Charges for making cash payments into one’s own account at a bank’s cash desk are still an additional financial burden imposed by banks on consumers, states a report of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection. Fortunately, charges for cash withdrawals from one’s own account at a bank’s branch are a thing of the past

The Register of Abusive Clauses, maintained by the President of UOKiK, includes more than 30 provisions concerning banking services - four of them concern charging additional fees for making cash withdrawals from one’s own account at a bank's cash desk. An analysis of standard form contracts used by banks conducted by the Office revealed that all the banks had abandoned this practice. However, during the inspection several other irregularities were found.

Six banks charged consumers for making payments in coins - from PLN 3 to 10, or at least 0.5% of the sum being paid in. In the opinion of Marek Niechciał, President of the Office, such action is not justified, because coin money is an equally good instrument of payment as bank notes. Charging additional costs for making payments in coins is unconscionable. It also constitutes an infringement of consumer economic interests, as customers incur financial losses as a result of the fact that banks differentiate between the instruments of payment. In the opinion of UOKiK, operating payments in cash - regardless of its type - is part of maintaining a bank account, for which the consumer is charged regularly. It is worth noting that in November 2007 the President of UOKiK issued a decision in a similar matter. The practices questioned then were used at seven branches of PEKAO SA. As a result of the actions undertaken by the Office, the bank stopped collecting the charges.

The President of UOKiK’s also found it questionable that banks collected charges for operating cash payments into consumer’s own account in the form of “unarranged” bank notes or coins. The inspection revealed that when paying in a greater amount of money in bank notes or coins which were not grouped according to their denominations, arranged in the same direction, put into packets of 1000 pieces, each with a band stating their denomination - the consumer was charged additional costs. In the opinion of the President of UOKiK such practices are unconscionable. Moreover, according to the banking law, it is the financial institution which is obliged to count and sort the bank notes and coins coming from payments into bank accounts.

The Office also contested clauses regarding withdrawals from foreign currency accounts which stipulated that in a situation when the bank was not able to pay out the demanded foreign currency sum in full, it could pay out the remainder in Polish zloties at the bank’s exchange rate. It should be remembered that such exchange rates include a margin. Therefore, a consumer, who is not responsible for the currency deficits of the bank’s branch, could either give up the withdrawal or bear the costs of exchanging the currency. In the opinion of the President of UOKiK, This way the consumer was punished for the bank’s negligence. In the opinion of the Office, in a situation like that, the bank should use the average exchange rate of the National Bank of Poland.

Overall, UOKiK inspected over 100 standard form contracts used by 20 banks. It is worth stressing that some of the enterprises have expressed their willingness to cooperate and are voluntarily abandoning the contested practices. At the same time, UOKiK initiated proceedings concerning infringements of collective consumer interests by four banks: ING Bank Śląski, Getin Bank, Bank Zachodni WBK, Lukas Bank. Four more proceedings, against PKO BP, BPH, Bank Ochrony Środowiska and Fortis Bank, will be launched soon.

Consumers should remember that in the case of any difficulties they can count on the help of consumer ombudsmen or non-governmental consumer organisations: the Polish Consumer Federation, or the Association of Polish Consumers. Moreover, disputes between consumers and banks in the scope of financial claims on account of a failure to execute or improper execution of a service can be deal with by the Banking Arbitrator.

Additional information:
Małgorzata Cieloch, Spokesperson for UOKiK
Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warsaw, Poland
Tel.: (+48 22) 827 28 92, 55 60 106, 55 60 314
faks (+48 22) 826 11 86
E-mail mcieloch@uokik.gov.pl