Open Letter To David Cameron - 25 AUG REPONSE NOW IN

MSE_Martin

Addenda By Martin - responding to some questions (also posted in top thread)

1. Why pick on the Tories, Labour have been in power for 12 years.

On many previous occassions, I have berated Gordon Browns lack of involvement on this issues, both on this site, on TV, in my News of the World column, other newspapers, countless interviews. This is not a party polemic.

Yet wonderfully Mr. Cameron's party now says charges are unfair, and on that I applaud him. You may say they're not in power yet, but it doesn't stop a party from laying out its principles and what it would support if it were in power - what is being said now, could've been said three years ago.

2. Surely to say all charges are unfair is ridiculous - isn't this about people misusing bank accounts.

I'm specifically referring to charges for going beyond authorised overdrafts limits, which the Bank Charges reclaiming campaign has been about. The issue of its just people misusing the banks is one I've written on many time before and is all over the site, so forgive me but with my RSI i am going to not write much here (though if someone wants to post links to my past replies that'd be helpful).

However the following is a brief response given in a NOTW column to someone saying "why help the scrotes who don't look after their own bank accounts..."

In one way you’re right, as I explained about bank charges in that column, “the best way to beat them is avoidance. Keep track of what’s in your account and...“

Otherwise, I think your comment’s a disgusting slur on the millions who’ve had charges. I got involved in the campaign to reclaim bank charges after meeting a single mum, a carer for her autistic son. She NEVER overspent, but a benefits office glitch meant it paid out late, so five direct debits bounced, meaning nearly £200 of charges.

Of course she couldn’t pay. I met her a year later when charges on the charges meant she owed £3,000. A good swathe of the UK are victims of this malicious financial injustice: charges are designed to penalise and entrap. I’m very proud to ‘bang on about em’ and will continue to do so.

liam8282

David Cameron might have stated that bank charges are unfair, but he didn't actually state that he would do anything about it, or more to the point what he would do about it if he got into power.

Or did he, does anyone have further information about the white paper?

bankseys

I was charged 2900% APR by a major high street bank for being £1 overdrawn for less than 3 hours, Yes £30. So who are the biggest cowboys' then?
I don't mind if banks charge for being overdrawn but it must be a fair rate.

And an other thing that gets my back up, is that banks that have been rescued by the tax payer are now having to cut staff numbers by offering them good redundancy packages or are offering staff early retirement with a massive one off payment an a fantastic pension and they are still complaining that the payment package is not enough. They should think themselves lucky that the taxpayer saved their jobs if only for a short period.

Whilst other people who lose their job in manufacturing, retail...etc, my only get the basic statutory redundancy package or have to claim through the government for redundancy and that could take months.

Nathan_Spleen

liam8282 wrote: »

David Cameron might have stated that bank charges are unfair, but he didn't actually state that he would do anything about it, or more to the point what he would do about it if he got into power.

I agree.

Bank charges are not a political issue but a legal issue - precisely why the OFT (a government department) referred it to the courts to decide on them.

liam8282

At the moment I think all Political parties are as bad as each other.

David Cameron just says what he thinks people want to hear.

That will win him votes and probably get him into power.

What I would actually like to know is, rather than what his personal views are on certain subjects, what he would actually do to solve the problems.

saltydognl

Hi,
It seems as though we are beginning to get a bit !!!!!! about what is happening to us, i.e. theft of public money by politicians, pillage of bank accounts both public and private by the banks. Public bodies(local councils) raise taxes at will by what they will because some stupid !!!!!! wants a new shopping centre built for his cronies to make millions in profits from when it goes over budget, and his christmas bonus rivals what the bankers get EVERY YEAR. OUR money ladies and gentlemen we are being ROBBED right left and centre and the people charged in law to look after us, the politicians, the police the judiciary laugh all the way to the bank(Thiers is usually offshore) I feel its time we started to take back control of this country weve done it twice in history once with the magna carta and the second time with the civil war. Its about time we did it again. ALL politicians caught with thier hands in the till MUST be prosecuted and immediately sacked and disbarred from ever holding office of any kind again. Banks MUST be made to repay ALL bank charges and compensate all customers for any loss sustained.they should have the right removed to dip into our accounts at will as has been said they are the only company allowed to do this.STOP IT NOW.
Cameron will spout and spout and do absolutely nothing as brown has done. They are part of the problem, remove them. Make the politicians and local government accountable in law to serve the public at large, not their own self intersts and bank accounts. Then we might be getting somewhere towards a just and fairer society.
Sorry ive gone on so long but something has GOT to be done instead of just a talking shop.

Mike

u01kpd

I can't help but find your "letter" naive. Let's make the banks pay out more money and all that will happen is the cost of their services (mortgages, loans etc) will go up. I have no sympathy with those irresponsible enough to incur these charges in the first place - and do not want to subsidise the cost of their foolishness.

Yoga_Dee

Martin, Well done! I kept suggesting to my husband he should reclaim bank charges from RBS. Eventually, I sorted out the information for him, typed the letter, he signed in and sent it in. Only, it was about 3 days too late! I know that we are still "in the queue", and the amount is not the highest, but it's over £1,000 and I think it would be better in his account than in theirs. I hope you are successful.

Paddy_O'Moron

u01kpd wrote: »

I can't help but find your "letter" naive. Let's make the banks pay out more money and all that will happen is the cost of their services (mortgages, loans etc) will go up. I have no sympathy with those irresponsible enough to incur these charges in the first place - and do not want to subsidise the cost of their foolishness.

Think you're being a bit naive, Mate. The problem with the banks (and lots of other institutions, I know, but let's confine ourselves to the banks on this forum) is that their profit expectations are excessive. They have become greedier and greedier. Banks can easily exist on much smaller profit margins. Of course, they pay lots of people to try to convince us that they can't, but they don't want to lose a few carriages from the end of the gravy train. What we need to do (however we do it) is to reduce the banks' opportunity for profit, so that they make more reasonable levels of profit. I appreciate the need for banks to be profitable, and the dangers if they start to make losses (apparent today). But going back to say the '70s and the '80s, profit margins were considerably smaller, and banks and their customers had a much more convivial relationship.

I worked for a major Irish Bank as a software developer in the '80s, and I was a senior developer on their Fees System. One of the major requirements for this system was to give HQ 'managers' the ability to change fees at the touch of a button. If, for example, there were a lot of people exceeding their overdraft limit, the bank could simply increase the cost to the customer when this occurred. The Bank could basically determine its revenue from Fees as it liked. There was no real control - the customer had to go thru a long process (usually run by other bankers) to have an appeal heard. Banks were (and still are) very well protected - how many MPs are on the boards (or in the pay of) large banks? How many of the 'establishment' are involved with the banks? Enough to make them feel immune to public outrage. And this they arrogantly flaunt to the public whenever there is a call for curbs on banks.

It's not irresponsible bank customers who are causing this conflict, it's the limitless greed of the banks. Stop the greed, and you'll have a more level playing field, and we can all get on with paying our bills, and living within our means.

(And if you think that greed can't be curbed, try asking your boss for a pay rise, or just look at the new 'controls' put on MPs' expenses. You may still stay in your job, and try to earn more by a promotion. And we will always have MPs, just slightly more moderate ones)

natweststaffmember

Cllr_David_Jack_PPC wrote: »

Sorry, but the Tories are bandwaggon jumping again. They want to come across as the caring loveable Tory party but they are not.. For years as both a councillor and as a Parliamentary Candidate i have been fighting for and winning peoples claims for bank charges. Indeed only yesterday, in my employment as a debt councillor and claims manager i won yet another client £1006.86. I simply use the hardship test in most cases now and when the banks refuse i state that they are in contempt of the High Court ruling for hardship, amazing how so many then roll over.

Keep up the work Martin, not all politicians are as shallow as Camoron.

They roll over cos they are stupid enough not to know what they are doing,. There is no such High Court ruling for hardship. HOW MUCH DISINFORMATION IS OUT THERE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN???