How The Banks Fleece Us - Let Me Count The Ways

I don't know about you, but I was brought up to respect my betters. Yes indeed, rural Ireland was a backward place, especially considering, 'All men are created equal'. Not in our neck of the woods! Maybe because my parents were simple country folk, not well educated and in employed in manual labour.

Thus, if the bank manger walked by, they tugged their forelock and bowed their head. (prehaps not literally, but certainly figuratively).

I grew up not questioning 'authority'. Firstly because to question my father's authority meant a beating, and if he didn't question the tax office, the bank etc. then by gosh, I surely wasn't going to. Questioning authority obviously became a source of pain for me, so I always tried to 'get around it'.

For instance, when my car tax was due, I would drive for a couple of months before I renewed it. They tightened up the rules and I don't think you could get away with that now.

One thing I never questioned though, was the bank and their 'right' to my money. I never complained about unfair overdraft fees, poor savings returns, fees and suchlike. It wasn't until I started reading about wholesale consumer actions started by my hero Martyn Lewis of moneyexpert.com that I realised I actually had the right and also the responsibility to manage my money, decide whether or not the bank could 'take' £30 in overdraft fees or not.

Since then I have been on a bit of a crusade. I started a research project into banking, money and consumerism. I learned about the ultimate banking fraud that means all of our economy is based on debt, with credit masquerading as money and being created out of thin air.

Many people are like how I was, wandering around in the fog created by mass manipulation, tv programming, advertising, media propaganda. And as some great philosopher once said ' Tell a lie often enough and it becomes the accepted truth'.

When I talk to people about the bank fraud and how banks and credit card companies rip us off, some look at me as though I am cracked in the head. (I don't hear voices, I am just awake and can see the truth that others wilfully ignore.)

However, since a lot of people don't want to face up to the 'big' conspiracy, I will continue to detail the accepted reality of recorded predatory and immoral business practices that banks deal in, in the hope that even one good soul will save themselves from penury.

Thus, here's a few of the accepted practises these businesses deal in daily to squeeze more profits from their customers. The 'Big Five' UK banks are on line to report staggering annual profits, up from £37.5Billion last year to £39.05Billion this year, even in the face of massive financial market turmoil, sub primes losses and credit crunch/recession fears. Business is booming for the banks, and they make sure they milk everey customer dry.....

Banks are in court this week to defend the OFT action over overdraft fees. Many of them have quietly introduced current account charges to claw back any potential losses on a clampdown of fees. Nationwide, HSBC, Smile and IF will make an extimated EXTRA £173Million in revenue over the next 12 months purely because of this new charge introduction.

Mis-selling loan protection is a nice little earner for our banks, in fact it is one of their biggest earners., with an estimated 5.1 billion made in premiums annually. Many people don't even realise they have it! Payment protection insurance is routinely sold alongside mortgages, loans and credit cards, and can add thousands to the cost of a loan. Analysts believe that at least 70% of the 20million policies sold in the UK were mis-sold, and you can claim a refund. This is a massive scandal that could cost the banks up to £21billion. No wonder they closed down moneyexpert.com just before Martyn was launching a consumer programme to help people do just that!

Banks also make around £3.5Billion a year by charging us up to £39 every time we go overdrawn, even if only by pennies. The Office of Fair Trading believes this charge should only be around £4 and that is what the banks are now fighting in court. If we win, perpare for your bank to fight back by increasing current account charges and hiking up interest rates for authorised overdrafts. It really is ridiculously easy for the banks to recover their profit margin.

Mortgage fees are another area where the banks predatory nature is unveiled. A buyer purchasing a typical house in the southeat of England at £500,000 would now have to pay £17,500 just to arrange a mortgage! Uncapped fees are the banks new way to boost profits. 2 years ago then average fee was £450, it is now £1000, netting lenders an extra £1.1Billion annually.

And now to savings accounts, which have never before been so confusing. Banks lure customers with attractive headline rates, only they slash the interest if you don't fulfill their frankly insane conditions.

You'd think easy access accounts would mean just that, but no you get punished for withdrawals and end up making significantly less on your hoarded cash.

And then we come to credit cards, which would need a whole scam review all by themselves. Keeping it brief, where to start? They can move the interest rate at will. Late payment fees were fixed by the OFT at £12, however the card companies fought back by introducing a whole new raft of other fees to recoup their lost revenue. Recent changes in fees are making them £30million EXTRA a year. You can be charged if you move house and fail to notify them, you can even be charged if you don't use the card enough.