Checking your Bank Charges are Correct

Understanding your bank charges and interest

What are bank charges?

• Bank charges are the payment debited or deducted from your bank account to pay for the services your bank provides.

What services do banks normally charge for?

• Charging policies vary from bank to bank
• In general banks charge:
  • Interest at an agreed rate for loans and overdrafts
  • Fees for transactions that pass through your account, e.g. payments into and from your account, stopping cheques, returning cheques as unpaid due to insufficient funds, issuing bankers' drafts
  • Fees for arranging and managing loans and overdrafts
• Charges are usually deducted monthly or quarterly

How do I know how much I will be charged?

• Your bank should send you a list of all the types of charges that apply to its main banking services
• Your bank should notify you in advance of any charges arising as a result of activity in your account
• If you have a question about charges, your bank should explain:
  • On what basis the charges have been made
  • The charging periods which apply
  • How they will publicise any changes made to their charges