Thread: *** Won *** INTEREST INCLUDED***

This will be the 3rd time I have gone up against the banks. This time though the Yorkshire Bank has a policy of charging £5 for every day I am past my overdraft limit. In some cases this has amounted to £25 for 5 days I was past my limit. Surely I could claim this back for being unreasonable? Pity you cant go back past 6 years as I was a bit careless in my youth.

BigZ

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I recieved this letter from my Branch Manager after sending my lba.

'I refer to your letter received on 13/06/06. I note that from your letter that you feel excessive chargess were applied to your bank account during the last six years.

During this time, the relationship between you and the bank was governed by the Bank's standard terms and conditions. Those terms and conditions provided that:

1. Free banking is available while your account remains in credit or within an agreed overdraft limit.

2. You must obtain the Bank's agreement before overdrawing on your account.

3. If the Bank made payments from the Account or paid cheques which were guaranteed by the associated cheque guarantee card when there were insufficient funds available, any overdraft created by any overdraft which exceeded an agreed overdraft limit would be unauthorised.

4. If you drew cheques or authorised or made payments without sufficient money available in your account, taking account of any overdraft limit and allowing for uncleared cheques, the Bank, might return the payments and make a charge for doing so.

5. Charges and interest applicable to the Account were published in the form of tariffs and up to date tariffs were available in branches and from time to time enclosed with bank statements.

6. Where appropriate, written details of overdraft charges and debit interest incurred on the account during the previous charging period (i.e, the previous month) would be sent to you at least 14 days before the charges and interest were deducted from your account.

7. If the account has an unathorised overdraft, additional charges might be levied which would be debited to the account on the day on which the unathorised overdraft was created.

8. If the Bank increased a charge for a basic account service, the bank would give you at least 30 days notice.

I would note that the terms and conditions complied with all relevant requirements of the Banking Code.

You are responsible for the running of your account, and for ensuring that sufficient funds are in your account to meet standing orders, direct debits and cheques which you have created of drawn on the account. As stated in the Terms and Conditions governing your account with the Bank, you are aware that charges will be incurred if insufficient funds are in your account on the dates the payments you have instructed with the Terms and Conditions, as result of your operations of your account.

Further, the terms and conditions were fair having regard to the following matters:

a) The cost to the Bank of maintaining administrative systems relating to the unathorised overdrafts, unpaid cheques and direct debits and abuse of cheque and debit cards for the purpose of keeping the level of overdrawing under review and controlled as far as possible.

b) The increased risk of loss to the Bank arising from such unathorised transactions and the associated cost of enforcement and recovery systems.

c) The need to operate standard procedures and to set standard charges in order to avoid the substantial costs of individual assesment in relation to each particular case.

Taking all of the above into account and having regard to the information that you have given, I am not prepared to refund the charges on your account.

I have enclosed for your information a copy of our internal Complaint Handing Procedures. These procedures confirm how to pursue your complaint if you remain dissatisfied with the response and how to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service if we cannot resolve the matter.

If we do not receive a response from you within eight weeks of the date of this letter, your complaint will be considered closed.

If you have any additional information that you wish to provide please let me know.

Yours sincerely

Branch Manager'

Obviously I am not very happy with the handling with the complaint and will be entering a MoneyClaim instead to the branch rather than follwing the advice given above.

Whats more this Branch Manager will be recieving another Prelim leter for my VISA account by Tuesday. That should brighten her day.

BIGZ

PS another donation coming soon.

MODERATED threads merged , please keep to your original thread when updating as this makes it easier for everyone who is following your claim

Tosspots.

It seems almost stupid that they are still denying claims right upto the point that you add 8% interest and court fees. Unless a high percentage of people say "oh well, at least I tried", it's just wasting their time *and* their money.

Go get 'em!

I think that is the same word for word as the one I had from Customer Services. I am also off to Moneyclaim.

Originally Posted by fivelaws

Tosspots.

It seems almost stupid that they are still denying claims right upto the point that you add 8% interest and court fees. Unless a high percentage of people say "oh well, at least I tried", it's just wasting their time *and* their money.

Go get 'em!

I can't help but wonder what the shareholders might think if they wait until extra charges are added to a significant amount of claims.

It's the usual scare tactic letter. Every bank does this in the vain hope that people back off. They try to confuse people with all the "legal" speak. Little do they know that we have help from people on here that speak better "legal" lol

I got a letter from the court today with a form completed by YB solicitor saying they intend to claim too.

Small Claims works on a 'no costs' basis so you wouldn't be able to claim expenses. This is also for your advantage as if you lost you wouldn't have to face a legal bill from the bank running into tens of thousands of pounds.

But it's very unlikely to actually end up in court anyway so don't worry.

Yorkshire Banks Defence

3. At all material times the contractural relationship between the Claimant and the Bank was governed by the Bank's standard terms and conditions for current account customers from time to time in force. Further at all material times those terms and conditions provided that:
1) the Claimant must obtain the Bank's agreement before overdrawing on the Account;
2) if the Bank made payments from the Account or paid cheques which were guaranteed by the associated funds available, any overdraft created or any overdraft which exceeded an agreed overdraft limit would be unathorised;
3) if the Claimant drew cheques or authorised or made payments without sufficient money available in the account, taking account of any overdraft limit and allowing for uncleared cheques, the Bank might return the payments and make a charge for doing so;
4) charges and interest applicable to the Account were published in the form of tariffs and up-to-date tariffs were available in branches;
5) where appropriate , written details of overdraft charges and debit interest incurred on the account during the previous charging period (i.e., the previous month) would be sent to the Calimant at least 14 days before the charges and interest were deducted from the Account;
6) if the Account had an unathorised overdraft, additional charges might be levied which would be debited to the accoun on the day on which the unauthorised overdraft was created;
7) if the Bank increased a charge for a basic account service, the Bank would give the Claimant at least 30 days notice.

The Bank will refer at trial to the terms and conditions from time to time in force for the full terms and effect.

4 At all meterial times the Claimant had an agreed overdraft facility in relation to the Account.

5 At all material times the Bank's tariffs of charges for the current account customers set out the charges from time to time applicable pursuant to its standard terms and conditions in respect of:
1) unauthorised overdraft daily fees;
2) unauthorised overdraft monthly fees;
3) unpaid cheque or direct debit charges;
4) card abuse fees (payable where cheque or debit card is used to guarantee a transaction and payment would have been refused but for the guarantee).

The Bank will refer at trail to the tariffs from time to time in force.

6 During the period from June 2000 to April 2006, the Bank charged the Claimant with charges of the kind specified in paragraph 5 above at the rate at which such charges were from time to time payable under the applicable tariff ("the Charges"). The Charges amounted to the sum of £515.50.

7 It is denied that the Charges or any of them were a disproportionate penalty and unenforceable as alleged in the Particulars of Calim. The Charges were a genuine pre-estimate of damage resulting from the Customers failure to keep within the agreed overdraft limit on the account.

8 It is further denied that the charges were levied pursuant to a contract term requiring the customer to idemnify the Bank within the meaning of section 4 of the Unfair Contracts Terms Act 1977. In the premises section 4 of that Act has no application in these proceedings.

9 It is further denied that by virtue of section 15 of the Supply of Goods and Services Acts 1982 the amount of the Charges falls to be determined by reference to what is reasonable.

10 It is further denied that the terms and conditions requiring the claimant to pay the charges were unfair terms within the meaning of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contract Regulations 1999, S.I. 1999 No 2083. Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing:
1) the terms and conditions were fair having regard to the following matter:
a) the cost to the Bank of maintaining administrative systems relating to unauthorised overdrafts, unpaid cheques and direct debits and abuse of cheque and debit cards for the purpose of keeping the level of overdrawing under review and controlled as far as possible;
b) the increased risk of loss to the Bank arising from such unauthorised transactions and the associated cost of enforcement and recovery systems;
c) the need to operate standard procedures and to set standard charges in order to avoid the substantial costs of individual assessment in relation to each particular case;
2) the terms and conditions complied with all relevant requirements of the Banking Codeas the Banking Code was in force from time to time.

11 In the premises, the Claimant is not entitled to relief sought or to any relief.

Your comments are most welcome. Is their any guidence for filling in the allocation questionnaire(It looks straight forward but would like to make sure).

Hearing date for the 30th October.

It looks like YB's 2 witnesses and lawyers, are going to be busy if they ever show up to all these hearings?