"fee payable for service"??

[labyk]

just recieved a second refusal letter for the refund of fees imposed on my girlfriends account and was wondering if anyone could help with a little line theyve added in. they reference a specific clause in the T&C

"if you authorise a payment that would, if met by us, lead to your account going over an agreed limit the bank considers whether or not to make this payment and a fee is payable for this service."

does them stating the charge is a payment for a service affect the arguement of the fee being punitive? if they say they're just charging you for a service then its not applying a penalty?

if anyones got a good response i can include in the final letter to dismiss this i would much appreciate it.

 

cheers

[lickthewallfatboy]

the OFT has told them they can only impose a reasonable fee for what the breach has caused them.The fact that they tart it up and call it a service is irrelevant.They have penalised you and they cannot justify the amount of money they take from your account with proof by supplying you with a cost breakdown. If they charge you over and above what it has actually cost them ie a computer generated automatic charge and the cost of a stamp on an envelope to tell you that they have imposed a charge,then that is a penalty.

[labyk]

what im worried though is they're not actually stating it as a breach of contract, rather that it is a "service" they provide.

[lickthewallfatboy]

I would love to see the explanation they give that they are charging you 25 odd quid to return a direct debit as a service-that would be stretching the defintion of service a bit!!

 

Don't worry about what they call it-they are still extracting the michael!!

[Spiceskull]

They can call it what they like - it is still a penalty charge. When they use language like this it is an example of "cloaking a service" - there is no service per se, all it is is an automated process...

 

Suggest you continue with your timetable, and ignore everything they say unless it is a sensible offer to come to a settlement.

 

Good luck.