I think a big YES to Tom winning the case. There should be a set figure now with all banks on the charges set out a more reasonable figure that is!!! ?4.50 would suit most of us im sure...

It needs the government to step in now and say enough is enough give up and state how much a charge actually costs and have done with it..

And this malarky on how much profits they will be loosing codswolop!!! as we speak (or type!) the unsuspecting customer is still getting charged here and there so their profits arent that affected just their bonusus!!!!!!!

At least a monthly fee would be honest and within the letter of the law.

I'd sooner pay a reasonable monthly fee than be charged extortionately via the back door.

I want Tom to win to put a stop to the banks charging excessive amounts.  The banks are already, in a lot of cases, charging a monthly fee for accounts and will continue to increase this whether Tom wins or not.  I am in the process of making a claim from Lloyds TSB, since my husband died and left me with 2 children to bring up I have had over ?4000 pounds in charges, usually charges for when the last lot of charges put me overdrawn.

I think the people are getting lost in this scenario. It's easy to give a dog a bad name by saying that people should be able to manage their own finances. However, there are people who suffer deep, unavoidable hardships. My husband left me with 2 children and no income. I had to work at two jobs and study for a degree to keep the house for them. I have been charged over ?4,000 in charges and could not get credit because of his bad credit record against the house. What the banks are doing is completely immoral and should be stopped!!

As a bank account holder that has never had a charge, unfortunately I wish Tom would lose. Thousands of people who run accounts within the terms and conditions of the account will incurr costs due to no fault of theri own

Unfortunately, I don't think this is an either/or situation ("free" banking versus inflated penalty charges).  In Canada, most banks charge a monthly fee (to "administer" the account) AND charge inflated penalties.  I think the same is doomed to happen here.  Whether Tom wins or loses (and I hope he wins), banks will look to maximise their profits at the expense of their clients.

Yes for Tom to win, I'm waiting to see the outcome before I start my claim against Nat West.  The only concern I have is that, if I was to win great! but I may then be asked to close my account ?1500) which seems to be the usual thing and will then need to clear my overdraft to do so, which I don't have.  I'll watch this space!

it appears to me that it doesnt matter if tom wins or not.  the banks will win over all as usual and the customer will end up paying . lets face it, its almost impossible to live a modern life without a bank account therefore i almost garantee the banks will start charging for there services sooner or later . and they will continue to make billions for there precious share holders.

If the banks do end up charging then so be it, they will end up in a price war anyway to get new customers through the doors so the pirces will be cheap anyway. Any exorbitant charges should be outlawed and if that means an end to free banking then so be it...
Anyway, do banmks now make money out of interest that they earn from your savings?

I think a monthly charge is unfair on those of us who have carefully managed their money and therefore not incurred charges on unauthorized overdrafts etc. If Tom wins he and millions of others will be able to continue to claim back their charges whereas millions like me will potentionally have to start paying a monthly fee to counterbalance the huge sums being paid out by the banks!

The bank charges are unfair milking formula that bank use on people. They seem to know who to target and once in their vicious circle they never seem to help you because they are making good profit on your misfortunes/hardship.
I say no to this bank charges and yes to reasonable fee to operate you bank account.
We are all hoping you Tom wins case to set a landmark.

Im in the process of getting my claim sorted with the natwest bank, i hope he does win as they owe me over 4000 in charges, as im on low income and the charges have put my account over drawn.
i do pay a fee for my account as it is and the introduction of a fee wouldnt bother me.
we should all claim what is rightfully ours and lets hope they look at the charges and try to reduce them so this dosent go on anymore. they only have themselves to blame.

If more people voted with their feet and changed banks then there would be no fees. We have banked with Citibank for over five years and have yet to be charged a cent. We have a free ?500 overdraft facility but don't use it. Most of our banking is done on line as we now live in Spain. We maintain accounts in three currencies with Citibank and would reccommend them to anyone.

I sincerely hope that Tom Brennan does win his case - he is only claiming back what is rightfully his.  The banks use our money to play the stock market - and despite having paid out several millions already, they still make a huge profit.  I have no problem in paying a monthly fee - as long as it is reasonable - to operate my bank account, nor do I object to paying a reasonable penalty charge for going overdrawn for example.  I do however have real issues with having to pay exortionate penalty charges that actually cost the bank very little to deal with - I used to work for NatWest so know exactly what I am talking about!!

All the people who are criticising those who fall into debt as a result of so-called mismanagement of their accounts - it is laudible that you can manage your own financial affairs so well, but the worm can turn and you could experience some hardship yourself in your future and fall into the trap that bank charges can create for you.  No-one wants to incur charges, no-one wants to struggle from day-to-day trying to put food on the table, pay the mortgage/rent etc etc - sometimes things just happen.  The banks will win overall in the end - they float the economy after all.  All any of us can do is try our best and not be so critical of each other.

Good luck Tom and everyone else who is fighting for justice and the rights of the people.

banks are parasitic organisations squeezing the life out of us and the economy, cut some of the outragious bonus the top management earn and start looking after customers for once. these parasites look for profit at every possible opportunity. it is about time this useless government started to look into the banking industry working against the national interest by screwing us at every turn. power to the people.

I amlooking forward for Tom to win sothat I can start claiming my own charges My bank charges me over ?200.00 very month for the past six years even if I am over drawn for ?17.00 the charge me ?39.00 each time my direct debit is not paid or I have miss a paymentfor my mortgage.I think the bankmust have cost meover six thousand pounds in charges. which I thinkis un fair.

How might the banks discourage people from straying outside their acount limits unless they make some sort of charge ? Would it be ok if I ran over my limit by say ?10,000 ? How might the bank discourage this sort of thing ?

Quoted from the article:
"The banks would realize that they would no longer be able to make vast profits from penalty charges and so would have to make their profits in some other way."

That is exactly the problem with the banking system. Instead of having to make money by smart investments and from providing service they just make profit by creating a system that automatically penalises customer for minor financial mistakes. They even create the farce of the direct debit (& DD guarantee) which will honour payment even if the funds aren?t in the account, to then return the payment a day later and then charge you for it! They will allow that to repeat a number of times, even with standing orders. They should be fighting to keep the customer that allows them to have all this cash in the first place, not milking people through an in-efficient banking service. Bank's are no longer about managing your finances, they are about selling financial products and making as much cash through un-fair charging as possible.

If Tom does win and the banks to turn to monthly fee?s, I hope there is also a revolt on that too!

I would much prefer the banks to charge a fixed amount each month as it will obviously mean easier budgeting.  But I DO want to see banks behave in a much fairer an equitable manner. I have already suffered ?600 in charges this year which ti my mind is completely unfair.  Tom has all my support and I hope he wins.

I personally would prefer the banks to charge people who constantly spend money they have not got
and leave me alone, if banks were no longer allowed to charge penalties for people who go overdrwn, they would charge for having an account which would affect everyone, more serious for the people who then continued to go overdrawn they would have their accounts closed down by the Banks no more credit cards no more cheques no standing
orders or direct debits which would lose you more money, companies are no longer able to accept cash so bills would have to be paid at the bank and yes you quess more charges, these people who constantly go overdrawn would still suffer more than people who dont.

Tom should win then the head of the banks should be made accountable

MY BANK HAS PAYED A DIRECT DEBIT BEFORE I HAD A CHANCE TO PUT THE MONEY IN MY ACCOUNT, WHICH MADE MY ACCOUNT OVERDRAWN - EVEN THOUGH I HAVE NOT GOT AN OVERDRAFT, AND THEY HAVE CHARGED ME TWENTY-FIVE POUNDS FOR THE PLEASURE. GOOD LUCK TOM.

And everyone jumps on the band wagon!!
A contraversial comment, I know, but it is true.
Now the arguement for.
To return a cheque take one person to decision it (2 minutes), another to find it (15-30 mins), one to fill in the endless paper involved to get it out of the clearing system (10-15 mins) and another to process the refund (10 mins).
It then takes someone to post it and of course the cost of postage, and that is just for the returning bank. When it gets to the other side it takes another two people 30 mins to process.
All in all even at best case scenarion just over an hour. Or about ?30/hr.
Your local garage will charge you ?30-50/Hr and a main dealer ?50-70/hr. How many of you are suing you car service agent. Not many I'll bet.
Let me also remind you, for the children amonst us, that all these charges are avoidable if you simply run your accounts properly.
On a more serious note, to overdraw your account without permission is a CRIMINAL offence that is tantamount to robbery. Would you prefer murderers and rapists out on the street because the courts have to cope with millions of robbery charges every year, This is certainly an option and in Europe it still happens. No wingeing about charges there because there aren't any. The police fine you instead and you gain a Criminal record to boot.
What we have at the moment is not a revolt but a huge number of people who broke the law, stole money that was not theirs and were charged a reasonable fee for the REAL cost to the bank and escaped conviction. Those people who were stupid enough to do this are now the one whining. Nobody asked you to do it, GROW UP!!!!! you did it, you've paid for it. If you don't want to again... DON'T DO IT.
For CRIMINAL that wins, Thousands of innocents will lose. In this case add SELFISHNESS to your crimes.
Remember that the supermarkets pay a penny a carrot but charge you Three, why not winge at them. The Banks are businesses not institutions that have rthe right to make profit any way they can, just like any other business. If you don't like how they trade, close your account and go back to cash. Maybe then you will appreciate the work they do. But don't, as is the case in Britain now, Whinge about how it was everyone elses fault but YOURS, because IT IS!

Absolutely fed up of hearing about this. Ooooh I was hard up. I know, I've been there and some days I didn't eat.
A simple saying comes to mind, "If you can't do the time, don't do the time!"
The banks don't hide the charges, they are published everywhere. I didn't realise is not an excuse. I have never paid a charge in my life, and in the face of desperation. So don't pull the it's OK for you because it certainly was not.
We all have a choice, at least for now. Everyone moans about "the nanny state". Why do you think this is? Because people proove every day that they are incapable of behaving in a responsible manner.
I hope Tom gets crushed in court, personally. The last six years were his choice and for the rest of you moaning that yopu diodn't have a choice... for gods sake, get real.

To Richard Lindley above - I completely disagree with what you have said.  Having worked in a bank I would have to say that it doesnt cost much to put administrative procedures in place to minimise the amount of staff processing these returned cheques etc - if it cost the bank so much money then surely they would have put these procedures into practice in a more financially benefical way.  They make so much money from the way things are done now and the charges they levy that they have no need to change them now!  So what if it takes them an hour to do what they do - I know it doesnt take an hour to process one returned/unpaid/bounced cheque -been there done that. And to Mr John Parkinson, I dont believe for one minute that you have ever had the dilema experienced by any one of the people complaining about these charges.  Yes we all bear responsibility for our actions but in my experience the bank would rather charge you the fee and ask questions later - even if its not your fault the Direct debit didnt go through!!!  And even when you present the proof they send you to the other party to reclaim the charges!  So we the consumer pay the price - once again.

John Parkison has a moot point. If you aint got it don't spend it. Too many young people now want new cars and household appliances which years ago we had to save for. You can't have a Rolls Royce with a plant managers wage.

Sorry, me again, I forgot to say 'good luck Tom' I hope you win.  Though I do realise that you are taking rather a risk!!

I have to say that I agree with Cadice and not Richard Lindley.  Yes, I do agree that we have to be more responsible for our actions and not get overdrawn in the first place.
However, it does not take an hour of staff time to process a returned cheque - most of the processing is done by computer now!  A human being scanning through someone's account would be unlikely even to notice that someone is overdrawn by, say, ?1 for 1 or 2 days but the computer is programmed to detect the slightest 'transgression'!
With one bank I'm with I don't even have a cheque book, but they charge ?30 a time for bouncing a drirect debit which I think involves even less administration than a cheque.  In the last month i have avoided going into the red though.
Also, if one has been into unauthorised overdraft by a pound or two for just one day, do the "goody two shoes" amongst you justify an *additional* monthly overdraft fee of ?20 or so on top?  Finally, the banks often choose a time to apply a charge to be just before customers get their monthly pay, to maximise the chance of that customer going into the red again, and then there is another charge levied PURELY as a result of that charge.  Is that justified?

Banks have it within their power to turn this around and put the customer back on side but as always greed wins out!! I agree that those customers who continually abuse their accounts should be penalised! But it is easier this day and age to tar everyone with the same brush!!
So what is the answer? Easy, employ a database that would recognise those who do abuse their accounts and then bring in a sliding scale of charges. To all those who would turn there nose up and say this is not possible, it actually is very possible!! The only problem Banks have is that it would mean investing money into the database to get it up and running and we all know Banks prefer to make profit than spend it!! It took the UK banking system nearly 10 years or more to introduce Pin and Chip, something I saw in Paris in the late 1990's!!
The only choice in the Banking system is that you can use different banks or building societies! The fact is that we no longer have a choice about banking itself. Gone are the days when you could get your wages in your hand!
Simply put, stopping bullying everybody and start penalising those people who are making life miserable for everybody else!

Extremely well put Steve.
Thank you, but are any bank representatives listening?...

I am in the process of trying to reclaim bank charges from Ulster Bank (connected to Natwest).  They to date are stating that all charges are lawful. I have filed a County Court Claim. Has anyone out there in Northern Ireland had any success in reclaiming charges?

I want Tom to win as millions of people have been over charged.  For those of you who think NO as you feel you will suffer with other charges imposed by banks, this will happen whether you like it or NOT! Banks have already started this by using monthly account fees, high interest rates, charges for interest, high loan repayments.  All of you who say NO need to open your eyes and look at the bigger picture if you dont stand up now and fight back you will suffer further down the line, if the banks can get away with it they will.

Everyone can sit around for hours on end expressing an opinion, but one thing is as certain as god made little green apples. Whatever the outcome of this situation, there is no such thing as a 'free lunch' The banks will get you either way unless the government intervenes. Be damned if you do and be damned if you don't. As the saying goes

When i first started in business it was with Barclays and i had a personal banker. It was great he was very helpful and we got on great. He was sent away to another branch and my relationship with the Bank then became less personal. I believe that is the core of the problem with banks and todays customers, the one on one, is not possible anymore and technology is the rule for all the big institutions. That is for us 'ordinary', working families, morgtage paying, bill paying, trying to lead a decent life people, in modern day Britain.

I have been charged ?30/35 for being 50p, 85p and ?1.30 overdrawn. I have called the bank and they have reversed the automatic computorised send out fee, as on the phone to them i suggested that was unfair. I have been charged ?30/35 for an unpaid direct debit or cheque, in the past, when i have paid cash into my account first thing in the morning of the due date! and been told, 'sorry' to avoid charges funds must be cleared the day before? Why? I pay my work cheques into my Bank more often than not every week(i am self employed sole trader) yet they take four days to clear(i have not had a work cheque bounce on me yet).
I have been a Woolwich customer for many years and as we all know, i am now in the Barclays system(no charges yet). I have now agreed to pay ?14-50 per month for special priviliges(travel ins', no charge overdraft, etc) with them to run my account, i am happy with that but Woolwhich charged me ?945-00 over the past 6 years in charges, do i claim? If so do Barclays honour the Woolwhich charges?
I Think Tom should win.

Hi Andy. I am afraid High Street Banks would not know Customer Service if you hit them with a 2000 page hard back manual!! Banks have a clear policy of removing customer service in favour of saving money!! All "customers" are, are a means to print money.

After reading all comments above i am extremely upset by some of the oppinions out there...harping on AGAIN about people NOT looking after their accounts properly..obviously they are on VERY well paid jobs and never had to suffer any hardship in their life!!!  Myself and my husband work VERY hard at trying to make ends meet (husband does long hours and i have 2 jobs) so dont anyone out there tell ME how to run my BANK account....
I am claiming nearly 3grand in costs that are owed to me by ALLIANCE AND LECEISTER over and over again i have asked them for HELP and over and over again they TURN THEIR BACKS!! am i getting my point acros NUMBER 24!!!
Sometimes it cant be helped that you go over by 3p and get charged ?39 but hey thats bad real bad obviously im not MANAGING my account properly..GOD YOU MAKE ME SOOOO MAD!!

As for those of you MOANING about getting charged for using your account OPEN your EYES this WILL happen whether we are claiming charges or not...

GET A LIFE YOU LOT FOR WHINGING ABOUT US LOT TRYING TO GAIN BACK WHAT IS OURS NOT THE OVER PAID BANKS THAT DONT GIVE A TOSS ABOUT THEIR CUSTOMERS......DO YOU HEAR ME!!!!

Do the banks think they are doing us a favour  with us letting them invest our cash?

i hope tom brennan wins.the banks know full well that what they are doing is illegal, the government should have looked into this a long time ago,but dont they run claims online(for a fee)? anyway its always the less well off who are hammered time and time again, we specifically wanted an account that couldnt go overdrawn(with a debit card), but they couldnt do us one,they would lose out on there charges no doubt.by the way,was offered 3/4 of my claims. as i would have paid 25% to a company to recoup full amount anyway,i accepted.

Good Luck Tom, I hope you succeeed.  Truly a precedent needs to be set on these bank charges.  I agree with other writers, the government should have been involved ages ago, and still giving up an opportunity (maybe also to secure some back door votes) to do something about the charges.  The Bank of England should be involved more also, but at least the OFT and the Banking Ombudsman are involved.  But as usual, it comes down to the man on the street, so Tom, it could be you, but if it is, we're all rooting for you, we're all behind you.  Good Luck - God Bless.

Like many others, I'm claiming after bank charges, and it is a sad state of affairs to admit this, but I'm heartened to know I'm not the only one chasing in excess of 4000.  Bank charges affected our lives for months, causing bank charges to be charged because of the way a previous month's bank charges left our account.  It seemed that we were working half the month for nothing as wages were swallowed up by paying the charges charged, and why on earth did it always seem common practice to charge the highest over the Christmas/winter periods?  I don't know.

A judge on the news the other night said it would be preferable if a test case got to the Court of Appeal to set such precedent and hopefully guidelines.  In a sense I agree, but the banks tend to settle and it is exasperrating.  I'd like to say I would like to be a guinea pig, but the problem with appelate cases is firstly you need right of appeal, and it is usually on a technical point rather than I feel that the judgement initially given didn't agree with me.  Really yucky.

As for the admin fees, yes and no.  Don't the banks make a fortune out of us on interest charges on eg credit cards, loans.  And surely they are in a better position to know where the best investments for their charges are out in Blue Chip land?  With so many banks taking up residence in supermarkets, even their overheads shouldn't be as much.  And that's another one isn't it, supermarkets offering banking facilities.  And what about internet bank accounts - overheads might become a thing of the recent past.  We no longer are tied to the high street banks.

never bank with Alliance and Leicester . having written a cheque then cancelled it the reciever of cheque banked it . i had not transfered funds as we have stopped it ,so as there was not enough funds in they charged us 34.00 when i phoned them they said they would refund the charge .ok sorted but when my statement arrived they had only refunded 17.00 so we were still overdrawn then they charged us 25.00 twice for being overdrawn . i then transfered 100.00 in to my account and today i recieved my new statement and again they have charged us 25.00 twice . i am unsure where i stand , i phoned them and they were very unhelpful

why cant there be any middle ground, bank charges ?2.50 for "bad management" of the account and a quid for the monthly running...max ?20 for a bad month...better than the ?125 i payed for going a total of ?6 overdrawn

Banks are ripping us off.  Lets see a fair amount for their charges..
My son went beyond his limit and got charged ?30.00 and yet this was an unauthorised direct debit from a company he had ceased trading with.  The bank were unhelpful because they stood to make ?30.00 from this illegal attempted transaction.. Thank You HALIFAX.. Why do banks allow this to happen... KERCHING !!  that will be ?30.00 please..

why not let the money hospital orrganise a fund to combat banks (suggested ?1.00 ea)i for one would donate ,it may go to a higher level which TOM BRENNAN may not have funds to fight we all know how devious banks are.DB.

I have worked for a bank for 22 years now and we can process 75 returned direct debits/standing orders in an hour ( 50 cheques can be returned due to the added time confirming guarantee card numbers on reverse). We charge ?35 per item which equates to ?2625 per hours work or (?1750 cheques). If you were to ask a financial adviser to organise a pension he would earn this level of money therefore I believe it to be a reasonable sum. The problem is people who do Not look after their own affairs and seek out somone else to hold accountable. The situation is similar to the property market, I own a portfolio of 32 properties which I have been able to acquire due to the bank repossessing homes of those who choose not to repay their mortgages. As such I am able to buy at 20/40% lower than the market value and can rent out to those who cannot afford to buy thereby providing a valuable service. I admit I am fortunate to secure extremely low staff interest rates on my borrowing but the overall benefit to the community is the greater reward. People should look at the british finance institute with pride as I know I do

regards

RMcG

I run my own small business and have an account with HSBC.  When I first started it was a "Free" account for 12 months.

Imagine my surprise when I was charge ?30 because one of my customers had signed a cheque in her new married name on her old maiden name cheque!

I was not, and never have been, overdrawn and the fault was not mine.

Is there a banker out there who can explain why I should pay?

No, I do not want the banks to lose!! Quite simply I follow the rules governing my account and I suspect that because the majority of people posting to this site clearly do not, I will end up paying more - quite frankly why should I?