A petition that demands the end of “maintenance fees” on deposit accounts was signed by over 90,000 people and handed over to Parliament by consumer watchdog DECO.
The association revealed that it launched the petition because it believes that deposit accounts are “essential to the basic management of a citizen’s finances”.
Jorge Morgado from DECO said: “These bank commissions affect everyone, but especially those who have less money and a lower average balance.”
In the petition, the subscribers stress that it was not long ago that banks provided interest benefits to these accounts but now charge fees – a tendency which has been growing these past years.
According to DECO, bank commissions have increased, on average, over 40% since 2007.
The association considers the fees “abusive” since there is no service accredited to their value and they penalise consumers with fewer economic resources, leading many people to “withdraw their money from the bank and, once again, hide it under their mattresses”.
