The Ballad of the SLC

Here's an email I sent to the Student Loans Company complaints department at the weekend.

To whom it may concern

I received today a letter dated 4 August 2009, which kindly informed me that my repayment amount would go up by more than £100 a month because "we have not yet received a completed Overseas Income Assessment form". This surprised me, because I would have thought if you wanted one then you might have told me. Maybe it's more fun if your customers have to guess, I don't know.

Indeed, the penultimate paragraph of the letter says "We will contact you in approximately ten months to reassess your repayments for the following year." I am fairly sure the letter I got 12 months ago on this subject said much the same thing, and yet you have not contacted me.

Having inferred from Kevin O'Connor's blunt missive that an assessment form is required, I shall furnish you with one forthwith. In future, I hope that whenever you want me to send you something, you ASK FIRST. It's not rocket science.

I look forward to your next letter "in approximately ten months".

yours
etc.

I mentioned this to a couple of work colleagues yesterday. One had this to say:
Nicely said.
If they’re not capable of sending one letter a year, could they not send an email instead? They’ve had my email address on file for 10 years and not used it once.
It’s almost as if they somehow make more money by keeping us in the dark. How strange.
If there were any competition, the SLC would drop dead.

And then, this morning, from the same chap:
I've had a further development in the SLC saga. After receiving the “we’re charging you £147 a month” letter last week, I now receive a second letter, dated one day later. Enclosed is an Overseas Income Assessment Form.
Nice work, guys. Not only did they annoy the hell out of me, they made me waste my time downloading and filling in a form yesterday. I’d like to think that there’s some sense behind their behaviour, but can’t quite force logic into the required pretzel shape.
Expect a form in the post any day.


The trouble is, who do you complain to? What can one actually do about these idiots?
Depending on how annoying I find the reply from Complaints, I may write to my MP, since it's Parliament that authorises these buffoons, but I imagine it's a low priority, politically speaking.