claiming for stress suffered as a result of unlawful charges

[jon]

Anyone tried yet to seek compensation for this, or know how it might be done? Bad enough being in difficult positions financially, let alone the bank making it worse. Been there done that but any way of getting anything back?!

 

Incidentally, FAQ so accurately captured the position of the sufferer of excess charges as the position used to be for in the post - how you end up feeling humiliated, taking on that it's your fault for incurring the excess charges...that being only 1 part of the stress caused 'uv course.

[BankFodder]

If you want to claim your charges and add a head of damage for stress then we can give you some pointers. However, courts are reluctant to award for stress unless you can prodcude gard evidence -medical reports and so forth showing that your stress was most likely caused by the bank's behaviour

[jon]

It's a tricky thing to prove then. I have a health complaint that is stress-related and it was caused by financial problems which the bank's actions contributed to. I have explained in a response to one of the other moderators that my own position was - mostly 5-6 years ago but I am not free of debt yet - one of being close to bankruptcy through difficult financial circumstances (following redundancy in a field where due to structural factors employment was reducing). In any case, when you're on or near your financial limits due to difficult circumstances, obviously bank charges can lead into a v. unhealthy kind of scenario...if you go over your limit (even by mistake), the excess overdraft charge or bounced SO or DD charge means you have to find extra money again to get your account back under the limit (to avoid more excess charges); and it's difficult to find that extra money that has been partly caused by the bank charges, so you end up incurring further costs in getting the money needed. With me for instance, I often had to take money from a credit card (which also getting near the limit), incurring the cost of a 'cash withdrawal', in order to make a credit to the bank account to get it back under the limit for the month, and you incur interest at the higher rate on the amount you've just added on to your card by doing that. When this scenario happens more or less every month the bank is exacerbating a delicate financial position by its continual excess charges which are more costly than even their face value.

 

Anyway that whole period of being near bankruptcy was v. stressful, the bank charges were a part of it due to the kinds of extra financial problems they gave me; it gave me my stress-related health condition (which survives to the present day, in more minor form, largely due to partly working my way out of such a financial position), my doctor is aware of the condition and accepts it has been there from that time, it would just be difficult to prove to the courts I suppose that, definitely, the bank was a contributory factor. But it would be good to have those pointers please...

 

oh a complication. I guess I didn't reveal all my financial circumstances to the bank - the underlying reasons for my position of not having money etc - because I suspected this would have made things worse in the long run ( did consider it very carefully). So, I guess for that reason - I didn't disclose that stuff - it might be difficult to get a compensation charge for the 'stress' element. (The reality is that if you are in difficult financial circumstances, you may get advised to declare them by some people, in order to be able to lobby for reduced payments of bills with creditors etc, but you have to make a decision whether that is something you want on all yoru financial records for a long time; I took the decision that I woudl be likely to get out of the situation over a period and it would be better not to have having been on the brink on my records, though this might not have worked for everyone. But it might make arguing for stress compensation harder I guess.)

 

Will keep my postings shorter in future! Any emails/posts about the people to follow up with on the stress compensation costs welcome.

[jon]

This topic was closed on 03/06/19.

If you have a problem which is similar to the issues raised in this topic, then please start a new thread and you will get help and support there.

If you would like to post up some information which is relevant to this particular topic then please flag the issue up to the site team and the thread will be reopened.

- Consumer Action Group