[FjFHQLJQ]

Yes people know the charges but a comparison I've heard someone make is if I tell you I'm going to punch you in the face it doesn't then make it legal to punch you in the face just because I've told you I'm going to do it. As Puzzle has already pointed out Banks are only allowed to charge you their costs, anything over that is illegal!

I too would like to know the reason Gamergod thinks this ruling is funny? [rolleyes]

What you're leaving out is that fact that you signed and agreed to be punched in the face. If you can't prevent an overdraw from your bank, sounds like you people need to change banks. Simple as that.

[newwebstar]

What you're leaving out is that fact that you signed and agreed to be punched in the face. If you can't prevent an overdraw from your bank, sounds like you people need to change banks. Simple as that.

There are other factors, its not as "simple as that". If you are having money issues, there needs to be a limit placed on just how much the bank can charge you for overdraft fees. If 10 things try to go out that you can't stop, than can be anywhere from $250 to $300. At some point the account needs to be put on hold until sufficient funds are back in the account.

The banks don't want to do this as they make a killing off your misfortune! But it should be limited. Also, if you have poor credit, you don't qualify for "overdraft" protection at some banks. I know, I've been there when I was layed off for a few months.

To blindly assume that everytime someone goes under is their own fault through negligence is wrong. It is not always that case. There are some situations were its unavoidable.

I had a problem with paypal once where they processed a transaction 3 times. If it were a $20 transaction no problem. It wasn't, it was a $1600 transaction. How many people do you know have $4800 sitting in a bank account? I know I don't. I got hit with nearly $400 in overdraft fees trying to get it sorted out with paypal. And paypal only refunded 3 of the overdraft fee's, which I had to wait 4 weeks for them to do it. In the end I took them to court over it to get my money back. I should have sued for more money for the frustration. And because my bills were late, I got negative reports on my credit! Which took 3 months to get taken OFF my credit report.

So yeah, in most cases its the account holders fault, but there needs to be a limit. Banks are dangerously close to loan sharking with their fees at times.

[UnduttRit]

What you're leaving out is that fact that you signed and agreed to be punched in the face. If you can't prevent an overdraw from your bank, sounds like you people need to change banks. Simple as that.

It doesn't matter what you signed, it doesn't make it legal.

[FjFHQLJQ]

How so? I suppose 20% APR credit cards are illegal too? I'm not saying a agree with high interest rate credit cards or overdraw fees, but I don't understand how it should be made illegal. It's just all part of laissez faire economics.

[Alkanyadela]

20%apr aint crap theres some credit card companys that try to give out 50% + apr :O

[SigNeewfoew]

20%apr aint crap theres some credit card companys that try to give out 50% + apr :O

Some time back I recieved one of those dodgy letters offering me a credit card with a mere 68% APR!

Safe to say I signed up for one.

[Galinastva]

It doesn't matter what you signed, it doesn't make it legal.

Actually, it does. Your signature on those forms, means that you read and UNDERSTAND the potential consequences of things like overdraft fees, and that you agree to be bound by these rules by being a member of said bank. Your signature is a binding contract, making their actions perfectly legal. They may be unfair, but that is different.

[LeaderBiz]

Actually, it does. Your signature on those forms, means that you read and UNDERSTAND the potential consequences of things like overdraft fees, and that you agree to be bound by these rules by being a member of said bank. Your signature is a binding contract, making their actions perfectly legal. They may be unfair, but that is different.

You agree to pay a charge if funds aren't available, yes. You don't agree to pay an unreasonable charge. That's the issue here, not getting charged but getting charged too much.

[Adwetyren]

It would be reasonable if banks charged something like £5 if you went overdrawn, but they don't, they charge 6 times or more that amount, which IMO is taking the piss.

Recently I went 47 PENCE overdrawn and my bank (barclays) charged me £30, Not being paid for another 2 weeks meant that I was then £30 more overdrawn, they then decided that since I was over £30 overdrawn, then they would charge me another £30, the following week, despite me expalining that their original charge is what put me vastly overdrawn in the first place.

So then I was £60 down when I got my wages, which meant that I missed a mortgage payment, because I had £60 less in my account, than I had budgeted for, When I complained, they told me to "piss off" in no uncertain terms.

I certainly won't be with them for much longer, as they don't seem to give a **** about their long term customers (over 22 yrs).

If I make a mistake with my account, they are all over me like a rash, letters, phone calls etc, demanding I bring back my account into credit asap, BUT if they f*ck up, then its like trying to get blood outta a stone.

I was working away, about 3 yrs ago, and sent a cheque to pay off my BT phonebill, (£140 or so), The cheque subsequently got lost, when it was being processed by Barclays, so BT never got paid, and our phone service was restricted, So I sent another cheque, telling Barclays to cancel the original cheque, So the second cheque was paid, and BT sorted out our phone service and everything was great, Until Barclays, found the first "lost" cheque, and decided to let it through, despite me cancelling it.

So now I was £140 overdrawn, and Barclays charged me £30, because I was overdrawn,
So I tried to sort out the matter over the phone, but it was like talking to a brick wall, and a retarded one, at that.

So I took a day off work (losing out on £120 or so), drove the 200+ miles back to my Barclays branch to speak to the manager, After explaining everything to the manager, She agreed to dispense with the charges and put the £140 back into the account, She stated it would take a week, Which was'nt acceptable to me, So after much hassling from me to her, she spent all of 30 seconds on her PC and the money was back in the account, within a few minutes.

So how hard was that, f*cking bastards!!

Barclays make £85 a minute and the Barclays boss recently paid himself something silly like £100M, and its no wonder from all these stupid bloody charges, either...w@nkers!

[Kk21pwa9]

I'll be honest, I manage my money like a ******, over the past 6 years I spent most of it over my overdraft.

My Account is such, it lets me do pretty much I want; I'm fully to blame but it wont stop me collecting the small fortune lawfully owed to me.

It's enough to clear my debts and buy a half decent car.

Do I care if Barclays only make 2/3rds of their 14 Billion next year? Exactly.

[FjFHQLJQ]

You agree to pay a charge if funds aren't available, yes. You don't agree to pay an unreasonable charge. That's the issue here, not getting charged but getting charged too much.

And whats an unreasonable charge? I know it my banking contract, it clearly states the overdraw charges. If I overdraw a cent, I'm charged 30 bucks. If I overdraw $1000, I'm charged that same 30 bucks. And by signing up for the account, I agreed to them.

I see two big problems in this thread.

1) People don't manage their money at all! Some guy is charged an additional 60 pounds in the time period of an entire month, and he misses a mortgage payment? Goddamn, that's pathetic. Spend less on computer, internet, food , something. Put the money in a freaking savings account to pay for these unexpected bills.

2) A bank isn't a nonprofit organization! They are a business; they make lots and lots of money. Sure they make money off of investing your money, but they also make money off the very people who don't have it to begin with, such as overdraw charges.

If you can't afford the big bank charges, deal with the smaller banks. Also, if you can't keep yourself from overdrawing, get rid of your debit card! Swap it out for an ATM card or something. Drop all automatic bill payments. Trust me, if you have to write a check for every bill, you're realize how much more money you need to be saving. Anyways, I'm done ranting.

[LeaderBiz]

And whats an unreasonable charge? I know it my banking contract, it clearly states the overdraw charges. If I overdraw a cent, I'm charged 30 bucks. If I overdraw $1000, I'm charged that same 30 bucks. And by signing up for the account, I agreed to them.

I see two big problems in this thread.

1) People don't manage their money at all! Some guy is charged an additional 60 pounds in the time period of an entire month, and he misses a mortgage payment? Goddamn, that's pathetic. Spend less on computer, internet, food , something. Put the money in a freaking savings account to pay for these unexpected bills.

2) A bank isn't a nonprofit organization! They are a business; they make lots and lots of money. Sure they make money off of investing your money, but they also make money off the very people who don't have it to begin with, such as overdraw charges.

If you can't afford the big bank charges, deal with the smaller banks. Also, if you can't keep yourself from overdrawing, get rid of your debit card! Swap it out for an ATM card or something. Drop all automatic bill payments. Trust me, if you have to write a check for every bill, you're realize how much more money you need to be saving. Anyways, I'm done ranting.

25.00 GBP

=

49.3852 USD



Is an unreasonable charge. What many people here don't seem to understand is that it's not just customers crying and complaining - the OFT declared that credit card charges were unfair and people decided to act on it spreading it over to bank charges.

It's all well and good saying 'manage your money better' 'do this, don't do that' but try living in the real world where sometimes **** happens that you can't avoid.