Thanks very much Spotted Dog

Since my preliminary letter was sent, further charges have been levied on my account - I'm presuming I can add these as well to the charges I referred to in my preliminary letter - I was planning to add a note along the lines of "in addition to the £xxxx I am claiming as referred to my letter, I also intend to claim for the £xxx in additional charges that have been levied since sending the first letter. These charges are detailed on the enclosed schedule of charges" Is that OK? Apologies if this has been covered before (and I'm sure it has, but I've searched through threads and am having trouble finding the right information).

I posted this on a thread in the Barclays forum, and someone suggested I post it here, so here goes. It's hardly rocket science but has greatly reduced the amount I get charged in the first place: Quote: Originally Posted by RPD But it is mainly Direct Debit's that are coming out that I miscalculated, and they are taking me over by a few pounds even pence, and BAM, another thirty gone. Which leaves me short, and another charge becomes inevitable. I know this is slightly off-topic, but that used to happen to me all the time, hence why I'm here. If you have this problem regularly, I've found a simple solution which has made things much easier for me - I have a second bank account with Barclays, from which all of my direct debits come. A standing order goes out of my main account on the day I get paid into the second account, which then covers all the direct debits. That's the only thing I have the second account for, and have no cash card or cheque book for it. That way all my direct debits get paid on time, without ever surprising me or taking me over my limit, and I know that all the money in my main account is there for me to spend without having to worry about keeping some aside for DDs. It's been a real life-saver for me.

I know this is slightly off-topic, but that used to happen to me all the time, hence why I'm here. If you have this problem regularly, I've found a simple solution which has made things much easier for me - I have a second bank account with Barclays, from which all of my direct debits come. A standing order goes out of my main account on the day I get paid into the second account, which then covers all the direct debits. That's the only thing I have the second account for, and have no cash card or cheque book for it. That way all my direct debits get paid on time, without ever surprising me or taking me over my limit, and I know that all the money in my main account is there for me to spend without having to worry about keeping some aside for DDs. It's been a real life-saver for me.

It's been a week since I sent of my preliminary letter asking for the charges back, and I've just received a standard reply saying 'we are sorry you have had to contact us about the level of service you have received from Barclays. Thank you for taking the time and trouble to do so. (!) We are looking at your concerns and will let you have an answer or update as quickly as possible, but no later than 11 September 2006' 11 September 2006 is more than two weeks after the 14 day deadline I specified in my original letter. What are people's opinions on what I should do next: a) Wait until 11 September to see what they have to say - on the basis that it is better to keep things on friendly terms rather than antagonising them by launching straight into my LBA, as there's always a chance they'll admit they are wrong and give me my money back without threatening action (unlikely, I know, but always a possibility) b) Send my LBA off as soon as the 14 days is up - after all, they owe me 6 years worth of charges so why should I stick to their timetable, it's bound to just be a delaying tactic to avoid the inevitable.

Argyle, your suggestion does look sensible to me - although obviously neither of us are experts it would be useful to get some advice from other people who are further advanced than us. Thanks everyone for their help so far

Thanks Sharmads - I think I'll do that anyway just in case, I wouldn't want my case to fall donw on a technicality. Although I suppose this will slow my case down - I presume that I should wait until I receive the details back before sending my letter before action?

But do I need to know about the manual intervention issue before I get to court - i.e. if I have not enquired about that, is it likely to harm my case?

At what stage would I need to do the Data Request? Do I need to have done that before I write the letter before action? (I've just sent the preliminary request for repayment so far). And if the data request shows up anything I've missed, can I amend the amount that I'm claiming at this stage?

Well, after procrastinating for months (I'm not the most organised person in the world, which may be why I'm in this predicament in the first place!) I finally sent off my first letter to Barclays - claiming £1,565 for six years' worth of charges. Luckily I had all my statements anyway so I didn't need to go through the hassle of getting my statements off them first. What amazes me is that since the OFT first ruled, they've actually INCREASED their charges from £25 a time to £30 a time. Are they utterly shameless? I'll keep you up-to-date with my progress, wish me luck!