Ok, this is what I have wrote in the particulars form. Is this ok? I have a contract with the defendant bank dated 04/07/2006 and 26/06/2006 and which is conducted on their standard terms and conditions. I am claiming the return of money taken by the defendant in the way of charges over the last 3.5 years plus the interest they have levied on those charges. The bank's charges are a disproportionate penalty and therefore unenforceable as they are contrary to common law. Further, as a disproportionate penalty they are invalid under the Unfair (Contracts) Terms Act 1977 s.4 and under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999. Para.8 and sch.2 (1)(e). In the event that the charges are not a penalty then they are unreasonable within the meaning of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 s.15. I have repeatedly asked the bank to justify their charges but they have declined to do so. The claimant claims interest under section 69 of the County Courts Act 1984 at the rate of 8% a year from 2003 to 07/07/2006 of £1,654

I have to do it really. Got to try and find the £120 now! Thanks for the help on here. Youve been amazing help! i will update you when something changes

Guys, What are the chances of my getting my money back anyway? Quite high?

God, I have finished the claim but cant afford the £120 yet! Nightmare!

Ok, I have received a letter from Richard (whatever his name is) saming exactly the same thing as the previous letter. I take it its court action now then?

Ok, thankyou. Havent received a letter back from FD as yet but am expecting the usual responce. I have set up another account with A & L for a back up so if I dont get it then moneyclaim will be the way Am I right in asking that court fees are £120?

Ok, I have sent the LBA, waiting for a response now. Ive been reading around, do they still reject this? If so then its court yeah?

Can anyone help please?!?!

Ok then. I sent a letter off to FD with the following: My request I am writing to ask you to refund to me the charges which you have levied from my account over the last 6 years. I now understand that the regime of fees which you have been applying to my account in relation to direct debit refusals, exceeding overdraft limits and so forth are unlawful at Common Law, Statute and recent consumer regulations. If you say that they are not, then will you please demonstrate this by letting me have a full breakdown of the costs to which you have been put by as a result of my breaches, in order to reassure me that your penalties really do reflect your costs. Additionally, it has now been confirmed that your particularly high level of penalties are considered to be unfair per se by the OFT who reported on the 5th April 2006 and are therefore presumed to be unlawful in the absence of specific proof to the contrary. Your responsibilities I would draw your attention to the terms of the contract which you agreed to at the time that I opened my account. It is an implied term of that contract that you would conduct yourselves lawfully and in a manner which complies with UK law. I am frankly shocked that you have operated my account in this way as I had always reposed confidence in your integrity and expertise as my fiduciary. I consider that your repeated representations that your charges are fair and reasonable are deceptive and that they have deceived me into agreeing to pay them. Your concealment of the true nature of your charges has prevented me from asserting my right until now. What I require I calculate that you have taken £1547. I enclose a schedule of the charges which I am claiming with this letter Additionally you have entered a default notice against my credit record. This default occurred merely in respect of unlawful charges levied by you or was the result of impecuniosity caused directly by the taking by you of penalty charges which you had applied unlawfully to my account. In addition to full payment of the sum mentioned above, I require that you remove the default entry from the register. Please note that mere correction or amendment to the entry will not be acceptable. My targets to resolve this matter I hope that you will enter into a sincere dialogue with me about this matter and I am writing this letter to you on the assumption that you will prefer to do this than merely respond with standard letters and leaflets. I will give you 14 days to reply to me accepting, unconditionally, my request in principle and letting me know a date by which I will receive payment. If you do not respond, or you do not respond positively, within this time period, I shall send you a letter before action giving you a further 14 days in which to reflect. I believe that these targets are more than sufficient for a large company such as yours with dedicated staff and departments. After that, there will be no further communication from me and I shall issue a claim at the expiry of the second deadline. Yours faithfully, ----- They have replied via post to tell me to look at the terms and conditions. No chance to get my money back What shall I do? I want my £1547 back!

Ok, thankyou. So I need this before I make contact with my bank yeah?

Hi, Ok, i have jsut off the phone to them, They were trying to charge me for the statements but when I said that im wanting to claim back charges they said that they would send me the last 6 yrs for free. Do you mean where it says FAQ at the top?

Hi, Sorry if I am being ignorant but could you point me to the FAQ's? I am on the phone to FD at the moment and they are trying to charge me for the statements.

Hello, I have been a FD customer for around 5 yrs. In that time I have been charged a huge amount. I mean in the thousands!!!! Being 22, having a mortgage its pretty tough, some of it is my fault but do I still have a chance of getting my charges back? Please can someone give me some step by step guides on what to do from here. I honestly dont know where to start. Cheers Mark