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Post by muttley916 on May 31, 2019 13:17:34 GMT
As my list of unpaid loans starts to creep onto the 3rd page, I am becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of coherent and meaningful updates from Ablrate. If the loans have an update, I have to trawl through each loan looking for it, or I get emails sporadically. The updates that are received through either route, set out clear goals and timelines that don`t seem to be met, or are words with no real meaning. My confidence has dropped and as a result I am not investing any new money, even with this years ISA sitting unused. ablrate Can we have a new communication strategy that informs the lenders what is happening with our money please, specifically with problem loans, on a weekly basis, via email? Even if the update is "no update", I would like to hear that. Reading the threads today, there seems to be a common theme - tell us what is happening. |
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brianlom1
Member of DD Central
He's not the Messiah, he's a very naughty boy!
Posts: 384 
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Post by brianlom1 on May 31, 2019 13:32:29 GMT
I don't think a weekly list of 'no change' updates would add any value but I would agree that if a timeline has been stated then an update should be provided on or around that date
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Post by ablrate on May 31, 2019 15:48:46 GMT
We appreciate that communication is key. However, you have to appreciate that we have to be the arbiter of what we send out and when. There are a number of reasons for this, but you have to remember that we have a responsibility to both borrowers and lenders. If a borrower tells us one thing, we tell you and that thing does not happen, then there are implications for us from both sides. Lenders get upset, borrowers get upset and it helps no one.
Whenever we have material information we tell you, whether you feel they are coherent and meaningful is an opinion that is different for each lender and not something we can influence, but I can say that we aim to be as clear as we are able. Borrowers do not always hit timelines, information is not always forthcoming when we expect it and payments promised don't always arrive when expected or when we are told. This is the nature of the business we are in. When there is something material we aim to have a factual email sent out or an addendum, if it is a conversation or communication we update the Admin Notes. If we do not do it this way we would be sending emails saying 'the borrower says this' then answering emails when that thing doesn't happen or if it is materially different. We can do that in the admin notes, but sending out emails all the time has, in the past, also created aggro with lenders saying we send out 'too many'!
My team also do a good job of recovery and one of the things we have to be very careful of is compromising that recovery by saying anything that could jeopardise the process. Clear, fair and not misleading is what we are obliged to do in our communication, and we try very hard not to give opinion but give factual information and we can only do that when there is a concrete factual basis for doing so.
For example, our aircraft guy is overseas, until his report comes in there is no real material information we can give that would be contextual. At the same time we are speaking with the borrowers about their solutions but until we have received the report (done at our expense) we can't really evaluate their solutions, so whatever we say would not satisfy anyone and may in fact compromise our potential solution. Rest assured, however, we are working on a solution for this and others every day.
Judging by other threads, and feedback over 5 years, I believe we do a good job of communicating compared with other platforms, but I agree we should always seek to do better. I will speak with the team on Monday and work out a schedule for a general update, but again, sometimes this may be a little bland, not because there is no movement but because we have decided not to share at this stage. We hope you would trust that we are always working in the best interest of lenders.
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hector
Member of DD Central
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Post by hector on May 31, 2019 16:20:26 GMT
We appreciate that communication is key. However, you have to appreciate that we have to be the arbiter of what we send out and when. There are a number of reasons for this, but you have to remember that we have a responsibility to both borrowers and lenders. If a borrower tells us one thing, we tell you and that thing does not happen, then there are implications for us from both sides. Lenders get upset, borrowers get upset and it helps no one. Whenever we have material information we tell you, whether you feel they are coherent and meaningful is an opinion that is different for each lender and not something we can influence, but I can say that we aim to be as clear as we are able. Borrowers do not always hit timelines, information is not always forthcoming when we expect it and payments promised don't always arrive when expected or when we are told. This is the nature of the business we are in. When there is something material we aim to have a factual email sent out or an addendum, if it is a conversation or communication we update the Admin Notes. If we do not do it this way we would be sending emails saying 'the borrower says this' then answering emails when that thing doesn't happen or if it is materially different. We can do that in the admin notes, but sending out emails all the time has, in the past, also created aggro with lenders saying we send out 'too many'! My team also do a good job of recovery and one of the things we have to be very careful of is compromising that recovery by saying anything that could jeopardise the process. Clear, fair and not misleading is what we are obliged to do in our communication, and we try very hard not to give opinion but give factual information and we can only do that when there is a concrete factual basis for doing so. For example, our aircraft guy is overseas, until his report comes in there is no real material information we can give that would be contextual. At the same time we are speaking with the borrowers about their solutions but until we have received the report (done at our expense) we can't really evaluate their solutions, so whatever we say would not satisfy anyone and may in fact compromise our potential solution. Rest assured, however, we are working on a solution for this and others every day. Judging by other threads, and feedback over 5 years, I believe we do a good job of communicating compared with other platforms, but I agree we should always seek to do better. I will speak with the team on Monday and work out a schedule for a general update, but again, sometimes this may be a little bland, not because there is no movement but because we have decided not to share at this stage. We hope you would trust that we are always working in the best interest of lenders. Abirate. I'm sorry but I disagree with your mind set that you do not provide updates in part due to ......' If a borrower tells us one thing, we tell you and that thing does not happen, then there are implications for us from both sides. Lenders get upset, borrowers get upset and it helps no one' .....also.....'Borrowers do not always hit timelines, information is not always forthcoming when we expect it and payments promised don't always arrive when expected or when we are told'........ As a "mature" investor I do agree when you say ....'This is the nature of the business we are in'..... As an investor with my children's inheritance at risk, it is up to me to decide how relevant or not statements/promises/undertakings etc by the borrower are & whether to hold, buy or sell. Not for you to withhold such information.
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nw99
Posts: 340
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Post by nw99 on May 31, 2019 16:57:40 GMT
We appreciate that communication is key. However, you have to appreciate that we have to be the arbiter of what we send out and when. There are a number of reasons for this, but you have to remember that we have a responsibility to both borrowers and lenders. If a borrower tells us one thing, we tell you and that thing does not happen, then there are implications for us from both sides. Lenders get upset, borrowers get upset and it helps no one. Whenever we have material information we tell you, whether you feel they are coherent and meaningful is an opinion that is different for each lender and not something we can influence, but I can say that we aim to be as clear as we are able. Borrowers do not always hit timelines, information is not always forthcoming when we expect it and payments promised don't always arrive when expected or when we are told. This is the nature of the business we are in. When there is something material we aim to have a factual email sent out or an addendum, if it is a conversation or communication we update the Admin Notes. If we do not do it this way we would be sending emails saying 'the borrower says this' then answering emails when that thing doesn't happen or if it is materially different. We can do that in the admin notes, but sending out emails all the time has, in the past, also created aggro with lenders saying we send out 'too many'! My team also do a good job of recovery and one of the things we have to be very careful of is compromising that recovery by saying anything that could jeopardise the process. Clear, fair and not misleading is what we are obliged to do in our communication, and we try very hard not to give opinion but give factual information and we can only do that when there is a concrete factual basis for doing so. For example, our aircraft guy is overseas, until his report comes in there is no real material information we can give that would be contextual. At the same time we are speaking with the borrowers about their solutions but until we have received the report (done at our expense) we can't really evaluate their solutions, so whatever we say would not satisfy anyone and may in fact compromise our potential solution. Rest assured, however, we are working on a solution for this and others every day. Judging by other threads, and feedback over 5 years, I believe we do a good job of communicating compared with other platforms, but I agree we should always seek to do better. I will speak with the team on Monday and work out a schedule for a general update, but again, sometimes this may be a little bland, not because there is no movement but because we have decided not to share at this stage. We hope you would trust that we are always working in the best interest of lenders. Totally agree you are doing a great job.
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greenslime
Member of DD Central
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Post by greenslime on Jun 1, 2019 0:48:35 GMT
As my list of unpaid loans starts to creep onto the 3rd page, I am becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of coherent and meaningful updates from Ablrate. Good to see that someone else uses the same sophisticated metric .... I'm not exactly frustrated - but I'm a little less relaxed about Abl than I was 12 months ago
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boundah
Member of DD Central
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Post by boundah on Jun 1, 2019 17:06:24 GMT
As an investor with my children's inheritance at risk, it is up to me to decide how relevant or not statements/promises/undertakings etc by the borrower are & whether to hold, buy or sell. Not for you to withhold such information. OK, by that measure every piece of communication between Ablrate and borrowers should be shared with lenders if they demand it. No platform in its right mind would do this, for the reasons spelled out very clearly in ablrate's post. We choose to lend through them, so we must trust them to work in our best interest. Any lender not happy with the arrangement is, of course, quite at liberty to take their children's inheritance elsewhere.
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blender
Member of DD Central
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Post by blender on Jun 1, 2019 19:01:25 GMT
The quotes have gone a bit wrong, boundah, but we all know it was not ablrate who said that but hector. Of course you are right we rely on ablrate to manage the loans for us and to exercise judgment in what info is made available to lenders as the negotiation progresses. The borrower has to be able to have a conversation with ablrate, to disclose sensitive information and discuss alternative ways forward.
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