Supreme Court Overturns Ruling in Bank Charges Case
In an immensely unexpected decision, the Supreme Court has overturned the decision by the High Court and Appeals Court in the ongoing bank charges claims case. The ruling means that Office of Fair Trading has been deemed NOT to be able to make an assessment over the fairness of charges.
This will come as a bitter blow to the one million consumers whose claims have been on hold since July 2007 and will be disappointing to an estimated 8 million others who have incurred charges over the past 8 years.
This does not necessarily mean that people are unable to claim bank charges. It means that the Office of Fair Trading does not have the authority to insist that banks refund them. This in turn means that any consumer wishing to pursue a bank charges claim will have to take their individual case to the courts. Most experts had previously expected the Supreme Court to uphold the decisions of the High Court and Appeals Court.
Marc Gander of the Consumer Action Group, the lobbying group behind the campaign, said, ‘We are totally stunned and I think the banks themselves must be stunned. I am sure this isn’t the end of the issue and the OFT will pursue the issue further in the European courts. The charges are excessive and cannot be allowed to persist.’
Whichever way the ruling went, it was likely that the case would continue through the European Courts. So in terms of when the case will be wrapped up, the ruling will probably make little difference. The impact it has had, however, is to dash the hopes of millions of consumers who have incurred excessive banking charges since 2001.