Bank charges reduced by Royal Bank of Scotland/Natwest Group

So the Royal Bank of Scotland/Natwest group have decided to reduce their bank charges for various items, now I welcome this and wish my bank, Lloyds TSB, also partly state owned will not only follow suit, but also then refund me for everything they've overcharged me.

Has this decision been made before the House of Lords and Office of Fair Trading ruling that dictates these charges are unlawful or at the very least well over the top and force the banks to drop the charges and force them to refund all those previous charges highlighted.

I saw the story yesterday but the full page advert in today's Metro caught my eye and reminded me of the story, the news was also covered on moneysavingexpert.com who really started the campaign to slash bank charges, so the first round goes to Martin Lewis of moneysavingexpert.com although Brian Hartzer the Chief Executive Officer, UK Retail Banking of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group will claim it is all his idea - obviously!

So, the unpaid items charge has gone from £38 to £5, the guaranteed card payment fees have gone from £35 to £15, paid referral fees are reduced from £30 to £15 and the maintenance charge has been cut from £28 to £20. These reductions come into force on 1st October.

So well done to The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, but did they jump before they were pushed by the House of Lords and Office of Fair Trading?