0:00:01 > 0:00:05We asked you to tell us who has left you feeling ripped off.
0:00:05 > 0:00:09And you contacted us in your thousands - by post, e-mail,
0:00:09 > 0:00:11even stopping us on the streets.
0:00:11 > 0:00:14And the message could not be clearer...
0:00:14 > 0:00:15They're in it for what they can get.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18They're not in it to provide a service.
0:00:18 > 0:00:22I didn't sleep. It upset me so much that I didn't sleep.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25You've told us, with money tighter than ever,
0:00:25 > 0:00:30you need to be sure that every pound you spend is worth it.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33How do I get my money back? Cos I think I'm entitled to it.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35So, whether it's a deliberate rip-off,
0:00:35 > 0:00:37a simple mistake
0:00:37 > 0:00:38or a catch in the small print,
0:00:38 > 0:00:42we'll find out why you're out of pocket and what you can do about it.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46Keep asking the questions. Go to the top, if you have to.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49We DO get results, that's the interesting thing.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51Your stories, your money.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53This is Rip-Off Britain.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58Hello, and a very warm welcome to Rip-Off Britain,
0:00:58 > 0:01:01where it's our job to get to the bottom of why you've had a raw deal,
0:01:01 > 0:01:04or, indeed, if you feel you're not getting the service you expect,
0:01:04 > 0:01:05and, indeed, deserve.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08Whether it by pounds or pennies,
0:01:08 > 0:01:11the people we'll meet today all feel they've lost out,
0:01:11 > 0:01:14and they want to know why, so we'll be getting answers for them
0:01:14 > 0:01:17and making sure that you know how to avoid the same sort of upset.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20So, there's plenty of good advice coming up,
0:01:20 > 0:01:23because some of the situations we're going to be hearing about
0:01:23 > 0:01:25involve everyday costs or annoyances -
0:01:25 > 0:01:29the sort of things that really could very easily happen to any one of us.
0:01:29 > 0:01:31But, as you'll see,
0:01:31 > 0:01:35they can end up causing a lot more bother than you'd bargained for.
0:01:37 > 0:01:41Coming up, some of most memorable stories we've covered in the past.
0:01:42 > 0:01:47The former nurse who thought she'd taken out a £17,000 mortgage.
0:01:47 > 0:01:51So, how come her bank now says she owes them £100,000?
0:01:51 > 0:01:53I was just shattered.
0:01:53 > 0:01:56I couldn't believe this was happening to me.
0:01:56 > 0:02:00The families being charged hundreds of pounds by care homes
0:02:00 > 0:02:02after their relatives have died.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06Just because it's legal doesn't make it morally or ethically right.
0:02:06 > 0:02:09This is charging the dead, really, for a service they've not had.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13And we open our doors to try
0:02:13 > 0:02:16and solve some of your problems on the spot.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19We declare our pop-up shop... ALL: Open!
0:02:19 > 0:02:25Now, what do you have to do to be classed as "occupying your home"?
0:02:25 > 0:02:28Does it mean that you stay there overnight?
0:02:28 > 0:02:30Or is it being at the property every day?
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Now, I admit that may seem rather an odd question,
0:02:33 > 0:02:37but it is one that really matters when it comes to house insurance.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46Andrew Hill is a carpenter, skilled at what he does.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49So, when he and his girlfriend Chaska decided to buy a house
0:02:49 > 0:02:54in the town of Glastonbury, they wanted one that THEY could work on.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57And with a bit of financial help from his dad, and a mortgage,
0:02:57 > 0:03:01they found the perfect bungalow, priced at £138,000.
0:03:01 > 0:03:05We decided to go for a really run-down bungalow that needed
0:03:05 > 0:03:08a lot of work doing to it. And a project for me.
0:03:09 > 0:03:13With all the paperwork done and dusted, via a consultant
0:03:13 > 0:03:17at Countrywide Estate Agents, the redevelopment began.
0:03:17 > 0:03:20For 12 months, at evenings and weekends,
0:03:20 > 0:03:21they worked on the project.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24Coming to the end, it was looking amazing.
0:03:24 > 0:03:28Every room we were happy with. It was basically ready to move in.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33But on the night of April 9th, 2011,
0:03:33 > 0:03:37just two weeks before they were due to move in, disaster struck.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41A neighbour's home caught fire and the fire quickly spread
0:03:41 > 0:03:45to Andrew and Chaska's house, with devastating consequences.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50I got the call from my best friend's sister and she said,
0:03:50 > 0:03:54"Your neighbour's house is on fire" and, within 20 minutes,
0:03:54 > 0:03:57half an hour, it was ripping through our roof.
0:03:57 > 0:04:02And I just couldn't believe what I was seeing. I felt sick,
0:04:03 > 0:04:04gutted, shocked.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06This big room here
0:04:06 > 0:04:09and that bit over there is the extension which Andrew built.
0:04:09 > 0:04:13And this bit here, which is now the kitchen, was the second bedroom.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18So, this was the original kitchen,
0:04:18 > 0:04:21which was now being turned into the third bedroom.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24And it was beautiful and ready to move into.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28As all of their hard work burnt to the ground in front of them,
0:04:28 > 0:04:32their only comfort was that, along with their mortgage,
0:04:32 > 0:04:36they'd taken out home protection and buildings insurance.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39Everyone kept reassuring us, saying, "Don't worry, you're insured,
0:04:39 > 0:04:42"it'll be OK, it's just going to be tough for a few months."
0:04:42 > 0:04:45But that was an understatement.
0:04:47 > 0:04:48They put in a claim on their policy,
0:04:48 > 0:04:52which, though organised by Countrywide, was underwritten
0:04:52 > 0:04:55by Axa, one of the biggest names in the insurance business.
0:04:55 > 0:05:00Their claim was rejected, on the grounds that the house
0:05:00 > 0:05:03wasn't permanently lived in during renovation.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06They said, "If we'd known what your plans were,
0:05:06 > 0:05:08"we would never have insured you."
0:05:08 > 0:05:12And, basically, our insurance was void, because the property...
0:05:12 > 0:05:14they said the property was unoccupied.
0:05:14 > 0:05:21This is how Axa's policy spells out what they say "unoccupied" means.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24"Unoccupied - not permanently lived in by you or by a person
0:05:24 > 0:05:29"authorised by you for more than 60 consecutive days."
0:05:29 > 0:05:30That's what it says.
0:05:30 > 0:05:34But it's the ambiguity over what the word "occupied" means
0:05:34 > 0:05:37that was at the root of Andrew's problems.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40There is, in fact, no standard industry definition.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44As far as Andrew was concerned, because he was at the house
0:05:44 > 0:05:47every day, and the occasional night,
0:05:47 > 0:05:49he WAS occupying it.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53And that's how his dad, Paul, understood things, too.
0:05:53 > 0:05:54We've been quite open,
0:05:54 > 0:05:58explained our situation on numerous occasions.
0:05:59 > 0:06:06And completely overwhelmed, shocked now, by the way it's turned out.
0:06:07 > 0:06:11All because of the words "occupancy" and "unoccupancy".
0:06:11 > 0:06:15I can't get it out of my head, those two words...
0:06:16 > 0:06:20..and how we're in a battle now, trying to prove it.
0:06:20 > 0:06:24Andrew insists that when he bought the policy at Countrywide,
0:06:24 > 0:06:28who'd also arranged his mortgage for him, he'd explained in detail
0:06:28 > 0:06:33exactly what he'd be doing at the house and how often he'd be there.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36And his dad, who was also at the meeting with the broker, agrees.
0:06:36 > 0:06:41There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that the mortgage consultant
0:06:41 > 0:06:44knew exactly what our plans were.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48We discussed it in great detail. We went through every question,
0:06:48 > 0:06:52we discussed our plans, we told her we was not going to be
0:06:52 > 0:06:55living in there, that we were going to be doing modernisation works
0:06:55 > 0:06:57and when all the works were completed,
0:06:57 > 0:06:59Andrew would be moving in.
0:06:59 > 0:07:02So, how did Andrew end up with a policy that did not seem
0:07:02 > 0:07:04to give him the cover that he needed?
0:07:04 > 0:07:07A question that, when they rejected his claim,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10insurers Axa said THEY couldn't answer.
0:07:10 > 0:07:13When speaking to Axa, they'd come back to us
0:07:13 > 0:07:16and said our argument was with the broker.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19So we went back to the broker and...
0:07:21 > 0:07:23..they basically said that we never told her.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26Unfortunately, we are told,
0:07:26 > 0:07:30regardless of whatever we said, there is nothing there to prove
0:07:30 > 0:07:35what went on at that meeting in that office that night.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38And we are trying to...
0:07:39 > 0:07:40..fight a battle.
0:07:41 > 0:07:43And we can't prove what was said.
0:07:43 > 0:07:48But there should have been an easy way to clear all this up.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51The Financial Services Authority has guidelines requiring anyone
0:07:51 > 0:07:54selling insurance to keep careful notes of the meetings
0:07:54 > 0:07:58that they have, so that, if later, there is a dispute of exactly
0:07:58 > 0:08:02what was said, those notes can settle it.
0:08:02 > 0:08:06But Countrywide has failed to produce any such records.
0:08:06 > 0:08:08As a result, when Andrew
0:08:08 > 0:08:11took his case to the Financial Ombudsmen Service,
0:08:11 > 0:08:14their initial response was to say that
0:08:14 > 0:08:16they were not minded to uphold his complaint,
0:08:16 > 0:08:19because without any recordings or detailed notes of the sales
0:08:19 > 0:08:21meetings with Countrywide,
0:08:21 > 0:08:25there was no evidence to suggest the policy had been mis-sold.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28But Andrew and Chaska were determined not to give up.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33For them, it made no sense that, after Andrew had spent
0:08:33 > 0:08:35all of his free time doing up the house,
0:08:35 > 0:08:39that wasn't enough to mean that he occupied it permanently.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44Every single morning, evening, the doors opened to that property.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47I never left the property for more than 30 days,
0:08:47 > 0:08:53even two days, because I just wanted to keep on battling through,
0:08:53 > 0:08:55to get it finished, to move in.
0:08:57 > 0:09:00We spoke to insurers Axa about Andrew's situation.
0:09:02 > 0:09:04And they reiterated that his claim was rejected
0:09:04 > 0:09:07because the house was not "permanently" occupied -
0:09:07 > 0:09:11a fact that they'd only known about after the fire.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13They told us that, if they'd been aware of that
0:09:13 > 0:09:17at the time of purchase, they would not have provided cover.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20And they bounced the issue back towards Countrywide,
0:09:20 > 0:09:26saying it was their responsibility...
0:09:30 > 0:09:32When we pushed Countrywide for an explanation,
0:09:32 > 0:09:38they just said that...
0:09:42 > 0:09:46And they didn't explain why they hadn't been able to produce
0:09:46 > 0:09:49any notes at all from the sales meeting they had with Andrew,
0:09:49 > 0:09:51as the guidelines said they should.
0:09:52 > 0:09:56But then in July 2012, there was some encouraging news.
0:09:56 > 0:10:00After looking at the case again, the Financial Ombudsmen Service
0:10:00 > 0:10:03upheld Andrew's complaint against Countrywide, concluding
0:10:03 > 0:10:07that the policy WAS mis-sold, on the basis of all the evidence.
0:10:07 > 0:10:10So, we went back to Countrywide once more.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14They told us they were reviewing the case, but it wasn't clear how,
0:10:14 > 0:10:17or if, the case would be resolved, leaving Andrew and Chaska
0:10:17 > 0:10:21worried that they still faced losing the entire value of their home.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26The fire actually started in our next door neighbour's house,
0:10:26 > 0:10:29but, as you can see, their house has been rebuilt
0:10:29 > 0:10:31because their insurance has paid out.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34Whereas, our house is still left like this, our insurance won't pay.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40At the moment, we're stuck between the broker and the insurer
0:10:40 > 0:10:44and I've still got pay for the mortgage, my loans,
0:10:44 > 0:10:46for this pile of rubbish.
0:10:50 > 0:10:55But then in August 2012, after we'd been contacting everyone
0:10:55 > 0:11:00involved over several months, there was a very welcome final twist.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03Insurers Axa rang Andrew at work with a change of heart.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06I had to go outside because I couldn't hear the lady properly,
0:11:06 > 0:11:07and then she said,
0:11:07 > 0:11:10"Axa are going to pay for the full rebuild of your house."
0:11:10 > 0:11:11And it was just...
0:11:11 > 0:11:13It was like winning the lottery ticket
0:11:13 > 0:11:16and I was just running around, shouting...
0:11:16 > 0:11:18Jumping around. We both were.
0:11:18 > 0:11:20You come home from work, didn't you, cos you were like,
0:11:20 > 0:11:24"I need to sit down and take this information in." I couldn't...
0:11:24 > 0:11:25I just couldn't work any more.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28I was walking around, just smiling, shouting...
0:11:29 > 0:11:31Ringing all my friends up, saying, "Guess what?
0:11:31 > 0:11:33"They're going to pay!"
0:11:33 > 0:11:36Axa told us, after reviewing the case in more detail,
0:11:36 > 0:11:38they understand that Andrew
0:11:38 > 0:11:41answered all of the application questions honestly
0:11:41 > 0:11:43and should not be disadvantaged
0:11:43 > 0:11:47as a result of miscommunication between them and Countrywide.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50They've now paid the claim in full and given compensation!
0:11:52 > 0:11:55It's finally coming to an end.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58We can actually start to... Get on with our lives.
0:11:58 > 0:12:02And look forward to the future, rather than just...
0:12:02 > 0:12:03being in complete and utter...
0:12:03 > 0:12:06Have a black cloud over our head, really, isn't it?
0:12:06 > 0:12:08Our lives have been on hold for the past 18 months,
0:12:08 > 0:12:11so, finally, we can look to the future. Yeah.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15And since we first featured Andrew and Chaska's story,
0:12:15 > 0:12:18they have been able to completely rebuild the bungalow.
0:12:18 > 0:12:24They've now, at last, been able to move in and enjoy their dream home.
0:12:26 > 0:12:30Now, someone who, despite thinking they were being very careful
0:12:30 > 0:12:33with their money, has ended up, I'm afraid, losing it,
0:12:33 > 0:12:36and they don't want the same thing to happen to anybody else.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44I thought I was leaving a really good nest egg.
0:12:46 > 0:12:49And now they're burdened with £100,000 to pay back
0:12:49 > 0:12:51to the Bank of Scotland...
0:12:51 > 0:12:52when I die.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57The situation Penny Cooper has found herself in
0:12:57 > 0:12:59is the opposite of everything that she'd planned.
0:13:01 > 0:13:02Hello, there.
0:13:02 > 0:13:06In 2011, she retired from her job as a nurse
0:13:06 > 0:13:07at the Royal Berkshire Hospital,
0:13:07 > 0:13:10although she still goes back there to volunteer.
0:13:10 > 0:13:13And right through her 30 years of service,
0:13:13 > 0:13:15she was very careful with her money,
0:13:15 > 0:13:19hoping the value of her home would safeguard the family's future.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21Isn't she beautiful?!
0:13:21 > 0:13:23Throughout my life, I've never had a lot of money
0:13:23 > 0:13:26and just spent what money I could afford.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29I really did plan for my children's future.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32For me to know that I was going to be able to leave them
0:13:32 > 0:13:36half of this property and that they would get a nice little lump sum...
0:13:37 > 0:13:40..was such a wonderful feeling for me
0:13:40 > 0:13:44and made me feel very content.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48Penny's problem began 16 years ago, when,
0:13:48 > 0:13:51after the sale of the family home, she wanted to buy somewhere new.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56I bought this house in 1997. Saw it, fell in love with it,
0:13:56 > 0:14:01liked the area, and it was just what I wanted.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06Penny could have used her savings to buy the house outright,
0:14:06 > 0:14:09but wondering if it might be better to keep some of that money back
0:14:09 > 0:14:11for a rainy day,
0:14:11 > 0:14:14she arranged a visit with an independent financial adviser.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16When I saw the financial adviser,
0:14:16 > 0:14:20we decided that it was easier for me to have a small mortgage.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22It would then give me
0:14:22 > 0:14:24the opportunity to have a little bit of money in the bank.
0:14:25 > 0:14:30Penny went ahead and bought the house, for £69,500,
0:14:30 > 0:14:33taking out what she thought was a standard mortgage
0:14:33 > 0:14:35on the property with the Bank of Scotland.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39The mortgage was sorted out for £17,000,
0:14:39 > 0:14:43which would be a relatively small amount to pay.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45And that amount I was happy with.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50Penny didn't think any more about it, until after she retired.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54She decided the time was right to re-evaluate her finances.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58So is this his sleepy time, in the morning? Yeah...
0:14:58 > 0:15:01She went to a new financial adviser, who within weeks,
0:15:01 > 0:15:04delivered Penny some earth-shattering news.
0:15:04 > 0:15:07She said, "I've got some devastating news to tell you.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09"The mortgage that you had
0:15:09 > 0:15:11"was called a shared appreciation mortgage.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14"It means, when you die,
0:15:14 > 0:15:19"your children will have to pay back to the Bank Of Scotland £100,000."
0:15:19 > 0:15:24My first reaction was to vomit and I just rushed of to the loo.
0:15:24 > 0:15:26I came back and I was just shattered.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29I couldn't believe this was happening to me.
0:15:29 > 0:15:34And my thought was, "How can a £17,000 mortgage
0:15:34 > 0:15:38"suddenly change to £100,000 that I owe them?"
0:15:41 > 0:15:45Effectively, that's an increase of 490%.
0:15:47 > 0:15:49Penny just couldn't understand how her loan
0:15:49 > 0:15:51had suddenly got so much bigger.
0:15:51 > 0:15:53Just the worst thing ever.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55I didn't know what to do.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57Unfortunately for Penny,
0:15:57 > 0:15:59and indeed, the thousands of other people
0:15:59 > 0:16:02who took out a shared appreciation mortgage,
0:16:02 > 0:16:04it is not a typical mortgage, at all.
0:16:04 > 0:16:08Sold for only a brief period between 1996 and '98
0:16:08 > 0:16:11and by just two banks - Barclays and the Bank of Scotland -
0:16:11 > 0:16:13it was a unique financial product.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17THe bank offered a loan that was interest-free,
0:16:17 > 0:16:20in return for a percentage of any increase in the property's value...
0:16:23 > 0:16:25..as solicitor Hilary Messer explains.
0:16:26 > 0:16:28A shared appreciation mortgage
0:16:28 > 0:16:31is an arrangement where a home owner can borrow
0:16:31 > 0:16:34up to 25% of the value of their home.
0:16:34 > 0:16:37And when they come to repay that borrowing,
0:16:37 > 0:16:42they also have to pay up to 75% of the increase in value
0:16:42 > 0:16:45of their home, as well as the original loan itself.
0:16:45 > 0:16:49But the loan itself is on a 0% fixed interest rate.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51But what no-one at the time had predicted
0:16:51 > 0:16:54was the property boom at the turn of the century,
0:16:54 > 0:16:55so as house values shot up,
0:16:55 > 0:16:59so, too, did the amount of money that anyone with this product
0:16:59 > 0:17:01would find themselves owing the bank.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04The problems associated with the product
0:17:04 > 0:17:09come as a result of the almost exponential rise in property prices.
0:17:09 > 0:17:11And when people come to repay their loan,
0:17:11 > 0:17:14because they're paying back a share of the appreciation,
0:17:14 > 0:17:19they end up with, normally, less than half of the value of their home.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22Which is exactly what has happened to Penny.
0:17:22 > 0:17:27It means that, when I die, or I need money,
0:17:27 > 0:17:29if I have to sell this property,
0:17:29 > 0:17:34I have to pay back £100,000 before I get any return.
0:17:34 > 0:17:38The financial adviser gave me advice.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41I took her advice, I was happy with that advice.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44I trusted her, but what has happened now...
0:17:46 > 0:17:49It was the wrong advice and I feel badly about that.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54Of course, if the property market had gone down instead of up,
0:17:54 > 0:17:58then Penny would have paid no more that the value of her initial loan.
0:17:58 > 0:18:02So she isn't a victim of bad advice, but simply bad timing,
0:18:02 > 0:18:05especially as if she'd bought her house just a few months later,
0:18:05 > 0:18:09shared appreciation mortgages were no longer being sold.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12The banks that did sell them accept that, for many people,
0:18:12 > 0:18:15it resulted in considerable hardship.
0:18:15 > 0:18:17But they're satisfied that the terms and conditions
0:18:17 > 0:18:21that customers signed up to were made very clear at the time.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27Penny's bank, the Bank of Scotland, told us that they take
0:18:27 > 0:18:31"a very sympathetic approach" to anyone in difficulty
0:18:31 > 0:18:33because of their shared appreciation mortgage,
0:18:33 > 0:18:38but stresses that customers were...
0:18:38 > 0:18:40"..to explain how the product worked."
0:18:40 > 0:18:43So, if Penny feels it was mis-sold
0:18:43 > 0:18:45or that she was given unsuitable advice,
0:18:45 > 0:18:47they suggest that she takes that up
0:18:47 > 0:18:50with the financial advisor who sold it to her.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53But they say that if she's suffering from financial hardship,
0:18:53 > 0:18:55she should contact them directly,
0:18:55 > 0:18:57to see if they can assist in any other way.
0:19:00 > 0:19:03What Penny is going through is a harsh reminder
0:19:03 > 0:19:05that even when you do the right thing
0:19:05 > 0:19:08and take expert advice, you do still need to understand
0:19:08 > 0:19:12exactly what you're getting yourself into - and the risks.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15I thought I'd done everything right.
0:19:15 > 0:19:19I'd gone to a proper person that would sort out mortgages.
0:19:19 > 0:19:20I didn't understand.
0:19:20 > 0:19:25I feel very much that I've let my kids down.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28I feel still very emotional about it
0:19:28 > 0:19:32and very upset that this situation has come
0:19:32 > 0:19:35and would hate that to happen to anybody else.
0:19:35 > 0:19:36Who's my best boy?
0:19:42 > 0:19:47We've opened our very own pop-up shop at the Metro Centre in Gateshead.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49We declare our pop-up shop...
0:19:49 > 0:19:51ALL: Open!
0:19:51 > 0:19:54Overnight, we've transformed this space
0:19:54 > 0:19:56into a one-stop consumer advice centre...
0:19:56 > 0:19:58Hello, how are you? Fine.
0:19:58 > 0:20:03..so we can try and solve some of your problems face-to-face.
0:20:03 > 0:20:05Is this is your good lady? Yes, it is.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07For one weekend, our team of experts was inside,
0:20:07 > 0:20:11ready to offer practical advice on a variety of consumer issues.
0:20:13 > 0:20:17Gemma popped in to see personal finance expert Sarah Pennells,
0:20:17 > 0:20:20after a mistake by her bank when she switched accounts
0:20:20 > 0:20:22left her out of pocket.
0:20:22 > 0:20:23Fire away, Gemma.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25When I changed my bank account over
0:20:25 > 0:20:28and changed where my wages were going to be going,
0:20:28 > 0:20:30they took all the direct debits out of the wrong account.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33I was then charged by the mortgage company
0:20:33 > 0:20:34for a mis-payment.
0:20:34 > 0:20:36I'm worried now about whether there will be something
0:20:36 > 0:20:37on my credit rating.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40You said you've already made a complaint to the bank,
0:20:40 > 0:20:42so I think you have to wait for up to eight weeks,
0:20:42 > 0:20:45while they work out what, if anything, they're going to do.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48And if they don't offer to pay back the £42 that they've charged you,
0:20:48 > 0:20:50then I would go and take the complaint
0:20:50 > 0:20:53to the Financial Ombudsman service, which is free to use.
0:20:53 > 0:20:54But, I think, more importantly,
0:20:54 > 0:20:57you do need to get a hold of a copy of your credit reference file,
0:20:57 > 0:21:00just to make sure that that payment that was late,
0:21:00 > 0:21:03that wasn't your fault, isn't marked down there, because if it is,
0:21:03 > 0:21:05that could cause you some problems. Yeah.
0:21:05 > 0:21:07If you look at your credit file
0:21:07 > 0:21:10and you see something there that you think really is not just,
0:21:10 > 0:21:11what can you do about it?
0:21:11 > 0:21:14If you think the information isn't correct,
0:21:14 > 0:21:16you've got the right to dispute it.
0:21:16 > 0:21:17Basically, you should contact
0:21:17 > 0:21:19the credit reference company concerned,
0:21:19 > 0:21:21tell them what you think is wrong,
0:21:21 > 0:21:24and they've got 28 days in which to either get back to you and say,
0:21:24 > 0:21:26"Yes, we'll remove this disputed mark",
0:21:26 > 0:21:28"No, we won't, and here's why",
0:21:28 > 0:21:31or "We need longer to look into it".
0:21:31 > 0:21:32You know, we don't care
0:21:32 > 0:21:35whether your consumer problem is big or small,
0:21:35 > 0:21:38we just like to hear about it, right? Absolutely right.
0:21:38 > 0:21:40I can tell you that our black box is just the place
0:21:40 > 0:21:43to get it all off your chest.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45I'm really annoyed about the price of fuel.
0:21:45 > 0:21:47It's ridiculous, how expensive it is.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50Car insurance is an absolute disgrace.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53I've paid £2,200 for my first year's insurance.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55It's just a total rip-off.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58I've come to complain about the high prices
0:21:58 > 0:22:01that holiday companies charge during the school holidays.
0:22:01 > 0:22:05I feel that the pensioners in this country are getting ripped off.
0:22:05 > 0:22:10But one pensioner determined not to get a raw deal is Norman.
0:22:10 > 0:22:12Norman, it seems to me
0:22:12 > 0:22:14that you're someone who's got an eye for a bargain,
0:22:14 > 0:22:19but it sounds as if you very nearly got caught out by an optician.
0:22:19 > 0:22:20Tell me what happened.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24Well, my wife and I decided to go and get new spectacles,
0:22:24 > 0:22:28and I saw an advertisement for a company offering a 25% discount
0:22:28 > 0:22:32for pensioners who went in and purchased on their quiet days.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35So the assistant showed my wife spectacles
0:22:35 > 0:22:37and she eventually decided on two pairs.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40So the girl immediately got her calculator out
0:22:40 > 0:22:43and said it wouldn't be any benefit to put it through on discount.
0:22:43 > 0:22:48How much would the spectacles have cost you with your 25% discount,
0:22:48 > 0:22:49special for pensioners,
0:22:49 > 0:22:53and how much would it have cost you if you didn't have the 25%?
0:22:53 > 0:22:56If I had the 25% discount for pensioners, insisted on that,
0:22:56 > 0:22:59it would have cost me £215. Yeah.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02If I didn't have the pensioner's discount
0:23:02 > 0:23:04and went in as a normal member of the public,
0:23:04 > 0:23:06it would have cost me £198.
0:23:06 > 0:23:07Crikey!
0:23:07 > 0:23:09SHE LAUGHS
0:23:09 > 0:23:11It certainly sounds very strange.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14I'm sure it's something Trading Standards would want to look at.
0:23:14 > 0:23:15If you're being offered a discount,
0:23:15 > 0:23:18you shouldn't pay more than those not offered the discount.
0:23:18 > 0:23:21This is a story where it really is, "Read the small print,
0:23:21 > 0:23:22"and buyer, beware."
0:23:26 > 0:23:29When you feel you've had a raw deal,
0:23:29 > 0:23:31it can be hard to know what to do or where to turn.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34So to help you, we've put together a booklet
0:23:34 > 0:23:36full of practical tips and advice.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39You can download the free guide on our website...
0:23:43 > 0:23:45Or, to receive a copy in the post,
0:23:45 > 0:23:49send an A5 stamped and self-addressed envelope to the address
0:23:49 > 0:23:51that we'll give you at the end of the programme.
0:23:54 > 0:23:56Still to come on Rip-Off Britain...
0:23:56 > 0:23:59The investment plan that turned out to be much riskier
0:23:59 > 0:24:01than customers were ever led to believe.
0:24:03 > 0:24:05I don't get angry about these things,
0:24:05 > 0:24:07but, yes, I was very upset,
0:24:07 > 0:24:10because I wasn't going to be able to stay here.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14If you're having to face the very difficult subject
0:24:14 > 0:24:17of moving a relative into a care home,
0:24:17 > 0:24:19it can be a very stressful time.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23And amongst all the things you're going to have to consider,
0:24:23 > 0:24:25getting your head around the paperwork
0:24:25 > 0:24:28may not seem to be a top priority -
0:24:28 > 0:24:31indeed, it could be that the terms and conditions
0:24:31 > 0:24:33aren't especially clear.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36Many care homes have a clause in their contract which,
0:24:36 > 0:24:38if you're not expecting it,
0:24:38 > 0:24:42can come as a particularly unwelcome surprise later on,
0:24:42 > 0:24:45as it did for the families in our next story.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47Now, they had absolutely no idea at all that,
0:24:47 > 0:24:49when their relatives died,
0:24:49 > 0:24:53they would be hit with a bill for hundreds of pounds.
0:24:56 > 0:24:57Just because it's legal
0:24:57 > 0:25:00doesn't make it morally or ethically right.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03This is charging the dead, really, for a service they've not had.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07It was while Isabel Wilkerson was grieving for her grandmother
0:25:07 > 0:25:10that she was hit with an unexpected bill.
0:25:10 > 0:25:13What made it worse was that the whole situation
0:25:13 > 0:25:17was a direct result of the death of 93-year-old Olive.
0:25:17 > 0:25:18Isabel has fond memories
0:25:18 > 0:25:21of when former nurse Olive was in her prime.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25She was a very strong character, knew her own mind,
0:25:25 > 0:25:28very loving towards my mum,
0:25:28 > 0:25:35and she was... very outspoken, as well.
0:25:35 > 0:25:38But Isabel's grandmother suffered from dementia
0:25:38 > 0:25:41and three years ago, the family felt they had no choice
0:25:41 > 0:25:43but to put Olive in a care home.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46But choosing one they liked wasn't easy.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48We looked at lots of homes around Cambridge
0:25:48 > 0:25:52and...some of them I wouldn't put my dog in.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55But we found a local one, which was lovely.
0:25:55 > 0:25:59Olive received exceptional treatment at the home they chose.
0:25:59 > 0:26:02The cost was £650 a week,
0:26:02 > 0:26:05which included accommodation, food and drink
0:26:05 > 0:26:06and round-the-clock care.
0:26:06 > 0:26:08She settled really well.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10They were absolutely brilliant, so yes,
0:26:10 > 0:26:13it was a massive relief that we'd got her somewhere safe
0:26:13 > 0:26:16where she was being looked after really, really well.
0:26:16 > 0:26:18And she loved it.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21Olive spent a happy two-and-a-half years there,
0:26:21 > 0:26:24but in March 2011, she passed away.
0:26:26 > 0:26:28It was probably over a three-week period,
0:26:28 > 0:26:33she just went to her bed and became very, very poorly.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37And she, basically, just slipped away.
0:26:37 > 0:26:39And the staff were brilliant.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43Isabel cleared Olive's room the very next day,
0:26:43 > 0:26:47so she was shocked when she received a bill for her care
0:26:47 > 0:26:50for the two weeks after Olive had died,
0:26:50 > 0:26:54at a cost of £1,365.
0:26:54 > 0:26:58I was livid. I couldn't quite believe that they would do that.
0:26:58 > 0:27:02I looked into it and spoke to the solicitor about it.
0:27:02 > 0:27:03She said it was quite common,
0:27:03 > 0:27:07that these...these clauses are put into contracts
0:27:07 > 0:27:10and some homes can charge up to four weeks.
0:27:10 > 0:27:12It was classed as "legal".
0:27:13 > 0:27:15And, unfortunately for Isabel,
0:27:15 > 0:27:18it did say in the terms and conditions
0:27:18 > 0:27:22that the contract would only be terminated two weeks after a death,
0:27:22 > 0:27:26or when the room was cleared, if that was later.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28I enquired to the home about it
0:27:28 > 0:27:32and was informed that it was a period to allow the family
0:27:32 > 0:27:35time to clear the room
0:27:35 > 0:27:40and for them to make it suitable for somebody else to then move into.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44But Isabel thinks the £1,300 bill is unfair,
0:27:44 > 0:27:47because it covered not just the cost of accommodation,
0:27:47 > 0:27:51but also all her grandmother's care, food, drink, lighting,
0:27:51 > 0:27:54heating, even laundry done on the premises -
0:27:54 > 0:27:58services that, of course, in the two weeks after her death,
0:27:58 > 0:27:59she hadn't used.
0:27:59 > 0:28:02I couldn't understand how it could be legal
0:28:02 > 0:28:06that you could charge for a service that you weren't actually giving.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08I could have understood if they'd have charged us
0:28:08 > 0:28:11a percentage of the fee,
0:28:11 > 0:28:15to allow us time to clear the room, etc.
0:28:15 > 0:28:16But not for the whole lot.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19What frustrated Isabel even more
0:28:19 > 0:28:23was that she normally paid the fees from Olive's pension,
0:28:23 > 0:28:25which had stopped the moment she died.
0:28:25 > 0:28:26As soon as she had taken her last breath,
0:28:26 > 0:28:28her pension and her attendance allowance stopped.
0:28:30 > 0:28:31So, she has no more income...
0:28:32 > 0:28:35..but is still expected to pay bills.
0:28:37 > 0:28:38In fact, it's not all that unusual
0:28:38 > 0:28:41for care homes to have this sort of charge.
0:28:41 > 0:28:45Helen English and Rob Sewell's father Jack was 93
0:28:45 > 0:28:48when he moved into a retirement home.
0:28:48 > 0:28:50At home, he began to really struggle.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53And it was a very difficult decision, indeed.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56He really didn't want to go and leave his home,
0:28:56 > 0:28:58but we just couldn't see any alternative.
0:29:00 > 0:29:05They found an ideal home close by, at a cost of £837 per week,
0:29:05 > 0:29:09with an initial deposit of £2,760.
0:29:09 > 0:29:11That's Dad... But after three months there,
0:29:11 > 0:29:13Jack died.
0:29:14 > 0:29:17We immediately, in the next two or three days,
0:29:17 > 0:29:21cleared everything out of his room, made the funeral arrangements,
0:29:21 > 0:29:28and it was all quite straightforward. Quite straightforward. Yes.
0:29:28 > 0:29:30Or it was, until they noticed
0:29:30 > 0:29:33that the home had deducted nearly £2,000,
0:29:33 > 0:29:36the equivalent of three weeks' care,
0:29:36 > 0:29:38from their initial deposit.
0:29:38 > 0:29:41The home claimed that this was part of the contract,
0:29:41 > 0:29:43and indeed, there it was.
0:29:43 > 0:29:45They require one month's notice of a termination.
0:29:45 > 0:29:49They require one month's notice of a termination.
0:29:49 > 0:29:51We felt that that money, or at least most of it,
0:29:51 > 0:29:55should have been given back to us, because Dad was in no position
0:29:55 > 0:29:58to give a month's notice of termination,
0:29:58 > 0:30:01because he didn't know when he was going to die.
0:30:01 > 0:30:04Rob and Helen had read the terms and conditions,
0:30:04 > 0:30:06but now feel that they weren't clear,
0:30:06 > 0:30:09because they hadn't realised that the clause
0:30:09 > 0:30:13about the termination of residency also applied to death.
0:30:13 > 0:30:15They're not completely clear.
0:30:15 > 0:30:19And they certainly don't specifically mention
0:30:19 > 0:30:24what happens in the... in the event of the resident dying.
0:30:25 > 0:30:29When the Office of Fair Trading looked into care home contracts,
0:30:29 > 0:30:33they were concerned about the "lack of clarity" with these fees, which
0:30:33 > 0:30:38they say are often "not drafted in plain, intelligible language."
0:30:38 > 0:30:41And though they concluded that a charge for up to four weeks
0:30:41 > 0:30:46may be fair, if the room was unoccupied for all of that time,
0:30:46 > 0:30:50they said that any fees after a resident's death should be made
0:30:50 > 0:30:53"clear and prominent in the contract,
0:30:53 > 0:30:55"so that consumers are fully aware of them."
0:30:56 > 0:31:01Which is also the concern of Caroline Abrahams from Age UK.
0:31:01 > 0:31:03It's absolutely horrible
0:31:03 > 0:31:04to think you're a family member
0:31:04 > 0:31:08who's experiencing all the distress of a bereavement and then,
0:31:08 > 0:31:11suddenly out of the blue, you get a bill you weren't expecting,
0:31:11 > 0:31:15for quite a large sum of money. When people go into a care home,
0:31:15 > 0:31:18it's often at a time of crisis, so it's all a bit of a rush.
0:31:18 > 0:31:19It's very easy, then,
0:31:19 > 0:31:22to overlook those details about what you're signing up to
0:31:22 > 0:31:25and it is really important that care homes do everything
0:31:25 > 0:31:29they can to bring the small print to families' attention
0:31:29 > 0:31:31so that there aren't any horrible surprises later on.
0:31:31 > 0:31:34Which, of course, neither family we spoke to
0:31:34 > 0:31:35says happened in their case.
0:31:35 > 0:31:39So, we asked both of the care homes involved whether they think
0:31:39 > 0:31:42the charges were fair and made sufficiently clear.
0:31:42 > 0:31:47Only the one Olive lived in replied, saying that the costs of their care
0:31:47 > 0:31:49are...
0:31:49 > 0:31:52"..with this fee..."
0:31:52 > 0:31:57"..and..."
0:31:57 > 0:31:58They say it's...
0:31:58 > 0:32:02"..that Isabel doesn't feel it was clearly explained."
0:32:05 > 0:32:09But Isabel, Helen and Rob remain angry and upset
0:32:09 > 0:32:11about the charges that they've had to pay.
0:32:11 > 0:32:14There isn't a choice. Even if you challenge it beforehand,
0:32:14 > 0:32:16you've got to do the best for the person
0:32:16 > 0:32:19and it's a big decision moving a loved one into a care home.
0:32:21 > 0:32:23My dad would be very upset about it.
0:32:23 > 0:32:26He would have been horrified, I think,
0:32:26 > 0:32:28if he'd known that this would happen.
0:32:34 > 0:32:38Next, an investment that really did seem to be a perfect opportunity.
0:32:38 > 0:32:41And it certainly did turn out to be life-changing,
0:32:41 > 0:32:43but not at all in the way that was expected.
0:32:45 > 0:32:49At 84, Margaret Sherborne should have been enjoying
0:32:49 > 0:32:50her retirement in peace.
0:32:52 > 0:32:55But her quiet life has been disrupted by the effects
0:32:55 > 0:33:00of an investment that her bank recommended she take out.
0:33:00 > 0:33:03I'm not money-minded. I have no financial interests,
0:33:03 > 0:33:07really, but when Barclays said I should do something with this money,
0:33:07 > 0:33:09I thought that was a good idea.
0:33:10 > 0:33:15So, I was happy to invest in this fund that they recommended.
0:33:15 > 0:33:19It never occurred to me not to trust them.
0:33:19 > 0:33:23Margaret's financial situation first changed back in 2007.
0:33:23 > 0:33:27Recently widowed out in Spain, she made the decision
0:33:27 > 0:33:30to move back, to a retirement village in the UK.
0:33:30 > 0:33:35I came here because I'd come back from Spain and my son lives
0:33:35 > 0:33:37about a half-an-hour's drive away.
0:33:37 > 0:33:41And I thought this would be quite nice to be near him.
0:33:41 > 0:33:45If you live on your own, you are very isolated sometimes
0:33:45 > 0:33:48and so I thought this was
0:33:48 > 0:33:50the best of both worlds, you know.
0:33:50 > 0:33:57You've got security, privacy, and to be with other people, if you want,
0:33:57 > 0:33:58which is good.
0:33:59 > 0:34:03Margaret's new retirement plan would be funded from her life savings
0:34:03 > 0:34:06and the sale of her Spanish property.
0:34:06 > 0:34:09In total, Margaret invested over £247,000,
0:34:09 > 0:34:13which she put into her account with Barclays.
0:34:13 > 0:34:18I had the money transferred to my savings account in this country.
0:34:18 > 0:34:21And when Barclays saw that I had that much, they said
0:34:21 > 0:34:24I really ought to be doing something different with it,
0:34:24 > 0:34:25putting it somewhere else.
0:34:25 > 0:34:28Barclays sent round a financial adviser,
0:34:28 > 0:34:31who recommended that she invest her money in a scheme that was called
0:34:31 > 0:34:35Aviva's Global Balanced Income Fund.
0:34:35 > 0:34:40He told me that it would bring me in about 5,000 a quarter.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44That, with my pensions, was going to be just about enough
0:34:44 > 0:34:48to pay the rent. I told the Barclays adviser
0:34:48 > 0:34:52that I didn't want a high risk, but moderate risk I was prepared for,
0:34:52 > 0:34:55in order to get a good return.
0:34:55 > 0:34:58But I don't know much about these things.
0:34:58 > 0:35:01I didn't then and I don't now.
0:35:01 > 0:35:03On the advice of the man from Barclays,
0:35:03 > 0:35:07Margaret placed her entire life savings into their recommended fund
0:35:07 > 0:35:11and she did it because Barclays had themselves classed the fund
0:35:11 > 0:35:13as "unadventurous".
0:35:13 > 0:35:14So, on that advice,
0:35:14 > 0:35:17it seemed just the sort of investment that Margaret needed -
0:35:17 > 0:35:22unlikely to throw up any nasty surprises. Or so she thought.
0:35:22 > 0:35:24But right from the off,
0:35:24 > 0:35:28the fund did not perform in the way she'd expected.
0:35:28 > 0:35:31I took this investment out and then it started to fall
0:35:31 > 0:35:36and each month it had fallen by 10,000 or 20,000 and so on,
0:35:36 > 0:35:39until December, when it had fallen
0:35:39 > 0:35:44so much it was really worth only half what I'd invested in,
0:35:44 > 0:35:46half the money I'd put in.
0:35:46 > 0:35:49I could see that I wasn't going to be able to stay here
0:35:49 > 0:35:53in The Hawthorns. I wouldn't have enough for the rent.
0:35:54 > 0:35:57And that... I was worried about it.
0:35:59 > 0:36:02And Margaret was far from being the only Barclays customer
0:36:02 > 0:36:04to find herself in this predicament.
0:36:04 > 0:36:08It turned out that the bank had "misclassified" the risk,
0:36:08 > 0:36:10not just on this fund, but on another one, too.
0:36:10 > 0:36:14So, in total, 12,000 Barclays customers, most of them
0:36:14 > 0:36:16either already retired or approaching retirement,
0:36:16 > 0:36:20were finding that their investments were a lot riskier
0:36:20 > 0:36:22that they'd been led to believe.
0:36:22 > 0:36:25Between them, they'd invested a total
0:36:25 > 0:36:30of £692 million, much of which, with the funds underperforming,
0:36:30 > 0:36:33now appeared to be lost.
0:36:33 > 0:36:36Barclays faces the biggest fine ever levied on a bank
0:36:36 > 0:36:39for its dealings with high-street customers.
0:36:39 > 0:36:40In January 2011,
0:36:40 > 0:36:45Barclays was fined £7.7 million by the Financial Services Authority
0:36:45 > 0:36:50for mis-selling these funds. The FSA said they should always
0:36:50 > 0:36:52have been described as "high risk"
0:36:52 > 0:36:54and shouldn't have been sold to older customers,
0:36:54 > 0:36:58who could ill afford the heavy losses that the product caused.
0:36:58 > 0:37:01For Margaret, this seemed good news. She hoped that she could reclaim
0:37:01 > 0:37:03some of the money that she'd lost.
0:37:03 > 0:37:08When I realised how much money I'd lost, I contacted Barclays
0:37:09 > 0:37:12and I asked if there could be any compensation,
0:37:12 > 0:37:16because I didn't have enough. Then I received a letter from them
0:37:16 > 0:37:20saying that they admitted they had wrongly advised me,
0:37:20 > 0:37:24but that I wasn't entitled to any compensation.
0:37:24 > 0:37:28I don't get angry about these things, but, yes, I was very upset
0:37:28 > 0:37:31because I wasn't going to be able to stay here.
0:37:33 > 0:37:37I was worried about the money situation.
0:37:38 > 0:37:40But then Margaret heard of someone who could help.
0:37:40 > 0:37:44My daughter then told me that she'd heard of this firm
0:37:44 > 0:37:45called Claims.
0:37:45 > 0:37:48This company had already advised other people
0:37:48 > 0:37:49stuck in the same situation.
0:37:49 > 0:37:53And when they contacted Barclays about Margaret's case,
0:37:53 > 0:37:56the bank changed its tune.
0:37:56 > 0:38:00They offered 44,000 and I was very surprised,
0:38:00 > 0:38:02because they'd already told me that there was nothing due to me.
0:38:02 > 0:38:06It didn't really cover the amount I had lost,
0:38:06 > 0:38:10but it would have put me on a much more even keel.
0:38:12 > 0:38:15Claims didn't think Barclays was offering Margaret enough
0:38:15 > 0:38:19and an adjudicator at the Financial Ombudsman Service agreed.
0:38:20 > 0:38:25Barclays was told that in January 2012, but it disputed
0:38:25 > 0:38:27the adjudicator's decision, leaving Margaret to wait
0:38:27 > 0:38:30for the Ombudsman to make a final ruling,
0:38:30 > 0:38:33with further months of uncertainty and worry.
0:38:33 > 0:38:37I'd always been with Barclays all my life, for 60 years, at least.
0:38:37 > 0:38:40I trusted them....implicitly.
0:38:42 > 0:38:44We contacted Barclays about Margaret's case.
0:38:44 > 0:38:48They told us at the time that we first covered this story,
0:38:48 > 0:38:50"they were sympathetic to her situation."
0:38:50 > 0:38:53And, after a recent review agreed that the fund she was sold...
0:38:55 > 0:38:58They were sorry this was causing Margaret...
0:38:59 > 0:39:00And said they would...
0:39:07 > 0:39:09But for Margaret, and thousands of other pensioners
0:39:09 > 0:39:12affected in the same way, this continued to cause
0:39:12 > 0:39:16unwelcome stress, because it meant she was still worrying
0:39:16 > 0:39:19about whether she could afford to stay in her home.
0:39:19 > 0:39:23All I'm concerned about is having enough money to stay here.
0:39:23 > 0:39:25I wouldn't trust them again.
0:39:26 > 0:39:30Since we first featured Margaret's story, the Ombudsman ruled
0:39:30 > 0:39:34that she was entitled to £60,000 - the total amount that she'd lost
0:39:34 > 0:39:37on her investment. Barclays have paid out in full and,
0:39:37 > 0:39:40with this compensation, she's confident
0:39:40 > 0:39:43that she can now stay in her retirement apartment for good.
0:39:47 > 0:39:50Here at Rip—Off Britain, we're always ready to investigate
0:39:50 > 0:39:52more of your stories.
0:39:52 > 0:39:54Confused over your bills? Trying to wade through wodges
0:39:54 > 0:39:57of small print that leave you totally confused?
0:39:57 > 0:40:00When they sit you down to sign you up for things,
0:40:00 > 0:40:02they don't really give you the chance or the time
0:40:02 > 0:40:04to read through all of that small print.
0:40:04 > 0:40:07Unsure what do to do, when you discover you've lost out
0:40:07 > 0:40:10and that so-called "great deal" has ended up costing you money?
0:40:10 > 0:40:13You feel as though, because you got a cheap deal, you are not
0:40:13 > 0:40:15worth their time in the same way.
0:40:16 > 0:40:19You might have a cautionary tale of your own and want
0:40:19 > 0:40:22to share the mistakes you made with us, so others don't do the same.
0:40:22 > 0:40:27I feel angry. I feel stupid, that I'd allowed this to happen to me.
0:40:30 > 0:40:31You can write to us, at...
0:40:40 > 0:40:42Or send us an e-mail, to...
0:40:46 > 0:40:50The Rip—Off team is ready and waiting to investigate your stories.
0:40:53 > 0:40:57Well, these days, especially, we all want to make sure that,
0:40:57 > 0:40:59not only does our money stretch as far as it possibly can,
0:40:59 > 0:41:03but that it's buying us exactly what we thought it would,
0:41:03 > 0:41:06so it's extremely annoying when things don't turn out that way.
0:41:06 > 0:41:09But remember, our website has plenty of advice on how to make sure
0:41:09 > 0:41:13your money is working hard for you and not just someone else.
0:41:13 > 0:41:17The address - I'm sure you remember...
0:41:17 > 0:41:20And that's an address to make a note of.
0:41:20 > 0:41:23But do keep telling us who it is that's left you out of patience
0:41:23 > 0:41:27or out of pocket and we'll see if we can find out why.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30But what we are out of now is time.
0:41:30 > 0:41:33But we'll be back to investigate even more of your stories very soon,
0:41:33 > 0:41:35so I hope you'll join us, but until then, bye-bye.
0:41:35 > 0:41:37Bye. Bye.
0:41:56 > 0:41:59Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd