Bank Charge refunds : Front page news on The Independent today

competitionscafe

Todays Independent:


http://www.independent.co.uk/

turtle_3

I thought dchurch24 that fella from the consumer action group was the one who started this ? How come Martin is now taking the credit for something someone else started well before him ?

It is good that this is being brought to a lot more peoples attention but come on credit where credits due .I reclaimed all my bank charges back because of the advice from dchurch24 :T

MSE_Martin

Hi.

I haven't read the article yet - dont have a copy - going to buy one later. I was asked when I first heard about it and I remember very distinctly what I said as it was quite deliberate (i always answers a similar way) my answer was "It was around February 2006, when people started talking about it on my forums, after a while I got one of the people who'd done it to write a basic article for me on the site, this proved very popular and I started to get involved in the issue. I'm by no way the inventor of this, but I am probably propagator in chief."

It was never my intention to claim credit for coming up with this. You will also see this is writtne in one of the bank charges articles.

Martin

MSE_Martin

Good on the indendent, you'd worried me there - this is what's written in the article. It certainly doesn't say I claim credit for starting this.

"Then something changed. Last year, Mr Lewis started to notice one topic of conversation cropping up more and more often on the site's user forums. "At first, a trickle of brave people reported they had taken on their bank in court over borrowing charges - and won," Mr Lewis said. "Then the trickle became a stream - and now it's a flood."
Moneysavingexpert.com had already attracted sufficient commercial interest for Mr Lewis to devote his energies to the site full time - and to hire several staff. But interest in the bank charges campaign has eclipsed everything else."
"I didn't instigate this campaign, but I have become its promoter-in-chief," Mr Lewis said. While his site is not the only web-based source of advice on claiming back charges - Which?, the consumer group, offers similar help, as do several others - it has rapidly become the most popular."

Martin

Edinburghlass_2

Just beat me to it Martin, I was copying and pasting the same bit

turtle, I well remember dchurch24 posts on MSE about reclaiming bank charges when it began and the enormous help he gave to users of MSE which led to the starting of CAG.

However.... the name of Martin Lewis is known to the media and public so its obvious the papers and the television are going to ask Martin for the interviews and anything or indeed anyone who helps publisise this is to be applauded.

turtle_3

with all due respect you are wrong

dchurch24 already had a web site and also came in here to help other people on martins site .I know as I used dchurch's site to reclaim my charges in the early days .His site has ( at my last look ) over 100,000's members in less then a year and must surely be the fastest growing web site, never mind the one mainly dedicated to bank charges .This site has been going what 4 maybe 5 years and only has a few 1000 more .No matter how this is portrayed dchurch brought this to the attention of martin yet he has been given no credit what so ever for his involvement .Actually it looks to me that he is purposely getting pushed out of the picture so martin can take the glory .This suprises me as I have always looked up to martin and admired his work , fighting for the under dog .Through this he is actually trying to push dchurch and his web site under the carpet so he alone can bask in the glory .
I was having serious financial difficulties if it was not for the advice of dchurch and his web site the consumer action group I don't know where I would be now .This is wrong martin ,like I said credit where credits due

edit
Was it not dchurch who also wrote the original articles for you ?

consnmattsmom

I have just read the article and the OFT ruling is expected to take place within weeks. Lets hope they rule that the charges are unfair like with the cards.

Is this what wll happen do you think?

nickmack

consnmattsmom wrote:

I have just read the article and the OFT ruling is expected to take place within weeks. Lets hope they rule that the charges are unfair like with the cards.

Is this what wll happen do you think?

It's likely that similar recommendations will be made to the ruling on Credit Cards.

turtle_3

just heard martin on the radio , great programme .and finally mentioned dchurchs web site .So back up im my estimation as long as he continues to give credit where it's due :T

Edinburghlass_2

I see where you are coming from turtle but you do have to realise this wouldn't be headline news in the papers or indeed the television without the name and voice of Martin Lewis.

I know exactly how manic this subject became in November when the new article and this board started and Martin appeared on shows like Lorraine Kelly and BBC Breakfast Show. The impact of these two shows alone has been immense as can be seen on this board daily when people post for the very first time on a chat forum asking their question because they saw Martin on the telly

Credit is also given daily on here to the various websites such as CAG, PenaltyCharges, Govan Law Centre and BankChargesHell.

Also in the article...

Other Bank Charge Websites. There are a number of small free websites dedicated to reclaiming unfair charges and helping consumers. The ConsumerActionGroup is a focused web forum based purely around reclaiming charges; it’s run by a group of people who took on the banks in the very early stages. PenaltyCharges is run by a law student who successfully took on the banks and campaigns on the site and there’s also BCH amongst others.

poochel

(I have done a fair bit of reading in the forum and so apologise if this has already been covered)

From 'Customers See Red over the scandal of illegal charges' article in the Indy:
"Last night, the FOS also warned banks that they were not entitled to close the accounts of customers who complained, as some have attempted to do."

Does anyone have any more information on this? I went to the FOS site here http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/faq/answers/bank-charges_a8.html and all I could find on this matter was 'a recent adjudication from January'

The only reason I ask is that I want to reclaim some charges from Nationwide (£100-ish) but am reluctant to do so as they seem pretty hot on closing the accounts. I don't want to lose my free cash withdrawals abroad for the sake of a relatively small amount!

Also, if the OFT rule that the charges are unfair and order them to be reduced to £12-ish as they have with credit cards, would consumers still be able to reclaim all charges? Or just reclaim the difference between £30 or whatever and the £12?

Many thanks for your help!