Barclaycard gets tough on customers

Barclaycard customers who pay their bills in full each month may have their payment date suddenly brought forward, the bank has told the BBC. The move could put customers at risk of incurring a £20 late payment fee if they do not examine their bills carefully each month. This revelation comes amid continued criticism of bank profits and not long after the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) investigation into late payment charges.

However, Barclaycard denies it is trying to rake in late penalties, and says it never guarantees customers a fixed payment date each month. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Money Box programme, Barclaycard's Ian Barber said any change of date will be explicitly outlined on the customer's statement. He said Barclaycard was "having to face up to the fact that clearly we are not making as much money out of customers that pay their bill in full as we are out of those that borrow", he said. He added that the company was "quite open about it... if you pay your bill in full every month you may get a few days less to pay... "That is the fact of it and we are not going to shy away from that."