“We continue to work with the Financial Conduct Authority and the sector on this issue and will carefully consider practical and proportionate solutions put forward.”
Support
Anne-Marie also criticised the support that was available to her from Heliodor.
“There’s no support at all because they’re a non-lender," she said. “They can’t extend our years, they can’t lower our payments, and we can’t change to another mortgage company."
In response, Heliodor’s spokesperson said: “As a ‘closed book’ or ‘inactive’ lender, we don’t offer new mortgage products, but we don’t impose any unnecessary restrictions on those who wish to switch to another provider.
“We will automatically waive any early repayment charges to customers with fixed-term mortgages who chose to move."
The spokesperson also stated that Heliodor has also offered a number of options to Anne-Marie including converting to capital and interest repayments, a term extension, as well as short term concessions.
“We’ve also provided illustrations of the potential financial impact of each and recommended that the couple seek professional financial and debt advice before making any decision.
“We’re still awaiting the outcome of these discussions, however, if Ms Gillespie continues to feel that the mortgage is unaffordable, we’re happy to discuss what immediate support they might need whilst we explore their options further.”
Government support
Anne-Marie also said there was a lack of support currently coming from the government, explaining that, while universal benefit was helpful, it did not go far enough.
“If your mortgage payment is £2,000 a month you’re looking at £1,500 a month extra in terms of electricity, oil, water, food expenses, and normal day-to-day living costs as well.
“There’s nothing out there that would cover all those payments.”
However, she did identify one area where she felt supported, the Mortgage Prisoner Facebook page.
“I thought I was alone until I found them and realised how many are in this awful situation”, she said.
However, while her situation currently looks bleak, Anne-Marie pointed to recent developments which indicated there was still hope on the horizon, mentioning specifically the current interest in the Post Office scandal.
“We are hoping, since the Post Office scandal is being highlighted on the TV, that it will open doors for what we’ve been fighting for for two decades now.
“If we can make people aware, the government and everyone else, then maybe we can be heard eventually if we keep shouting.”
tom.dunstan@ft.com
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