Customers have been warned that nationalised banking does not mean the end of dirty tricks after recent tactics by government-backed institutions Northern Rock and National Savings & Investments provoked criticism from experts.

NS&I cut savings rates for the second time in as many weeks, with the premium bond prize rate going down from 3.25% to 2.85% from November 1. It had already been cut from 3.4% the previous week as the government’s savings agency sought to stem a flood of cash from nervous savers.

Analysts and consumer groups last week called for the government to use the partial nationalisation of Lloyds TSB, HBOS and Royal Bank of Scotland to clean up the industry.

The Sunday Times’s Diana Wright, who deals with reader complaints in her Question of Money column, said: “Now that the government is responsible for nearly half the mortgage market and the largest provider of current accounts in Lloyds TSB, we urge it to take on the sneaky charges and hidden catches that have plagued consumers for years.”

We outline Money’s manifesto for fairer consumer finance.

1 Decent savings rates with no catches

Luring savers with eye-catching rates that drop after an introductory bonus period is a practice beloved of banks and building societies — and it’s getting worse.

An e-Savings account at NatWest, owned by taxpayer-backed Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), has the sharpest sting in the tail for savers — after 12 months at a top rate of 6.5% the rate falls to 4.41%.

Kevin Mountford of Moneysupermarket, a comparison site, said: “This time last year there were no ‘bonuses’ over 1 percentage point, now there are six — and NatWest’s is chief among them.”

ING Direct, the Dutch bank which inherited £2.5 billion of accounts from failed Icelandic provider Kaupthing Edge, also has a hefty 1.67 point bonus — its rate falls from 6% to 4.33%.

2 Christmas credit card and overdraft charges