Fed up with being bullied by your bank and being unfairly charged? Want to assert yourself but don't know how? Take a leaf out of one marmaREADER's book and take action

While some people always manage to keep their bank balances glowingly in credit, others may be more like marmaREADER, Caroline K*, who has had a rather more inconsistent relationship with the bank. For those of you who fall into the latter bracket, and who in the last six years may have incurred charges for being over drawn, whilst not realising your bank has been unlawfully over-charging you for the privilege, then read on!

Many of us just accept that every time a current account customer goes over drawn by as little as £1 most banks will charge around £28, even though the administration cost is only about £4.50. Then every cheque, direct debit, or card transaction that goes through or is bounced can incur another charge of up to £38. If you are a victim of this unfair status quo, it's time to stop feeling powerless and take some action. Which is exactly what Caroline did!

After having a yet another terrible experience with HSBC and feeling more powerless than ever (despite being a professional earning over £35K per annum and banking with them since she was seven years old) Caroline was intrigued to read about fellow wrongly charged individuals giving the high street giants a taste of their own medicine. She followed the processes described clearly by moneysavingexpert.com and a few weeks later had charges of £1550 refunded to her account! Don’t believe it? Then read tons of other peoples' testimonials on the same site.

After her experience with HSBC, Caroline decided she wanted to get out of the unhealthy relationship she had developed with them. She searched for a bank that would treat her and her money ethically and was pleased to start a new current account with smile.co.uk – which she reports on as so far so good.

If you are a chaotic banker, look at the reasons behind the chaos and try not to go overdrawn in the first place! But importantly, don’t just be someone who is unfairly taken advantage of by the banking system. Take responsibility for your money and start by being part of this true consumer revolution.

HOW TO GET YOUR MONEY BACK
Visit www.moneysavingexpert.com or www.thisismoney.co.uk or www.motleyfool.co.uk. Good luck!

EXTRA TIP!
If you have been in and out of debt over the years and want to take further, positive steps towards clarity in your financial headspace – you need to work towards sorting out your credit rating. Better to know what the credit reference agencies think of you now and move towards clearing a negative credit history, than to bury your head in the sand waiting for a time when you urgently need to know for the purposes of getting a mortgage or something similar. It may even be far better than you thought it would be!

*(Names have been change to save blushes!)