Bank charges

FuzzyDuck01

Hello
in the early to mid 2000i was desperately in debt Halifax bank were charging me approx £35 to£40 for each returned cheque and transaction I was behind with my mortgage and in a very bad situation I wrote a cheque and put money into the account that was taken for something else the bank paid the cheque despite returning everything elseI know I shouldn’t have written the cheque but I was desperate I asked the bank why they had paid the cheque they said they had a floor limit which I didn’t understand as they had returned everything else
i complained to the FCA they told me I sounded like I was trying to force them to get the bank to pay compensation,I wasn’t I was pleading for help
Halifax offered me £200 despite the charges being well over a£2000 at the time I asked them to pay the arrears of my mortgage which they refused and I received nothing.
can I do anything about this it ended up me having a CCJ for £4000 which had taken me 4years to clear can I do anything about this

[Deleted User]

If you're in current financial hardship, you can ask them for help, but there's no right to any refund.

sourcrates

Well the "mid 2000`s" were a long time ago, why have you waited so long ?

You usually have to make a complaint within 6 years of the event you want to complain about happening, or 6 years of realising you could make a complaint.

It appears you may already have done that, as the Halifax offered you £200, by way of redress, which you refused.

So in there eyes the complaint was made, and a settlement offered, which was then refused, so I'd imagine the complaint was closed, you cannot come back to it after all this time saying you`ve changed your mind unfortunately.

The limitation act, sets out time scales for recovering debts and making complaints about a financial product, that limit is 6 years.

[Deleted User]

Banks won the case at the supreme court in 2009 about unfair fees. You cannot put in complaints about fees for historic charges, the bank will simply reject it with reference to that case, or just time bar it. Put this one to bed, the technicalities of the system mean you will not be able to get a refund of these old charges.

FuzzyDuck01

Hello thank you for the reply it’s the bank charges I refer to they were very excessive at the time my understanding is that if you were in financial hard ship they had to give consideration especially as so many people have successfully claimed bank charges back

[Deleted User]

FuzzyDuck01 said:

Hello thank you for the reply it’s the bank charges I refer to they were very excessive at the time my understanding is that if you were in financial hard ship they had to give consideration especially as so many people have successfully claimed bank charges back

The banks won the 2009 supreme court case on "unfair" charges and subsequently reduced them. They were not deemed excessive. If you were in financial hardship they do have to help but that means applying for help when the hardship is happening, not so many years later. They do not need to give you a refund for old hardship if they were not aware of your problems.

Almost nobody has claimed bank charges back since 2009 for historic cases, some people in current hardship do get some charges back but that's typically no more than 6 months and by no means guaranteed. Again, this must be current, not past. The ship sailed on bank charges in 2009. People do have more success with packaged accounts but even then, the in rate is only about 1:4, maybe lower.

dunstonh

my understanding is that if you were in financial hard ship they had to give consideration especially as so many people have successfully claimed bank charges back

Prior to 2009, lots of people were claiming bank charges back.   However, after the banks won the case in 2009, that gravy train stopped.   Today, only CURRENT financial hardship cases or incorrect application charges are considered.

So, are you in current financial hardship? (not historic)

Even if you are in current financial hardship, the bank doesn't have to refund a penny.  it can use a range of options.  Such as suspending future charges for x months.  Or put you on a debt management plan.   Where they do consider a refund, they typically look at a figure less than the last 12 months worth.    Only in extreme cases do they go further than that.