems?

BoI: We have 1,000 people working in arrears - 250 sme and 750 mortgage arrears . 100 in branches .

The SME solutions are working. We offer 9 out of 10 a solution which involves continuing in business.

Twomey: Why don't you write down debt

Boucher: Our mandate is to maximise the return . We do not do it voluntarily . Only in the bankruptcy process .
I have to be open and honest and transparent.

Pearse Doherty

Do you write off unsecured debt?

Boucher: Yes we do. Where it's too expensive to collect.

Doherty: But you don't write off mortgage debt

Boucher: No, we don't.

Doherty: Will you veto any proposed PIA where there is debt write down?
Boucher: Yes. We will veto these for secured debt.

Doherty: I am lost for words.

Doherty: Do you write off the shortfall on mortgage to rent ?
BoI: No we don't.

Kevin Humphries

Boucher: We have paid back €6 billion of taxpayer money. None of the other banks have done that.

Humphries: Take us through the protocol for unsecured debt

BoI: We have driven that protocol. If unsecured debt has to be written off, we will do it.

€36,000 on average of unsecured debt being paid off over 5 years.

Don't know how much we have written off. But we do do it.

Michael Creed

How many of the houses subject to AVS are in positive equity.

BoI: We suspect very few. But we don't distinguish between positive and negative equity.

In response to Joe Higgins:

BoI: We have a total of €1.9 billion in negative equity in our home loan book, €400m of which is over 90 days in arrears

Richard Boyd Barrett

Unlike most of the other members of the Committee, I believe you.

You are behaving rationally. It's our fault for giving you the power to do so.

I don't expect that there will be widespread repossessions.

But I am appalled that you would pursue people for the shortfall after they have surrendered their home. It's unbelievably cruel.

Boucher: We seek to maximise recoveries on behalf of all our stakeholders

Things obviously work differently on Planet Doherty and Planet Boyd Barrett. Either they're cynically engaging in some populist grandstanding while on the Finance Committee, or they believe in the free money fairy. I can't think of a third option.

Hi dub nerd

I was extremely impressed with Richard Boyd Barrett over the hearings this week and next week.

He is genuinely trying to understand the issue, unlike some of the others who are grandstanding.

Both RBB and BoI are wrong, as indeed are ptsb who say that they don't write off the shortfall either. If the money is not recoverable, they should write it off. If it's recoverable in part, they should come to a deal.

Brendan

Brendan Burgess said:

Both RBB and BoI are wrong, as indeed are ptsb who say that they don't write off the shortfall either. If the money is not recoverable, they should write it off. If it's recoverable in part, they should come to a deal.

Brendan

Click to expand...

And keep the house or not?

Hi Delboy

This conversation was a follow on to this comment by RBB

But I am appalled that you would pursue people for the shortfall after they have surrendered their home. It's unbelievably cruel.

Click to expand...

Thanks Brendan. My only objection was the implication of blanket debt forgiveness, as opposed to looking at cases individually. I believe (like you, I think) that debt writedown/write off should certainly be on the table where it is the only viable option.

dub_nerd said:

. My only objection was the implication of blanket debt forgiveness, as opposed to looking at cases individually. .

Click to expand...

The only person to mention blanket debt write down was Joe Higgins who wanted all mortgages written down to the current value of their home.

Peter Matthews may also have called for it. I couldn't be bothered listening to him but he had some long winded point about the banks had overlent and so...