Halifax Bank values a man's life at £4,714.66

Letter to James Plaskitt MP

You may have heard of the recent case of Mr. Ian Beech who killed himself in the hope of protecting his family from having their home repossessed by the callous and greedy attitude of the Halifax.

Mr Beech had mortgage arrears of just £4,714.66 but the Halifax thought it was acceptable to drive this man to take his own life, through constant harassment and intimidation. I know how these organisations can threaten and act dispassionately to achieve their targets or act in an unreasonable way, as I have worked as a volunteer advisor. They have been known to shout, threaten legal action and demand money from people who usually have no desire to be in arrears or debt, often through no fault of their own. In fact, they have no interest in leaving a single penny for food, as long as the corporate fat cats are rewarded through huge bonuses and share options. This surely must end.

The case of Mr Beech pulls at my heartstrings. The family are obviously devastated, leaving behind a wife Caroline, a 15-year old daughter Ellie and his son Arran, 18. My sadness is even greater, when it could have all been avoided by a simple act of patience. You see, Mr Beech was close to remortgaging his home to pay off his debts, but the Halifax chose to send in the bailiffs, even though the house was valued at £180,000 and the mortgage was for £99,000.

Life is worth more than £4714.66 and though the Halifax did not hold him down and force the pills and alcohol down his throat, they still are responsible for his death. Every single one of us has a responsibility for our actions. We make choices that will have an effect on others. By engaging in a tactic of getting tough with people when their back is against the wall, cost Mr Beech his life, deprived Ellie and Arran of a father and left Caroline a widow. The future is still uncertain, as he hoped his insurance would cover the debt, but often clauses exist in policies excluding suicide from the policy.

Today, my heart is in pain because we still allow the rich and powerful to destroy the lives of those in need. There is much the government can do to help. We need regulation to make those that lend money more responsible when things go wrong. Some do, but as this case has shown the wicked practices of part of the banking sector destroy lives across our country.

The government can start by imposing a minimum time any lender has to work to, before any legal action can be taken. That is not for me to set, but in this case, all options should and must be pursued before a life is taken for £4714.66.

I hope you will agree that legislation is the only way of preventing the financial sector from treating people like numbers, to be used, shredded and thrown away like rubbish when things go wrong.