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“I can think of nothing lower then to take advantage of the brave men and women who risked their lives for our country, only to be taken in by an enemy at home. Ideally, your group will be able to testify before Congress. At any rate, do not give up. This is a battle against an enemy as real as any on the battlefield. The sad part is it is being waged on our own soil.”
— received via email about HSBC Retail Services —
Case studies based on customer reports and personal interviews with Household Watch consumer advocates indicate multiple failures in honoring the Soldiers and Sailors Relief Act.
If you are called to active duty, you’re protected by a law that can save you some legal problems and possibly some money as well. In part the law says you qualify for all or part of these:
• Reduced interest rate on mortgage payments.
• Reduced interest rate on credit card debt.
• Protection from eviction if your rent is $1,200 or less.
• Delay of all civil court actions, such as bankruptcy, foreclosure or divorce proceedings.
One of the most significant provisions under the act limits the amount of interest that may be collected on debts of persons in military service to 6 percent per year during the period of military service. This provision applies to all debts incurred prior to the commencement of active duty and includes interest on credit card debt, mortgages, car loans and other debts. The provision applies to pre-service debts, and the interest rate reduction doesn’t occur automatically — service members must request it.
Requests sent to HSBC – Household are not honored in many cases. In some cases the interest rate was reduced to 6 percent, but late fees, past due fees, and poor credit reporting was not corrected. While HSBC wants the general public to believe they are the friend of the military, including a pact with University of Maryland UMUC for military education, their track record indicates a different picture.
We were shocked to read that “Household International and University of Maryland University College (UMUC) announced a $2 million partnership last year to develop an online financial education resource center designed to meet the special needs of military personnel and their families.”
Faxes are lost, requests not honored, and servicemembers are frequently asked for the same information time and time again, only to be stalled and their information lost. Many servicemembers indicated their frustration with HSBC, and the situation at home is not pretty.
While on active duty in a war zone servicemen and women should not have additional worries about finances and family matters. It can be deadly. Warfighters must be focused on the mission at hand. Household – HSBC prevents that by failing to honor laws that have been in place for fifty years.
Failure to honor the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act is a travesty that requires the immediate attention of HSBC, but the parent company is in London. Once again the source of the problem comes not from HSBC but from William Aldinger’s former troubled and predatory Household International. Household does not care about the methods and tactics used to turn a profit, as evidenced by one of the worst track records of 1990 – 2000 for consumer abuses, predatory lending and legal action against Aldinger’s Household International.
Now a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC, abuse of the American military continues. Getting a foot in the door at UMUC is a slap in the face to the United States Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines and Coast Guard. The fox is in the hen house.
If Sir John Bond and William Aldinger have a written policy to stop this abuse, and can prove that said policy is enforced, we will publish their reply and policy statement here. Until that time HSBC and Household are regarded as terrorists in America, causing our servicemembers needless worry as HSBC breaks the law and causes good men and women to be less than 100 percent attentive while defending America at home and abroad.
Without a doubt, as complaints are received from our armed forces, Iraqi militants and Bin Laden commend Aldinger and Bond as any action which weakens our armed forces is a benefit to the enemy. Consumer advocacy organization Household – HSBC Watch does not like it at all. They have received complaint reports since the buildup for Afganistan following the September 11 terrorist attacks and liken these actions to terrorism at home.
HSBC did not own Household International in 2001, but the practice continued after HSBC purchased Household. Is this another failure of due diligence by HSBC, a coverup by Household, or does HSBC just not care? You decide.
This article, U.S. Soldiers Threatened at Home, is just one of our articles from our Bank Horror Stories, HSBC Secrets Part 3
Bank Horror Stories monitors banking problems and customer complaints and has done so since 1999. Writers hold no stock positions. Some material is used under the fair use copyright act.
We use Thomson Reuters News Service Calais in all production material but are not associated with Thomson Reuters, banks, or financial institutions in any way.
