santander charges

oneillsg1

i dont really know if anyone can help but all advice would be greatly appreciated
in november my son used my debit card to pay 9.01 to riot games for in game items, by doing this he put me 4.98 in the red with my account. i dont have an overdraft so was very worried about being in the red but the bank didnt take any money off of me or warn me they might. i have since then put money in 3 times to cover my phone bill and motorbike insurance and am due to put some more in tomorrow. i have just checked and the bank have taken 25.00 off of me for 'card fees'. by doing this, they have themselves put me in the red again, so will i be charged again? they didnt send me any warnings about taking the fee out, no email, no letter, no phone call and they do have all my details so could easily have done so. i only use my account for my phone bill and insurance, my son took my card by mistake thinking it was his dads and so causing the first 'in the red'.
do i have a case to argue the second inevitable charge of 25.00 that they will take from me as its they who have caused me to be in the red by taking the fee with no warning? i am going to pay my local branch a visit in the morning, it would just be good to know if i have a case worth arguing.
thank you for reading

dunstonh

so was very worried about being in the red but the bank didnt take any money off of me or warn me they might.

They normally tell you on the statement and give you one months notice.

my son took my card by mistake thinking it was his dads and so causing the first 'in the red'.

Yet despite his mistake, he managed to make the purchase using the correct PIN ?

do i have a case to argue the second inevitable charge of 25.00 that they will take from me as its they who have caused me to be in the red by taking the fee with no warning? i am going to pay my local branch a visit in the morning, it would just be good to know if i have a case worth arguing.
thank you for reading

You could complain but the bank would also be within their rights to withdraw card services from you due to breaking their T&C by allowing an unauthorised individual to draw money from your account by supplying them with the PIN.

Whatever way you look at it, you are in the wrong. So, you will be reliant on a lot of bank goodwill (to refund and not to withdraw your facility). Even if they do not withdraw the facility, they will note that you broke the conditions of the card use and if you suffer a fraudulent transaction later, you may find they will not refund it.

oneillsg1

hi, thanks for your reply.

no, it was via paypal to riot games, as my card was registered with paypal (i used it just the once last year to buy something online, haven't used it since) when the card number offered to him on the paypal site was different he clicked the drop down bit on the change card section and mine was there so picked that one. he didnt realise it was mine till it was too late to cancel the payment.
i accept that i have been charged for that in the red bit, although i still dont understand how money that isnt in the account can be taken out, its only a bog standard debit card. its that fact that by taking the fee out yesterday, with no warning, they themselves have put me in the red, so am i going to have to pay another fee? sorry for sounding so thick, but its the first time i have had any problems with the bank so i dont really know where i stand x

dunstonh

although i still dont understand how money that isnt in the account can be taken out, its only a bog standard debit card.

Not all transactions are checked against your balance. Typically there is a floor limit. This is one of the reasons debit cards fall under credit agreements because of the potential to to into debt.

but its the first time i have had any problems with the bank

Santander tend to be sympathetic on first mistake and refund. Dont go in all guns blazing and blaming them. It is not their fault. Banks are not there to run your finances and debit cards do not always check your balance first. Accept what is happened but do check your statements. Normally the banks notify you of forthcoming on charges on the statement. Dont tell them it was your son that took you overdrawn. That opens up a whole different can of worms. Tell them that it was paypal but it was the wrong card that was used in error.

noh

Not sure which account you have with Santander but several of them are online only. If that is the case the notification of the charge will be found on your online statement.

oneillsg1

hi, thanks for the replies
i went to see them at the syston branch and explained what had happened. i said i wasnt disputing the first charge, its just that i had no warning and now i was back in the red so will i be charged again. the gentleman i saw was brilliant, he went away and looked at everything, came back and said he had squashed and refunded the charge and that i shouldnt get another but if i do there will be around 30 days warning. he was very nice and helpful. i had no intentions of going in all guns blazing i'm not like that, i believe you get what you give so i was polite and received politeness in return.
again thankyou for taking the time to reply, i appreciate it xx