Decision leads Getin Noble Bank to return to clients an unjustified fee and interest it collected for maintaining checking accounts.

Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) initiated proceedings against Getin Noble Bank following media reports at the end of December 2014. UOKiK’s doubts were raised by the bank’s practice of charging account maintenance fees applied for blocks of months instead of at the end of each accounting period.

According to the contracts for the checking accounts UOKiK analyzed, if an agreed amount was not deposited into an account, Getin Noble Bank could charge the account holder the maintenance fee — but should have done so after the end of each accounting month. Instead, the bank collected a total fee, often for a few months or even a whole year or more, from consumers who between May 2012 and August 2013 did not pay into the account every month.

“The Bank had the right to charge consumers a fee when they did not maintain adequate funds in their accounts; however, it used its stronger position by charging for a dozen or more months. Customers incurred costs that could have been avoided. The effects of this practice will be eliminated,” said UOKiK President Marek Niechciał.

Getin Noble Bank has committed to changing its practice. It will give back the fees together with interest and will inform customers of the Authority’s decision.

Additional information for the media:

Press Office, UOKiK
Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warsaw
Phone.: +48 22 827 28 92, +48 22 55 60 314, +48 22 55 60 430
E-mail: [SCODE]Yml1cm9wcmFzb3dlQHVva2lrLmdvdi5wbA==[ECODE]

Twitter: @UOKiKgovPL