Bank overdraft charges on current accounts are so complicated even a maths PhD student can’t always work them out, consumer experts found. A customer could be hit with a £150 bill for a large unauthorised overdraft without a clear explanation as to why, Which? said. The consumer body wants ministers to make banks provide honest and easily understood information about the true cost of going into the red.

Currently, the finance giants use a mix of daily and monthly charges combined with further fees linked to the number of cheques and payments that are bounced. Each bank has its own combination of charges with the result that customers cannot make meaningful comparisons to find which is cheapest. Which? asked 12 people, including a maths PhD student, to work out the cost of an unauthorised overdraft for leading banks by giving them 48 mock bank statements on which the rules were set out......Read more here--: Bank overdraft charges are so complicated they baffle a maths PhD student, says Which? | This is Money