FCA reviews credit card fees and charges

The FCA has written to credit card firms to request they review their policies and procedures in relation to fees and charges, to ensure they result in fair consumer outcomes and comply with CONC.

The letter follows the FCA’s review of the sector, which looked at fees and charges. The review found a number of areas of weakness in various providers’ operations: some customers being charged fees on multiple occasions, which suggested that firms were not identifying and addressing signs of actual or potential financial difficulty; and firms authorising transactions on multiple occasions which push a customer over the agreed credit limit (thereby triggering over-limit fees).  The FCA estimated that the changes already made to fees and charges as a result of ongoing feedback have saved consumers over £80 million.