Last week I applied online for an Alliance & Leicester Premier Plus account. I’m already a happy A&L customer and thought – great and Internet banking offer with decent interest rates.
Application filled in and checked the box asking for their Mastercard which provides money back on purchases. A few days later I received the paperwork that they send out to get signatures. All very well until I decided to read the small print that came with the "Congratulations on being accepted" letter + forms to sign.
On the credit card it said "You agree to be charged �25 if you are late in paying your credit card bill by one day". Excuse me? Late fees? I thought the late fees that the CC companies enjoyed were the nice fat interest rates that they charged on the full amount of the balance for the month if you did not clear the balance.
I scrawled a large C-A-N-C-E-L-L-E-D across the CC form and sent it back. I’ll never take out a credit card that employs such underhand methods in ripping off customers.
Bootnote: It seems that in the USA several of these CC companies (including MBNA who provide The A&L card) have been successfully sued/settled Class Action suits against them for their operation of these late fees systems. In the UK, which has already slammed these companies and UK’s Office of Fair Trading is investigating.