National News
Commonwealth Bank accused of overcharging business customers
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has started civil penalty proceedings against Commonwealth Bank, alleging customers have been overcharged for fees they were never told about.
The organization alleged CBA’s CommBiz terms and conditions were misleading because they failed to clearly and accurately disclose all the fees business customers would be charged for direct debit and direct credit payments. It is alleged that CBA has also been charging an additional, undisclosed fee for the corresponding movement of money into or out of the customer’s CommBiz account.
The case was filed in the Federal Court late Wednesday afternoon. However, the court has not yet listed the matter for a case management hearing.
It is the second legal action ASIC has taken against a big bank in as many days, with Macquarie Bank on Monday admitting to failures in the promotion of its “welcome” interest rate for new savings account customers, which could result in a $14 million penalty. CBA has been contacted for comment.