View Full Version : Bank Charges Aaaaaaaagh!!!
Just been hit with three £35 charges and an unauthorised overdraft fee of £28 by the Bank of Scotland for going -£1.20, -£5.80 and -£42.20 overdrawn on the same day. The biggest pain is that my wages should have gone in 5 days prior however due to the instant transfer not working it took 4 days to appear. I can't believe that HBOS are doing so badly in this time of credit crunch. They just made £133 off me for less than 24 hours in the red!! Not happy!!!!!!!!
Give them a call and complain.I did it once and they gave me the charges back.
Alice in Blunderland
19-Jan-09, 21:49
Just been hit with three £35 charges and an unauthorised overdraft fee of £28 by the Bank of Scotland for going -£1.20, -£5.80 and -£42.20 overdrawn on the same day. The biggest pain is that my wages should have gone in 5 days prior however due to the instant transfer not working it took 4 days to appear. I can't believe that HBOS are doing so badly in this time of credit crunch. They just made £133 off me for less than 24 hours in the red!! Not happy!!!!!!!!
Well funny you should post this I have just spent the afternoon helping a couple of pensioners out who were hit with four thirty five pound charges and a twenty eight pound charge for the same thing. I couldnt believe what happened to them all because they got in a muddle over christmas.
They got no money when their pension went in I didnt think this was right. :confused
Give them a call and complain.I did it once and they gave me the charges back.
Tried that. They said I should have known what the charges were and should have had the funds in to cover it. I told them that the funds should have been there but due to their banks being closed over New Year and the failure of their instant bank transfer (not my fault) the funds never made it. They said "Tough"!
The worst one I had was this.
About two years ago I received a Letter from my Bank informing me that as of receipt of the letter they would charge me £35.00 for any letter sent to me. This charge was to cover any administrative costs.
They then went on to say that they had debited my account a charge of £35.00 for sending me this letter.
So in other words they charged me £35.00 for informing me that they would charge me £35.00 if they ever had to write to me.
I closed my account the next day.
Well funny you should post this I have just spent the afternoon helping a couple of pensioners out who were hit with four thirty five pound charges and a twenty eight pound charge for the same thing. I couldnt believe what happened to them all because they got in a muddle over christmas.
They got no money when their pension went in I didnt think this was right. :confused
Alice, I think this came up on a thread a while ago. I'm pretty sure banks are not meant to leave anyone without the full amount of money that the state says they need to live on, because of any bank charges they apply.
I think this applies to all state benefits, so surely it should include state pensions? :confused
alanabain
19-Jan-09, 22:30
i know exactly what you mean, just the week before christmas i got a letter about a bank charge for being a few pound overdrawn and they have charged me £35 ( taken on Boxing Day!! ) and then £28 at the end of this month. This i thought was unreal.
I phoned them up and all they could offer me was to raise my overdraft ( to get more money from me in interest ) and when i said about this written off the woman said her " hands were tied "... i had previously had this done before on sep 2007 for being 60p overdrawn.
grrrrr
Threaten to take your overdraft elsewhere!
Angela is right about the bank not being allowed to take all benefit to cover bank charges.
A friend recently had a problem with HBoS (one of many over the years) and opened a new account with another bank, set up having her wages paid into new account and direct debits and standing orders changed, then wrote to HBoS and closed the account. They can`t get blood out of a stone, and she now no longer has the recurring bank charge problem, which was always due to wages being paid in late.
roadbowler
19-Jan-09, 22:55
google govan law centre. Get the letter template for bank charges. Fill in your details and send it off. I managed to get all my bank charges wiped. Never heard of it not working for anybody else i know thats tried it.
Alice in Blunderland
19-Jan-09, 22:59
Alice, I think this came up on a thread a while ago. I'm pretty sure banks are not meant to leave anyone without the full amount of money that the state says they need to live on, because of any bank charges they apply.
I think this applies to all state benefits, so surely it should include state pensions? :confused
Thanks Angela I did notice the thread but did not follow it. I will tell them tomorrow and get them to phone the bank or citizens advice. Anyone can get in a pickle and they have my sympathy. Its a shame as this only makes it harder for them to sort out only recieving state pension.:(
Its a win win situation for the bank.
alanabain
19-Jan-09, 23:02
Threaten to take your overdraft elsewhere!
Angela is right about the bank not being allowed to take all benefit to cover bank charges.
A friend recently had a problem with HBoS (one of many over the years) and opened a new account with another bank, set up having her wages paid into new account and direct debits and standing orders changed, then wrote to HBoS and closed the account. They can`t get blood out of a stone, and she now no longer has the recurring bank charge problem, which was always due to wages being paid in late.
I did think about leaving the bank and taking the overdraft elsewhere...
but there is such a hastle moving everything. From changing wages, tax credits, direct debits etc... suppose its not worth having them if they are taking ridiculous amounts of money from me
Section 187 covers what I think Angela and poppett are referring to.
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/Acts/acts1992/ukpga_19920005_en_20
This forum may be helpful for those with benefit/bank charges queries.
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=269424
I must say I was very surprised to see a standing order and also my council tax direct debit come off my HBOS account on January 2nd. I thought with it being a holiday in Scotland that nothing would happen that day. :eek:
I think quite a few folk would have been caught out there - I was just lucky that it didn't make me overdrawn.
I left RBS many years ago after a series of charges and letters and more charges made it almost impossible for me to get out of the red. Once I was back in the black, I moved my account, but it is a bit of a palaver having to do it I know.:(
Looks as if the banks are trying anything to get back some of the money they're thrown away...... [evil]
Hi, my boyfriend filled in some forms once and he managed to get most, or all of the money back that the banks had taken off in charges, which was about £280. Give it a try.
Always a good idea to have at least two bank accounts (and credit cards) running at the same time. Then when you feel the need, jumping ship is much less complicated.
Banks are "banking" on the fact that moving to another bank is too much hassle for most people (have you seen the advert with the sheep!!).
Last problem I had with a credit card and being charged interest I just phoned up and threatened to closed the account down. They back tracked very quickly and gave me all the charges back.
When it happened to me I went in and asked to see the manager, told him how unhappy I was and that I would close my account and he had the charges dropped!
Aaldtimer
20-Jan-09, 04:11
Jeeze, things must be getting desperate!
I had a woman from the BoS on the 'phone to me on Sunday afternoon about a payment I'd forgot about, due on the 6th of Jan for £5.28!
Bejaysus you'd think I'd tried to rob them the way she went on!
Eventually got p***ed of with her and told her where to go.[disgust]
And they charged me £12 + interest for my memory lapse!:(
I must say I was very surprised to see a standing order and also my council tax direct debit come off my HBOS account on January 2nd. I thought with it being a holiday in Scotland that nothing would happen that day. :eek:
The 2nd is no longer an official Bank Hoilday in Scotland (Sacrilege!:(). Hasn't been for a few years now. The banks were told that as London wasn't on holiday then Scottish banks shouldn't be. They were given another day in the year. Can't rightly remember when, but think it is maybe now Whitsun at end of May.
brokencross
20-Jan-09, 09:20
I didn' think they got heavy for just going overdrawn, always thought that would just incur interest at the going rate.
I thought the pressure was put on when you went overdrawn at the time there was a direct debit or standing order to be paid at that time so you had insufficient funds to honour them. Thats when the silly charges kicked in!
Deemac has the right idea. We have an account with the Alliance and Leicester for regular payments to go in an bills to be paid from. I had always had an account with the Clydesdale and didn`t close it after we married. OH had endless problems with RBS as they kept charging him to run the account £20 a month even after he told them he had been in an accident and the account would have to be closed as he had no longer regular income to fund it. After 6 months I eventually got the charges refunded, but could have done without the hassle when he was so ill.
Both the banks we use will help set up new accounts and will also transfer standing orders and direct debits from your previous bank. As long as you have proof of ID it should be quite easy.
The 2nd is no longer an official Bank Hoilday in Scotland Hasn't been for a few years now. The banks were told that as London wasn't on holiday then Scottish banks shouldn't be. They were given another day in the year. Can't rightly remember when, but think it is maybe now Whitsun at end of May.
Thanks for clarifying that, embow.:)
If anyone has had a lot of bank charges that don't seem altogether fair, it IS worth claiming them back. My son's fiancee reclaimed the charges she'd had over years with her bank -with a bit of advice from my son, who used to work for HBOS.... before he saw the light! ;)
She got ALL the charges reimbursed -over £1,000. :D
cuddlepop
20-Jan-09, 10:18
Banks can behave like illegal money lenders when it comes to bank charges.
My brother had a DD for £19 99 for a gym he cancelled this but apperantly not in time and that months was taken from his account.
As he thought it wasnt coming off there was no money in his account to cover this.
Five years later the current debt collects are after £550 from an initial £19.99.
Girlfriend asked for a copy of the account and its all charges which they are refusing to pay and will continue to do so.[disgust]
Bank charges are all detailed in the booklets issued when an account is opened, it is your responsibility to read these.
It is also your responsibility to make sure you have enough money in your account to cover your outgoings!!
Is it any wonder our banking system is in the state it is with thousands of people being refunded thousands of pound in charges when at the end of the day these people knowingly went into their overdraft.
Sometimes I wonder why I am careful with my money, I should just live out with my means, incur charges then claim them back [evil]
Since I moved to Lloyds TSB 9 years ago I think I have only had bank charges once and that was recently, as long as I add to my account if it goes overdrawn on the same day I am not charged a penny, neither am I charged for amounts under £10.
I've tried all the banks and this is by far the best.
Bank charges are all detailed in the booklets issued when an account is opened, it is your responsibility to read these.
It is also your responsibility to make sure you have enough money in your account to cover your outgoings!!
Is it any wonder our banking system is in the state it is with thousands of people being refunded thousands of pound in charges when at the end of the day these people knowingly went into their overdraft.
Sometimes I wonder why I am careful with my money, I should just live out with my means, incur charges then claim them back [evil]
I am careful with my money too, ocd -in fact I think your username could be applied to me with regards to how I manage my money ;)
It seems my bank needs ME! I'm such a model customer they've just phoned me up offering me a complimentary financial review. They're trying to entice me to take out a £3,500 loan, and to move any balance on any other credit cards to my Bank of Scotland one. This is quite irresponsible of them as I couldn't afford to repay such a loan, but naturally, being a responsible person, I have declined it. Neither do I have any other credit cards so I won't be taking up that offer either.
However, in the case of an elderly person getting it wrong over the so-called festive period, I do think they could exercise some discretion.
The charges RBS imposed on me years ago started with one charge caused by a glitch in their own system, which then sent my account into a downward spiral when they kept sending me out unnecessary letters and charging me for each one. Even once I'd got back into the black they continued to send letters and make deductions. :(
I never did anything about trying to get these charges reversed, but my son's fiancee discovered that the charges her bank had levied on her account were in contravention of their own rules and regulations. They should never have been made in the first place and she was perfectly entitled to get them back. The bank settled rather than be taken to court.
Murdina Bug
20-Jan-09, 14:50
Dook - where does the fault lies for the non-transfer of your money? If it was your employer then claim the charges from them. If it was the bank then they should refund them. I would also advise asking for a regular £100 overdraft facility, then if you do drop into the red by a few pounds then you don't get charged in future.
Alice in Blunderland
20-Jan-09, 15:51
Bank charges are all detailed in the booklets issued when an account is opened, it is your responsibility to read these.
It is also your responsibility to make sure you have enough money in your account to cover your outgoings!!
Is it any wonder our banking system is in the state it is with thousands of people being refunded thousands of pound in charges when at the end of the day these people knowingly went into their overdraft.
Sometimes I wonder why I am careful with my money, I should just live out with my means, incur charges then claim them back [evil]
It is so easy to take the moral high ground when looking at things in black in white.
I for one feel sympathy with anyone who manages to get themselves in a pickle with money. I dont mean those who willing go out and abuse the system but like this elderly couple who from what I can see their money went in and they left less than five pounds in their account over the festive period and a charity donation for ..................five pounds has led to a spiral.
When working on the breadline with money its easy to fall foul of the system which is in place to stop abuse. Yes these charges are in place for a reason but come on this is hardly a fair system.
The direct debit for five pounds was unpaid. No money came out their account except for the £35 charge and a further £28 pound for some other reason I cant remember.
So in goes their pension which is thirty five pounds short and four more direct debits went unpaid and so on and son four failed direct debits four letters four lots of charges and no pension because the bank took their charges immediately.
How many of us humans have ever made a mistake ? this one for these older people has cost them dear and is a bitter lesson for them...................... :~(
They are both in their seventies and are embarassed by this.
Now Im off to tell them its because of them and others like them that the banks are in this mess.......................yeh right its folks like them that are the banks bread and butter............easy money. [disgust]
Bank charges are all detailed in the booklets issued when an account is opened, it is your responsibility to read these.
It is also your responsibility to make sure you have enough money in your account to cover your outgoings!!
Is it any wonder our banking system is in the state it is with thousands of people being refunded thousands of pound in charges when at the end of the day these people knowingly went into their overdraft.
Sometimes I wonder why I am careful with my money, I should just live out with my means, incur charges then claim them back [evil]
OCD.
I am extremely careful with my money hence the reason that I have a separate account for running each part of my life. Can I help it when an instant bank transfer from the bank is not instant and instead takes 4 days. If they told me it was a 4 day transfer I would have set it up for even more time prior to my direct debits coming off. Our banking system is in such a state due to the fact that they have such a total sham of a business strategy. The reason half still exist is due to people like me continueing to pay taxes to allow the Government to bail out their mistakes. They are quick enough to receive my money. As for an overdraft facility I was told I didn't qualify as I didn't pay enough into that account each month. I'm wondering how much you have to pay as we put in £2k a month?????????
The same thing happens with most banks, especially when it comes to people with limited incomes such as pensioners.
They have a habit if sending letters out immediately prior to the time they know money will go in when the account is at it's lowest.
By doing that the charges, which you are unaware of because you are unaware they have written to you, take you over your limit.
They will play that game month after month slowly hiking up the charges each time.
They also will stop a payment if it will take even the slightest amount over your limit, pence will do. Having done that they then slap the £35 charge on plus any other amounts they can dream up to reduce the amount in your account. The harder you try to resolve the matter by doing you best to keep ahead the more they will find reasons to add charges, usually playing the End of the Month Game as described earlier.
When you query the charges, usually by ending up with a Call Centre manned by people who can only work to a script they have been forced fed. You invariable get a standard response, "Bank charges are all detailed in the booklets issued when an account is opened, it is your responsibility to read these. It is also your responsibility to make sure you have enough money in your account to cover your outgoings"
If you live in a largish Urban area, especially with certain banks, unless you are very fortunate it is almost impossible to get through to your branch by phone. Invariably you are fed through to a centralised call centre and are treated as above.
The banks, despite their posturing of being unfairly maligned, have been jumped on by the Banking Ombudsman and have also lost a Court Case for their excessive charges, which they could not justify to the court, resulting in charges having to be refunded in many cases.
The Standard Letter mentioned earlier is well worth trying if you have been charged excessively. The Banks count on the fact that they can bully and browbeat customers having problems because very few such people will stand up to them.
Don’t fall for the accusation that it is the fault of people like you who have gone slightly overdrawn who should feel guilty for the banking problems.
Not when the banks are willing to dish out billions at a time to dodgy Oligarchs who anybody with brains would run a mile from before they were mugged for the small change in their pockets.
OCD.
I am extremely careful with my money hence the reason that I have a separate account for running each part of my life. Can I help it when an instant bank transfer from the bank is not instant and instead takes 4 days. If they told me it was a 4 day transfer I would have set it up for even more time prior to my direct debits coming off. Our banking system is in such a state due to the fact that they have such a total sham of a business strategy. The reason half still exist is due to people like me continueing to pay taxes to allow the Government to bail out their mistakes. They are quick enough to receive my money. As for an overdraft facility I was told I didn't qualify as I didn't pay enough into that account each month. I'm wondering how much you have to pay as we put in £2k a month?????????They have been jumped on for playing that game as well.
Until recently if you used the internet to send money to somebody who used the same bank as you then the money was transferred overnight.
If it was to an account in a different bank then it took four days.
Day one you made the payment.
The first night they took the money out of your account and put it into their own account for Day Two.
The second night they transferred the money to the other bank for Day Three.
The Third night the money was transferred from the second banks account into the recipients account in time for Day Four.
During Day Two the money sat in the account of your bank and during Day Three it sat in the account of the other bank. OK, nobody makes a killing on the odd few tens of pounds you may be transferring but multiply that by millions of transactions and the picture is totally different.
After having been heavily jumped on for that little scam internet transfers between different banks can be done within a few hours and within the same bank, immediately.
Despite the fact that the banks have been transferring money electronically for years when it came to small customers they were still sticking to the timing used when paper cheques were shipped around the Country and physically handled by real people.
Back then you could, naturally, pay an additional fee to the bank for the money to be transferred immediately.
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.