Halifax £1 per day charge for using authorised overdraft? Will others follow?

Jennyrr

Life is certainly getting harder already. As a pensioner my income is not enough to live on and I struggle month to month. I only retired last year, from a good job and have always helped my two daughter out. I now feel so awful for them as I havn't got the money to give them at the moment.

They have both worked all their life in full-time work and both have their own rental home. They budget well but there is nothing left after the bills have been paid etc. The one daughter accidentally went 15p over her overdraft limit for one day (she is paid weekly and was paid the next day) and was charged £63.00 by the Halifax. She phoned the Halifax and they wouldn't refund her. If I hadn't bailed her out she couldn't pay her bills.
She has a £200 overdraft with the Halifax and now they are going to charge her £30/month instead of the few pounds she pays now. If they take £30 off her she will not be able to pay for petrol to get to work as there is no bus route.

If the Halifax want to get rid of all their customers because they are the low earners, or who have overdrafts, why don't they just say so instead of penalising them. If all the banks are only going to want the 'cream of the crop' why don't they just admit it. I say boycott the Halifax - if you are high earner, don't have an overdraft and the Halifax love you, why don't you support all those people that the Halifax are treating so badly. It might be you one day!!

jambosans

Jennyrr wrote: »

The one daughter accidentally went 15p over her overdraft limit for one day (she is paid weekly and was paid the next day) and was charged £63.00 by the Halifax. She phoned the Halifax and they wouldn't refund her.

Under the new structure your daughter would be charged £5 per day for an unarranged overdraft. Also, if they refused to refund charges, it means you daughter has had a refund previously. The new structure is a benefit for anyone who has a history of bank charges, and in most circumstances, will pay less.

Jennyrr wrote: »

She has a £200 overdraft with the Halifax and now they are going to charge her £30/month instead of the few pounds she pays now.

If she upgrades her account to the Ultimate Reward Current Account, which costs £12.50 per month, the first £300 of an arranged overdraft will be fee free. Additionally, if she credits £1000 or more to the account from 06/12/09, she will qualify for a £5 Reward, which will effectively reduce the monthly account fee to £7.50.

PaulJM

See the first page of this thread - I was fighting against the usual bullying perfect world postee you tend to get in these rooms...I withdrew from posting further because you feel like you're commiting a crime here sometimes...(EXTANT!)

Re watchdog with Martin tonight, and all these posts -
The point is, the bank CAN do what they like, but they shouldn't slap these charges on people that have organised an overdraft - especially when they're using some of my 15 years of paying taxes to do it...
It's not a crime to live in your overdraft, people do this - and the people that arrange it are the responsible ones.
We all know it's not efficient to do it - sometimes you just do. Taking a £2 hit for being a bit lazy/disorganised is fine...paying potientially £31 for it is plain wrong.
But I'm giving them a chance, based on the fact that the others might follow - I'm seeing the Halifax on Sat to see what else there is there...
I'm glad others managed to get my point across...

jiminy678

PaulJM wrote: »

See the first page of this thread - I was fighting against the usual bullying perfect world postee you tend to get in these rooms...I withdrew from posting further because you feel like you're commiting a crime here sometimes...(EXTANT!)

Re watchdog with Martin tonight, and all these posts -
The point is, the bank CAN do what they like, but they shouldn't slap these charges on people that have organised an overdraft - especially when they're using some of my 15 years of paying taxes to do it...
It's not a crime to live in your overdraft, people do this - and the people that arrange it are the responsible ones.
We all know it's not efficient to do it - sometimes you just do. Taking a £2 hit for being a bit lazy/disorganised is fine...paying potientially £31 for it is plain wrong.
But I'm giving them a chance, based on the fact that the others might follow - I'm seeing the Halifax on Sat to see what else there is there...
I'm glad others managed to get my point across...

well said, couldn't of put it better myself:T

A_fiend_for_life

Apologies if this has already been asked or is off topic.

A couple of questions on the new charges.

With the reclaiming and Unfair Terms etc banks will be under increased pressure to ensure that charges are proportionate to costs assuming these charges come under this legislation.

In the event that someone goes beyond their overdraft limit:

1) Will they be sending a letter out everyday a £5 charge is levied? (Justifying cost.)

2) Will each £5 charge be registered as a default on a credit record?

The charges alone could result in a quicker spiral of debt but with a daily hit on a credit rating the chances of moving to a more competitive provider can also be impacted that much quicker.

Grade_A_Reject

PaulJM wrote: »

BUT...let's not forget the main point here - <snip> Treat me as I am- someone who stupidly and lazily goes <snip> squandering my 'wealth' <snip> I'm just <snip> like the banks, be fair.

Sorry Couldn't resist.

Overdrafts are like trousers. You fill them so you get a bigger pair and before long those are too tight again.

I used to be the same. Paying stupid money to "live" in an overdraft. The reality was I was living within my means as the overdraft amount wasn't increasing, but then again it wasn't decreasing either. I realised that the bank had lent me a reasonably small amount of money that, unlike a loan, I would be paying for for ever.

Clear the overdraft, which may involve a bit of short-term sacrifice, and you will be much better off.

You haven't said what you pay into your account each month but I'm now with First Direct who offer a free £250 overdraft which is perfect for catching those little oversights that occasionally take you into the red.

YorkshireBoy

A_fiend_for_life wrote: »

1) Will they be sending a letter out everyday a £5 charge is levied? (Justifying cost.)

If you have an arranged or unarranged overdraft, your statements will show the amount of fees we will take from your account at the end of the month.

If you have to pay fees for any unarranged overdraft, we will also tell you about these by sending you a letter.

We will send you regular reminders if you continue to have an unarranged overdraft.

Please see conditions 26 and 27 of Section 3 of the Reward Current Account conditions.

http://www.halifax.co.uk/bankaccounts/account-fees-and-reward-payments.asp

BTW, if you're thinking you could go down the 'unfair' route with these new (fee for a service requested) charges you're sadly mistaken.

2) Will each £5 charge be registered as a default on a credit record?

No, my understanding is that so long as your account is brought back within your agreed overdraft limit once per month you'll maintain your 'green zeros' on your credit file.

opinions4u

CREDITCOLLECTGB wrote: »

Your whole posting style is one of a self centred,smug sanctimonious twit.

Out of interest, what is your purpose for being here?

To help people?

To have a healthy debate with people?

Or to make an idiot of yourself?

mrg9999

How do I calculate that as an APR? any idea what it might me?


Mr.G

2 months remaining on his last mortgage

rb10

mrg9999 wrote: »

How do I calculate that as an APR? any idea what it might me?


Mr.G

2 months remaining on his last mortgage

In short, you don't.

APR is an interest rate, so it varies depending on how much you are overdrawn by. This is a fixed fee, so it remains the same regardless of how much you are overdrawn (up to £2500).