Northern Rock start reign of terror (Northern Rock)

Member Name: Surviving the improbable

Product:	Northern Rock
Date:	24/05/08 (240 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: none

Disadvantages: life is too short for this

A friend of mine died 4 years ago leaving me his house in his will. He had a mortgage on it with Northern Rock, owing £125,000, with 20 years to run. I took on the debt, paid some of it off and continued with his mortgage payments each month. I have never defaulted on any payments, and Northern Rock have never insisted that the debt must be paid off before the expiry of the 20 year term.

..Until now. They have not admitted it, but it is obvious they have just received directives from on high requiring them to reduce their mortgage book - by fair means or foul.
They recently wrote to me saying that unless I paid off the mortgage balance in full within 28 days they would instruct their solicitors to oversee the sale of the property and I would be liable for their legal fees on top of the mortgage debt into the bargain. And this is the first hint they have given that they wish me to repay the debt.

I am currently in dispute with them and going through their complaints procedure. Unbelievably they are also insisting that I pay the early repayment penalty on top of the mortgage debt - when they are the ones who are forcing an early repayment!

Every time I have rung NR I have got a diffferent answer and often been treated with disdain. The customer service is outrageously bad, and I wouldn't mind betting that since Mr Sandler took charge of things he has introduced a take-no-prisoners policy, at the heart of which is a determination to bully certain borrowers into early repayments in a futile attempt to fill the black hole created by their own recklessness. Their way of doing business stinks, and the government are conniving at it.

Summary: A Nightmare