So I have been contemplating changing banks sometime now. I am currently with ABSA and a lot of my friends are telling me that it would be best to move to FNB because they have cheaper rates when it comes to debit card swiping and since 96% of the time I swipe my card rather than have physical cash it would make sense to change if I can save.
So I want to know how painful is it to change banks? Someone once told me that I just tell the bank who I am changing to all my accounts and they will get it changed for me. I reckon she was smoking something that day because I just cant see anyone being that friendly. Is this true? Or am I going to have to look at going the long route of phoning everyone and changing details?
/Actually considering Capitec bank since they are open on a Saturday later than any other bank!!!
JUSTICE, n A commodity which is a more or less adulterated condition the State sells to the citizen as a reward for his allegiance, taxes and personal service.
Talk to your folks and ask them how long have they been with their bank?
Ask the same question to your friends and co-workers.
I bet that 99% will say they have been with their current bank since they opened their first account.
Reason: The headache to change banks, phoning around to all the institutions that has a debit order against your account ect becomes a MAJOR hassle.
And with shoddy customer service in SA, you will be on the phone for weeks until everything is sorted 100%.
I'm not sure how big the savings are, but for say 10c per transaction less, I will pay the bigger amount rather than sit with that burden on my shoulders.
Payments might be missed, salary might not be paid in ect ect.
Perhaps one piece of advice from my side if you do it: Start the process as soon as your last debit order has gone through at the beginning of the month. Then at least you kinda have a full month to sort out any issues.
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz) CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850 Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333 Case: Zalman Z7 Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
I've changed banks 2 times the last 2 years. It's really not a big deal, and worth every phonecall because my monthly banking fees are now R250 p/m less than what it used to be.
I changed all of my debit orders in one lunch hour there's no hassle.
GreyWolf wrote:Someones been swayed by Steve and his phone calls.
Steve is potentially the most irritating person on radio. Either him or that Stars and Celebs guy in the 94.7 Breakfast Express. I immediately go into a state of emotional agitation the moment I hear either voice and have to mute the radio to keep myself from throwing rocks at passing traffic.
Just saying.
For what it's worth, I wouldn't be caught dead with an FNB account. Although, by all counts, that's more of a reflection on my closest branch than on FNB as an institution. Which means nothing in your case.
I'm doing the same switch (ABSA -> FNB). Every person I've spoken to has had nothing but good things to say about FNB after switching as well so seems like the way to go. I must say when I worked out what I'd be saving I see how flippen expensive ABSA is. The service so far at FNB is also about 156 times better than ABSA, and I have an ABSA Platinum account with a private banker yet the service is still pretty crappy so doesn't seem to matter.
As ryan says the savings on bank fees is massive when changing away from ABSA. Hmmm will need to do some more digging... Thanks for the comments .
JUSTICE, n A commodity which is a more or less adulterated condition the State sells to the citizen as a reward for his allegiance, taxes and personal service.
So, did you take the plunge? After reading your thread I did some reading and the FNB account equivalent to my Absa account is at least R60 cheaper per month with the benefit of unlimited transactions (as opposed to my Absa 30). Plus I'll be saving R20 on internet banking charges and R20 on the Absa rewards programme, 30c per notify me sms, all of which are free with FNB. My home loan is with Absa so I would keep that account, but FNB will switch all my debit orders and banking for nothing. And the Absa rewards programme is a joke when you compare it to the Ebucks programme with FNB (only reason I signed up was 5% back on my monthly MTN bill with Absa rewards, that's even disappeared). Just got some separation anxiety to deal with before I take the plunge.
Jonboy, don't you live in my part of the world? Can I very seriously ask where you intend to open an FNB account? Honestly, I don't care how much money it would save me, but I wouldn't be caught dead with a personal bank account at FNB Bracken City. If you're going to do it, make sure you deal with another branch. All our accounts at the church are with FNB Bracken City, and they are useless. In fact, in my experience, every department of FNB I have dealt with has been useless, but Bracken City more than most.
@Stu, on the money, have subsequently moved to Oakdene and would have to deal with the Glen branch, but still don't hold much hope for customer service at any of the banks actually! Just hate that I'm being robbed blind by Absa.
Jonboy wrote:@Stu, on the money, have subsequently moved to Oakdene and would have to deal with the Glen branch, but still don't hold much hope for customer service at any of the banks actually! Just hate that I'm being robbed blind by Absa.
Ah, okay, all good then. The Glen is miles better than Bracken City. I know the party line about "all banks being the same," but those who say that have clearly never dealt with Bracken City. Seriously, you have to see it to believe it.
We have monthly forex transfers going off for our missionaries. Once they get into the swing of things it's okay, but try to make a change or set up something new and be prepared for some headaches in my experience.
