Horific Halifax charges

super_k1985

Recently Halifax have started charging me £1 a day for having an overdraft, and £5 a day for being over it...i opened the account about 6 years ago when I was at university, and didnt qualify for any government funding. I am aware that I was rubbish with money at the time, and have struggled with money since, but doing this has just made it more and more difficult to pay back what I owe...surely this isnt right? it means they can potentially charge me £150 a month?!

Is anyone else having the same problem, and is there anything i can do about it?

dunstonh

surely this isnt right? it means they can potentially charge me £150 a month?!

Only if you borrow money you are not entitled to. If its an agreed facility than its £1 a day.

and is there anything i can do about it?

Don't take money out of the bank that you are not entitled to.

super_k1985

"Don't take money out of the bank that you are not entitled to"

Yes - obviously.

The point is, i havent spent a penny from the account in months yet i'm still getting charged to the eyeballs. And £1 a day to have an overdraft is ridiculous considering it was £7 a month when I signed up to it. I know I have the option of switching banks, I'm not silly, but I have to magic £1000 out of thin air before doing so, and now with the ridiculous charges it's going to be years before i can pay it off.

YorkshireBoy

super_k1985 wrote: »

Recently Halifax have started charging me £1 a day for having an overdraft

I'm a little unclear.

How recent is recent? I thought the £1 per day fee structure was put in place way back in October 2009, so getting on for 2 years ago now?

Or are you saying you've only just started using the facility? Or maybe they've converted your account from a student account or something?

Can you clarify?

super_k1985

Since February I think, or around that time, I have used the account on and off for years, all the time having been in my overdraft. I have no issues with paying off debts, I cannot wait to be debt free, I was happy enough to spend it, so now it's got to be paid back, which i'm not disputing. Difficulty is I was made redundant a few months ago, and so have had to pay out as little as possible in order to live, obviously i did not forsee this when applying for the halifax account in the first place...nor did they warn me of any of this, they were more than happy to dish out the account to me no questions asked. I am thinking they may have converted the account from a student one, but this should have been done in 2008, which is what they told me when applying for the account. I have had no letter explaining why, just a letter informing me of the charges.

Thanks

YorkshireBoy

So you were paying interest, rather than £1 per day, for using your overdraft facility right up until February this year?

super_k1985

I assume so, I regret very much that up until the payments have stopped being manageable I did not really pay too much attention to how and why I was being charged, but i do know that the account fee was £7 a month

purplephoenix85

Only just noticed this post, should have read this first as I've just posted up something similar. And it's Halifax themselves who are sending me into the unauthorised overdraft, when I pay everything off completely with excess cash in to cover any further outstanding charges, they'll charge me above and beyond... sending me back into the overdraft. It's ridiculous!

super_k1985

I've noticed that too - I havent missed any payments, and paid them all in full, yet somehow i am always into my unauthorised overdraft. I'm not suggesting that Halifax are taking money from me, but they must be working it somehow so that this is possible...hmmm the mind boggles

ElmerFudd

Have they lowered your original authorised overdraft limit recently? They review this from time to time. I had a letter a few months back to say that they recently reviewed my account and have maintained the level as from last year.
If they have perhaps this is something you can speak with them about. Is there any way you can get your account to well below the authorised limit, at least temporarily saving yourself a potential smack of £150 a month.
I must admit I have a tendency to misuse my overdraft facility but in reality the banks expect us to not be constantly overdrawn (example my Santander account is contastantly -1000 to - 1500!!!).