How to reclaim bank charges and overdraft fees

Banks quietly collect billions in fees and charges every year, and a meaningful slice of it is reclaimable - not through some loophole, but because the charge was wrongly applied, unfairly stacked during financial hardship, or attached to an account you were mis-sold. Here's what you can actually get back in 2026, and the route that works.

What you can reclaim (and what you can't)

Let's set expectations honestly, because plenty of sites won't.

You have a realistic claim for:

• Wrongly applied charges - fees for a "missed" payment that wasn't missed, duplicate charges, or charges that don't match your account's terms. These are straightforward: the bank took money it wasn't entitled to.
• Charges stacked during financial hardship - if the bank kept piling fees onto an account it knew was in trouble, that can breach its FCA duty to treat customers fairly. Charge-on-charge spirals are the classic case.
• Packaged bank account fees - monthly-fee accounts with "benefits" (travel insurance, breakdown cover) you couldn't use or never asked for. Mis-sold packaged accounts are one of the most successful reclaim categories at the Financial Ombudsman: think insurance you were too old to claim on, or an upgrade you never agreed to.
• Unarranged overdraft charges from before April 2020 - the FCA banned daily and monthly unarranged overdraft fees in 2020 precisely because they were harmful. Older charges can still be challenged if they caused a spiral, within time limits.

You probably can't reclaim: ordinary arranged-overdraft interest at your agreed rate, or charges the bank applied exactly as the terms describe on an account you're simply unhappy with. The 2009 Supreme Court ruling closed the door on reclaiming standard charges just for being high.

Step 1: pull the evidence

You're entitled to your account history. Six years of statements is the usual scope (that's the limitation period for most claims - though the ombudsman can look further back if you only recently realised there was a problem). Highlight every charge you're disputing and note what triggered it. For a packaged account, dig out when it was opened or upgraded and what you were told at the time.

Our bank fees refund tool helps you total up what's in scope and turns it into a claim.

Step 2: complain to the bank in writing

Use the word complaint - it triggers the FCA's complaint-handling rules and an 8-week deadline for a final response. Cover:

• The charges you're disputing, with dates and amounts
• Why: wrongly applied, applied during known financial difficulty, or attached to a mis-sold account
• What you want: a refund of the charges plus interest

If hardship is part of the story, say so plainly. Banks have an obligation to respond to financial difficulty with forbearance, not fee stacking - and the ombudsman takes that seriously.

Step 3: escalate to the Financial Ombudsman - free

If the bank rejects your complaint or 8 weeks pass, escalate to the Financial Ombudsman Service. It's free, you don't need a claims company, and decisions you accept are binding on the bank. You have 6 months from the final response letter to refer the case, so diarise it the day the letter lands.

Our Financial Ombudsman guide walks the whole route, including what a "final response" actually is.

What about claims companies?

They'll do the same steps for 25-40% of your refund. The ombudsman process was designed for consumers to use directly - the form takes an evening. Keep your money.

The letter matters

A vague "I want my charges back" gets a template rejection. A letter that cites the specific charges, the FCA rules in play, and the remedy you want gets routed to people with authority to pay. That's exactly what NoReply drafts - start your complaint and have a bank-ready letter in minutes.