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Halifax now charging all customers £1 per day to use overdraft
Grimbo_Green
Posts: 35 Forumite
Hello
I received a letter from Halifax yesterday which stated that from 6th December 2009 anyone with a current account with an arranged overdraft will be charged £1 per day to use it. They said they are getting rid of interest charges and introducing this new flat rate to uncomplicate things!
My partner and I have a joint account with Halifax which our wages are paid into and all of our bills are debited from each month.
Unfortunately for the past year we have been living in our overdraft facility because of a run of bad luck with our car.
We budget for all of our outgoings etc and even leave a small contingiency each month incase anything should come up. Our car has broken down so many times (all very expensive repairs) that it has really messed us up financially, hence why we are in our overdraft by about £800 at the moment. It is going to take us a while to pay this back. These new charges are going to cost us a further £30 every single month on top of our current debt! where as before if would cost us about £6 per month.
The obvious thing to do is to close the account down and go to another bank, but like I said we dont have the money to pay off the overdraft.
Does anyone here know if you can apply for a new account with a different bank and ask for an overdraft facility, or do you need to be an existing customer before they will offer an overdraft?
Im not sure what to do?
If we contacted Halifax and told them that we simply cant afford these charges and said we want to close the account down (before the 6th dec when new charges start) and pay off the overdraft over time by keeping the old terms and conditions, is this something we are entitled to do?
This doesnt seem right because the overdraft facility was meant to be free of charge apart from interest each month. Also it is such a steep increase.
We dont have much money as it is and all these new charges are going to drag us further into debt each month.
I'm sure they have looked into this thoroughly with their team of lawyers so that no one can take them to the ombusman like before, but it feels to me its just their way of making their money back which they will loose by paying back all the claims made against them.
Its annoying when you think these banks were bailed out by us tax payers then they go and rip us off even more!!
Is anyone else in the same boat, what are you going to do?
Many Thanks
I received a letter from Halifax yesterday which stated that from 6th December 2009 anyone with a current account with an arranged overdraft will be charged £1 per day to use it. They said they are getting rid of interest charges and introducing this new flat rate to uncomplicate things!
My partner and I have a joint account with Halifax which our wages are paid into and all of our bills are debited from each month.
Unfortunately for the past year we have been living in our overdraft facility because of a run of bad luck with our car.
We budget for all of our outgoings etc and even leave a small contingiency each month incase anything should come up. Our car has broken down so many times (all very expensive repairs) that it has really messed us up financially, hence why we are in our overdraft by about £800 at the moment. It is going to take us a while to pay this back. These new charges are going to cost us a further £30 every single month on top of our current debt! where as before if would cost us about £6 per month.
The obvious thing to do is to close the account down and go to another bank, but like I said we dont have the money to pay off the overdraft.
Does anyone here know if you can apply for a new account with a different bank and ask for an overdraft facility, or do you need to be an existing customer before they will offer an overdraft?
Im not sure what to do?
If we contacted Halifax and told them that we simply cant afford these charges and said we want to close the account down (before the 6th dec when new charges start) and pay off the overdraft over time by keeping the old terms and conditions, is this something we are entitled to do?
This doesnt seem right because the overdraft facility was meant to be free of charge apart from interest each month. Also it is such a steep increase.
We dont have much money as it is and all these new charges are going to drag us further into debt each month.
I'm sure they have looked into this thoroughly with their team of lawyers so that no one can take them to the ombusman like before, but it feels to me its just their way of making their money back which they will loose by paying back all the claims made against them.
Its annoying when you think these banks were bailed out by us tax payers then they go and rip us off even more!!
Is anyone else in the same boat, what are you going to do?
Many Thanks
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Comments
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It does seem a bit steep but I know when we set up a joint account when we got married this is the only account we were offered...I hadn't realised they would be applying it to older accounts as well....
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Does anyone know how this affects clients on DMP's ? I'm on one with the CCCS at present, and I recently received a letter from Halifax saying that they will accept my monthly payments for 6 months (which will take it up to April) on my OD. The letter says that no fees would be added during this time, but interest will.
I'm confused :SI'm always in the brown stuff (marmite)....only the depth varies!!! :rotfl:0 -
Not to mention all the people who will go into their O/D because christmas is Looming!!!
Very clever!!
I will be swithching!!0 -
Vote with your feet and leave them. Make sure you put that you are leaving due to this ridiculous charge. Move to Alliance and Leicester via quidco and get £50. Or something similar. DO NOT STAY WITH THEM OR THEY WILL WIN.
They will soon lose lots of customers and regret their decision... then again regret is not something bankers do...Being bored is so boring Im bored of it... :rotfl:0 -
This is worth a read. Halifax has really shot themselves in the foot. Im betting they go back on this and dont do it...
http://www.lovemoney.com/news/current-accounts/beware-of-this-outrageous-bank-ripoff-4069.aspx?source=1000405Being bored is so boring Im bored of it... :rotfl:0 -
They originally announced this over a year ago and people have already been dealing with this charging system already so I doubt they will change something that they have already decided to roll out over all accounts.0
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natweststaffmember wrote: »They originally announced this over a year ago and people have already been dealing with this charging system already so I doubt they will change something that they have already decided to roll out over all accounts.
Good luck to them then...Being bored is so boring Im bored of it... :rotfl:0 -
Grimbo_Green wrote: »I'm sure they have looked into this thoroughly with their team of lawyers so that no one can take them to the ombusman like before, but it feels to me its just their way of making their money back which they will loose by paying back all the claims made against them.
No doubt I'll get a flaming for this but..
Banks are business's they need to make money for their shareholders / members.
Lets all take a moment to thank the people who have all put in claims for unfair bank charges regardless of if they were at fault or not. Because of these claims people who can manage there money will now have to put up with the charges being imposed on all of us to recover the costs of those who are trying to make a fast buck.
I'm not saying everyone claiming for unfair charges can't manage money, some will have been unfairly charged but from what I see many people were careless with money, spending all the overdraft limit and then bleat they get charged for a service they were (ab)using. Were the charges excessive, maybe, but it was in the T&C and you accepted them by signing up and using the facility.
Am I alone in previously seeing that that if the banks can't charge in one way through fee's they'll get the money out of customers another way?0 -
You're not the only one but the fees could still be challenged under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contract Regulations 1999. I have no idea if they would be successful or otherwise but people will vote with their feet and move banks or they will accept the charges and deal with it.No doubt I'll get a flaming for this but..
Banks are business's they need to make money for their shareholders / members.
Lets all take a moment to thank the people who have all put in claims for unfair bank charges regardless of if they were at fault or not. Because of these claims people who can manage there money will now have to put up with the charges being imposed on all of us to recover the costs of those who are trying to make a fast buck.
All claims have been on hold since July 2007 and the banks might win the OFT test case so the idea that people are trying to make a fast buck on bank charges is to be honest a misinformed view. People who do get paid out are those who are suffering severe financial hardship which means that they could be made homeless, jailed, or lose essential utilities.
I'm not saying everyone claiming for unfair charges can't manage money, some will have been unfairly charged but from what I see many people were careless with money, spending all the overdraft limit and then bleat they get charged for a service they were (ab)using. Were the charges excessive, maybe, but it was in the T&C and you accepted them by signing up and using the facility.
I use an overdraft on two accounts and the bank charges me interest on that amount which I do not begrudge paying. You are blaming people who have been charged and furthermore, you use the Terms and conditions argument like confetti yet it is those very terms that are the subject of the OFT test case. If the term was a fair term under the Unfair Terms In Consumer Contract Regulations 1999 then we would not be having this forum. In fact the banks have had since January 1st 1995 to comply with the original regulation so they have bodged it for 14 years and now the crows are coming to roost for them.
Am I alone in previously seeing that that if the banks can't charge in one way through fee's they'll get the money out of customers another way?0
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