Jill Insley: End freeze on banks repaying overdraft fees

[Legal Beagles]

Jill Insley: The moratorium on banks repaying charges should be reviewed and discarded. It is time banks paid up.

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[Celestine]

Re: Jill Insley: End freeze on banks repaying overdraft fees

End freeze on banks repaying overdraft fees

• Jill Insley
• The Observer,
• Sunday May 25 2008
• Article history

Last week eight high street banks decided to appeal against the result of a court case brought against them by the Office of Fair Trading to determine whether the OFT has the power to assess the terms and conditions set by banks now and over the past six years.
If it is finally decided that the OFT does have this power, it is likely to set unauthorised overdraft charges at a far lower level - a good thing for vulnerable banking customers whose accounts dip the wrong side of the red line. Before the case was announced, some customers were successfully reclaiming thousands of pounds paid for such fees. But the Financial Services Authority and the Financial Ombudsman agreed a moratorium on banks repaying charges until the end of the case.
The appeal process is likely to take at least a year - far too long for those who can least afford the wait. The moratorium should be reviewed and discarded. It is time banks paid up.
One result of the credit crunch in the Insley household is increased consumption of TV - much cheaper than going out. The Cash team has been glued to The Apprentice, even though you can't imagine the hopefuls on this series being given a job cleaning out litter trays in a cat sanctuary.
But not any more. My colleagues both stopped watching when the lovely Simon was booted out. And now Raef ... there really is no point in staying in any more. Sir Alan, you're fired.