Interest on bank guaranteed deposits

Hi,

Has anyone ever got their deposit back plus the interest? If so how was the interest calculated? Was it from the time the deposit was initially put into the account until the money was returned?

I am trying to find a silver lining to our agonizing wait. It only seems fair that if the money is being held in an account it should be earning interest. So when the banks refuse to return the deposit they should still be giving interest as they continue to profit by keeping the money.

Also, would it make any difference at all if it's a bank or an insurance company?

Best wishes,

Chris

Hi Chris

When a Bank Guarantee is executed the interest should be calculated from the date the deposit was paid until the date the refund is made.  Some Banks may try to negotiate an out of court settlement by offering just the principal amount or a reduced amount of interest.  It is then up to the buyer whether to accept that offer or whether to proceed with legal action.

It should not make any difference if it is a bank or insurance company.

If you do not have a Bank Guarantee and you file a Lawsuit against the Developer and/or Bank then the Judge may sometimes impose interest from the date the deposit was paid and on other occasions may impose interest from the date the Lawsuit was filed.

There is Case Law to support both scenarios and it is really up to the Judge in each individual case depending on several factors including the costs award etc.

Kind regards

Keith

Hi Keith,

That sounds like there is a possible positive to come from the never ending wait. Do you know if it is the judge's decision on how much interest should be paid or if this is something we need to  be pushing for?

Cheers,

Chris

Hi Chris

If your case is in Court then ultimately the Judge decides.

This is really something that you would need to discuss with your Lawyer to see what they asked for at the start of the legal action.  But remember, for various reasons, the Judge may not always agree with all demands.

Kind regards

Keith

 Hi Chris,

We received our deposit back some time ago and are now awaiting the costs and interest to arrive in our bank account. It has been paid by the courts to Costa Luz Lawyers and should have reached us last week so should be any day now.

When it is received I will request a breakdown of the amount and hopefully will be able to let you know the details of how it is calculated.

i am assuming I will receive a breakdown as when I requested one after my deposit was returned I was unable to obtain one but was told they are supplied at the end of the case. 

Hopefully soon and this will all be over!!!!!!!

Mal

FAO Mal J:-

I take it you didnt receive your interest and costs back yet?

 Fazarelli,

I received 7000 Euros for costs and interest in July and then a further payment of just over 1000 Euros two or three weeks ago.

It seemed a bit strange to receive the two payments as at the time of the second I was chasing a statement and breakdown of my case?

Obviously, I am delighted with the outcome and of course grateful to Maria and her team for their efforts.

Mal

Thanks for that info Mal. Its good to see that promises are being kept in this respect.

 Hi Mal,

Congratulations on getting your money back. Do you know how your interest was calculated? Was it in addition to that described on your BG? 

All the best,

Chris

 Hi Chris,

That is one of the reasons I particularly wanted the breakdown of my case. I seem to remember you asking me about this before but unfortunately the paperwork that I received from Costa luz Lawyers only gives details of the amount that was received from the courts and the costs that were deducted.

It took me so long to receive the case breakdown that I have now given up. I rememeber that when I first paid my deposit the contract stated that interest would be calculated at 6% in the event of breach of contract!

Perhaps if Maria  reads this she would inform us, and all other interested parties, whether that still stands or what it was adjusted to?

Mal

Judges generally award 6% interest.

Mal: What are you missing from accounts department so I can check with them?

Anyhow, maybe better through a private mean

Wow! 6%!

Is that instead of the spanish legal interest, which has been around 4% for around 7-8 or so years now?

6% for ten years is basically 60% extra. It could turn out to be a very good investment!

Fazarelliu:

A mistake I made: Judges generally award 4-5%, the legal interest. Apologies for this.

6% was before General Building Act passed in 1999.

Can anyone recommend a really good lawyer as we may need to pursue a bank guarantee?

Thanks

Legal interest is normally set on an annual basis to run from 1 January.  This is the rate judges normally award.  When calculating legal interest it is on a 'simple' basis and not compound interest.  You do not gain interest on interest!!

For the past few years the rates have been as follows:

2005   4%
2006   4%
2007   5%
2008   5.5%
2009   5.5% until 31.03.09
2009   4% from 01.04.09
2010   4%
2011   4%
2012   4%

Kind regards

Keith

Hi,

Maybe I am just very slow. But I still don't understand when the legal interest is applied. For example if your off-plan build contract ends, without the build being complete, and you initiate your BG but the bank refuses to pay up and you end up in court - is the legal interest applied from the time the contract ends until the bank returns your deposit?

Also, what happens if you win and the deposit is returned, but the bank appeals - are you then expected to pay the additional legal interest earned while the appeal is heard? If so, this would make a nice little earner for the banks. It simply encourages them to appeal no matter what, they have nothing to loose, no more interest to pay as you have the money, and if they win the appeal they'll have earned another 4%+ - better than any savings account around at the moment. 

I'd really love to understand this more clearly.

Many thanks,

Chris

Hi everyone,

I have been posting to many forums but I think that if I received my deposit from bank guarantees you can receive it too.
As I see that many of you had problems with the deposits you gave to Herrada-San Jose, I must say that my lawyer in Spain won my case regarding the guarantees. As most of you, we didn't have any individual guarantees to our name, they were just general guarantees.

I know that every client has the same right as me so I asumme that you can recover this back too.
We won against the banks Banco Pastor, BBVA and SGR and they already paid our guarantees back.
I am really happy with the work done so if any of you looks for any legal assistance I can give you my lawyers email address or if you have questions you can write to me caroline.mills36@yahoo.com

I hope that everyone can be so as lucky as me

Caroline

GM LEGAL EXPERTS WON CASE

HACIENDA BUENAVISTA (SIERRA MAR DEVELOPMENTS, MIJAS): BANCO POPULAR IS HELD LIABLE FOR BUYERS' DEPOSITS ALTHOUGH NO INDIVIDUAL OR GENERIC BANK GUARANTEES WERE GRANTED

 

Although no individual or generic bank guarantees were given, we claimed Banco Popular's liability under the provisions of the 1st article of the 57/58 Act First Instance Court from Marbella, because the account where deposits were paid into was really an special account, although Bank and Developer used the name "ordinary".

 

Our understanding is that the enforcement of mandatory laws must not depend on the good will of the parties and, obviously, should ensure protection for third parties acting in good faith (purchasers).

 

Luckily,  the Judge of the First Instance Court in Marbella was of the same opinion, and declared that account was really "special", no matter the name given by the parties, so Bank should have made sure that deposits were withdrawn just for building purposes, and should have also requested the delivery of bank guarantees for buyers whose deposits were paid into that account. Therefore, Banco Popular has been ordered to pay deposit plus legal interest to those purchasers.

 

This kind of judgements are unusual, but it seems that Courts are finally moving forward on purchasers' protection justice and their knowledge and awareness about the 57/68 Act is increasing.

Congratulations Guadalupe and all within GM Legal Expert, the crucial factor is to ensure monies are returned ASAP via the courts and even if this depends on a provsional enforcement as the banks continue to be reluctant to release the money!

I imagine this would give other investors confidence within the legal system to consider legal action.