UK banks scrutinised over fee structures

LONDON - Following the recent backlash against unfair bank charges, the UK Financial Services Authority (FSA) has updated its statement on lenders concerns over unfair mortgage exit administration fees (MEAF). The original statement of good practice published in January, which confirmed that consumers were being charged higher exit fees than they had expected, was intended to stop existing customers from being charged too high fees and to provide a basis from which past customers could seek compensation.

The statement also set out the FSA's expectations on how future customers should be treated and that lenders should review their approach to this by the end of July. Responses from mortgage firms to the FSA on this issue have shown that since the statement was issued, most major lenders have opted either to charge a fee that cannot be varied during the lifetime of the mortgage, or to remove the MEAF altogether; and other lenders will charge a MEAF that reflects the administrative costs when the