Woohoo!  

I've just arrived home to find this little paper package of joy on my mat (click to enlarge):

... That's right kids - BT Mobile are threatening to send in the debt collectors, issue a Default notice, and incur the wrath of the gods on me, for a debt of (drum roll please):

1 penny.

Oh yes, it's three for the price of one (penny) on this BT Special Offer: for all you attention-starved, loveless people out there, you can have the attention of BT's Bad Debts department, a swarm of bailiffs, and even - for the lucky few among you - the loving attention of a Magistrate. Ho hum.

... Of course, the biggest irony here is the cheque I also received in the post from BT today - for the same account - as partial refund of the £118 bank charges they cost me last month by taking Direct Debits at the wrong time of the month.

Of course, they've only paid a little over half - "dragging heels" doesn't even begin to cover the run-around I've been given to collect the outstanding money they owe me.

I think - despite having a few months left to run on my contract - that I'm going to politely tell them to shove it. Their attitude and manners have so far taken the absolute mick...

Grrrrr /al - needing some sleep

p.s. I wonder how much it cost to print that letter, put it in an envelope, and post it...? 

This isn't so good: it looks like the first significant resistance against the growing anti-bank charges movement has been encountered in the form of District Judge Cook, reports the BBC. A customer of Lloyds TSB, Kevin Berwick, was claiming £2,545 from the bank in overdraft charges he said were illegal.

Judge Cook stated that the fees were "legitimate fees for servicing an overdrawn account".

More information from BBC News, here.

Oh, bugger...

UPDATE: it seems the claim was for overdraft fees, not bank charges levied for unauthorised transactions, so things still look reasonably good people claiming for bank charge refunds from unauthorised transactions.

More evidence of the banks' cash-grabbing antics emerged today in a report by the Evening Standard, as they report that the Royal Bank of Scotland group (which includes Mint and Lloyds TSB) are introducing a £12 fine for credit card customers who forget to tell them they have changed their address.

Quoth the article, "The bank claims the fee, applying to more than five million customers, is necessary to cover the cost of tracing those they have not been able to find. But consumer groups believe it is about fuelling profits."

I think I know whose story I believe more... Grr...! 

• More info at ThisIsLondon.co.uk
  

Following the latest on bank charges is becoming a tiny bit of a hobby for me now as - in common with millions of other customers - my bank takes more and more of my money in penalty charges to cover their "costs".

If you've read much of my blog, you might have spotted that a lot of my charges come from one charge taking me over my overdraft limit, with more charges piled on top to add insult to injury. Again, this is a common problem for lots of bank customers.

In the news today, I spotted this story about Lloyds TSB being accused by a judge of timewasting behaviour - not the first time such tactics have been used by the banks according to the BBC's article - and another story involving my personal favourite bank, the Alliance & Leicester (not that I ever write about their poor service or anything... ahem) tacitly admitting their charges should only be around the £4.50 mark at the most.

Not that being relieved of my money by a faceless and rude company of questionable competence irks me at all - I'm a Zen-like centre of calm and love today. Ok, I'm lying again... ;o)

Have a good weekend! /al - skyving coursework. Again.