posted 17th January 2024
Despite a Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) final decision in 2021 and a High Court ruling by Mrs Justice Collins Rice on the 5th of May 2023 in favour of the victims, Shawbrook Bank has yet to pay a penny to those affected by the mis-sold timeshare scandal.
In the nine months since Shawbrook Bank lost its appeal in the High Court, the Bank has done everything possible to delay payments and circumvent its moral and legal obligations.
So why does the Financial Ombudsman Service allow this behaviour?
Despite our continuous requests to the FOS for transparent and honest answers, we have had no communications on individual Shawbrook Bank cases other than templated vague excuses. The Financial Ombudsman Service seem more interested in pacifying banks rather than delivering justice to over 7000 timeshare victims. FOS's actions question its neutrality and ability to provide fair, impartial, transparent, and prompt justice.
In the latest twist to deny elderly and vulnerable victims their rightful compensation, they are rejecting the very claims that the FOS and High Court have already made final decisions on.
Shawbrook Bank's grounds for rejection are farcical and a blatant attempt to disrupt justice.
Unfortunately, we have come to expect this contemptuous disregard for consumers from the timeshare industry and the banks that have supported them.
For many years, the FOS has been described as a 'Not Fit for Purpose' organisation by multiple organisations and platforms and has been asked to answer for its failings at the highest level. In the most recent Treasury Select Committee hearings, it is evident that nothing has changed, and consumers are still suffering due to the lack of leadership, training and transparency and substantial delay. Over the last ten years, our dealings with the FOS have underlined the inadequacies the BBC's Panorama programme reported in 2017 and the Channel 4 Dispatches programme in 2018.
The recent Post Office scandal has highlighted how individuals in the UK are treated by organisations that deem themselves to be above the law. Ultimately, due to the legally binding final decision in the High Court, our clients and their families will eventually receive compensation for their illegally sold Club La Costa and Diamond Resorts memberships. However, it has taken the FOS 7 years to make the initial determinations, and since the final verdict in May 2023, they have allowed the delay to continue, which is nothing short of scandalous. Shawbrook Bank, Hitachi and Barclays continue to delay payments and leave elderly and vulnerable people to pass away whilst waiting for justice.
We have represented and fought for justice for thousands of Club La Costa and Diamond Resorts victims for ten years. If you require help in reclaiming the money that is rightfully yours, get in touch. We do not charge any upfront fees; you only pay us when we successfully obtain compensation for you.
To check if you qualify for compensation, get in touch by filling out a form on our website or by calling us on 01691 223 112.
