Today's the day...

[platypus]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7364422.stm

Edit: Update, the banks have lost, but the charges have been deemed "not necessarily unfair".

 

[platypus]

(b) customers would vote with their feet, taking their accounts to banks which had not raised charges or introduced new ones.

They are operating what is basically a legal cartel, and agree most of these types of things together; they would all do it.

 

[platypus]

There's plenty of variation between banks and bank charges already. They know that they can be fined for price-fixing, and they know that if the products they offer are too similar, they can't be sure of winning customers from each other.

There is and there isn't plenty of variation.

The High street banks, against which this case is levied, have colluded on charges and the like for a very long time.

 

[platypus]

but they will still have the charges! just at a lower rate (hopeuflly) they may not even introduce higher fee's for free things

That is largely irrelevant.

With the profit margins being generated by these charges gone, banks will seek to reclaim those margins elsewhere.

 

[platypus]

They really only have themselves to blame though.

What has that got to do with anything? Who is to blame is irrelevant. They will still do their utmost to maintain and increase their profit margins.

yes i agree.

but everyone seems to 'know' that they will be charging for all free features!

Not really, but most people seem to be making a fairly well informed guess, given the history of Banks, that they will be recouping these losses elsewhere.

 

[platypus]

After skimming all the pages and only seeing a argument going on I need to ask a question which may already of been answered.

Does this mean I can claim back charges now?

Not yet, and possibly not ever. We won't know for definite until later in the year.