Barclays overdrafts overhaul. Is it better or worse for you?

robertjonesuk

espressomanfishing wrote: »

Blimey,

I got this leter & nearly had heart failure £1000 reserve? what ???. £22! per day!!! flippin robbers. the poster above makes a good point (i share his view) if you go on holiday and a few things hit your account you could end up payng hundreds in charges.... interest free... i think not.... Fortunately I have no overdraft loans or credit and my account has never gone overdrawn so I opted out right away. My advice is stay well clear of this one, its a slic way for the bank to trouser your cash when your not looking.....

By the way, three months ago started using the access numbers for cheap international calls listed on the site. my first bill was £40 .. yes thats right £40 lower than the previous quarter. Thanks Martin £160 saved... that a pint i owe you.:beer:

it is £22 per 5 days and you can go in and go out of reserve as many times as you want to. after 5 days if you still using reserve you get charged another £22.

Natan358

I work in a barclays call centre and we were told about this new reserve a while back in preparation, when i received the letter about the reserve on my account i thought it made perfect sense, i dont have a degree in english or maths but it clearly outlined how the reserve works, yet people are on here saying things like £22 per day, seriously it makes my head hurt when i realise that simple english cannot be understood, and common sense should play a part here, anyway, the old method of £30 per day up to 3 charges per month meant up to £90 per month, and on top of that £35 charges for unpaid ddr (direct debits) and that was unlimited, so could be hundreds of pounds depending on the amount of ddrs you have on different days. The new method: £22 per 5 days so effectively up to £88 per month and then on top of that £8 per unpaid ddr, but thats a lot cheaper than £35. Now even though it will now be £8 per every transaction/ddr that means you would have to bounce 4 ddrs each day for it to be nearer the equivalent to the old system, so somebody please tell me how the new system is worse, just for the record i hate banks i only bank partially with barclays because i have to, staff policy, but this new method is better than the old. In a lot of instances this will save people money, and although its not great its an improvement and definetly better than some banks which charge up to £39 for going overdrawn.

Just so that people understand it wont be 6 lots of £22 because its working days, so if the 5 days start on the tuesday you have up to monday, and the saturday and sunday will be able to use the reserve, or you should be able to anyway thats what i have been told. So its most likely 4 lots of £22 which is where i got the £88 from

P.S. Barclays cannot give refunds anymore on the phone on demand unless it is a bank error, so unfortunately watch out people because the adviser is not being mean, we just dont have the authority to anymore, its been wiped out of our system.

millie73

I have been charged £30 (+ £22 reserve= £52 for just £5.48overdrawn : THIS IS JUST RIDICULOUS) by barclays yesterday for being over my limit of £180 by £5.48. This the 1st charge since maybe 2years now.

I sent my claim in 2months ago for an amount that round £1500 but they ve been sending me letter 1st asking about my hardship and then two different saying each my case as been reffered to an other department... these letter were more concern about how they could help me with my hardship ...
Im fuming cause im not getting nowhere at the moment :mad:

SJ1

Really annoyed. I checked my bank account last night about 8pm and was £1.49 overdrawn. I therefore duly transferred money in to rectify the account. I have been charged £22 because I posted the transfer afte 6.30. Barclays are saying that it therefore is a credit in the next day so even though I wasn't overdrawn, as far as they are concerned I am because I was at 6.30. I am so annoyed. Just spoke to them on the phone and they are able to do nothing unless its bank error or fraud - or so they say. I intend to write to them about it and if they don't remove the charge I am moving my business elsewhere.

If I had left the account overdrawn then I wouldn't be so annoyed but I didn't - I sorted it out. I have never heard of them using this 'after 6.30' excuse before. I haven't had a charge in years and an absolutely livid. Makes a complete mockery of internet banking :mad: :mad: :mad:

Very mad - Alliance and Leicester here I come....

SJ

anniecave

carisso wrote: »

We have 3 accounts with Barclays, all have agreed overdrafts we use to the limit. One is for £5000, another for £4000 and the last for £1000. I am confused-what does the new system mean for us? Will I be paying a surcharge on every standing order, direct debit or for each cheque I write?

If they don't change your agreed overdrafts and you don't go above the agreed overdrafts then it will be just interest you are charged.

If you go above the overdraft then it is as above

BexTech

SJ1 wrote: »

Really annoyed. I checked my bank account last night about 8pm and was £1.49 overdrawn. I therefore duly transferred money in to rectify the account. I have been charged £22 because I posted the transfer afte 6.30. Barclays are saying that it therefore is a credit in the next day so even though I wasn't overdrawn, as far as they are concerned I am because I was at 6.30. I am so annoyed. Just spoke to them on the phone and they are able to do nothing unless its bank error or fraud - or so they say. I intend to write to them about it and if they don't remove the charge I am moving my business elsewhere.

If I had left the account overdrawn then I wouldn't be so annoyed but I didn't - I sorted it out. I have never heard of them using this 'after 6.30' excuse before. I haven't had a charge in years and an absolutely livid. Makes a complete mockery of internet banking :mad: :mad: :mad:

Very mad - Alliance and Leicester here I come....

SJ

You wouldn't have the issue if you didn't run your account into the overdraft, past the overdraft or simply just close to zero.

At the end of the day it is not the banks fault people can't budget correctly.

All people have to do is cut down of out-going expenses until they are several hundred pound or more in credit and keep it there.

Annoys me when people moan about the banks, when it is the customers fault really.

A&L will treat you the same, in fact I know people who are just as angry with A&L. With A&L and probably other banks you need to make sure money is in before 17:30. With A&L payments may be taken at 10:00 or 12:00 so if that takes you over-drawn then, you will be hit with a £25 fee, even if you paid in cash before 17:30 as you would already have hit the charges.

joolsybools

I opted out thank goodness. Come on people, keep an eye on your finances, don't go overdrawn, get moneysaving and stop letting banks rip us off! Look after your money - don't let them take it off you if you can avoid it!

Ben120379

Hi,

everyone on here keeps saying the charge is £22 per 5 days, so why have I been charged £30 + £22 for going overdrawn???

HOw is this new system better when I've been charged £52 for going overdrawn once for 7 days?

Natan358

Ben120379 wrote: »

Hi,

everyone on here keeps saying the charge is £22 per 5 days, so why have I been charged £30 + £22 for going overdrawn???

HOw is this new system better when I've been charged £52 for going overdrawn once for 7 days?

The £30 charge is always applied the next working day after you was overdrawn, maybe you were overdrawn on the weekend and so you had the charge hit your account on the 18th, the new reserve came into effect on the 18th and so you were charged £22 for the new reserve, but from now on you wont get £30 plus the new £22, because the old £30 charge should be scrapped by now, i think your unfirtunate to have been overdrawn over the weekend if this was the case, but keep an eye on your account for the next few weeks, the new system aint brilliant but it is better, i answer 100 calls a day, and over 70% are near their overdraft limit getting charges so nearly everyone i think will be using the new reserve now and again.

ben if you wasnt overdrawn on the weekend then obviously i dont know why you was charged but im pretty sure that would be the reason

Nathan_Spleen

Natan358 wrote: »

I work in a barclays call centre and we were told about this new reserve a while back in preparation, when i received the letter about the reserve on my account i thought it made perfect sense, i dont have a degree in english or maths but it clearly outlined how the reserve works, yet people are on here saying things like £22 per day, seriously it makes my head hurt when i realise that simple english cannot be understood, and common sense should play a part here, anyway, the old method of £30 per day up to 3 charges per month meant up to £90 per month, and on top of that £35 charges for unpaid ddr (direct debits) and that was unlimited, so could be hundreds of pounds depending on the amount of ddrs you have on different days. The new method: £22 per 5 days so effectively up to £88 per month and then on top of that £8 per unpaid ddr, but thats a lot cheaper than £35. Now even though it will now be £8 per every transaction/ddr that means you would have to bounce 4 ddrs each day for it to be nearer the equivalent to the old system, so somebody please tell me how the new system is worse, just for the record i hate banks i only bank partially with barclays because i have to, staff policy, but this new method is better than the old. In a lot of instances this will save people money, and although its not great its an improvement and definetly better than some banks which charge up to £39 for going overdrawn.

Just so that people understand it wont be 6 lots of £22 because its working days, so if the 5 days start on the tuesday you have up to monday, and the saturday and sunday will be able to use the reserve, or you should be able to anyway thats what i have been told. So its most likely 4 lots of £22 which is where i got the £88 from

P.S. Barclays cannot give refunds anymore on the phone on demand unless it is a bank error, so unfortunately watch out people because the adviser is not being mean, we just dont have the authority to anymore, its been wiped out of our system.

While it might make sense to some, for the average consumer the new reserve scheme is inordinately and unecessarily complicated as the confusion on this thread alone makes very clear.

This is further evidenced by the unprecedented lengths Barclays have gone to by having to launch a 'micre site' to ''explain how it works'' and instruction videos in an attempt to show ''what happens in certain situations''.

In my view it would not pass the Plain Intelligible Language test and ironically it was Barclays lead test case QC, Robin Dicker, who was told by Justice Smith that the complexity itself of a contract term is no excuse for it not to be in PIL. In other words, if it's too complicated to explain in plain English it shouldn't be there at all.

Some Barclays terms have already been ruled as not being in plain intelligable language in the test case and I've little doubt the reserve will will be too.