Bank Court Case May Allow You to Reclaim Charges
In January 2009, a case at the High Court by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), will result in a judgment that may allow many thousands of private individuals to reclaim their last six years bank charges back from the credit card companies and banks in full and with compound interest.
Needless to say, the banks and credit card companies have fought this ruling very step of the way and delayed as long as possible.
Prior to the action brought by the OFT, no case had ever made in to court for a judgment.
In every case the banks settled out of court rather than have a judgment go against them as in would have created a dangerous precedent and it was very likely that they would have lost any court action.
The new ruling, if as expected, it finds in favour of the OFT, will make the charges levied by banks unlawful both for the future and for the last six years.
It is a very important case as it is estimated that the credit card companies alone, raise £300,000,000 a year through these charges, often driving individuals into bankruptcy, and in some case to suicide, through the added burden of these illegal charges.
The cumulative effect of these charges can be catastrophic.
What started as a small overdrawn amount can rapidly get out of hand as the bank or credit card company sends letter after letter and charging £30 or more each time.
If you have had to pay bank or credit card charges in the last six years, register your wish to recover the charges with interest.
Several reputable companies exist that will recover these for you.
They will take a percentage of the recovered amount but will undertake to do all the work for you.
As usual, beware of the bogus companies.
A competent company will be licensed by the Ministry of Justice and will require no up front fees.
We used a company called BankSmart.
They took 28% of the recovered amount but we were pleasantly surprised at the amount they recovered and the short time it took to get our charges refunded with interest and even interest on the interest.
You can do it yourself if you have the patience and staying power and you will gain a larger return but it can be a complicated and frustrating process, with the banks trying to reduce their payout as much as they can.
They know that in the end they will have to pay back the whole sum with interest as it was not lawful to charge that amount at all but they will do everything they can to reduce that liability.
If you have the time and energy, go for it yourself.
But if you find you need legal assistance, let one of the recovery companies do it for you.
It will be a fee worth paying.
Needless to say, the banks and credit card companies have fought this ruling very step of the way and delayed as long as possible.
Prior to the action brought by the OFT, no case had ever made in to court for a judgment.
In every case the banks settled out of court rather than have a judgment go against them as in would have created a dangerous precedent and it was very likely that they would have lost any court action.
The new ruling, if as expected, it finds in favour of the OFT, will make the charges levied by banks unlawful both for the future and for the last six years.
It is a very important case as it is estimated that the credit card companies alone, raise £300,000,000 a year through these charges, often driving individuals into bankruptcy, and in some case to suicide, through the added burden of these illegal charges.
The cumulative effect of these charges can be catastrophic.
What started as a small overdrawn amount can rapidly get out of hand as the bank or credit card company sends letter after letter and charging £30 or more each time.
If you have had to pay bank or credit card charges in the last six years, register your wish to recover the charges with interest.
Several reputable companies exist that will recover these for you.
They will take a percentage of the recovered amount but will undertake to do all the work for you.
As usual, beware of the bogus companies.
A competent company will be licensed by the Ministry of Justice and will require no up front fees.
We used a company called BankSmart.
They took 28% of the recovered amount but we were pleasantly surprised at the amount they recovered and the short time it took to get our charges refunded with interest and even interest on the interest.
You can do it yourself if you have the patience and staying power and you will gain a larger return but it can be a complicated and frustrating process, with the banks trying to reduce their payout as much as they can.
They know that in the end they will have to pay back the whole sum with interest as it was not lawful to charge that amount at all but they will do everything they can to reduce that liability.
If you have the time and energy, go for it yourself.
But if you find you need legal assistance, let one of the recovery companies do it for you.
It will be a fee worth paying.
Source...