Well, the people at the local branch definitely passed on the letter... because today I got a letter offering me all but £100 of the fees back. I'm going to accept, as I feel I've made my point, and a small part of me does acknowledge that the fees were incurred as I was going over-overdrawn (that wouldn't have happened in the first place if they hadn't started charging me £125 every month from last March, but that's another argument . I am really, really chuffed - and am very grateful for this site's existance. I'll be telling everyone I know to check this out, and will make a donation/do the survey once I've had my money paid in. The letter I received, BTW, was the standard letter saying that they're offering me the money as they will incur costs, but are confident that they would win if it went to court, etc. All lies, of course. Interestingly, there was no request that I keep this confidential. I am supposed to send the letter back, signed, which I shall do tomorrow - but is there also a way to fax it back? I've seen that mentioned before. Thanks again, Consumer Action Group!

I know, but they did pass on the last letter - and despite the odd comment, the person I spoke to did appreciate that I wanted it dealt with.

Thanks for the previous replies, BTW, Michael and maverick.

Handed my letter in at the local branch. They said they didn't have any way to give me a confirmation of delivery, but promised to pass it on to "the team handling this matter". What was funny was that they insisted in opening and slowly reading the letter in front of me, remarking warily "Oh, I guess this has something to do with something you saw on TV". I replied: "No. It's got to do with my rights as your customer." Anyway: T-minus 14 days...

Well, had the standard 'Thank you' letter this weekend saying that my statements will start arriving in batches "shortly". However I decided to use some free time today to trawl through my online statement records - and have worked out that they've charged me close to £1,500. So I'll be sending the first request for the cash back tomorrow, and am about to draft the letter now. I'm particularly shocked because many of the charges were from the last year, and I just didn't notice them - you think you're just spending all your cash and paying off your bills, not that they're whacking a massive £100 or £125 on your account every month when you go a few quid over the red line. I'm sure the feeling of anger and frustration about it is something we all share - I'm grateful that this place exists to show me how to channel that into something productive! Quick question before I send the letter, though: I seem to remember reading here that the online statements don't show all the charges? Am I mistaken? I tried doing a search, but to no avail. Does anyone think I should wait for the printed statements?

Playing it safe, I reckon. Really, a stack of paper for a tenner is a bit of a joke, but they are legally obliged to it - however waving it makes them look like they are doing something nice.

Quick update: had a handwritten note from the local branch today saying that my request was being seen to, but that the £10 wasn't needed (and the cheque was attached).

What happens if you've been charged over £5000 over the 6 years? Could you split it and do a claim for say £3000 for May 2000 to May 2003 and then a £2500 claim for June 2003 to the present? I have a feeling a faq may have answered that - but I've read so much about it over the past 24 hours there's a lot to take in and be very clear about.

Well, I say VS - it's just the Data Protection Act I've sent. But it's a start. Big thanks and gratitude for this site and all the FAQs.