Reclaim Your Bank And Card Charges

[shawty]

Originally Posted by newguy

Hi all,

Better late than never I say! Basically, the 2nd letter just went off yesterday asking for the charges back - so fingers crossed I didn't leave it to late to send off.

I had other charges to add thou and one was for them cashing the £10 cheque for the statments I requested. They hung on to it long enough and then cashed it when I had no funds to cover it - perhaps on purpose.
I'll update this tread with the progress.

All cases have been ceased havent they? While they are still in court about them.

[Xaccers]

Originally Posted by shawty

All cases have been ceased havent they? While they are still in court about them.

Although on hold, I'm pretty sure that the case being logged sets the claim time period (6 years in England/Wales) so if your oldest charge is getting close to 6 years ago, better to get it logged than miss out.

[newguy]

As long as the claimes have been logged I'm sure of some sort of payment when the court cases do finish.
As it stands they (banks) have less than a month now to lodge an appeal on the decission made the other day by the Judge.

Originally Posted by shawty

All cases have been ceased havent they? While they are still in court about them.

[shawty]

Originally Posted by newguy

As long as the claimes have been logged I'm sure of some sort of payment when the court cases do finish.
As it stands they (banks) have less than a month now to lodge an appeal on the decission made the other day by the Judge.

As far as Im aware, there was no decsion, they still havent been ruled illegal.

[joglynne]

Originally Posted by shawty

As far as Im aware, there was no decsion, they still havent been ruled illegal.

Agreed. In ruling that

<snip> charges can be unfair under UK law The judge decided that consumer contract regulations can apply to bank charges, paving the way for the OFT to decide whether banks' charges are unfair.

The next thing to happen is the court hearing on 22nd May when a time table will be set for the actual Court hearings that will consider the question of a fair amount for bank charges.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/rec...k-charge-recla

[Saaf_laandon_mo]

I would be very suprised if the OFT ruled in favour of the banks, especially when you consider their stance on price fixing in supermarkets. They could even find that banks operate unfairly by fixing the prices of overdraft letters and other charges.

[newguy]

As far as I'm aware it was the OFT that brought this test case to the courts? If that's the case then surely they will not favour the banks.....well here's hoping.

Originally Posted by Saaf_laandon_mo

I would be very suprised if the OFT ruled in favour of the banks, especially when you consider their stance on price fixing in supermarkets. They could even find that banks operate unfairly by fixing the prices of overdraft letters and other charges.

[info4u]

Im hoping that some one will read this post rather than the original one at the front of this Thread


Ive been banking in the past with Alliance and Leicester

Recently they decided to charge me over £575.00 for an £8.48 over draft

This comes from a £25.00 charge then £5.00 per day until the amounts are cleared
I cleared all balances in my account before they took the £95.00 charge (£5.00 a day)
as I saw that as daylight robery (£120.00 total for £8.48)

I was told all my direct debits had gone out which hadnt causing another charge because i removed all funds to prevent the £95.00 going out (Did have a £100.00 overdraft to prevent further charges whilst they investigated it) but because of the misadvise I went over that £100.00 over draft

They charged me another £25.00 and a £5.00 a day charge which I refused to pay
1) out of principle
2) because I was misadvised
3) It doenst justify staff charges. interest to charge that much

This month I got a bank statement showing aq whooping £210.00 charge being added for this month alone.

Dispite me having moved all my finances over the barclays and stopped using their cards etc

The £8.48 overdraft was caused on New Years Eve and they slapped a restriction on my account on the 1st Jan (BANK HOLIDAY) yet the Direct Debits wasnt due out until the 2nd January.

When I checked my account on the 1st Jan I had £5.00- out of £100.00- allowance
So why is it they could slap a restriction on my account at 4am on a bank holiday, for a pending direct debit due out and then say its all my fault and im responsible for my fundings of the account

FSA regulated, does state that a company must take due care, skill and dilligence on dealing with its customers and also work towards the customers best interest

I dont see that being my best interest

If I had a crap job that barely paid this would cause a spiriling debt

2yrs of these charges and you start to have a mortgages worth

[newguy]

For those of you claiming back from Abbey, here is an update I came accross which painted a good picture for me on whats happening.

OFT v Abbey and others April 2008
The judgment out today basically had three points to decide:

1. If the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations of 1999 could be applied to the terms relating to bank charges for overdrafts in personal current accounts.

2. If such terms were written in plain and intelligible language

3. If the law of penalties applies to overdraft charges in personal current accounts.

The High court held:

1. In favour of the OFT - yes the UTCCR 1999 do apply

2. Mainly in favour of the banks although some in favour of OFT

3. The law of penalties does not apply to any of the terms considered in relation to overdraft charges because none of the charges considered were payable on a breach of contract.

This is a massive victory on the part of the consumer. This means that the High Court have ruled that the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations do apply to overdraft charges which the banks have always denied.

This was simply the first round which may be subject to an appeal. Once the first round is finalised their may be further litigation to decide if the charges are unfair or there may be a compromise agreement between the OFT and the banks. But it is an important first step in getting a final decision.The court will be hearing submissions on historic terms at a later date. Each term is considered on its individual merits so it may be that some charges are payable on breach and therefore subject to the la on penalties.

What this means for you:

If your claim is currently stayed - the stay will remain in place until at least May 22nd when a decision will be made on any applications for appeal. The even if there are no appeals the stays may remain in place after this time until the second issue is resolved.

If you have not yet put in a claim but have written your preliminary letter do continue to make a claim so that you can claim your interest. If you wait until the outcome of the final decision it is unlikely that you will be able to file a claim as assuming the court rules in the consumer's favour the banks are likely to pay out on receiving complaint without waiting for you to file a court claim. In which case you will lose out on the valuable interest.

If you have not done anything yet then you can start the process by doing a Subject Access Request as detailed in the step by step instructions and then totalling up your charges using the spreadsheets and send off your preliminary letter demanding money and following the normal process.

Claims which are not affected by this decision:

CREDIT CARD
MORTGAGE CLAIMS
CLAIMS ON LOAN ACCOUNTS

Claims which are affected:

All personal bank accounts

The ruling on penalties will have serious implications on business claims.
It is not currently advisble to start a claim on a business account until further guidance is given on the issue of penalties in relation to historic terms.
If you have a business claim already lodged with the court you may like to consider putting your claim on hold until this matter is determined. You can do this by making an application for a stay using form N244. A court fee is payable but is less if you get consent from the defendant before applying as this negates the need for a hearing.

[newguy]

Hi folks,

Just got a letter from the customer relations dept today (bank letter) saying they recieved my charges request letter. It said in the letter basically, once the legal proceedings between the banks and the OFT have finished, they will resolve my complaint. However, that it could take months. And if I'm not happy with the resoulition they give, that I can take the matter then to the courts or FOS.

I'm now left with 2 questions.

1) Is this a standard reply?

2) What do I do next - as in do I now send off the next letter saying that I shall be starting court proceedings against them?

Originally Posted by Xaccers

Although on hold, I'm pretty sure that the case being logged sets the claim time period (6 years in England/Wales) so if your oldest charge is getting close to 6 years ago, better to get it logged than miss out.

[Xaccers]

Originally Posted by newguy

Hi folks,

Just got a letter from the customer relations dept today (bank letter) saying they recieved my charges request letter. It said in the letter basically, once the legal proceedings between the banks and the OFT have finished, they will resolve my complaint. However, that it could take months. And if I'm not happy with the resoulition they give, that I can take the matter then to the courts or FOS.

I'm now left with 2 questions.

1) Is this a standard reply?

2) What do I do next - as in do I now send off the next letter saying that I shall be starting court proceedings against them?

Standard letter, HSBC delayed the requests of myself and my housemate knowing that there was the OFT action going on.
My charges are from 4 years ago, so not much risk of them going beyond the 6 year mark.
If yours are close to the 6 year mark, I'd lodge it with the courts. It will be put on hold until the OFT stuff is sorted but it will be logged so the 6 years won't matter (or at least that's how I understand it because you took legal action before the 6 year deadline).

[Saaf_laandon_mo]

How do i request 6 years worth of statements? wont they charge me?

[Xaccers]

Originally Posted by Saaf_laandon_mo

How do i request 6 years worth of statements? wont they charge me?

The website linked near the begining of this thread covers everything.
Under the data protection act they can charge you no more than £10, you ask either for a list of charges or if that's unavailable, 6 years worth of statements.

[Marge]

Originally Posted by Saaf_laandon_mo

How do i request 6 years worth of statements? wont they charge me?

You can request copies and it will cost you a tenner

Have a look on the moneysavingexpert site, they have template letters etc on there for you to send and addresses for the different banks

lol beaten to it by Xaccers

[TheDaddy]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Saaf_laandon_mo
How do i request 6 years worth of statements? wont they charge me?

Originally Posted by Xaccers

The website linked near the begining of this thread covers everything.
Under the data protection act they can charge you no more than £10, you ask either for a list of charges or if that's unavailable, 6 years worth of statements.

Don't forget to add the tenner to your final bill