Broderick seeks meeting over B of I overcharging

The Irish Bank Officials' Association (IBOA) is to seek a meeting with Bank of Ireland chief executive Brian Goggin to ask for reassurance that junior staff at the bank will not be scapegoated for the overcharging of 65,000 customers over 15 years.

IBOA general secretary Larry Broderick said the bank's failure to refund personal loan customers' payment protection insurance premiums if they repaid the loan early was a cause for serious concern.

Bank of Ireland's revelation yesterday that it would have to repay an estimated 65,000 customers up to €15 million follows an industry-wide review by the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority (Ifsra) into the sale of payment protection policies.

Mr Broderick said the fact that the matter had only come to public attention after a review requested by the regulator raised serious questions about the bank's own internal reporting and checking mechanisms.

"It is imperative that not only are customers properly and speedily refunded, but that there is a detailed, independent and totally transparent investigation initiated to find out how this occurred and why this had not come to light beforehand," he said

Mr Broderick wants reassurances from Mr Goggin that proper procedures are immediately put in place to ensure there is no repetition of the error. He also called for a transparent root and branch review of best business practices.

Labour Party finance spokeswoman Joan Burton TD said it was ironic that the customers affected were those who had been the most prudent in paying off the money they owed.

"Additional charges such as insurance products linked to loans have become a key way in rip-off Ireland for financial institutions to charge customers even more," she said.

Public confidence in the banking sector had been undermined once again, according to Fine Gael finance spokesman Richard Bruton TD.

Mr Bruton said the need for a vigorous code of conduct with strong compliance requirements was now greater than ever.

"This latest revelation confirms our long-held beliefs that customer rights were never a priority within the banking sector, " he said.