Quote:
Originally Posted by fionaB
However to say they are stopping people having access to a bank account is wrong, as there is always the option of having a savings account. as long as they dont start charging on a savings account as well.
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Not really Fi, as that is not comparing like with like. Savings accounts are entirely diffeent to current accounts and will not meet the needs of the people affected by this new charge. These people will be those who rely on having a cheque book, a cheque guarantee card and direct debit or standing order facilities.
Whilst there are SOME savings accounts that can set up DDs and SOs, most do not. Also the cheque book you can get with some savings accounts is virtually worthless for everyday spending as it does not have a cheque guarantee card. So they are restricted to using the cheque book for things like making gifts of money to friends like on birthdays, paying a few utility bills, and so forth.
I do not keep a current account because I don't particularly need one. I just have a standard savings account that can use DDs and SOs and another for my savings which pays a reasonable rate of interest. I almost never need to use cheques but that is only me, a lot of others do still need them and use them so a current account is the only way they can work and will now have to pay a fee of £120 a year which is absolutely scandalous, especially when the biggest banks are already making 10-figure sums profit each year.
There is another side to the argument of course, there always is. Why do we believe we have the right to free bank facilities anyway? I mean, because of the way my accounts work, I never give my bank a penny in charges and things but they give me electronic cards and things that they have to pay for. If someone has a current account, they get a cheque book specially printed for them, a cheque guarantee card with their personal details on, monthly statements, cash withdrawal facilities and maybe even a small amount of interest (very small!) but they get it all free. The banks can say they have the right to charge for these things and it is hard on a business level to deny them that.
We know on a moral level that it is the relatively less well off in society that will be hit by these charges... isn't it always the way! The same thing happens with the grossly unfair council tax that we all have to pay. Those in low income groups pay about 5% of their income in council tax whereas the well-off section of society pays an average of 1.7% of their income: three times less!
The rich get richer and the poor get messed on at every turn. Will society in our so-called modern, civilised times, ever change and treat the poor with the dignity, respect and fairness they deserve?
Don't hold your breath!
Cheers,
Rob