Fat cat greedy brokers and banks, sick of them all!

Insurance companies are SUPPOSED to insure you, their customer; however, what they do is INSURE THEMSELVES AGAINST ANY CLAIMS FROM YOU.

It has just been announced in the media that ten thousand city bankers are going to get a million pounds each,

We, the taxpayers have just bailed out the banks to the tune of billions opon billions of £££ssss

Surely there will be riots or anarchy one day if this sort of thing carries on?

Today we went to the Santander Bank (Abbey National to you and me) in the high street near us. We needed to send $8,000 to an account in the USA. We asked what the amount and cost would be. They said at the start of our transaction that it would be about £4920 plus £25 charge. 40 minutes later - yes, the transaction took 40 minutes to complete - unbelievable in this day and age - £5082 was deducted from our account for the transaction. I complained why on Earth could they not give us a full and accurate quote before we started this business. I asked them to do this befoe we started the transaction. They said they couldn't. Unbelievable!

Banks seem to me to be generally crooks, liars and cheats. They could have given us a far more accurate quote than they did for this transaction. They declined to do this. This is the taxi-journey way of doing business where you simply don't know how much the journey will cost till you have completed it. Taxi-drivers are generally a bad lot the world over, so too are banks.

The Second War was the triumph of amateurism over organisation. Mrs Thatcher saw to it that the nation needed to be ripped off. People voted for her and her way. They like being ripped off. Britons are sado-masochists. They love cheap and nasty, quality-less overpricing. They are suckers for economic punishment. Socialism requiring organisation will never take hold here. The Establishment remain in power because Britons love buffoons, call it the friendly Mafia. From the cradle to the grave Britons are taught to know their place, the lower in the economic foodchain you are, the more you are ripe for ripping off. Banks were/are simply a means to this end. The joke's over though. The four horsemen of the Apocalypse will soon be riding through your town: death, famine pestilence and war.

I do my banking on the web. I avoid going to visit the branch wherever possible. Why? Because I absolutely hate when I go to simply pay in a cheque or withdraw some money and instead of just doing what I ask, the cashier tries their best to flog me some product or other - an account upgrade, a credit card, some insurance, whatever... Just leave me alone you leaches, if I want your product or service I shall ask for it, just do what I ask and shut up!!!!

If you were betrayed by a friend, or someone you respected, would you keep going back for more?

I can't understand people who get rooked by their bank and still you remain a customer? You would have to be pretty stupid to keep on accepting your bank ripping you off. But millions of you can't be bothered to just go to your bank and fill out an account transfer form!

What annoys me more than banks is,......stupid people, like this! Basically you deserve all the rip-offs you get taken for. What's even more sad is, deep down, you know it!

You may start moaning and wanting better rights and more business regulation. But if a bank can rip you off that easily you don't deserve more rights. What you need to do is take some personal responsibility for being a loser! Then you may get some respect and then you might get some rights.

Somehow I think the insurance Ombudsmen are scared to tackle this issue as are the bank employees who get a tasty tidbit for selling these insurance policies and other products on. We used the Halifax solicitors when we sold our home. What a useless bunch they were. They never answered the phone. I've now moved the mortgage and the insurances. I thank you for this advice regarding going through a broker. I will make appointments and arrangements myself directly to the insurance company. It would be interesting to compare the two. Banking staff should bow their heads in shame. I still see adverts on tv - for what purpose? Where has the image of respectability and confidentiality gone? Where has the friendly bank minus all the stupid advertising gone? You don't need to advertise if you're a respectable establishment the customer will come to you.

You know I think we are tending to become complacent. How is it fair that we have all these added extras onto our mortgage because we've gone through a broken. I asked for the £1500 administration fee charged on our remortgage with Abbey National to be explained - I never received a reply. I also phoned up and also got no real response other than it was a fixed rate. Imagine by anger when I discovered that the broker was getting a huge cut of this so called admin fee. Our mortgage comes up for renewal in 2 years and there is no way on this earth that I would ever use a broker again. Talk about corrupt and to think of all the money they and banks make out of us for selling us insurance is downright wrong. There is too much corruption in banking and in the sale of insurance policies it needs to be sorted out NOW.

Insurance Ombudsmen where are you?? Why can't you stop this corrupt behaviour by banks and brokers. It is not right that the consumer is being taken for a ride. This is just so wrong. We get taxed for just about everything: council tax; income tax; tv licence; inheritance tax etc why should our hard earned money be wasted in this way? Sort it out. This is corruption.

Inheritance tax now thats another thing that irritates me - WHY SHOULD THE GOVERNMENT BENEFIT FROM OUR HARD WORK OVER THE YEARS. I want my family to benefit not some fat cat in government. STOP INHERITANCE TAX NOW.

INSURANCE OMBUDSMEN STOP THIS CORRUPTION OF SELLING INSURANCE POLICIES NOW

Leaving aside the cost of the policies, people often wonder why their investments in a pension policy have performed as badly as they have. Have you felt totally ripped off by your pension provider when you cashed had to cash it in, at any point in the last 10 years? It's mainly because of these charges and all the rubbish the pension companies spout. But it's all still legal for them to behave like this.

Banks have a so-called Sales Culture - you must have seen this "in action" on TV progs like Panorama, Watchdog, Dispatches. Blatant Rip-off practices, changing current accounts, rip-off mortgage charges and fees, bullying of bank staff (anyone wanting to work for a High St bank must like being bullied, because that is what you are going to get!Your "performance" and commitment gets questioned DAILY.) The lesson is, if an organisation does it to it's staff it will treat it's customers just the same!

When we buying our house, I could never understand the reason why inspecting the health of my body was far more important to the bank/building society [when aged 30] than assessing the structural condition of the house. Absolute nuts.