Another new claim - question please.

[tw0906blue]

Hi all,

 

I have written to Barclays and asked for a refund of charges, which in respect of many others are small - but large to us! We are swinging from having funds and not having anything! My husband is trying to work for himself - and I had a breakdown 18 months ago and am trying to get back into a frame of maind to work again! Enough of the sob story background. Just to show that each penny is important!

 

So, we went over our overdraft limit in December last year - first time in 6 years - and lovely Barclays sent us a standard automated letter saying they were applying charges...."Paid Referral Fee". The first letter showed us £141.67 over the overdraft limit. We were charged £25 - which "as a gesture of goodwill" was refunded. Of course the problems compounded and we went over again. We were able to put some money into our account but were never in control as we didn't know how much we were over at any given time. Even logging on to try and manage the account wasn't any good as that information isn't up to date. We put in what we thought would be enough to cover the extra plus what was due to come out - only to find out that we were still over as more had gone through than we expected - the bank just gayly took more fees without so much as a nod to the fact that we were obviously trying to stop the situation from occuring.

 

I have a great deal of frustration that we are treated as a number and not individuals trying to stay within the terms of their T&C's. I do not want to call India and talk to a person looking at a screen who we all know has a crib sheet of questions etc. We have no faith that they really want to assist in helping us manage our affairs.

 

We now have another "goodwill refund" of £50 after sending a complaint letter to them quoting case law from http://www.moneysavingexpert.com. But this leaves us still having been charged penalties above and beyond what is reasonable. My question is I guess should I carry on and write again - pointing out the unreasonableness of the charges once again - I haven't applied any interest yet as the fees are relatively new - and it seems rather complicated. The spreadsheet didn't seem to show Referral fees.

 

I don't think the amount (£50) it is enough to file a claim - but I guess there are millions of people like us who transgress just a little and it really seems more trouble than it is worth!

 

Any comments?

[pauli]

I understand the predicament. Two points though.

 

1. you can recover charges and fees paid over the last 6 years

 

2. the costs of bringing the action can be included in your claim

[tw0906blue]

I understand the predicament. Two points though.

 

1. you can recover charges and fees paid over the last 6 years

 

2. the costs of bringing the action can be included in your claim

 

Thanks, yeh, I have looked back and we have been amazingly successful in keeping within the overdraft limit.

 

Now we don't have a regular income though, we don't want to antagonise Barclays. Without our overdraft limit, we would be stuffed!

 

I have been thinking about this and believe my best way forard is to write saying I accept their refund, but still reiterate that the charges are punative - just in case we need to revisit this in the future!

 

What do you think?

 

[Guy]

Hi,

 

have read your posts and think that there are probably a great many people in exactly the same pridicament as yourselves. I am self employed as is my partner. When you are self employed or have your own business most people believe that you have loads of money etc etc, the facts are that the banks love you if you have money but can be very obstinate if you dont. We have survived our first two years but only just and have had to practically beg the banks for money to make it through)

 

We now have accounts in Natwest and Barclays (business and personal in each) and are still in and out of the overdraft every month.

 

I am going to claim our fees back from both banks (they could have been a lot more supportive) I am very nervous of the fact that i NEED the banks and the overdrafts.

 

Does anyone know what they will do?

Can do?

Has been done before?

 

Is this why most people let the charges go because of the power these guys have over us both real and imagined?

 

Guy

[tw0906blue]

Hi Guy,

 

If you look on http://www.moneysavingexpert.com and in the section of current accounts, there is a huge, and I mean huge, thread full of people who have their own complications with banks etc.

 

However if you plough through, you will read success stories and helpful advice and information. I got my letter from there and I did get some charges refunded straight away- so it is worth doing.

 

It seems to us that the banks hold all the trump cards, 'cause as it is pointed out, there isn't a banking institution that offers different T&C's. So basically we are stuck. Maybe you should open a third account(although it could get very confusing having so many accounts lol) so that if either of the two you are with get difficult you could switch. Many people seem to work with more than one account, for this very reason!

 

I have still to write my letter - and to broach the subject with Barclaycard....gulp...but I think I will be horrified once I get my 6 years worth of statements.....if that is how you do it with credit cards...I need to look up the specific advice for that. Ho Hum

 

Best of luck

[BankFodder]

It seems to us that the banks hold all the trump cards, 'cause as it is pointed out, there isn't a banking institution that offers different T&C's. So basically we are stuck.

 

I think that it is entirely wrong to say that the banks hold all of the trump cards.

You may think that it is a bit esoteric and a bit harsh but when people think like this (naturally enough), then I realise that the one real trump card which the banks do have is that they have the right mindset to keep on with the unlawful harvesting of people's bank accounts.

In every other way, their position is a liability.

 

The very fact that all of the banks act in the same was amounts to a restriction on a freedom of choice which in itself brings their T&Cs within the definition of "unreasonable" in the Unfair "Contracts" Terms Act 1977.
 
It is their very large dinosaur-like bureaucracy which is so inflexible and takes such a long time to adapt to new conditions.
 
It is their lack of transparency - one might say honesty - about what they are doing which makes it so difficult to confront their problem face-on.

 

And of course, what they are doing is unlawful

[tw0906blue]

It seems to us that the banks hold all the trump cards, 'cause as it is pointed out, there isn't a banking institution that offers different T&C's. So basically we are stuck.

 

I think that it is entirely wrong to say that the banks hold all of the trump cards.

You may think that it is a bit esoteric and a bit harsh but when people think like this (naturally enough), then I realise that the one real trump card which the banks do have is that they have the right mindset to keep on with the unlawful harvesting of people's bank accounts.

In every other way, their position is a liability.

 

The very fact that all of the banks act in the same was amounts to a restriction on a freedom of choice which in itself brings their T&Cs within the definition of "unreasonable" in the Unfair "Contracts" Terms Act 1977.
 
It is their very large dinosaur-like bureaucracy which is so inflexible and takes such a long time to adapt to new conditions.
 
It is their lack of transparency - one might say honesty - about what they are doing which makes it so difficult to confront their problem face-on.

 

And of course, what they are doing is unlawful

 

Agreed - what they are doing is unlawful, as you are proving in trying to get them into court!

 

But, we are stuck, as there isn't another banking facility which doesn't apply unlawful T's&C's. So if we want to use banking facilities we have to use the system.

 

You are correct that it is a mindset, our mindset, it is their power, their obvuscation (sp?) that keeps us compliant - we need empowering which is what is happening through this site. You are leading the way in getting the mindset changed, ours and theirs, and these charges reduced.

 

Keep on going, we will all benefit!

 

[tw0906blue]

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