Business bank account customers will no longer be able to reclaim unfair overdraft charges from their bank following this week’s landmark High Court ruling. Although the judge at the centre of the case ruled on Thurday that the excessive penalties levied on personal account holders by eight High Street banks could be assessed for fairness by the Office of Fair Trading – he cast business account customers out in the cold. Business accounts are covered by common law instead of the consumer law governing individual’s current accounts, even though each can suffer charges of up to £39 a time for incursions into ‘unauthorised’ overdrafts. This is a major blow to small businesses hoping to reclaim their hefty overdraft charges.
Tags: bank charges, business accounts, Office of Fair Trading, OFT, overdraft charges