The credit card industry has been found to be treating customers unfairly. With this the Government produced a white paper, to counter-effect the industry's practices. However these have been found to have had little effect on the industry.

A price comparison website has noted that the industry is still conducting certain practices that "need to be addressed". These practices include; fees and charges for credit card cash withdrawals, balance transfers fees and overseas transaction charges.

None of these lucrative issues have been included in the white paper, and so cannot be dealt with. They cost each credit card customer an average of almost £29 each a year. The site stated that in total, the practices will cost consumers a whopping £864 million over the next 12 months alone.

The Government has made a start by kicking off the industry review with the investigation of five practices. These include the ban of unsolicited credit card cheques and an investigation into four key areas. These include order of repayments, minimum repayments, increasing fees and charges, and increasing credit limits without the customer's permission.

Card company practices - Withdrawal fees, transfer fees, overseas charges

In regards to cash withdrawal fees, calculations have revealed that 7.3 million consumers currently make over 38 million cash withdrawals using a credit card every year. With major providers charging up to 32% APR for this feature - almost double the average purchase APR (17.69%) - this is a very lucrative 'cash cow'.

Since the introduction five years ago, balance transfer fees have given a means for providers to try and recover the £600 million that has been lost in revenue from the 0% introductory deals, which have been around for about seven years. These fees are implemented so that they penalise savvy consumers who regularly switch their cards to get the next best balance transfer deal.

Balance transfer fees, which are charged to card users, also show that it was making the credit card industry much money. The average balance transfer fee is currently 2.93%, totalling £54.09 on the average balance transfer of £1,846. With 7.8 million balance transfers carried out each year, the industry is currently making almost £422 million from this fee alone. In just 12 months this income has increased by almost £35 million as the average balance transfer fee has jumped by just 0.24%.

Overseas charges

Using a credit card overseas is a costly exercise and amounts to a total of £281 million each year when consumers use their cards to buy goods and services. These charges include a 2.75% exchange rate loading fee for every transaction and a dynamic currency conversion charge of around 4% if the retailer converts the transaction to sterling instead of the local currency.

In effect, every £500 spent will cost the consumer up to an additional £15 in fees and charges. With 142 million credit card transactions carried out overseas each year, this is a huge problem for consumers.

Louise Bond, a personal finance expert at a price comparison website, said: "Whilst the Government's white paper is a great start, it is disappointing that these issues have been overlooked. Balance transfer fees are a necessary evil to secure the next best balance transfer deal but charging consumers £55 every time a consumer moves cards seems slightly excessive."

She added: "Cash withdrawal fees are also a huge issue for consumers, particularly when they travel abroad. This is quite a big oversight and it will only serve to leave the credit card industry with a 'rob Peter to pay Paul' opportunity if they do actually lose money on the other issues highlighted.

"There are still some great credit card deals around so consumers really should spend some time hunting down the next best deal. High fees and charges for specific practices do not impact every single credit card customer as they may not use every facility on offer."

She concluded: "However, for those that are struggling financially, every provider has a different charge for every facility they offer so it's still worth finding the cheapest provider for your individual needs."