Major banks charging up to FOUR times as much for large transfer fees

BANK customers are being stung with expensive fees if they need to transfer cash ahead of a property purchase.

Sun researchers have discovered major banks and building societies are slapping customers with hefty charges for transferring property deposits ahead of a house purchase.

The worst offenders included Santander, Barclays and Yorkshire Building Society, all charging £35 a pop if you want to transfer funds electronically to yourself or your solicitor for a mortgage.

TSB asks for £30, while others impose levies of between £17 and £25 for large transfers in what is usually described as a funds transfer fee.

Coventry Building Society won plaudits for charging just £8 for the same service.

The fees - normally hidden in small print on the firms’ websites - come as Brits desperate to buy a home already face agonising rates of inflation as groceries, energy and petrol prices rocket.

The charges cover Clearing House Automated Payment System (CHAPS) transactions.

CHAPS is an automated payment system used to make high value transfers between banks, in most cases, on the same day.

Many people use them because they are considered as a safer way to transfer large sums of money than doing it yourself through an app.

You'll need to ensure your payment is made before your bank or building societies cut-off time for same day transfers.

Any payments made after this, will be received the next working day.

Nationwide, gives its customers the choice of paying the £20 transfer fee to send their payment via CHAPS or pay nothing to send the money via BACS.

The problem is that BACS payments take three working days to process - and this is often too slow for customers needing to sort a mortgage or complete on a property purchase.

Consumer experts have blasted the banks for bashing customers as they battle to get onto the housing ladder.

Marc Gander of the Consumer Action Group, said: “If Coventry Building Society can do it for £8 and still make some profit then why are the rest of the banks so expensive ?

“No pain, no gain. You have the pain. They have the gain.”

Sun Squeeze Team panel member, Martyn James, added: “This research shows vividly how consumers are expected to put up with unnecessary or excessive fees for every aspect of the mortgage process. 

“It's high time the whole cost of arranging a mortgage - from bank charges to solicitors fees - is investigated and brought in to the 21st century.”

A spokesperson for comparison site Moneyfacts added: “It’s vital borrowers check all the terms and conditions and transaction costs when entering any arrangement so that they are not surprised by a charge. 

“Seeking independent financial advice is always wise to go through the total fees so borrower is aware what they have committed to from the outset.”

UK Finance, the trade association for the UK banking and financial services sector said pricing was a matter for individual banks and building societies.

Santander, said: “We review our fees and charges on an ongoing basis.”

Barclays, Lloyds, Yorkshire building Society, Royal Bank of Scotland and TSB were all contacted for comment.