Sir, – Your presentation of Laura White’s story (Front page, April 27th & 28th) suggests that she got a very good deal from the Bank of Ireland and that, if this precedent paves the way for widespread debt forgiveness, the mortgage lenders will be quaking in their boots.
I would look at this from a different angle. Ms White, on a modest salary, got a loan of €245,000 in 2005 and by 2010 had reduced this to €170,000. In other words, she had reduced her loan by €75,000. To do this, she must have paid a lot of money in interest, so probably paid back the bank about €100,000 in five years, no mean achievement. The bank got the house back and sold it. Given its address (Coolock, Dublin), I doubt if they sold it for less than €125,000. Ms White still owes them €18,000 which she will pay back over the next six years. I reckon the bank will at worst break even or, more likely, make a profit. Ms White on the other hand will have shelled out over €100,000 and has no home and no hope of acquiring one. Your story lines suggest that Ms White is the winner and the bank the loser. I would suggest it is the other way around.
The banks always win. – Yours, etc,