Claim back any unfair bank charges! Article Discussion Area

WhittyBo

I'm currently in the process of switching my current account from one bank to another due to the fact that I have been charged a few times for going over my overdraft limit (my fault, I know). If this is something I can look at recovering then I'll go for it.
Even though my charges have probably come to a relatively low amount (about £100 over the last few years) - is it still worth pursuing you think?

poppyscorner

I have read through this discussion with great interest so much so it has inspired me to write my first ever reply to a post on this site.
I received an email yesterday from the halifax (I set my account for paper free letters)informing me that I have been charged £39 for a 4p yes thats right 0.04p direct debit the direct debit was generated because I purchased something through ebay and paid with paypal I did not have enough in pound sterling balance to fund the bill I was short by 4p which at the time was in my bank account since I made that payment the bank took interest charges out pushing me into thered then this direct debit and consequently the charge I resent paying this charge as the money was there when I agreed to the payment and come on it is 4p the bank is ripping me off clearly on this.

First rant over with now the second item five years ago I had issues with GE capital bank over a store card I used to have I was paying this off bit by bit and the balance on the card was £11 the date for collection was 31st January however they failed to take any money from my account until the 11th feb by which time I had emptied the account believing all my bills to be paid. The direct debit returned and the bank charged me Ge capital bank charged me twice once for unpaid direct debit and for late payment anyhow I ended up in a big row with them they kept saying they were late taking the payment as it was a weekend and I kept saying a weekend does not last 11 days but they wouldn't have it I demanded that they pay my bank charge they refused and so rightly or wrongly I refused to pay there charges I wrote to them several times offering to pay the origional £11 and they never responded but I did not see why I should pay the rest as it was not my fault in the middle of all this I was pregnant having a problem pregnancy they were calling me up demanding payments stressing me out and when I explained why I was refusing to pay the other person always said they would get back to me and never did eventually I lost my baby she was stillborn at 31 weeks they still continued to plague me even though I told them of the situation I gave up fighting and they took me to court and secured a CCJ against me which I then had no choice but to pay. I now feel very bitter about this as Idon't think that what they did was legal at all and I would like to do something about it now. I realise I have left it a long time but I was really poorly for a couple of years after my daughter and did not have the energy to fight it only now back to my normal self they have obliterated my credit rating and I just feel they were totally insensitive and unfair can anyone help with this I would like to have a go at sorting it out.

Any help greatly appreciated
sorry for the long post
Amanda x

Benji

Does anyone know the likelyhood of your bank turning around and closing your account if you do this? I need my overdraft and there's no way I'd get one now if I opened up an account with another bank :-)

MSE_Martin

Thread title changed from back charges to bank charges

Sorry for the typo!

carter2901

Hi, I've always been quite successful in getting part repayments of any charges, does anyone know if this invalidates me for reclaiming the rest? Mainly missed minimum payments on credit card, where charges are stated in the T&Cs - are these still illegal?

jack79

Great article!

Just got a couple of questions:

1. Does this apply to charges that are my fault, ie going over the agreed overdraft limit for no good reason?

2. Does it apply to 'administration charges' for letters issued by other companies? (I'm currently in dispute with the student loans company, who have sent me two letters about arrears at £7.50 a piece.)

Cheers.

dchurch24

MSE_Martin wrote:

Thread title changed from back charges to bank charges

Sorry for the typo!

Sorry I wasn't being a pendant - just silly!!

Zyrax

Hi there! 1st time here!
Got a few questions

Does this still apply is the reason i was charged was my own fault?(overspending)
Is there a minimum you could claim for? Ive been charged for about 6/8 months.

CharleneUK

I closed my barclay account 2 years ago because they charged me £30 for a direct debit (of £4.99) that came out earlier than expected.

Could I still try to get some back, even though the account is closed?

garyclay

Hi folks,

I found out about this some months ago.

I have since successfully recovered over 4000 pounds in charges applied by Nationwide and another famous high street bank in the last 6 years.

Both settled out of court, Nationwide doing so a couple of days prior to the court hearing.

The procedure is very straight forwards and I was given excellent assistance by https://www.bankactiongroup.co.uk and the https://www.bankchargeshell.co.uk e-mail forum.

It doesn't matter by the way why the charges were applied. Maybe you made a simple mistake and went over your overdraft, maybe you had money difficulties, maybe you went down the casino every month! It is a legal point and applies to everyone. To return a direct debit costs less than a penny and for that you are charged up to 30 quid?? That has to be wrong, AND IT IS.

Also the more people that claim the more chance that the banks and the OFT (Office Of Fair Trading) will sit up and listen and abolish these ridiculously high charges.

So good luck to anyone wanting to give it a go. It seems a little daunting at first but to be honest once I started I quite enjoyed taking a massive high street bank to court AND WINNING!