You will incur bank charges once you have exceeded your overdraft limited. It usually ranges from £15 to £35. If you are already using the overdrafts options, incurring expenses is something that you will dread so these charges will not be welcomed news to you. There are ways to go about claiming back these charges.

You have the option of getting in touch with your bank so that they can wipe off the charge if it is the first time you are incurring it. If it is a charge which you happen to get on a regular basis then there are different ways of going about it.

Take The Money Back

As much as there is no guarantee of you being able to successfully claim your bank charges, this is an option that exists so you are better off trying than not. Stay open to the fact that you may be successful or not.

Maintain a positive attitude because this will definitely work to your advantage. No bank wants to part with any form of payments if they can avoid it. It comes down to how tactful you are willing to be for you to earn that money from them. Banks are under obligation to treat their customers well so as to retain them and this is something you can take advantage of.

Financial Hardship

One of the ways that you can go about appealing the charges is by claiming financial hardship. The banks all are signatories of The Lending Code which dictates that they should act considerately towards people who are not doing so well financially. Here are a few of the considerations when seeking to see if you are suffering hardships:

• Unable to pay for necessities such as rent, food and bills.
• Unable to pay off debts.
• Small income that gets affected massively by the charges.
• Lack of money in your account that results in frequent payment returns.
• Well documented reduction of income maybe because of switching to a lower paying job or increased expenses maybe because of divorce or even going to school.
• Increased expenditure due to accidents or illness.
• Being declared bankrupt or going into debt management.
• You are surviving through taking credit.
• Records show that you often go over your overdraft limits to make ends meet incurring major fines.
• You are facing hefty bank charges.

You can claim a £35 charge as being disproportionate if you realize that you have exceeded your overdraft by a few pounds.

Writing to The Bank

Once you realize that you are eligible to make a claim, you can get in touch with your bank through writing. Attach evidence regarding your financial hardship situation to substantiate your claims.

Their Response

The banks have 2 months to respond and they should do it by sending you an acknowledgement letter as soon as possible. You will eventually get:

• Your whole refund.
• A partial refund depending on how well you negotiate.
• Refund to help you pay off the debt.
• A financial statement form which you should fill immediately for you to get a response.
• They may offer to help you in future without giving you a refund.
• They may choose to reject your appeal but this is not a reason for you to give up. You can always try writing or calling again.