Just an update on this - got a letter from Stuart today offering me the goodwill payment of £198. It's close enough to the original so I'm going to take it. Can't believe how easy that was!! A very happy Chathe x

Thanks Sod - well why not! It's a dog eat dog world... So this is the letter I'm sending off - it's just a basic re-write of the original letter off the MSE website. Whaddya reckon? Chathe x National Westminster Bank plc 135 Bishopsgate London EC2M 3UR Dear Sir or Madam, Re. Account number: xxxxxx I recently claimed £3909.96 of default charges that NatWest had applied to my account since 31 July 2001. I now notice that further penalty charges have been debited from my account since I started the claim process, and I am writing to request that you repay these too, based on the same principle that the charges do not reflect the true cost to NatWest of going into unauthorized overdraft. The charges total £246, plus as I believe I have been unlawfully deprived of the money I have calculated £2.56 interest at the statutory rate, the amount the court will award. I therefore ask that you repay me the full amount of £248.56. I have attached a full schedule of the charges and interest with this document I look forward to a full response to this letter within 14 days. Yours faithfully,

Thanks shoe junkie. I called Customer Services this morning and the lady I spoke to in the Lending Centre told me that they are only authorised to refund charges if it's a bank error, and if it's not they can only refund 50% of one charge. So it looks as though I will have to start the process again. I'm doubly fired up about this now: since I posted my original message yesterday they've whacked another £38 charge on my account, and despite the fact I paid in the £3909 cheque first thing on Tuesday morning, it doesn't seem to have cleared yet. Cheeky b*stards, it's all take take take with them! Still, part of me thinks "charge me all you like, I'm only going to win it back". Persian, I'll keep this post updated - let me know how you get on too! Chathe

Hi, I recently successfully claimed £3909 of bank charges from the evil monster that is NatWest . But since I started the claim process back in November, the dirty gets have applied another £196 of charges to my account. I'm fully prepared to go through the process again to get it back (even though they threatened in their letter accompanying my £4k cheque to downgrade my account or close it down, although that doesn't really matter as I opened a parachute account before Christmas just in case...), but wondered if anyone else has had experience of claiming twice against NatWest? Is there a standard letter format I should follow initially? Thanks Chathe

Won! Received my cheque from NatWest this morning - they paid the exact amount I was claiming (so I didn't get the £300-odd that I paid for court charges, but still!). Thanks a billion to muggins and everyone else for your advice, you're all utter legends. Advice to anyone else confused or intimidated by the whole process: STICK WITH IT! Don't be intimidated by their jargony letters, follow the process outlined in the website, use the templates and you can scare them right back! Ha! Cheers Chathe xx

Hi Muggins and thanks - I sort of thought the same but just needed reassurance! It´s weird being on the other side of the world and trying to keep track of the claim (is it sad that I am doing so?! Hope not!). Turns out the letter from NatWest offering 3192 quid was dated 12 Jan, four days before they put in a defence (funny how I didn´t get it till well afterwards!). But since then there has also been a letter from Cobbetts dated 24 Jan (day before I went away) saying "we don´t think you´ll win in court but we´ll offer you 2000 quid to go away". Their offer expires today and obviously there´s no way I can get a letter of refusal to them today. So I just want to check, I don´t need to answer to anyone but the court do I? Thanks chathe

Hello, Writing this from a tiny town in northern Argentina so don{t have much time to look for the answer to my question - so any help gratefully received! I left my sister with int}structions to open any post from Natwest or Cobbetts while I was away. The day I left Blighty she texted me to let me know they are offering me 3192 quid straight into my account. It{s not a bad offer but I am owed another grand on top of that so I don{t want to accept it, I am going to hold out for the full amount. My question is simnply, do I need to write back to them to refuse their offer or can I just ignore it until I get back from holiday? It would be easier to do the latter! Apparently they gave me eight weeks to accept, and I{m back home in three. Thanks chathe x

Well it took me a day longer than i expected to get everything together but I am just about to send the AQ off to the court, along with my cheque for £100. At the last minute I also decided to include a covering letter to the court entitled "Claimant's response to the request for further information" as posted here. It's an extremely well written letter which I tweaked slightly to reflect my own circumstances - I recommend it to anyone unsure of what to say in their covering letter. As I'm about to go on holiday (sorry muggins, don't mean to rub it in!) I filled in the dates I can't attend court in section F of the Allocation Questionnaire. I have taken copies of EVERYTHING, from my very first letter to the bank, to the Allocation Questionnaire, so that if I do have to go to court I have a record of every bit of correspondence. In a weird way I'm kind of hoping for a court hearing, such is my confidence I'll win!! So now I think I can go on holiday knowing it is all taken care of - as far as it can be anyway! - and hoping that I will return to a nice big cheque on the doormat. chathe x

Well the AQ came through on Friday, exactly when the nice lady at Moneyclaim said it would! So I have filled it in and will send it off first class registered post today with chequr

Thanks Muggins! Looks like you're 10 days or so ahead of me so I'll keep checking out your progress. Well, when I'm not sunning myself on a beach in South America... chathexx

I am claiming £3909 plus court fees from Natwest. I sent the first letter on 22 November and was offered £309 which I refused. I sent the letter before action on 5 December and received a standard "bear with us" response. On 14 December I started my online claim using Moneyclaim.gov.uk. 33 days later, on 17 January, I had not heard anything from NatWest or Cobbetts so I entered a judgement by default against my claim. But Cobbetts had (apparently simultaneously!) got in there with a defence, so my judgement by default was overruled by their defence. So I received the letter from Cobbetts that same day, on 17 January asking for the CPR 18 blah blah... wrote back immediately telling them I thought they were intimidating me but enclosed the full schedule of charges anyway. I have still not received my Allocation Questionnaire, which I was expecting to arrive on the same day as the Cobbetts defence letter, but I have just called the Moneyclaim service desk who tell me that it was sent on 17 January and that they send them second class so I should expect it tomorrow. I then have 14 days to send it back (I am sincerely hoping that it arrives when it should as I am going on a three-week holiday on Thursday and won't be able to progress my claim!). Also, according to the very helpful lady at Moneyclaim, the courts are currently taking around a month to process the AQs and set a court date. Hope this is helpful to anyone else in my position. I know a risk is involved but I am fully prepared to go to court as I firmly believe I will win. It's going to be worth all the trouble!! Also, thanks to everyone on this site. Reading about all your experiences has left me feeling inspired and encouraged - it can feel sometimes like you're all on your own, but there are hundreds (thousands?!) of like-minded people out there and it's so nice to know you can ask for help whenever I need it! Will keep you posted... chathe

Thanks sleepz, guess the few pounds that recorded delivery costs is nothing compared to the amount they've swindled out of me in the past 6 years! Will let you know how I get on. cheers chathe

Hello everyone, So after weeks and weeks of procrastinating I am finally about to send off my letter to NatWest asking for the £3758.65 they owe me. Fingers crossed it will all go smoothly! But I am slightly worried that NatWest will deny they ever received my letter and schedule of charges. How can I get around this? Do I need to march up to them and physically put my letter into their hand??? Any advice gratefully received. Thanks Cath