Royal Bank of Scotland Bank Charges - WARNING!!

Jim02

Ah yes, good idea. Then I'll go to my HR department and tell them I'd like my salary in cash from now on, shall I?

grumbler

Jim02 wrote:

Then I'll go to my HR department and tell them I'd like my salary in cash from now on, shall I?

No. You just open a basic account with cashcard, without chequebook and overdraft. You withdraw your salary from ATMs and pay everywhere cash. Or if you don't like ATMs you call you branch, order full amount of your salary in cash, collect this pile of money once a month (week) and keep it under mattress... :rolleyes:

Jim02

Right -- how do I pay my electricity bill? My water bill? My council tax? etc., etc.? Let's be honest, life forces you to have a bank account.

It seems that thee and me are not going to see eye to eye on this one, are we! I think I understand where you're coming from, and I'm not condoning wilful or regular breach of o/d limit.

Where we appear to differ, is that I think charging a punitive amount for infrequent, accidental and minor infringements on an otherwise responsibly run account is wrong. I'm happy to pay costs when I screw up. But these penalties are a money-spinner for the banks, pure and simple. Yes, it's in the Ts and Cs, but that doesn't mean it's morally right.

Unfortunately, because one is forced to have a bank account in this day and age, one is also forced to sign up to these immoral Ts & Cs.

I've been trying to make two points: firstly I don't believe these penalties are justified (and I'm not alone, see here); and secondly, if you've been penalised you don't just have to sit there and accept it. This second assertion does not, however, relieve you of the obligation to do your best to ensure it doesn't happen again!

That's all I'm going to say on the matter (unless I get severely flamed )

grumbler

Jim02 wrote:

...out-of-proportion costs ...a blanket, unjustifiable penalty...
...how much more does it cost the bank than if you had a £200 limit? Answer: Zero. So to levy a charge of £20 on your account is nothing but an arbitrary punishment. How can that be justified?

There is a long-runnig serious debate on this matter in ' I can't believe banks can get away with this...' thread. You can join cgnao in his fight agains MarkyMarkD and Walletwatch. I am a fan of the other side.

What's competition got to do with it?

You can vote with your feet. However, I doubt that you will find better deal. Rules are about the same everywhere.