Bank charges verdict will be out next week

By JAMES CONEY FOR THE DAILY MAIL
Updated:

Supreme Court judges will rule on the legal battle over unfair bank charges next Wednesday.

The five justices will decide on the case between the Office of Fair Trading and the biggest current account providers - HSBC, RBS/Natwest, Halifax, Lloyds, Abbey, Nationwide BS, Clydesdale and Barclays.

The decision will find whether the OFT is allowed to assess the fairness of overdraft charges, which could be as high as £39 a time for exceeding your limit.

banks

Lay down the law: The Supreme court will decide the case between the OFT and the biggest current account providers in the UK


The Court of Appeal and the High Court have already ruled the charges can be assessed. This will be only the fifth decision from the Supreme Court, which effectively replaced the House of Lords as the highest court in the land in October.

More than 1.1million bank customers have an estimated £1.7 billion stuck in limbo because of a freeze placed on complaints over rip-off bank charges in July 2007. This waiver on dealing with complaints is expected to be kept in place until next January.

Estimates suggest banks could face a £20 billion bill if they were made to refund all the charges they have imposed in the past six years.

Marc Gander, founder of the Consumer Action Group, says: 'We expect that the decision will confirm the victory of the OFT. If the judgment is as we have predicted for over two years then we hope that the banks will finally accept the OFT victory and halt their charging and debt collecting and that a scheme for full repayment and compensation will be implemented without any delay.'

j.coney@dailymail.co.uk

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