Banks delay High Court charges case with appeal

by Gill Montia

Story link: Banks delay High Court charges case with appeal

High Street banks are set to delay the outcome of the High Court case brought by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to establish the legality of their charges for unauthorised overdrafts.

Consumer group Which? has reported that Mr Justice Andrew Smith, who is hearing the case, has accepted that the banks have a right to appeal against last month’s initial ruling that the OFT could examine the charges under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contract regulations.

The ruling will, therefore, be examined by the Appeal Court and possibly the House of Lords, before the case is heard in full.

This could delay the final outcome for at least a year and, according to Which?, serve as an opportunity for the banks to accrue up to £3.5 billion in inflated overdraft charges.

Meanwhile hundreds of thousands of consumer complaints on bank charges will remain on hold, including some that are being pursued through the County Courts.

The banks are arguing that the charges do not come under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations because are made for a service connected to a current account.