Overdraft rates rocket
Authorised overdraft rates have soared to their highest level for a decade.
Consumers are charged an average of 14.22 per cent in interest if they go into the red with their bank's permission, the highest level since May 2000, said financial information group Moneyfacts.co.uk, even though the Bank of England base rate is at a record low of 0.5 per cent. The last time the average authorised overdraft rate was this high, the base rate stood at six per cent.
Moneyfacts attributed the high rates to the battle banks had over unauthorised overdraft charges, which led to many banks changing fees for going into the red without permission.