Inter Financial Weblog

 

Archive for February, 2007

Banks Charging for Current Accounts

Wednesday, February 28th, 2007

Despite the fact that banks are set to report record profits this week, they are preparing to add a user fee to their current accounts.  Financial authorities are claiming that it is only a matter of time before free banking is a thing of the past.

The Evening Standard reported record profits of £337 billion for banks in 2006.  There have been hints from iva.co.uk that banks will stop free accounts.  To date, no bank has refuted the claims or denied that a decision is likely.

The people who will be bear the brunt of the decision will be the poor, debt burdened, and financially uneducated.

Alison Melville, spokesperson for Iva.co.uk said:

“The people who it is going to penalise are the poor … It’s crazy because it’s asking for money from the people who don’t have it,” she said.

Ms Melville concluded by stating that banks are trying to remove their “dead wood” – the people who cannot afford to pay. This is paramount to denying affordable banking to society’s poorest.

This is offset by calls from inside the industry for financial providers to improve their customer service.

Ed Mayo, chief executive of the National Consumer Council, stated that banks should provide better services for those that rely on them, the elderly, people with disabilities and those on low income.  Mr. Mayo argued that many “fail” to tailor these products to people’s needs.

“It’s high time that the banks’ world-class profits came with world-class customer service,” he claimed.

Charging a fee for accounts is a step away from customer service.

Posted in Bank charges, Banking, Consumer debt, Debt management, Financial news, Financial products, Personal debt, UK Finance | No Comments »

Applying Online

Wednesday, February 28th, 2007

If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, you will find that you are now able to do so online.  By applying online you will find many advantages, as well as disadvantages to applying for a card online.  If you are careful and research to find the best card you will be able to find a card that is right for you.

Almost all of the major credit card issuers allow you to apply for one of their cards through their website.  The card company will instantly receive you application and the processing of the application will be quick.  The company will run a few checks on your credit background to determine the interest rate for your account, and also to make sure you are creditworthy.  This may take some time, however you will receive a response much quicker than the traditional application method.  Typically the waiting period is about a week or less.

By applying online, you will be able to research and find the best credit card offers.  You will be able to compare the many offers that are available and find a card that will suit your spending habits.  You should carefully research and look around the market and look at sites that will give you a listing of all the current cards and their rates and offers, so that you will be able to compare several cards at one time.  Never go for the first deal that is offered to you, you need to shop around and ensure you are getting a good deal.

When you have found a card that is suitable for you, then you will have to go to their website and apply for a card.  When you click on the ‘Apply Now’ button, you will be redirected to a secure site where they will ask for your details, such as your mailing address birthdate and other relevant information.  When you sign on, you must make sure that the site you are entering your information on is secure before proceeding.  Once the information is complete you will then submit the application and wait to hear back from the company.

Posted in Borrowing, Consumer Credit, Credit Card, Financial products, interest rates, Personal loans, Spending, UK Finance | No Comments »

Social Impact of Scams

Tuesday, February 27th, 2007

Mike Haley, head of Scambusters at the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), said:

“Scams affect not only individual victims, but also their families and communities, and can lead to debt, depression and health problems. Though anybody can be conned, it is always the most vulnerable who end up suffering the most.”

The OFT offers Scambuster’ booklet for concerned individuals.

There are many scams. The most popular include emails and phone calls where someone is dying and wants to donate money to charity, but their families will contest their wills. These people offer to donate the money through a victim, for a share, and in turn offer a reward.

Another common scam involves an email where someone has millions of dollars that they need to get out of the country and want a victim to help them and are willing to reward the person handsomely.

The most damaging is Phishing.  This involves emails and web sites that ask consumers to enter their banking information.

Once fraudsters copied the HMRC logo onto emails that offered recipients a tax refund of £170. The victim clicked on a link to a bogus HMRC website and completed a form that asked for their bank details.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “We are aware of these types of phishing frauds. We work with partners in the industry to actively investigate the bigger picture leading to them and many are on our Fraud Alert site on met.police.uk. We would be grateful if emails could be forwarded to us for possible inclusion on the website and to enable us to close down the server involved.

“Our advice is that if you receive something that appears to be too good to be true, then it generally it is.

“We advise anyone to forward suspicious correspondence to fraud.alert@met.police.uk and report to their local police station any money they have lost through such a scam.”

Posted in Bad Credit, Card fraud, Consumer debt, Financial news, Fraud, Identity theft, Personal debt, UK Finance | No Comments »

« Older posts