TD cancels 'inactivity' fee, freezes other charges

The Toronto-Dominion Bank's retail arm said Friday it will hold the line on certain fees in 2009 and has cancelled a $35 charge on unused lines of credit that was to go into effect in late April.

"We recognize that times are challenging for many people right now," Tim Hockey, president of TD Canada Trust, said in a news release. "Holding the line on fees is one tangible way of helping."

Customers and employees had been expressing concerns about the fees, he said. News reports about the line of credit "inactivity" fee suggested the response was closer to outrage than concern.

The bank said that for the rest of 2009, it will introduce no new fees and no fee increases on:

Personal banking products, including saving and chequing accounts.Credit cards.Mortgages.Lines of credit.All small business banking products, including saving and chequing accounts and lines of credit.

The bank's move came just days after the federal budget, which offered to help Canadians get access to “fair and transparent” credit by strengthening disclosure requirements on lending institutions that issue credit cards.