Frankie Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 Update Smile wrote to me this morning, unconditionally agreeing to refund every penny I demanded (£465). They're calling it a 'gesture of goodwill'; i.e. they are accepting no liability. Suck it, ya wunch of bankers. Some people are never happy ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fjool Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 Some people are never happy ! I'm delighted they've finally returned some money that belonged to me in the first place. Although it would have been better if they'd simply not taken it in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 Some people are never happy ! I'm delighted they've finally returned some money that belonged to me in the first place. Although it would have been better if they'd simply not taken it in the first place. The interest you got, should have amounted to a fair bit too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atomic Posted December 2, 2006 Report Share Posted December 2, 2006 You may have seen on the news that there is a march in London today campaigning against these illegal bank charges. What is illegal about them is that they do not reflect the price of the work done by the bank if a customer does exceed the overdraft limit, or bounces a cheque, or can't pay a DD, etc. This is not just a matter of opinion, it is the law, in both Scottish and English Law. Many thousands of people are now applying for and receiving refunds of these charges, going back to six years. The website http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/ is excellent at guiding you step-by-step through the process of reclaiming your money that your bank has taken from you illegally in bank charges in the last six years. The steps described are important, as they provide templates of all the letters you will need to send, the wording you need to use, and the timescales which you need to wait between letters. The site includes forums where people share their stories each step as they go through the process, and then they post when the bank does give them the refund. It is fascinating reading. At today's date (2/12/06), the site states that the Total Returned: £4,456,042 to 3816 people That is an average of £1167.72 each! Or over 4 million quid! I encourage anyone with a history of bank charges to have a look at this site, and start the process of reclaiming the money that is rightfully yours! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArabiaTerra Posted December 2, 2006 Report Share Posted December 2, 2006 What pisses me off about this whole thing is the fact that these charges are still being levied. And that we still have to individually claim back our own money. It's high time the government called in the Chief execs of all the banks and ordered them to pay back all the money they have stolen from us since these charges became illegal on pain of being charged with theft and jailed if they do not comply. I think I feel a letter to Tavish and Mcalpine coming on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ally Posted December 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2006 You're right - the charges will continue to get levied, and I for one wouldn't be surprised if they start to charge more to make up for the payouts they've had to cough up. It's how banks work as we all know - they loose money, they pass on their losses to the consumer. They're GRRRREAT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Njugle Posted December 2, 2006 Report Share Posted December 2, 2006 Perhaps we are culturally at fault. Some years ago in Norway i was informed by a prominent local businessman that banks were only used to move money and nothing more. All savings were in the form of investments organised by local investment groups, and the most impressive thing to me was that a large proportion of their investments were in local firms. Genius! Social commercial responsiblity in a nutshell, invest your money in your employer and those of your peers and reap the benefits of your labour and theirs, etc. I can only presume that debt is not a prominent feature in that region. Perhaps we need more co-operatives, credit groups and investment groups to keep money in our own realm and not that of the quick and easy, ruthless and selfish banks. They are there to make money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArabiaTerra Posted December 12, 2006 Report Share Posted December 12, 2006 10pm tonight , BBC2 A program about excessive bank charging. (I would have posted this sooner but I only just noticed it) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted December 12, 2006 Report Share Posted December 12, 2006 Watched the program. Most telling point was that it appears that the maximum cost to the banks (according to the experts) were as follows. Bouncing a cheque £4.50Failing a Direct Debit £2.50 The most interesting aspect was that an entire community had been mobilised into claiming refunds and, apparently, were successful. In addition, the OFT were keen to show that they were taking quite an interest in these practices. Questions arising but, sadly, not asked during the program are;1:If the OFT finds in favour of the customers and fixes an appropriate maximum charge, will the banks then be obliged to refund excess charges for the full 6 year term allowed or, most likely, will it be watered down to the point that customers will still have to claim?(OK, it's a no-brainer)2:Will the banks then be taken to court by the OFT and prosecuted to the extent that a full legal precedent is set?(Will the Government allow it?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heimdal Posted December 12, 2006 Report Share Posted December 12, 2006 Here's a link to the BBC page on the subjecthttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6170209.stm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Styles Posted December 13, 2006 Report Share Posted December 13, 2006 I saw the programme and thought it was a disgrace, unbelivable how many ways the banks will try to screw you over and then worm out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPoleson Posted December 14, 2006 Report Share Posted December 14, 2006 i am starting proceedings to get back my charges, i'll keep you posted on how i'm gettin on with it, there wont be much happenin until after xmas tho, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heimdal Posted January 16, 2007 Report Share Posted January 16, 2007 If you have a business account that's where they really hit you with charges. I haven't had one for 10 years, but charges then were £1 for each £100 cash paid in (notes), and £1.20 for £100 of change (coins) requested from the bank. There was also a charge for each cheque issued but I forget that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pleepsie Posted January 17, 2007 Report Share Posted January 17, 2007 They do still hit you with those charges, its 60p for a cheque and 40p when you do all the work and send an electronic payment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fjool Posted February 20, 2007 Report Share Posted February 20, 2007 The Independent have a piece on this today. http://money.independent.co.uk/personal_finance/invest_save/article2287041.ece Thanks to Evil Inky for pointing it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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