OFT guidelines, do they apply to bank charges?

[carled]

I ask as I'm arguing (full details in A&L thread) with the FOS about whether A&L should have stopped continuing to charge me (it was a stupid charge in the first place!) as soon as I started disputing the charge with them, rather than continue their idiotic charging policy that ended with them freezing the account when they managed to turn a few quid into a £400 overdraft... (I kid you not) all the time whilst I was telling them they were being daft and I disputed the charge?

 

I maintain to the FOS that the bank charge is a debt and that therefore the OFT guidelines apply in that the bank should freeze charges whilst I dispute things with them.

 

Anyone got anything legalese I can use please?

[tifo]

no, OFT debt collection guidelines do not apply to current accounts. I asked this of the OFT last week and they said 'NO, they don't'. They didn't say what i should with the bank who is breaking these guidelines, had they applied. They said pass it to the FOS. And i know the banks know how to use the FOS. They have nice little unspoken agreements between themselves.

 

s.78 CCA also does not apply, but the bank would need to show an overdraft agreement, which seemingly can be a statement with the credit limit detailed.

[carled]

Marvellous... so basically the banks have carte blanche to carry on charging, all the time the customer is saying, "oi, excuse me, you shouldn't have charged me in the first place, stop whacking on extra charges now to make it even worse" and nobody can do anything about it, except go to court... ? That seems like money with menaces to me...

 

I also have the impression that the FOS is completely in bed with the banks. The banks have to be proven to have committed cold-blooded murder before the FOS even slaps their wrist.

[tifo]

yep, you're right.

 

because the test case is going on, the bank will say the charges have not yet been deeemed unlawful and neither has the OFT made a determination, so they don't have to look into the matter because the court is doing it.

 

see my thread 'FOS decisions and guidelines' for more info on how they all operate against the consumer.