Total bill for tracker mortgage scandal could hit €1billion

The final bill for the tracker mortgage scandal could top €1bn and affect up to 40,000 customers, according to an advocate who has fought the banks for the last eight years.

The warning comes as the Central Bank revealed a dramatic increase by 13,600 to 33,700 in the number of cases it has forced lenders to acknowledge.

It said the compensation and redress by the mortgage banks has to date reached almost €300m.