Mr Fact likes to keep a good overview of his finances. Some have called this petty meanness, others have said that he has lived in Swabia and Scotland for too long while others still have castigated his use of referring to himself in the third person. Whatever. His view of the people complaining about bank charges for going overdrawn is pretty much the same as a story I read somewhere, but whose source I’ve forgotten:
Say a mate asked if he could borrow £100 for a couple of days – sure I’d say (obviously this isn’t true, but hear me out), just go and get it out of my wallet in the top drawer of my desk – but instead of taking the agreed £100 he helped himself to an extra £500. That would be outside our agreement and might even be considered “theft”. Which is pretty much how I thought of people whingeing about bank charges on unauthorised overdrafts (although why do they let them spend the money in the first place in these days of electronic transfers)?
Anyway, so far so simple, until I joined the ranks of the slightly overdrawn. I have an overdraft facility on my current account – I don’t really use it, it’s only £250, but I have, occasionally put an extra bottle of something in the trolley at the supermarket, it was near the end of the month and I found that technically I was £20 overdrawn. “I hate to pay interest, but thank God I had the £250 agreed, otherwise I’d have to pay charges.”
However, at the start of this month it came to pass that although I’d put several cheques into the account and it was technically £2K in the green, that cheques take 7 days to clear and don’t count towards one’s actual balance – even if they show up as saying your balance is £1800. I looked at my account online: “£1800 / available £25″ it said, but, and here’s the nub, I’d just used the card to fill the car with petrol and would be (mentally subtracts £37) about £12 pounds over my agreed limit. Ack! I thought, and called up my bank to ask if I could have an extension of my overdraft of £50 for a month (the shortest period they offer).
“Computer says ‘no’” was the best answer I got and today duly received this letter saying I’d be charged £30 per day for being twelve pounds (and thrupence) above my agreed overdraft limit. Now why a customer of 13 years, who had 2K of cheques sitting in the account and never had any problems was refused an overdraft of £50 for a month for any other reason than to screw him for charges, I don’t know. Especially because the Mastercard which is linked to the account (and is ALWAYS paid off in full at the end of each month) had its credit limit extended by another £1500 at exactly the same time.
Yes, I’ll complain about the charges (in fact, the letter saying, charge me and I’ll take my business elsewhere) was sent the day my overdraft application was refused. So, now I just need to hear recommendations of other banks? Who’re you with and why are they not just a bunch of bankers?
Berliner Sparkasse. Though I fear that answer will not help you much.
Same bunch of bankers, I’m afraid. 30 quid a day! For fuck’s sake. I remember my ex’s bank bouncing two cheques he’d written for fifty pounds, after he’d banked with them for 500 years and they could probably predict that salary was going to go in ten seconds later, and charging him fifty pounds. He told the staff he wold start mugging old ladies if they didn’t refund the fifty quid, and they said, presumably with a nasal accent, “Well, I hope you won’t have to do that, Mr….” That was HSBC, by the way. But, anyway, don’t all banks offer to refund all charges from the last 20 years the second you write them the type of letter you’ve just written them? You might be quids in.
Does the Co-Op Bank still exist? That was the right-on bank when I was an undergrad. Me, I was stuck with Midland->HSBC from Aug 89-Aug 07. Although your bank sound like bigger wankers, I was never overly impressed by mine, either. But at least they didn’t make a fuss about me leaving.
The yellow German “bank” seems to be OK, although perhaps a little too keen on getting me saving. Still, there are worse ills that can befall a man.
My partner, the widow of the former Finance Minister of Nigeria, says that you’ll have to give me account details as well, not just the name of the bank…
MP: You’d be surprised - that’s their second recommendation.
BiB: The bankiest thing was that not only did I try to get a £50 overdraft for the shortest period possible, but actually went into nasty regional city and paid in real cash at a branch that stayed open ’til 6p.m. BUT, of course, payments made after 4:30 count as being made on the next working day. Why? Does the computer clock out at 16:30? Do banks operate under some weird space-time discontinuum? Or are they just a bunch of twats?
engelsk: The Co-op bank does still exist, but I haven’t got a clue where my nearest branch is. And even fat cigar-smoking capitalist ex-pats have little positive to say about HSBC (Or Barclays) - at least not if you live in Russia.
In general, so far the most positive things I’ve hear have been about Nationwide - and that isn’t even a bank (perhaps says something).
Who are “they”?
Anyway, I was wandering through the streets of London a couple of weeks ago, for the first time in many years, and absently playing a game of “count the logos I don’t recognize”, and the Nationwide one was the only one which looks like I remember it. Which hopefully indicates they spend their energies on their products rather than faffing about with marketing and branding and such.
MP: “They” are either a clandestine cabal of sinister, secretive figures who rule the world without us ever knowing it, or the Berliner Sparkasse. Or maybe there’s an overlap - we may never know….
Oh, talking about logos, it has taken me 18 months to realise that Opal Fruits are now called “Starburst” and the last time I saw a “We’re With The Woolwich” logo was in their Naples branch (I take it that it’s a front for dubious transactions between Neapolitan mafiosi and London’s shadowy underworld. I mean, the Woolwich? In Naples?
BiB: Received a reply “Were very sorry, but bugger off” they said. Now, I know LloydsTSB have changed their bank charges to try and get around the campaign to make costs be relative to the, well, costs as opposed to being punitive. If, however, you’re going to charge customers who realise they’re going to go overdrawn ask for a £50 overdraft for a month (actually I asked for £25, but they don’t go so low), when he has an apparent positive balance of £1800, admittedly in cheques, but two of which were from accounts at the same branch of LloydsTSB for God’s sake, then said suctomers are probably going to open an account with the nearest branch of the Berliner Sparkasse, instead. The fact that they sent a letter the day before, increasing my credit facility on a Mastercard linked to that account was just taking the piss, really.
Dresdner bank are shit as well but haven’t given me cause to go ballistic in their informal open plan bank for a couple of years - as corporal Jones would say ‘they don’t like it up’em Mr Mannering’.
i think lloydstdb should be closed down and face embezzelement fraud and theft charges for the prices they charge people for going £4 OVER THERE AGREED OD ITS A RIDICULOUS BANK CHARGE