Bristol hunger strike protester says Lloyds 'destroyed' his life
- Published
Mr Mealham said his business and life had been destroyed
A former customer of Lloyds Bank is on hunger strike in Bristol in protest against it "destroying his life".
Trevor Mealham is one of hundreds of customers who say they are victims of 'mis-selling' by the high street bank.
They say Lloyds ruined their businesses and their lives by increasing interest rates on loans during the banking crisis in 2008.
Lloyds said it was not planning to comment on Mr Mealham's case.
Mr Mealham, who claims he is not the only victim, said he intended to go without food, and only drink water, for 15 days.
He claims after taking out a £200,000 loan Lloyds then suddenly upped the interest rate to 26%.
He said: "The mis-selling not only destroyed our business but our lives."
Mr Mealham claims when he could not pay the higher rates he was put under the control of Lloyds Recoveries, which then seized assets and sold them off to raise cash for the bank.
Mr Mealham said he intended to go without food for 15 days
Mr Mealham, from Kent, has been camped outside Lloyds Recoveries, based in Bristol's Wine Street, since Tuesday to raise awareness.
He said he is staying in a tent from 07:00 BST until 19:00 BST each day, and then staying each night in a nearby house with a witness to prove he was not eating.
Protests are also taking place in Manchester, Glasgow, Cardiff and Belfast.
Bristol mother-of-three Anna Britton said she lost her entire livelihood when Lloyds Recoveries took over her account.
She said: "I lost my business and my credit rating was destroyed."
There have been a number of parliamentary debates about the allegation surrounding Lloyds and its senior managers and there are now calls for an investigation by the House of Commons Treasury Committee.