16 November 2007
The defence offered by British high street banks over what consumer groups see as excessive charges has been rejected by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT).
Charging customers as much as £60 for exceeding their overdraft limits, for example, had been claimed as service fees and therefore not subject to consumer regulations by banks.
However, the OFT said yesterday that this categorisation is false, in documents submitted for next January's High Court battle between consumer groups and banks on the issue.
Seven major high street banks stand accused of the excessive charges in the case, which was brought by the OFT.
Speaking to the BBC, OFT Chief Executive John Fingleton said: "At the moment consumers pay for banking through surprises and through stealth.
"They don't see what they pay - very often they pay when an unexpected event happens like an unauthorised unexpected overdraft."
Around £200 million of the allegedly unfair charges have already been reclaimed by consumers this year prior to the announcement of the High Court hearing.