Bank charges set by banks for unauthorised overdrafts have angered Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg who believes bank charges ‘must be cost based’.
Responding to comments made by Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert.com, the Liberal Democrat leader said: “The treatment of charges by the banks borders on the scandalous. It is a continuation of a protected industry seeking to maximise profits by exploiting the weakness of individual consumers who lack information and sophisticated knowledge of products or legal advice.
“The principle should be established that bank charges must be transparent and cost based.”
Before the test case between the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and the UK’s leading banks began in 2007, Martin Lewis has been speaking out against unfair bank charges.
The case has now reached the House of Lords, where banks are appealing the decision that bank charges can be judged using fairness rules, with a decision expected in the Autumn.
Mr Lewis has called for banks to repay all ‘unfair’ bank charges if they lose and Nick Clegg has pledged his party’s support for this idea.
He said: “This struck me as an extremely good idea that we should do all we can to put in place. Vince Cable, my shadow Chancellor, and I would be delighted to support your campaign.
Mr Clegg added his party would be putting a motion before Parliament setting out its support for Mr Lewis’s idea as soon as the recess is over.
He hopes this move will “put pressure on the government and the banks to act to return the money they so unfairly took from customers”.
