19 January, 2007

Don't feed the vultures

Last month, the news broke that charges imposed by UK high-street banks may be excessive and hence unlawful.  Tens of thousands of people have apparently made successful claims and received refunds.

Unfortunately, it also seems that commercial 'claims-handling agents' are exploiting the situation (look at the adverts accompanying a Google search for 'bank charge claim'), offering to assist claimants on a 'no win, no fee' basis.
It needs to be made absolutely clear that these companies are parasites, and should be totally avoided. One should never pay any intermediary to reclaim bank charges.

All information and documentation, including template letters, is available free, without registration, at consumer-action websites such as MoneySavingExpert, as is the support of groups like penaltycharges or consumeractiongroup.