Tesco Overlimit Fee

Duffelcoat1

I have a tesco card and recently the amount has been racking up for various reasons, but I was getting close to the limit when I got my statement, the interest applied had taken me over the card limit by about a £5.

Okay kablamy, years of customer loyality out the window, overlimit fee applied £12.00.

Of course I phone to moan as I do not know exactly what the interest would be, so they refund the fee. Except they don't and then I have to phone again and then it is done.

The above is arguable in my opinion, forget morals, there are none.

But my real beef is that in the following statement I get charged again for being over the limit although I never transgress again - how is this:

Well

My statement comes 15th, interest applied 15th, then wham overlimit applied immediately 15th.

I sort out 22nd. But because I am over the limit between the 15th and 22nd I get the second charge the following month.

Surely this is ludicrous!

I argue the toss with Tesco who arent very helpful at all but they give me back the charge again.

Now I am sorry, but is it just me or they looking very hard for every reason to whack you as hard as they can and any opportunity, combine this with the massive interest and the whole thing amounts to morally indefensable policy by the credit card companies.

I have noticed that in the recession lenders are jumping even harder on people at every opportunity and giving no quarters for movement unless you are really stuborn and waste a lot of their and your time.

It is a sad state to be in I know and I am working on the balance, but I am mostly agrieved at the attitude of the lenders not just in the above example with Tesco.

izools

Unfortunately this will have to just be a lesson learned that customer loyalty and previous impeccable account condict counts for very little.

Morals, no. Opportunity for them to make a quick buck? Of course!

Having said that, you are lucky that they refunded both charges. Many others wouldn't have. On the basis that they tell you your estimated interest on the prior statement and it is you responsibility to ensure atleast that much is available at all times for when the next statement is produced. Tough, but true

opinions4u

The best solution for these issues is not to run so close to your credit limit.

Get closer to your finances and manage them better.

years of customer loyality out the window

It could be said that a customer who goes over their credit limit is showing little or no loyalty to the card company.

The fact that they have refunded two lots of charges, despite not being in any way at fault, suggests that they are showing more loyalty to you than you are showing to them.

Duffelcoat1

I couldnt disagree with you more, I am very close to my finances, and watch them constantly, but to go over by such a small amount due to an amount which is not known and then to get done twice for the same offence is ludicrous and a manipulation of the charge structure and that is the bit I dont get.

Of course I am leaving more of a buffer now to allow extra and yes they have refunded me so am not out of pocket.

But the main thrust of my post was to point out the increasingly hard lined and non flexible approach of lenders which hasnt always been the case.

It is very easy to hide behind a large amount of small print that the companies know is not read or understood by a great deal of people rightly or wrongly.

There appears to be no morals in business any more - an influence I feel is coming from the US where everything is money.

cifpower

Does it not say on your statement "estimated interest next month is £xx.xx"?

Duffelcoat1

It was considerably lower than the amount I was charged.

I am not saying it is not my fault, as technically it is, I am really getting at the increasingly hard nosed way 'customers' are being treated.

I run a business and of course allow flexiblity with my loyal customers, if I didn't I would be out of business.

td_007

re

Duffelcoat1 wrote: »

But the main thrust of my post was to point out the increasingly hard lined and non flexible approach of lenders which hasnt always been the case.

Clearly this is not the case - otherwise the charges would not have been refunded at all let alone twice.

Things change. Today banking is more of a business than yesterday which means looking for more ways to make a profit. No point in reminiscing about good old days....

Duffelcoat1

Ignoring the twice bit, as I have made my point on that.

But yes I did get refunded and I had to push very hard.

Odd however that on getting the initial refund the system then still continued to apply the second charge.

Why was that?

Maybe because they use a computer system that allows no flexiblity or subjectivity and also because Tesco operators dont know themselves how their charge structure works otherwise they would have forseen the second charge, which clearly wouldn't be applicable on account of the initial charge being reversed.

How many people get hit for such small amounts it is a common theme, and yes they are technically in the wrong, that much is obvious, but we loop back to the initially point to do with morality and business ethics.

I have made my point and have no wish to start an argument with anyone on this topic,

Just hopefully someone will read this who like me doens't know everything and maybe someone else can avoid a hit that they are unable to get out of.

Okay - so who wants to discuss interest rates and morality?!

davethorp

I once got a £12 charge for going 8p over my credit limit due to interest. I did get it refunded after writing to my provider

CannyJock

Duffelcoat1 wrote: »

Maybe because they use a computer system that allows no flexiblity or subjectivity

Flexibility can be built into financial systems, but as they're rule based subjectivity can't.

The over-limit charges will have been triggered by the balance on the account in that statement period - even if it would appear that it was over because of a charge that they subsequently refunded.

There's no "common sense" or "reasonableness" built into these things, only a sequence of rules which unless specifically defined not to, will err on the side of the credit provider.

There's a thought-provoking read on interest and morality here if you really want to explore it

vet8

I had the same thing. I stupidly went just over the limit because I had not allowed for the interest. I was charged £12 overlimit fee and I paid some off immediately I got the statement, meaning that I was not over the limit again. But then I was charged another £12 fee next month.

This means that the limit of only £12 on overlimit fees is cobblers as they seem to apply it for 2 months regardless.