I voted for individual transaction charges. It's the most honest and clear system.

I voted for monthly charge. Not because I want to pay one though. So, why? Because ...

What will happen is the banks will compete with each other on monthly charges, just like they do now on interest rates. With healthy competition we'll still have the option of choosing "free checking" accounts with higher penalties, or lower interest -- or other concessions such as no overdraft, no chequebook, no printed statements...

Better choice and clearer, fairer competition.

When I was at school I was picked on for being a swot. The cooler kids larked around in maths and science and learned nothing. I was taught that if I was conscientious and paid attention, I would be rewarded for being a better person than those who wouldn't.

Bank charges are clear and transparent. They are easy to find in clearly set out booklets and on the websites. If you're too lazy or stupid to look them up, the consequences are what you deserve.

I believe stupid people should suffer the full consequences of their stupidity. Any move to protect them from their own stupidity is immoral and unjust.

i think simon ios stupid, not all people like him have lots of money and some of us get charges without realising and why should i pay ?90 in 3 charges for Direct debts to my own bank!!!!!!!aaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh some people are so annoying

I agree wholeheartedly with Big Bad Boy. Simon is obviously a giant arse with no concept of what it is like for those of us in the lower earnings bracket.
In any case, I'm fully aware of the charges my bank applies to accounts, but that doesn't mean I think they're fair charges.
Simon needs to learn some hard lessons about life on the breadline!

I thought banks made money by charging interest on loans/overdrafts at a higher rate than they give to savers? Never heard of a bank that didn't make millions profit a year. I don't mind paying interest and fees on overdrafts, but deplore the high penalties that banks dole out when you do something wrong, no matter how small. Why do they charge ?30 if you go ?1 over you limit?

Hi, I think that we all need to relax a little bit and file a claim with www.recoverbankcharges.co.uk. These guys got me back enough money to make this a non-issue for the next two years. And they also managed to get the interest on the money back as well.

So log a claim with these guys and if all goes in the people's favour for the test case we will all be laughing in the end.

By the way - I voted for "Stuff the banks"

Simon
I agree that banks are transparentwith there penalty charges, however your a bit strong on saying people who have to pay them are stupid.
Mate i went overdrawn for a bank stuff up got charged DD after I sold the house and the bank didnt stop the DD and I was charged. Now im not stupid ive got a degree.but this didnt come out until after the statement was sent to me.
Things go wrong occasionally.
So I asked the bank to allow me an overdraft facility,which I havent presently needed but is there should i need it.
Simon Are you really that anal that you think mishaps dont happen, were not talking about people who are continually overdrawn just those who have a slip up occasionally. Perhaps every one could have 2 free overdraws a year of say 5 pounds or whatever nominal figure and after that the banks could come down hard?

Yep the banks will start charging for payer uses soon,dont think I havent told you this for a long time now its coming.

I agree with Maurice,

The banks should be able to make a profit from the interest they charge on loans and from investing the money that we lend them mainly free of charge - they can't have it all ways!

The banks make enough money through interest charges which is, in my opinion, the only legal charge they impose. All business needs to go through change at some time or other. Why should banks get away with not changing. My advise to them is to look at other ways to recoup the gap. Some suggestions are:-

1. Reduce "fat cat" salaries.
2. Dont have more than one branch in a town centre.
3. Utalise internet banking to more effect.
4. Stop the really annoying TV adverts.
5. Build a bridge and " GET OVER IT !! "

My advise to the general public is dont let these people push us around. Together we are far stronger.

Iain

Banks make an enormous amount of profit using our money, in return we receive free banking. If they insist upon charging a fee I shall be closing my accounts, paying all my bills by cash and refusing to have my salary paid by automatic transfer. I am offended by the principle of this proposal, yet again we are being bullied by the big boys!

I agree with simon, if your too stupid to calculate your money face the penilty. some people can't afford more bills so watch there money more carefully so as for the low earnings bracket, hum. I have lived on 190 a week for the past 5 years with a house, kid and car to pay for and have never had a charge yet. some people just need some financial education and some sense, why ask for a bill that's not really needed???

Hang on just a minute - as I understand it, all banks use all our account monies every night on the international money market to generate interest. Now this might not sound much on most peoples balances in isolation, but when it's all added together, I can't even begin to think how many trillions of pounds that comes to.
However, I see little or nothing of that in my current account, which, incidentally, I already pay ?10 p.m. for, receiving what seems to be a, currently, degenerating service.

I am going to assume that charges will be a reality if massively disgusting annual profits are to be maintained. All the suits are worried that they might have to make do with only two or three supercars in the triple garage at the country retreat or, perish the thought, maybe the trip to the Med in the multi million pound sea going motor yacht will have to be curtailed to only a couple of weeks a couple of times this year... or God forbid, the shareholders will leave for companies with greater prospects. Perhaps the banks will have to knuckle down and start thinking about value for money from their executives and have a rethink about the bonuses that reward bloodthirsty practices like charging bloodthirsty practices, such as patently unlawful penalty charges. And think on this: if the charges were in any way reasonable, why would the loss of this particular revenue stream be causing so much hysteria in the banking industry? I will happily take my salary in CASH - remember that stuff, and screw the banks. Let them earn their billions the old fashioned way; hard graft and not via a lifelong gravy-train of liquid lunches at my expense. If I add up my actual mortgage payments since the purchase of my three bedroomed box in Pinner, I have already paid for it at least twice!!

I voted stuff the banks, mainly because i believe that we should all have the option of a free bank account with no charges or if charges are to be applied we should be given the option of being paid cash in hand again so as not to be forced to do something that we do not want to do. i work hard for my money and i don't want to be told that i have to pay even more to have my hard earned money, it's bad enough that tax's have gone up and that interest rates are on the incline but to push our already stretched limits even further will undoubtedly force us into a forseeable resession, i understand the need for interest and charges to an extent but i think charges, fee's and interest should be on a sliding scale that meets the needs of the people more than the needs of the few rich golf players who decide that we should pay more. i believe that we live in an always will live in an economy that lets the rich get richer and poor pay for them to get there. credit has this country on it's knees begging for more like an addiction to herion. i say bring back cash in hand wages

Yes, the banks will win against the current appeal on bank charges, and guess what...
In a few years they will abolish free banking and still retain penalty charges with some monetary excuse which the exchequer will back to the hilt.
After all Gordon (forget about Alistair) loves the Bank of England.
Bank penalty charges are the thin end of the wedge and making a test case of penalty charges has enboldened their stance, now watch them run with it...

Hang on a second. We pay money into bank accounts who pay us a pittance back in interest whilst lending out that money to other bank customers at a monumental rate of interest!!?? Who should be charging who for using "my"/"our" money to make money???
I think i will also be billing any comapany that insists on DD as a form of payment to settle bills etc. If they can pass on running costs etc then i will do the same!!

I pay a monthly fee of approximately ?2 for all of my transactions on my Australian bank account - done and dusted - i can live with that.

What would the banks do if we all went back to being paid a bit of cash in a brown envelope on a Friday from the boss ? you can pay yours bills when you choose ! without penalties .There is so much fraud from cards and such nowadays. There are down sides of charging to pay bills and having cash on you but i would like to give it a try .....stuff the banks .

The point is no-one minds paying a reasonable fee for a service. The Penatly Charges system was cleary unfair with exorbitant rates - that it is clear they do not want to have opened up to scrutiny. This pay as you go system is likely to be the same, the charges described above are clearly from the outset way above the actual costs of carrying out any of the services.
As many have pointed out the banks make plenty of money with our money - but if they insist that massive profits are not enough, at least make the charges reasonable.
Mind you, it would be fun to start passing the the cost of a Direct Debit on to other companies.

With regards to bank charges I think the banks should charge otherwise people would go overdrawn without a care in the world! - however the charges should only COVER THEIR COSTS not to make billions a year in profits. As profits go up Customer Service goes down, everything costs us when it comes to banking, cash machine, credit cards, overdrafts etc soon you will be charged for walking into your branch. You probably wouldn't mind if they were on a shoe string budget but their not - I have never had a bank charge but recently while on holiday my wife had a chq come out of her bank which took her over her overdraft limit by about ?3 when we returned she had received 3 letters all charging her ?30 a time! Charged 3 times for the same thing - A Disgrace! If the banks lose the trial case going through court at the mo and go down the lines of pay a u use system then people should get together and boycott them altogether it wouldn't take long for them to do a U turn, after all it our money that makes them there huge ass profits! If this did happen it would be an ideal oppotunity for someone with a knowledge of banking to set up some kind of banking system of their own which takes the good points from our current banks while getting rid of the greedy & unfair side of it - while still making profit - A true bank for the people who support it! Current banks then would be forced to change or go under! People just want to be dealt with fairly, which is what we deserve!

A agree we should go back to the brown enveloppe and pay the bills when they come in! We are going to start that in september we are selling the house to rent it back (mortgage way to high now we lose house or rent back!)then we will save enough each month and start to pay back debt and start to get rid of the 28 direct debts we have and put them on a quarterly bill or pay out once a year (car ins house ins tv lic etc) hopefully this will work enough to get rid of the monthly paying out that cripples us and get the debt gone...we will see...but i would definately go for being paid cash again and stuffing the banks!!!!

claire u only earn 190 a week run a car and a kid either u live in a council house or are claim loads of benifit as i only have me and the wife both earning 250 a week and this is hard living, without bank charges i just cant understand why certain idiots are sticking up for the bank unless they work for them and they really are one of the high flyers taking all our hard earned cash. CLAIRE PLEASE READ THIS AND U MIGHT TAKE SOME USFUL INFO FROM IT!!

I think if there was a choice of managing money without using a bank these days then if you chose to use a bank and breached the agreement the bank would be within their right to charge their penalty fees. However, in today's world you are highly unlikely to get your employer to pay you in cash each week/month so we all use banks without necessarily choosing to. I believe everyone with a current account already pays a 'charge' for the bank facility it is just that the bank collect this in the form of measly interest paid on current accounts and the usual overdraft interest or penalty for exceeding your limit. Therefore I do not believe those people who exceed their limits subsidise those who are in credit. ALL people pay it just depends on HOW the bank gets its claws on your money. It will be interesting to see how utility companies respond if their customers are then charged by the bank for paying by Direct Debit. As with all influencial organisations in this country (or any other for that matter) you can bet it will not be the views of the 'ordinary person' who decide the political question of bank charges. As consumers though we should remember to vote with our feet (or bank account) if our bank is meeting our needs.

Let us not forget that the poor banks earn considerable sums on our money as it is (via investments etc) They can easily afford to dramatically reduce costs. On another note I am furious about the increasing amount of companies that will not take cheques - I felt happier using my cheque book and cheque guarantee card (no longer in existence at my bank) than I do using a credit/debit card - is it my imagination or does this co-incide with banks having to pay back penalty fees - another nice little earner for them (getting us to use debit cards instead of our cheque books).

Claire Hater needs to check who they hate, i think they are talking about me, HAYLEY, dur!!! Clearly shows who the idiots are and why they have charges!! I do have low rent, but i don't claim loads of benefits, i jus watch my hard earned cash and i don't work for banks either. Organise your money and avoide the fees. It quite simple really, as is finding who wrote the comments on this site!!!