Halifax is all ready to pay mortgage borrowers a total sum of five hundred million pounds in compensation after the company failed to inform six hundred thousand customers that it was increasing the limit on its standard variable rate (SVR), which is the rate for borrowers who are not on a special offer. It expects to make payments to around three hundred thousand of these people.

If one has taken one’s Halifax mortgage out following receipt of an offer between September 20 2004 and September 16 2007, one will have received a mortgage offer that had a summary of the cap on the SVR.

If one remained and had the same mortgage on January 1, 2009, then one is affected and will be sent a letter during April. The content of that letter will depend on the person’s individual circumstances.

Halifax further stated that it could confirm at present that how individual customers would be affected. It stated that customers would not need to take any action at this point. If anybody is affected, the letter will be having an explanation on whether or not a payment will be credited to one’s mortgage, and what the value of that payment will be.

The sum of money individuals will receive will be on the basis of the difference between repayments if the SVR had been two percentage points above Bank Rate and the three points above Bank Rate that it was charged at.

Payment will be received by customers who got a Halifax mortgage offer between September 20 2004 and September 16 2007, and kept on paying the SVR at any point since January 1 2009.

Even the ex-customers will also receive a letter from the bank.

Halifax changed the limit in the month of October 2008 because of considerable amount of increases in its cost of borrowing the money it lent to mortgage customers. It said the mortgage terms and conditions allowed it to do this.