bank charges

sportbeth

I cannot recommend giving this a go enough. I lost my job a year ago and the charges just mounted up from nothing. The account fell into a hefty overdraft and then they started with the threatening letters. 6 months later I was back in a job and looking at paying off an £800+ balance which was all charges and interest. I didn't owe them a penny for an overdraft.

With the help of that site I got all my charges back. I'm now starting on a credit card that I have worked out has £500 owing back to me.

If you don't ask you don't get and the worst that can happen is that you get a fat "no" from the bank. But no-one has had a "no" yet so the worst that can really happen is you get all your hard earned cash back in your pocket where it belonged in the first place!

Please, everyone, do this and get onto the site!! (No, I have no affiliation with them whatsoever apart from the fact that it helped me)

crazymom

I know i might sound a bit on the thick side! but is it right that i can claim back my failed DD charges and if so how much of them? Sorry if this has been posted before but i am trying to get my head round it all and if i can claim it back i will be one very happy little bunny!

fruitycar

This is my understanding of it.
basically banks are charging £25-39 to send you a letter saying "we have paid....", "your account is od....". etc. By law they can charge you for the cost to them of sending that letter. They will not provide a breakdown of this sum and as most of these letters are generated automatically, these charges are seen as a penalty, not a true cost of the issuing of these letters. They are not allowed by law to penalise a breach of contract.
https://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk is your best friend.

crazymom

I am being charged for each failed DD and just 1 letter, results in being charged nearly £100 a time! got to something about it!

Chortle_2

It isn't just the charge for sending out letters, it is all charges for unpaid direct debits, standing orders and cheques, plus any fees charged for going over an agreed overdraft limit etc.

HTH

sportbeth

Chortle wrote:

It isn't just the charge for sending out letters, it is all charges for unpaid direct debits, standing orders and cheques, plus any fees charged for going over an agreed overdraft limit etc.

HTH

Yep that's right - the way that the british legal system works as well (if you read it to the letter) is that imposing a penalty for what is effectively a breach of contract (the way it is deemed if you have bounced a direct debit or a cheque or gone over your limit) is against british law.

You are not legally entitled to charge either a penalty for breach of contract or impose a penalty without quantifying how you came up with that cost. E.g. cost of a stamp, time of the person who typed it, man hours, materials etc. Everyone knows these letters are computer generated and franked on their way out of the office.

Don't entirely quote me on that of course, go to the consumeraction group site to read up on the legalities of it. Or if you would prefer not to there are step-by step instructions on what to do at each stage and all the template letters are on there so the hard legal part is done for you