Four Irish banks face probe

ULSTER'S four main High Street banks are to be investigated by the Office of Fair Trading after Which? alleged they colluded to reduce competition.

The OFT said its initial study found the banks make charges on people in credit which they do not apply in the rest of the UK. It also found evidence of parallel pricing behaviour among them and no active competition to get customers to switch accounts.

The banks - Royal Bank of Scotland's Ulster Bank, Northern Bank, which is being sold by National Australia Bank, Allied Irish's First Trust Bank and Bank of Ireland - have five weeks to respond before the OFT orders a full inquiry by the Competition Commission.

Phil Evans, principal policy officer at Which? welcomed today's news: 'The OFT has signalled the beginning of the end for the Northern Ireland banking rip-off,' he said.

'The market is condemned as being anti-competitive and acting against the consumer interest. Putting the Northern Ireland Big Four in front of the Competition Commission will force transparency in an opaque market and highlight real solutions that will cut banking costs for consumers.

'The fact that Northern Bank finally caved in this week and offered a competitive bank account to Northern Irish consumers lights the way for the other Big Four banks. And while this inquiry rumbles on, consumers can make a difference by switching their account away from the Big Four.'

The Which? complaint was supported by Alliance & Leicester. Simon Ripton, current accounts manager at A&L said: 'Northern Ireland's Big Four banks are simply relying on customer apathy to continue getting away with offering poor deals. With increased competition in the current account market consumers should take this opportunity to have a second look at who they bank with and whether they really are getting the best deal available.