Banks accused of aggressive tactics in banking charges debate

Thu, 24 May 2007

Consumer watchdog Which? has accused some banking institutions of using "aggressive" tactics to dissuade clients from claiming back banking charges.

Ingrid Gubbay, Which? principal campaigns lawyer, told BBC Radio Five Live's Wake Up To Money that banks are looking for more ways in which they can avoid court cases about allegedly unfair banking charges.

"Some banks are being a lot more aggressive about the way they flourish the case in the face of the potential claimants or customers," Ms Gubbay asserted.

She said their actions have a "huge" impact, as banking customers become "frightened and deterred".

Her comments come in the wake of Lloyds TSB's victory last week, which saw it become the first bank to win a related court case.

The BBC has suggested that since the bank's court triumph, other banking institutions have used it as an example to discourage their own customers from attempting to do the same.

Last week, the Information Commissioner's Office said it had received various complaints about a claim handling firm making unsolicited automated calls to banking customers, Which? reported.

Such cold calling firms, which operate on a 'no win, no fee' basis, have been slammed by critics, with the watchdog stating such a service is "unnecessary" as customers can claim fees back with free template letters on the Which? website.

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