Bank charges

ahai1

It is good to know that the banks are defending the charges. I am just listening to money box on radio 4 and I cannot believe some people. The man from the bank charges action grooup thinks it is ok for people to have their money back so that the rest of us who can manage our accounts may have to pay for running a bank account. He and Martin Lewis have the same view we don't have free banking. They are wrong as we have it because we pay no charges for managing our accounts. It seems to me that the customers who don't abuse their account will end up suffering.

The man want to go on to say that is the poor who are paying for the rich to have bank accounts by paying bank charges. What a load of rubbish. I know of lots of people on low income never had an unauthorised overdraft.

opinions4u

ahai1 wrote: »

It is good to know that the banks are defending the charges. I am just listening to money box on radio 4 and I cannot believe some people. The man from the bank charges action grooup thinks it is ok for people to have their money back so that the rest of us who can manage our accounts may have to pay for running a bank account. He and Martin Lewis have the same view we don't have free banking.

While I am more than happy with the staus quo, it suits me fine, I do think I get rather a lot for nothing out of my bank.

They are wrong as we have it because we pay no charges for managing our accounts. It seems to me that the customers who don't abuse their account will end up suffering.

I see the debate as trying to draw the line on fairness. Is £63 for going a couple of quid overdrawn fair? Should that be used to subsidise my free debit card, internet banking, ATM service etc? Or should that £63 be reduced to, say, £15, and my services be charged at £2 a month?

The man want to go on to say that is the poor who are paying for the rich to have bank accounts by paying bank charges. What a load of rubbish. I know of lots of people on low income never had an unauthorised overdraft.

And here I totally agree with you. If a massive earner like Michael Jackson can pop his clogs owing £300m (!!) ...

... for me bank charges are totally avoidable for any individual who takes the time to manage his or her finances.

ahai1

I have not used my overdraft in ages. A good middle groud would be if the charges were reduced a bit but they should remain as I would rather not pay for my current account despite what the OFT, Martin Lewis and Which say.

Extant

ahai1 wrote: »

The man want to go on to say that is the poor who are paying for the rich to have bank accounts by paying bank charges. What a load of rubbish. I know of lots of people on low income never had an unauthorised overdraft.

Income indeed has nothing to do with the ability to be fiscally sensible and live within a budget.

It is, however, a fairly typical use of poverty to inspire an emotive response. It's "poor people" who pay for the "rich" to have bank accounts. Sounds terrible, doesn't it? Most people will instantly make the decision it's wrong before even looking in to the facts of it.

Those who advocate charges reclaiming are missing one key thing: a realistic alternative. It's all very well to suggest charging for banking facilities in general, but what about those who can't pay for their facilities? Or those who are on such a low income, that the amount they pay in fees is desperately needed - the very same poor people they're defending?

The bottom line message they espouse is that it's okay to be financially irresponsible, and the rest of the citizenry should be expected to carry the mistakes of others at their own expense.

Extant

opinions4u wrote: »

I see the debate as trying to draw the line on fairness. Is £63 for going a couple of quid overdrawn fair? Should that be used to subsidise my free debit card, internet banking, ATM service etc? Or should that £63 be reduced to, say, £15, and my services be charged at £2 a month?

That's not the message that is being put across, though - the advocates state that bank charges are wrong, full stop - the only reason the word "fair" even enters in to their argument is the Unfair Terms etc.

People aren't reclaiming as they think the amount is unfair, they straight off think they should not be charged at all.

AndyInYorks

BarclaysManager wrote: »

People aren't reclaiming as they think the amount is unfair, they straight off think they should not be charged at all.

People are reclaiming because they can get effectively money for nothing. Wouldn't you re-claim?

Here's a thought though. If everyone suddenly decided to be responsible and run their accounts properly, what would happen to the banks. Since they rely on this income to survive (apparently) would they be knocking at the door of Downing Street asking for even more money. It doesn't seem a particularly sensible thing to build your business model on people being charged for making mistakes.

opinions4u

AndyInYorks wrote: »

People are reclaiming because they can get effectively money for nothing. Wouldn't you re-claim?

No brainer.

Here's a thought though. If everyone suddenly decided to be responsible and run their accounts properly, what would happen to the banks.

They would change the charging structure on their accounts.

Since they rely on this income to survive (apparently) would they be knocking at the door of Downing Street asking for even more money.

No. They would change their charging structure.

It doesn't seem a particularly sensible thing to build your business model on people being charged for making mistakes.

Why not? They can change their terms and conditions at 30 days notice.

ahai1

People are reclaiming because it is free money to them. The point is they should not have had that money in the first place. As for unfair or fair terms I don't give a damn those poeple broke the rules. It is plain and simple.

As for the poor it is an excause and a disgrace to lump all people with low income in this group. Those people would not give a damn if the banks started to charge people on a low income for using a current account.

There are plenty of ways of getting back the money which the banks to their credit have not done. I can go throw the list.

1. Charging people for replacing lost and stolen cards.
2. Higher merchant fees.
3. Fees for using bank transfer and cheques.

lauriepops

Well I'm reclaiming bank charges, which were not racked up by being financially incompetent but by trusting someone who screwed me royally. And to be perfectly honest I would be happy to have the charges paid back to me minus the actual cost of processing the charges. (The £2.50 or whatever it is!) I'd still get a fair whack of cash and I think that's how charges should be reclaimed.

I'm not gonna say I was screwed over by the bank for being charged, but I was screwed over by the bank for the value of the charges themselves! Yes there should be charges but not 30-40 quid a pop!

Extant

AndyInYorks wrote: »

People are reclaiming because they can get effectively money for nothing. Wouldn't you re-claim?

I believe in bank charges and respect the principle of living within the constraints of my budget. I have never had a bank charge. If I had one, I would be essentially a different person.

When I first got my mortgage, I spent about a year eating baked beans, tinned hotdogs, and instant noodles. I did that rather than go over my budget and in to excess. It sucked, but it wasn't that hard really - it saved getting bank charges.

Here's a thought though. If everyone suddenly decided to be responsible and run their accounts properly, what would happen to the banks. Since they rely on this income to survive (apparently) would they be knocking at the door of Downing Street asking for even more money. It doesn't seem a particularly sensible thing to build your business model on people being charged for making mistakes.

Banks don't rely on it to survive, they use it to subsidize the cost of running a retail network so customers who are responsible don't have to pay.

Banks are businesses, so if the revenue stream disappears, they will seek an alternative.

Lokolo

A lot of people on the savings boards don't go over to the DFW board for the views above

If I went over there I would get so angry!