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Banks (again)
Mar. 23rd, 2007 08:41 amConcerning the on-going debate about bank charges this artcle i scanned from Reuters --
"LONDON (Reuters) - Almost two-thirds of people hit by "unfair" overdraft charges have yet to try to reclaim the money, a study reveals. Some 64 percent of bank customers have not asked for a rebate of charges levied for slipping into the red beyond their agreed overdraft, according to consumer group Which?
A fifth of them said they feared how their bank would react, while 22 percent thought it would be too complicated and a third said they would not know how to go about it. Of those who had made a claim, 85 percent had been successful in getting at least some of the money refunded, the survey showed.
But a quarter of them said their bank had been unhelpful and unresponsive, while a further third said they had to chase their bank for a response.
Emma Bandey, personal finance campaigner at Which?, said: "Banks need to get their act together and deal with this problem. It can't be good for the banks' image that so many people found them less than helpful."
But she said consumers should not be deterred.
"Claiming back unfair bank charges is a simple process that won't take up hours of your time.
"If your bank does not co-operate, you should refer the case to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) as so far the banks have chosen to settle all cases referred to FOS."
For the past six months the Office of Fair Trading has been investigating the charges that are levied when customers go beyond their overdraft limit, and a ruling on whether they are lawful is due within weeks.
But consumers are refusing to wait and are taking legal action to reclaim the penalty charges.
More than 1.25 million people are tackling their banks on the issue.
However some companies have introduced new fees -- such as credit card and current-account fees -- to offset the money they expect to lose from the crackdown.
YouGov surveyed 2,228 adults with bank accounts for Which? "
Also on the excellent Whistleblowers programme on BBC TV (Tuesday night),an investigation into fraud and other things at Barclays Bank, a bank official admitted that it only cost them about £2 to £3 to notify customers of bank charges for going over their limit or having bounced cheques or failed direct debits etc but still charged them an over-the-top £30 charge per transaction.
This just bolsters the argument that the banks have ripped us of for far too long..
Meanwhile,my bank has sent me another letter with a leaflet called "Complaints" detailing the procedures on how to make a complaint which i am already doing anyway. It is just another delaying tactic in the endless spin they try to pull over our eyes.
"LONDON (Reuters) - Almost two-thirds of people hit by "unfair" overdraft charges have yet to try to reclaim the money, a study reveals. Some 64 percent of bank customers have not asked for a rebate of charges levied for slipping into the red beyond their agreed overdraft, according to consumer group Which?
A fifth of them said they feared how their bank would react, while 22 percent thought it would be too complicated and a third said they would not know how to go about it. Of those who had made a claim, 85 percent had been successful in getting at least some of the money refunded, the survey showed.
But a quarter of them said their bank had been unhelpful and unresponsive, while a further third said they had to chase their bank for a response.
Emma Bandey, personal finance campaigner at Which?, said: "Banks need to get their act together and deal with this problem. It can't be good for the banks' image that so many people found them less than helpful."
But she said consumers should not be deterred.
"Claiming back unfair bank charges is a simple process that won't take up hours of your time.
"If your bank does not co-operate, you should refer the case to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) as so far the banks have chosen to settle all cases referred to FOS."
For the past six months the Office of Fair Trading has been investigating the charges that are levied when customers go beyond their overdraft limit, and a ruling on whether they are lawful is due within weeks.
But consumers are refusing to wait and are taking legal action to reclaim the penalty charges.
More than 1.25 million people are tackling their banks on the issue.
However some companies have introduced new fees -- such as credit card and current-account fees -- to offset the money they expect to lose from the crackdown.
YouGov surveyed 2,228 adults with bank accounts for Which? "
Also on the excellent Whistleblowers programme on BBC TV (Tuesday night),an investigation into fraud and other things at Barclays Bank, a bank official admitted that it only cost them about £2 to £3 to notify customers of bank charges for going over their limit or having bounced cheques or failed direct debits etc but still charged them an over-the-top £30 charge per transaction.
This just bolsters the argument that the banks have ripped us of for far too long..
Meanwhile,my bank has sent me another letter with a leaflet called "Complaints" detailing the procedures on how to make a complaint which i am already doing anyway. It is just another delaying tactic in the endless spin they try to pull over our eyes.
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