Dear Clive Thornton (Abbey National chief), I am appealing to you for help because I have run out of hope that my local branch of the Abbey National Building society will treat me fairly. I am also writing to my local paper and to Richard Weir of the Building Societies Association.

I have a mortgage with Abbey National for a property at 3 St Heliers Road, Leyton, which is in substantial disrepair and lacks modern facilities like a bathroom. My mortgage includes £5,600 which has been retained until the property can be put into a decent state.

Over a long period of time I have put together a scheme to rehabilitate the property at a cost of about £13,000-- half of which I can get from the local authority in the form of a home improvement grant.

Work began six weeks ago and at that point my wife, two children and I moved out of 3 St Heliers Road and put our furniture and possessions into store. We are currently living with my in-laws in Welwyn Garden City. As you can imagine the resulting extra expenses, including my travelling to work in London, are horrific. No less significant is the pressure and strain on my family.

When the builders began to work on the house new problems arose and it became clear that we would have to pay additional amounts in order to ensure a satisfactory job. We therefore sought an additional £600 loan from the Walthamstow branch of the Abbey National.

At first Mr Sutton, the deputy manager, agreed to this and sent us a form confirming that we had obtained the additional £600 loan.

Then a week later we received a letter saying that there was "little evidence that works on the house had been completed and the society was withdrawing its offer of an additional loan.

This is extremely disturbing. The builders have been at work at 3 St Heliers Road for six weeks. Part of the roof has been replaced, two new windows have been created, three other windows have been removed and replaced, there is scaffolding round the back of the house and a large ditch ready to receive a new sewer connection has been dug, most of the plaster at the back of the house has been hacked off and more than a £1,000 worth of damp coursing and timber treatment completed.

Our bills so far include:--
Delric Dampcoursing__£1,288.50
North Thames Gas__£150
F W Taylor (surveyor) __£224.25
Wollaston (valuation no 1)_£1,909

(NOTE: Wollaston is the main contractor carrying out the majority of the work)

I rang the deputy manager at Walthamstow and said that according to my information no inspector from the Abbey National had visited the house and I found it difficult to understand how one had managed to get in without my knowledge so he could possibly determine that there was "little evidence works to the house had been completed. I invited Mr Sutton to come to 3 St Heliers Road to see for himself. The deputy manager refused merely agreeing to make a second appointment for his inspector-- presumably the same one who found "little evidence.

With the contract in the middle stage you will appreciate that it is crucial that I obtain funds so that I can make stage payments. The attitude of the Walthamstow branch of Abbey National threatens to sabotage the whole project.

This inspection was also unnecessarily delayed because after I arranged for it to take place on the morning of November 2, staff at the Walthamstow office took it into their heads to cancel the appointment without letting me know. The reason they gave me, when they told me it had been cancelled on November 4, was that I had not paid a £5 inspection fee. At that time Abbey National owed me more than £400 as a result of extra payments I had made.

I hope, Mr Thornton, that you will help me. I certainly need help but even if I did not I hope you would see the immorality of offering to lend a large sum of money for a home improvement and then withdrawing that offer without giving a satisfactory reason.

Yours sincerely,

Jonathan Brind