POZ Community Forums
Off Topic Forums => Off Topic Forum => Topic started by: tigger2376 on March 21, 2007, 10:38:30 pm
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My bank have just bounced a cheque on me, because I was literally TWO pence short, then levied an immediate, un warned, £25 fee so I'm now overdrawn. I live on a very tight budget, and this just makes me want to cry..how come my cheque was refused coz I'd go 2p overdrawn and yet they can FORCE me into overdraft with no warning? Ok, not that much but has screwed up my budget and when I called bank, they can't get through to my branch and theres no appointments with the manager for THREE weeks
Just needed to vent, and I despair, my bank manager knows my status, knows the benefits screw up sometimes, then I get this AAAAAAAAAAAArgh
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that sucks. >:( is there another branch near you?? btw, i think most systems are automated, so it doesn't 'know' how close you were to the cut. i know, because i was charged an outrageous fee once (here in the good ol US of A), but the mgr explained that if you are close you can get it reversed. hope it is the same for you at your bank.
good luck.
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This calls for another flaming bag of poo, methinks.
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Waste of excreta methinks...spent an hour on the phone to a call centre in india today. Because the bank pushed me into overdraft, 6 direct debits were bounced today...A HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE QUID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They have, after tears and threats, given me back my overdraft, but the charges still apply, so with the DDs now honoured, I'm overdrawn again. They know I'm on benefits, (and have a letter from welfare saying they owe me £2300), but still they do it, un fuckingbelievable.
On a tight budget, just can't keep having this happen, am normally so sorted...sighs
We have been told in UK its actually unlawful to levy charges like this, but if you take the bank to court, and win, they close your account and blacklist you
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Tigger,
This is outrageous -- putting you through all of this agony for 2 pence. To me, it sounds like you need to switch to a new bank. Big banks *suck*. I have received far better service from smaller community banks, or better yet, credit unions. I'm a credit union kinda guy all the way -- haven't had an account at a bank for 15 years. Not sure if they have the equivalent of credit unions in the UK -- they are basically member-owned banks. And while they do have their own set of fees too, they are in my experience far more flexible and easier to work with.
Henry
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tigger,
I work with the banks. It has nothing to do with you, it has to do with the computers. <1 pence = overdraft unless you have overdraft insurance. What I would do is go to your branch and explain the situation. This won't be fixed over the phone, you have to talk to a person that knows about you, hopefully you have an account manager that has worked with you in the past.
If not, ask for the bank manager. I've been in the same situation when I was with Llyods when I lived in the UK. I got an overdraft because of a transfer fuckup, it turned out that the other bank had a "fax problem"... I talked to the bank manager and everything was fine. Don't be aggressive, but explain your case, and they are usually good at wiping out this kind of problem, but it has to be face to face. No crying, nothing aggressive, just expose your case, explain how this happened, why it happened, and how you're gonna fix it.
Once you have the positive (um um) answer from the manager, ask him about the history of this. Banks love to keep histories of problems, and they show up first even if you have a million pounds in your account but there is a problem. Ask him about wiping out the history of the problem after a year of good standing, get this in writing and next year go back to him and have him fulfill his promise.
Milker.
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I know its purely a system thing, got told that today.
I guess it just enrages me that I got NO warning, was immediate, contrary to their own Ts and Cs and its the poorest who get hit
£125 is a weeks benefit to me...to live on
Will go into bank when I can make an appointment, but in three weeks it'll be worse
Tried to be resposible, cancelled credit cards a year ago, stopped comfort shopping on ebay, ok very recently, am polite and reasonable
Think I would get further if I just cried..thats how I feel
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Banking sucks anymore. The whole business of banking has changed so much since perhaps the mid 80's. They have fee after fee after fee, and customer service absolutely blows. It feels more like they hold your money hostage than anything else anymore- and you frequently feel like they are looking for any opportunity to grab hold of whatever portion they can. I've had experiences like that also. Worse, when money got mistakenly moved from one account to another and resulted in being something like a buck shy to cover a check. That resulted in a terrible spiral of events with several NSF fees. And milker speaketh the gospel: you can't fix that shit over the phone. You gotta go down there and do it face to face. That over the phone crap was what started my catastrophe. It learned me a thing or two!
I feel your pain, girl.
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Tigger,
re-read your contract. Looks for the small print, the one where you need a magnifier to read it, it will be there telling you about the fee. I'm sorry you got hit, but i'm afraid there is nothing you can do except go into begging mode, which is horrible, degrading, but you'll have to go thru this.
What I would suggest is this conversation with the bank manager:
"Ok, I didn't realize that I should have taken insurance. You know, I have to deal with medical bills everyday and "xyz bank" was not the priority. I realize now that I should have taken insurance. Here is what I can do: I will sign up for insurance now, and open a saving account. I can't save much because of my condition, but I should be able to save "xxx pounds" a month (10 pounds will do).". So why not open a savings account now, wipe out the overdraft and the fees and start again with a clear plan?" and add " and when I get that windfall I'll know which bank trusted me when I was in trouble hahahahaha!"
Seriously
Milker.
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more gospel.
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Tigger, I went through a similar thing a few years ago and now I know why the English language has a perfect rhyme for 'banker'.
To get down to brass tacks though, there is currently a backlash against the excessive charges that banks make in this situation; there have been several high profile court judgements reported in the press in recent weeks, where the banks have lost because their charges are ridiculously inflated.
My advice is to open an account with another bank, or as Henry, (BuckmarkTX) suggests a credit union and then once all your automated credits, direct debits & etc have been transferred 'phone your bank again and invite them, calmly and rationally of course, to immediately reimburse you and then close your account. If there is any Resistance at all to reimbursing you fully, not to mention immediately, you must insist on being sent a copy of their detailed charges and tell them that you are intending to sue them for a return of the charges and report them to the Banking Ombudsman.
I guarantee that you'll not get further than the first 'phone call before they cave in if you stick to your guns, if you find this difficult your local Council or Citizens Advice Bureau might help.
Oh and whatever you do, don't 'phone the bank on any number beginning with 08 because they are usually premium rate numbers from which the bank makes a profit. Try to find an alternative number on the site below or visit the branch in person.
Good luck and PM me if you need any more info, John.
http://www.saynoto0870.com/ (http://www.saynoto0870.com/)
P.S. Try a Google search for a local Credit union
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Thanks so much for the advice. Have written a blistering letter, after talking to ombudsman today, they were really helpful. The up and down of it is that yes, they probably will refund the charges EVENTUALLY, but I'll then be back to a zero credit score, and find it hard to open another account.
Credit unions here tend to be associated either with your job, or geography, and since I'm not working, and don't live in the right area, theres not one I could use.
i just feel so angry and helpless. I think anyone who has read my posts can see I'm no shrinking violet, but this, combined with chronic fatigue, has really knoked me for six. Its hard to fight sometimes.
My boyfriend said this evening that I've changed, its like I don't give a f@@k, its not that, I'm just so freaking knackered I'm finding it very hard
Sorry to whine
Need a metaphorical boot up the bum, roll on the B12 injections ;D
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Need a metaphorical boot up the bum, roll on the B12 injections ;D
Ouch!
No no, Milker will inject you the Hugzzzz instead. :) :) :)
Milker.
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Now theyr'e just taking the piss.
Just gone onto my ebay account and people from TWO weeks ago are howling their paypal payments via my bank have been canceled. A) It looks like I did it, B) WTF WTF C)had cash in bank at time and D) my bank closed at weekend
However shit I feel am going into branch to kick some major league ass on monday. Have been charged MORE as these count as unpaid direct debits. Now £226 overdrawn as a result of charges ALONE. My benefit payment friday will only just cover this, so I'm left penniless for two weeks
FUCKING GREAT
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May I suggest that you take a deep breath before going to your branch? Write down all proof of "misfortune" that happened just because of the 2 pence overdraft. Once again I'm telling you that they won't do anything unless you offer something that make them trust you, i.e. open a savings account. Switching banks is not a solution IMHO, but others have suggested that so it's your call.
Basically you're fucked and you need to fix the damage asap. You will have to blow the bank manager to get it fixed (i.e. open a savings account, take insurance, or anything else that they will offer you). Do NOT take anything that is over 4% interest. DO NOT.
Milker.
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Sorry to disagree with you milker but banks in the UK obviously work slightly differently, being nice and asking for their forgiveness will get you sweet F.A.
When you go into the branch on Monday Tigger insist that they recredit your account with the £226.00 there and then, they DO have the authourity to do this bit won't budge unless you kick up a fuss (quietly but firmly of course).
http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2323398.ece (http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2323398.ece)
Read this before you go Tigger; as you can see, even where they can justify charges at all they must be reasonable and quite clearly yours are not. If they won't refund your charges, in full, immediately, tell them that you'll report them to the banking ombudsman and sue them for the return of your money. Insist that they also close your account there and then, once they realise that they're not going to get your fortnightly cheque to cover their fees they'll think again.
You might also find this site informative.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1141050760,24632, (http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1141050760,24632,)
Good luck, John.