A couple have won their fight to reclaim more than £1,000 in charges from their bank.

Earlier this year Chris and Stella Tunnah launched a legal battle against Abbey National, claiming they had been charged well over the odds for occasionally straying into the red.

Abbey originally failed to defend themselves against the Tunnahs' claim in time. And in July Abbey went to a civil hearing

But in an astonishing turnaround, the bank offered £1,120 in refunded charges and court costs and the couple, from Cheadle Hulme, accepted. That comes after a payment from Abbey last month, when the bank gave the couple £453 in charges after closing Mr Tunnah's account, bringing the total refund to £1,573.

However Chris, 59, a retired local government officer, said he had mixed feelings about accepting the bank's offer.

He said: "I have won a moral victory but the problem still exists. They are still going to keep charging people unless somebody takes them to court and gets a legal decision saying these charges are unreasonable.

"In my case my family felt the offer was too good to pass up but we're constantly seeing stories in the paper about rampant debt, bankruptcy and insolvency and nobody is doing anything about banks. Abbey charge £4 for photocopying a cheque."

Mr Tunnah says he nearly rejected Abbey's offer because days before it was made his wife's account was wrongly charged twice for £2.86 of food, resulting in another £50 in charges.

The couple say their problems with charges date back to March last year. Last December after Mrs Tunnah strayed over her limit by a few pounds after buying birthday presents for her husband, Christmas gifts, and a present for her daughter's new baby, the couple faced £150 in charges.

In January the couple were charged £190 in two weeks.

A spokesman for Abbey said: "Abbey has reached a settlement with Mr and Mrs Tunnah, which was made for commercial and business reasons. It takes into account the fact the legal costs of continuing with the case would far exceed the amount at stake.

"Our position on bank charges, as stated in the terms and conditions of our accounts, is that it is the customer's responsibility to ensure that there are sufficient funds in the account to cover any direct debits, standing orders, card purchases or cheques they may write."

 -- Manchester Evening News