One Fool has been charged for failed standing orders to herself. But banks aren't allowed to penalise us for breaches of contract. For that matter no company is allowed to penalise us!
I receive huge numbers of emails about reclaiming unlawful bank charges, to the extent that I have a constant and unbeatable backlog of emails. However, one email I received recently caught my notice, so I feel compelled to write a little something about it.
Louise the Fool wrote to me to say that she transfers money each month into two savings accounts. As there temporarily wasn't enough money in her account, she was charged £78 for unpaid standing orders. This highlights how stupid and bizarre these charges are and shows that they can only be considered as penalties.
When Louise called her bank they told her that the rules regarding unlawful charges applied to credit cards only and that 'banks can charge exactly what they want'. This is nonsense! The regulations, which have been in existence for many years, apply to all consumer contracts. The gist is that we are not allowed to be penalised if we breach standard, pre-written consumer contracts. This means, for example, if you go over your overdraft limit, make a late payment, or if your standing orders or direct debits bounce, you are not allowed to be penalised. This applies to any standard contracts, whether it's written by a bank, building society, mortgage company, credit-card company, loan company, mail-order company or any other company!
As I said earlier, I'm overwhelmed with emails. Email me and you'll get a personal response eventually, but you may have a long wait. (Hard as I try!) If you need more information on this, I suggest you read through, and make notes on, my series of articles on how to reclaim bank and card charges. Alternatively, for a swift answer to any queries, try asking an anonymous question on our Reclaim Your Unfair Charges! discussion board. You'll find many a helpful Fool there, so you shan't be disappointed!
> Vote with your feet. Compare current accounts and switch to another bank.
