standard bank

[murdock]

i have been banking with standard bank for about 10 years.

until march this year i was rated as a low risk good customer according to my bank manager...reasons never overdrawn on my account...progressively growing my turnover etc etc.

i have a house financed with them...motor vehicles...bank overdrafts etc etc.

then suddenly at the end of march i made a slip...i transferred R12000.00 from one standard bank account to another standard bank account...to make sure i had adequate money in my bussiness account for end of month debit orders because i wasnt sure if the customer would pay in time.

the catch was i only did the transfer at 7.45 pm...so in the morning as i always do i log to standard bank to make sure all is well...i was pleased to see the customer had paid and the money i transfered also reflected and the debit orders had all gone through.that was the 1 april 2009

on the 2 april 2009 i logged on in the morning bank account looked great...

on the 3 april 2009 i logged on i noticed a returned item and of course a R115.00 fee for unpaid item.

so i contacted the bank to find out what was going on...i was told that because i had transfered the money after 7 pm it did not reflect on my account nor did the customers payment...so my account went overdrawn by R136.00 so they returned one debit order at midnight when the debit orders ran.

so i asked but this is bad for my account blah blah...they told me because i was such a good customer and had never had a problem with my account it was a minor issue.

well thats what i also thought...7 days later i received a letter in the post to advise me that due to my "bad conduct of my account" and the economic situation in the world at the moment they would have to withdraw my cheque clearance authourity...in other words when i deposit a customers cheque i now have to wait 7 days for clearance.

then they RD a cheque for R224.00 because of the same night story not enough money at midnight because i wasnt sure when the cheque would be deposted... the person i had issued it to had not deposted it after 2 weeks...so i thought i better just transfer money in case...it went through that night.

so now i am getting a little p#$%d off with them and have decided to more to FNB and increase my bond by R100 000 so i can settle all my debit and only pay the bond...i got a call from FNB who gave me the bad news...i am now rated as a high risk so they cannot help me.

and standard bank have notified me that as of this month they will be automatically reducing my overdraft by R2000.00 a month until it is paid up...thank goodness...less fees and bank chargers an interest.

it is amazing how when you have lots they want to give you more and more and more but if they notice a decline in turnover they are the first to take everything away.

[Dave A]

I feel your frustration. Been there myself, although happily many years ago. That 7.00pm "next day" story is certainly one to keep a close eye on. They're really anal about it and as you point out, it can lead to a domino effect of problems.

I've got a notion electrical contractors might have been flagged by banks as high risk at the moment.

[Marq]

I've got a notion electrical contractors might have been flagged by banks as high risk at the moment.

Paranoid bunch - I thought it was all the sme's - but you guys can be in the frontline if you want.

This Standard Bank scenario sucks - The only advice I can offer is to not move right now just because they have pissed you off and you are going to show them. I think FNB is just as bad....they are the guys that took me out many years ago, and I will never have a good word for them ever again.

Go here and see how grudges can keep Standard Bank in the bads news society or how about here for another view.

Take it slowly, look around and take the opportunity to revisit your financial scenario. Then adjust accordingly to your needs - not theirs.

Know that the worm will turn and one day you will be able to remind them of the errors of their ways.

[Frankincense]

"one day you will be able to remind them of the errors of their ways."

That may be true, but not for a while.....

....and after the flagging comes the tagging....

...the more "citizen default"...the more "citizen control"....

...primary opbjective: Control....

...primary strategy: Economic hardship = create a crisis

[IanF]

Go here and see how grudges can keep Standard Bank in the bads news society or how about here for another view.

Take it slowly, look around and take the opportunity to revisit your financial scenario. Then adjust accordingly to your needs - not theirs.

Know that the worm will turn and one day you will be able to remind them of the errors of their ways.

Marq
Great links I wonder if standard bank ever worries about this.
Now to derail this slightly have any of you considered the name and shame on your website to shame your bad debts into paying. I am considering this for an ex client a designer who owes me R12grand and do it on my blog then post the links to her and her client.

[Dave A]

Paranoid bunch - I thought it was all the sme's

Probably that too

My comment comes from a discussion I had with my bank manager when doing a credit risk assessment on the government funded hospital sector about a month ago. I ended up walking away from a R1.5 million deal over three years as a result, but amongst the high risk sectors mentioned in that little chat was that one word, "electrical."

I could go into quite a bit of detail as to why the concern is probably valid - there are huge challenges in the electrical contracting industry even at the best of times - but perhaps in another thread; let's stick to keeping in your bank's good books. Or maybe that should be how easy it is to fall out of favour with your bank.

I suggest a few habits that will help.

1. Only draw from cleared funds. Don't count on cheques from your clients as cleared for at least 48 hours, and preferably at least 7 days. And make sure that any one unpaid cheque won't put you over your limit - ever!

2. Never draw on funds the same day it is deposited, even if it is cleared funds such as an internet transfer. Yes, that means you'll probably never push your account to the absolute limit, but that 24 hour safety margin is as close to the edge you ever want to get.

3. Never write a cheque unless you have the funds to cover it. And I mean cleared funds already in the account. If you face the choice of writing a bad cheque or getting your kneecaps broken, take the broken kneecaps. They're going to get broken anyway when the cheque bounces, so you may as well take the pain now.

4. Check your bank balance every day. Know exactly what you have available all the time.

5. Spend some time working out your monthly cashflow cycle. When does the money go out? When does the money normally come in? If you're signing a debit order this information is invaluable when you've got the option of choosing a date for the debit order to run. Knowing what's coming in and what has to go out means you know what is really available as your discretionary spend.

6. Understand yourself! If you have trouble with impulse buying, don't go shopping until you've paid all the accounts that need to be paid before you go shopping.

[sgafc]

Nedbank

You not the only one. I am with Nedbank, and due to an innocent mistake, I also lost my clearance facility(and sympathy from managers), ie cheques are RD'd, if I am overdrawn for as little as 1c.

No problem, I dont ask for special clearance anymore, just dont bank as I should, and pay cash wherever I can.

Account is well managed, but out of spitefullness cheques are just returned unpaid(signature problem, without a call), or even worse, DO's just bounced, despite sufficient funds being in the account.

Banks???

[sgafc]

"one day you will be able to remind them of the errors of their ways."

That may be true, but not for a while.....

....and after the flagging comes the tagging....

...the more "citizen default"...the more "citizen control"....

...primary opbjective: Control....

...primary strategy: Economic hardship = create a crisis

The banks are formenting a crisis, to give them the perfect excuse to destroy the remnants of the World Economy(recession). Problems encountered by Murdock is revealing of the "drip..drip" strategy that will even destroy the goodwill of disciplined people.

Why worry about being "blacklisted"? The cleanest consumer will be turned down for a homeloan if they have TWO unpaids on their bank account.

There was a time when I subscribed to rigorous banking, to manage books and cash flow. NO MORE! Take your hard earned cash, and hide it, and run your business/household in that manner. Or use debit cards. Use banks only as your last resort.

I am afraid that the GFC is only going to get worse. The writing is on the wall. The Rothchilds planned it long ago. This is no theory, check out all the info in the public domain, and read how the Rothchilds financed Rhodes, the Great American Industrialists and the wars in Europe.

[Frankincense]

...... let He who has wisdom understand the number....

[murdock]

i believe it is a way of the banks and financial institutions forcing you to stay with them so they can rape you of your hard earned money...the way standard bank have got me by the kahoonas now...by listing me as a slow payer or high risk or what ever they did... FNB will not take my bond over now so i am stuck with standard bank and they know it ...i can tell you what the next step is going to be more higher fees...bank charges...etc.

a good example is the interest rate drop a while ago...the interest came down but the service fee went up so did i benefit only by a small percentage.

they say the banks in this country are not suffering like banks in the rest of the world i wonder why...could it be because the customer has been paying more than they should be.

could it have something to do with money sponsored for elections...funny how there was a big thing about bank charges/fees then suddenly in went all quiet...am i on the wrong track here?

what i do know is bank fees and charges are becoming one of my biggest expenses in my bussiness...and need to be high on my cost cutting list...

i noticed nedbank must be battling offering all sorts of incentives...cheaper rates etc...the problem with them is they are ruthless.

[Frankincense]

" noticed XXXXXX must be battling offering all sorts of incentives"

Don't be made a fool - Banks Globally have millions to throw at flesh in order to recruit during the finalisation s6ta6ge6s - if to be interpreted correctly - it's a sign of such extreme wealth that they will now even pay you to open your account...and the reasons are many fold, but primarily coz they can afford to pay you to surrender and take part in the transactional culture and once it's open...you belong to them for life...unless you shut down your transactional abilities..........

Recruiting humans into a binding "Buying & Selling" transactional contract stretches far further than meets the eye and has almost nothing to do with profit....and more about control...as once you can control the flesh...who cares how much money you have...YOU WILL HAVE CONTROL....the profit is then infinite!!!

There's a "little book" being compiled and the "goats" will go in the one and the "sheep" in the other.....until the day of separation....

When the mark manifests - Game Down!

[Marq]

umm... yeh that sounds about right. I'll have what he is on.

[murdock]

this must be why they offer you more and more credit...so you can take it wrap it around your neck tie your hands behind your back then hang yourself...but they put a box underneath so that your toes just reach and that is it you are theirs...or you can change banks and just become someone elses puppet...am i on the right track here?

[Marq]

but they put a box underneath so that your toes just reach

Yep - its a matchbox....and if you need more matches they burn the lot.

[murdock]

i received this today...and considering forwarding to standard bank.


"Subject: Fw: Banks - you just have to take a leaf out of there manuals



A 98 year old woman in the UK wrote this to her bank. The bank manager thought it amusing enough to have it published in the Times.

Dear Sir,

I am writing to thank you for bouncing my cheque with which I endeavoured to pay my plumber last month.

By my calculations, three nanoseconds must have elapsed between his presenting the cheque and the arrival in my account of the funds needed to honour it.

I refer, of course, to the automatic monthly deposit of my Pension, an arrangement, which, I admit, has been in place for only thirty eight years. You are to be commended for seizing that brief window of opportunity, and also for debiting my account £30 by way of penalty for the inconvenience caused to your bank.

My thankfulness springs from the manner in which this incident has caused me to rethink my errant financial ways.

I noticed that whereas I personally attend to your telephone calls and letters, when I try tocontact you, I am confronted by the impersonal, overcharging, pre-recorded, faceless entity which your bank has become.

From now on, I, like you, choose only to deal with a flesh-and-blood person.

My mortgage and loan payments will therefore and hereafter no longer be automatic, but will arrive at your bank by cheque, addressed personally and confidentially to an employee at your bank whom you must nominate.

Be aware that it is an offence under the Postal Act for any other person to open such an envelope.

Please find attached an Application Contact Status which I require your chosen employee to complete. I am sorry it runs to eight pages, but in order that I know as much about him or her as your bank knows about me, there is no alternative.

Please note that all copies of his or her medical history must be countersigned by a Solicitor, and the mandatory details of his/her financial situation (income, debts, assets and liabilities) must be accompanied by documented proof.

In due course, I will issue your employee with PIN number which he/she must quote in dealings with me.

I regret that it cannot be shorter than 28 digits but, again, I have modelled it on the number of buttonpresses required of me to access my account balance on your phone bank service.

As they say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Let me level the playing field even further. When you call me, press buttons as follows:

1. To make an appointment to see me.

2. To query a missing payment.

3. To transfer the call to my living room in case I am there.

4. To transfer the call to my bedroom in case I am sleeping.

5. To transfer the call to my toilet in case I am attending to nature.

6. To transfer the call to my mobile phone if I am not at home.

7. To leave a message on my computer (a password to access my computer is required. A password will be communicated to you at a later date to the Authorized Contact.)

8. To return to the main menu and to listen to options 1 through to 8.

9. To make a general complaint or inquiry, the contact will then be put on hold, pending the attention of my automated answering service.

While this may,on occasion, involve a lengthy wait, uplifting music will play for the duration of the call.

Regrettably, but again following your example, I must also levy an establishment fee to cover the setting up of this new arrangement.

May I wish you a happy, if ever so slightly less prosperous, New Year.

Your Humble Client

Remember: This was written by a 98 year old woman;

DOESN'T SHE MAKE YOU PROUD!"