Dear Editor:

I fully support Fitz Jackson, the member of Parliament for south St Catherine, for bringing the motion, which will give the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) the regulatory power to control service fees and charges that customers are forced to pay for conducting even the simplest of transactions.

For far too long, these commercial banks have held their customers at ransom with the unconscionable and excessive fees that they charge for the services that are offered.

Having regard to the record profits that these institutions report, it is very difficult to understand why the banks continue to milk us in this harsh economic climate, when people are struggling to make ends meet.

The interest rates that are charged on credit cards and loans are already enabling the banks to survive with a consistent revenue stream. Certainly, they are not under pressure to meet their obligations since they have been doing so well with our hard-earned deposits.

One of the actions of the banks that finds no favour with me, is the charge for making deposits via the automated teller machines, which they then, at some point, loan to other customers (individuals and businesses), for which they earn a profit from the interest.

So the institutions charge us for making and withdrawing our deposits, which they ultimately use to earn a profit from. How does this arrangement benefit the customer?

On another point of note, electronic banking is more convenient, efficient and it significantly reduces the pressure on the human resources in these institutions. Why then are customers being charged for a process that makes doing business easier, when the banks are already benefitting from our business? This is tantamount to the banks having their cake and eating it too.

Many of these fees and charges are arbitrary; the banks are only looking out for themselves. A mandatory code of conduct is therefore necessary to keep the sector in line with reasonableness and balance.

It is clearly in the interest of the customers, who are held at ransom by these banks, that Jackson’s motion seeks to amend the Banking Services Act, which will put them under the scrutiny of the BOJ.

I was pleased to see the overwhelming support of the Government members for this motion. If nothing else, at least the politicians are displaying, in this instance, that they actually hear our cries and appear to be interested in serving us.

Having the banking sector regulated on how these service fees and charges are applied, and to what extent, could only be for the objective good of the suffering customers.

Dujon Russell