Key Post What should PTSB customers do about the 6.05% SVR?

Mark Paul had an interesting article in the Sunday Times on the lack of competition in the banking market generally. The following are the first few paragraphs of the article

 
We got a mortgage from tsb in Jan 2010 for a self build. Interest rate at the time it was 4%. We were in no panic to build just doing bit by bit direct labour. In Aug of 2010 I was informed the rate had gone to 4.5%. I contacted my bank manager in Oct 2010 I asked for his advice on future rates. I was told that if i had a 50% Ltv mortgage that I would get a 1% rate reduction. We sent a letter with a valuation from an auctioneer. We never heard anything back at this stage we had only 15k drawn down. We presumed all was sorted. We started getting letters in the post about the rate increases March 2011 and May 2011. I phone the bank manager in May asking what about our rate reduction. He had forgot all about it and does not know where our letter went and cannot do anything about it now even though we would still be borrowing at less than 50% Ltv. We can't move lenders as circumstance have changed. So know we are stuck on the 6%.

I am surprised that either the Goverment or the people have take some sort of action on this.
 
All I can say is that the Regulator is aware of these rates and how high above other lenders they are (PTSB in particular).
Best to liaise with the provider and come to some sort of re-structure on the loan sooner rather than later before it becomes a problem. Cannot say when or if there will be a reduction in the rate being forced on these providers but the budget will not make things easy for us.
 
Suggest anyone on this punitive rate from a government owned entity should first off contact their local TD (I have).Then formulate a letter to the local / national papers. I'm also sending mails to the radio stations and directly to journalists hoping someone will pick this up..

Headline is that .....AIB SVR is 3%.....PTSB same product same owner is 5.9%......


Why??

Lets get a campaign together!!
 
Minister Noonan,
Would like you to address the issue with the anomaly in the mortgage interest rates between AIB and PTSB.
While there was much press coverage around your pressure on AIB and BOI to pass on the ECB reduction recently of .25%, I feel that you have overlooked the real problem with the lending rates.
Why would you pressure AIB to pass on the .25% reduction while ignoring the fact that PTSB are charging their (your) customers almost double for the same product?

I'll assume that you are unaware of this disparity so I wish to highlight it to you. If customer A is with AIB with an SVR of 3% and customer B is with PTSB with a punitive rate of 5.9%, then the poor PTSB customer will pay over 150000 more than customer A by the virtue of him being with PTSB government owned entity rather than AIB government owned entity.

As effective owner of these institutions, rather than pressure for rate reductions for AIB customers, shouldnt you insist on harmonisation of rates?

Why should a PTSB customer pay 150000 more for the same product than an AIB customer for the 'exact' same product when you control both?

At the moment, due to the unilateral rate increases over the last 2 years by PTSB, their customers who are on SVR are being hammered. For the same mortgage, the PTSB customer is paying about 500 per month more.

You can do something about this and you must...

Ruari Quinn was given this information on Prime Time some weeks ago, and I trust that you have initiated some action.

This is a huge problem for thousands of people.

I trust you will address. PTSB are being punitive and the option of moving mortgage has been rescinded.

Pleases address.

J
 
I am also a PTSB customer (worst luck). Currently on 6.15% SVR. Due to reduce by 0.25% as a result of PTSB and a lovely gesture.

I am all for a campaign as this is ridicolus now. I took out a 300k mortgage in 2006 @ 4.7% fixed for 3 years. Came of fixed and went on variable at 3.79% Was really happy as my repayments went down to 1079. 2 years later there at 1430. How can this be justified.

Where and when is all i want to know.
 
I've no chips in this either way, but if there was ever a case for threatening a mortgage strike then this is it, the unfairness of this is plain for all to see. All the banks are state owned so if it is the case that others are undercharging, then an average rate should be charged across all the covered banks. It would take a bit of organising, you'd have to get the affected customers to contact you, set a date etc.
I think it is certainly achievable, how politicans could get their knickers in a twist over .25% yet totally ignore this is beyond me, best of luck folks.
 
if banks are forced to reduce their rates by the gov, they will go to the european court and the competition authority.
i for one cant see any gov lawfully telling a bank to reduce their rates.

Edit: if the below is true and does not go against competition law and european law, I stand corrected.
 
From the Fianna Fail budget proposal today


Banks’ Interest Rate Policies:
​
​
​
​
​
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In addition to the above initiatives, Fianna Fáil is presently preparing legislation
which would give the Central Bank the power to intervene in the interest rate-setting
policy of the financial institutions. There was a great deal of controversy in recent
weeks when certain banks failed to pass on the ECB interest rate reduction.
In our view, the real issue is not restricted to whether or not the lenders pass on an
ECB interest rate reduction to mortgage-holders, but rather the spread of rates being
charged by lenders, even among banks availing of the Eligible Liabilities Guarantee
scheme. At present, the standard variable interest rate charged by guaranteed banks
can vary from 3% to over 5%. This situation must be examined.
While much of the media focus was rightly on the plight of mortgage holders, the
situation with excessive interest rates being charged to commercial customers must
also be dealt with. There are various models internationally which restrict the extent
to which lenders can hike interest rates. In many cases, the maximum rate is set by
reference to the average APR charged in the market. We will shortly bring forward​

proposals in this area.
 
On Newstalk in about 10 minutes,(that would be approx 10 past 8, Dec 2nd 2011 ) there will be a discussion about PTSBs rates..Might be worth listening in..
 
Hi Daras

Got your message too late. What was the nature of the discussion?

Is anyone going to organise a campaign on this issue?

Brendan
 
I missed this too. Have just found it on the newstalk website. Go to their 'listen back' option', choose breakfast , for Friday 2nd December choose segment 3 (8am - 9am) and the piece starts at 15.31 minutes in...
 
Listening now. Tom has had his rates increased by PTSB, from just over 3% to 6.15%. New beginnings are the pundits and are making the same argument we have made here. Shane Coleman playing devils advocate, the bank arguement...They need to cover the costs, trackers are losing money, someone needs to subsidise...
Whats the solution he asks...New beginnings response is debt restructuring and intervention from politicians..Makes the point that there needs to be an examination in the rate differential...

Good...talk went on to 22.50 minutes....New beginnings pushing their (well intentioned but ill planned solutions). But main point got accross was that PTSB is acting errantly and something needs to be done...

Lets crank this up...
 
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