Bank charges case latest
By Elliot Wright, 25th November 2009
The Supreme Court has this morning ruled in favour of the banks
and said that bank charges do not have to be fair.
The shock ruling has come as a blow to millions of customers who
have been charged billions of pounds and currently have refund
claims on hold.
However, the banks' victory does not by any means mean that
people will not be able to get their charges back - the battle is
far from over.
Why we think you may still be able to get your
charges back:
The Supreme Court has said this is not the end of the
matter
The Supreme Court's President, Lord Phillips, said that this is
not the end of the matter and the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) can
still explore other legal avenues to scrutinise bank charges.
The Supreme Court's President, Lord
Phillips, said that this is not the end of the matter and the
Office of Fair Trading (OFT) can still explore other legal avenues
to scrutinise bank charges.
He added that this morning's ruling does not resolve the
millions of claims currently on hold and the Financial Services
Authority have since announced that these claims may have to
be dealt with by the banks on a case-by-case basis.
The OFT can still appeal
Although the Supreme Court is the highest court in the UK, the
OFT still has the right to appeal to the European courts.
Remember, the OFT have repeatedly said it thinks that bank
charges are unfair. If they want to continue their fight, there are
higher powers they can take it to.
*update* The OFT have said they are "disappointed" by the
verdict and will release a full response in the next couple of
weeks.
An election is coming up and the politicians are on the
people's side
Both Gordon Brown and David Cameron have stated that they wish
for a swift settlement in the bank charges battle. Today's ruling
did not settle the matter.
The government doesn't control the judges in the courts but
they do control the regulators, so they may still yet use their
powers to help the consumer and help themselves to potentially
millions of votes.
Banks will still refund those in financial
hardship
The banks have reiterated that they will still review cases
where the account holder is in financial hardship.
The banks have reiterated that they
will still review cases where the account holder is in financial
hardship.
There may be alternative courses of action we can
take
Although the OFT now has little power over bank charges, people
may still be able to pursue their claims individually through local
courts. As soon as the dust has settled it will become clearer what
legal rights we have and what we can do to get unfair bank
charges back.
Rest assured we will do everything we can to ensure that
you get your refund. There is still hope so do not give up!
Please watch this space for further developments.
Claims Financial
Testimonial
"I just had to put pen to paper and write to say I'm more than delighted with my settlement that you won me back from my PPI I had with Lloyds TSB. The Claim Forms were simple to fill in. It was a breeze"
Mr R Evans 11 Nov 2010