Banking blues

As Treasurer of my local Mothers Union I have to go pretty regularly to pay in lots of small change. I try not to let it build up as it gets rather heavy.

I use online banking for all day to day transactions and use specialist online companies for international transfers.
I had an appointment in my branch recently (invited in to discuss investments). Towards the end of the meeting, having had a chat about various things, including retirement, hobbies etc, the manager asked if there was anything else he could do for me.
I mentioned a little peculiarity with their banking software when making regular payments. His response was "Oh, you should use the phone app, it's much easier" I said I wasn't happy with the security aspects of using my phone. He dismissed this airily, and rather condescendingly, saying they were absolutely safe, no need to worry....
As he showed me out he said "oh, I never asked you, what was your job before you retired?"
I replied "IT Security Officer". (Not strictly true, but I couldn't resist! Worth it for the look on his face!)

Gabriella : believe it or not, there are some people who do not have a mobile telephone [nor want one as they are so intrusive]. What about them?

I don't use a smart phone by choice. I have a Power of Attorney current account with Nat West for my daughter and though I do most of it online there have been times when I have needed to talk face to face to solve a problem. My own account is with Nationwide but I am going over to the Metro Bank this week. Never have cheques or cash to paying.

I like to bank online at home where I can see what I'm doing but don't fancy going mobile as it is just too small a screen and too easy to key in wrong numbers. I prefer to talk to a real person if I am opening a savings account, etc. I want someone else to go through the small print with me!

All of you who never use banks and do everything online do not seem very bothered that you could be putting real people out of a job if f2f banking disappears altogether. The same applies to other sorts of online shopping so don't complain about the demise of the high street or your own job or those of your family disappearing if more and more things become automated.

How do you scan cheques with a mobile phone? Would the much advertised Helpful Book Company publications help here. I dislike its advertising but I've never found anyone who could comment on its publications.

I bank mostly online. Comparatively recent. But when you have health problems it is a godsend. I went to bank last week but it was a struggle. I shop on line sometimes for the same reason.

Unfortunately, Lloyds only scan cheques up to £500, which is a bit of a nuisance.

I do most of my UK banking on line, very, very rarely visit a branch of Lloyds when I am there. Any queries I just telephone the international line who are supremely helpful.

In France my account is with the local branch 10 minutes down the road. Apart from checking my account on line I always go into the branch where we still get very good f2f service and a box for putting in cash or cheques. very impressed. also when clients pay either from UK or EU the transfers go through very smoothly within a few hours.

In the last 30 odd years since we've been in this town we have had 3 of the 5 banks close down so have little choice but to do online banking and use cash machines (even those have diminished with the bank closures). If we do need to visit the branch of our bank we have to travel to the next big town - it's always full so obviously people do still use it.

I do most on line but pop into a Cardiff branch to use their inside cash machines as a way towards keeping them open. Hopefully.

I pay cheques in at the Post Office. Most banks will give you special envelopes to do this. I don't go into my Bank. (I had to look the address up online from the sort code when filling out a direct debit form recently, it is in Bristol and I am in Harrow. There is a local branch but it is not my branch as such).

Although most of our banking transactions are done on line I do visit the bank each week to withdraw cash

I don't bank online, prefer going into the bank in person. And judging by the amount of people in the queue in front of me in the bank I use, most times, so do they. This is why we are losing a lot of banks up and down the country, and staff being made redundant. This is what the banks want, less wages to pay out to staff more money for them, and yet another empty building in the High Street. Never mind that some of the people who don't understand technology enough have to trail often into other towns to sort their finances out, some of them being quite frail and elderly.

Liz46. So sorry to hear about the stressful years in the Bank. A friend of mine left too. She was Manager of a small Branch. She couldn't cope with how she was expected to treat staff.

The Banks are trying to drum up business so they can justify keeping branches open. Online banking can be risky and with so many I.T. educated fraudsters around, many people prefer branches for their transactions.

Never go to my branch as it’s always packed to the gills.Slow and slower... cashiers trying to seek financial services!!! I tried scanning a rare cheque I’d got through the post ...but it just wouldn’t scan...took one look at the q’s in branch and just didn’t bother. Still in my handbag awaiting a decision as to wether to stand in line or just tear it up. Can I afford to lose £6.17 though ,’... that’s the question?

Quizqueen...putting people out of a job.... every new innovation puts people ‘out of a job’ ...yes just that ‘a job’ ...not their life!! My husband was a train driver...trains put carriers out of jobs...canalmen out of jobs...musketeers out of jobs! Planes and cars nearly put him out of a job...and if it wasn’t for environmental issues no doubt would’ve done! Carriers put horsemen our of jobs ...supermarkets put loads of individuals out of a job... my dad was a milkman ( remember them) a supermarket put him out of a job. All you folk use all these things ...planes ...trains...cars...supermarkets...do you wish you had to go from shop to shop on daumy basis finding your ingredients ..in the rain mostly.No ... it won’t do. Everybody puts some odd out of a job. The world cannot stand still for a group of folk that don’t want to join in. Unless when you call 999 you WANT a horse and cart to turn up??

I use a building society. Although I use online banking to see how much I behave in accounts and to do transfers of money I do not have a Smartphone and therefore no banking app. The people working at my building society are absolutely wonderfull, patient and kind and will spend time explaining the one and outs of various accounts and have never given me bad advice. I love the face to face contact. If no one uses them they close and then people start moaning probably the very people who only used them once a year. There have been so many scams with online accounts I think quite a few people are actually going back to the old ways.x

Anybody want to get rid of there small change pop into your local supermarket and they may have a coin changer... you pay for the transaction ..but I believe the ‘fee’ goes to charity. Did it recently with a jar of 20p’s had about £20 worth and was charged £2 so got £18 receipt back which I can use or groceries in store or redeem for cash.

Our local Bank of Scotland closed recently (switching people's accounts to a branch about 10 miles away with no direct public transport from here, instead of other towns 10 or 18 miles away with good public transport, but that's another gripe).

A skip appeared outside the branch and everything inside was chucked into it. Some people I know rescued good office chairs and a perfectly good clock from the skip. Couldn't the bank have donated them to the local charity shops if they weren't going to reuse them?

Another way to get rid of small change is to ask local shopkeepers (who would have to know you and be aware that you are not money-laundering!) if they will change the small stuff for bigger notes. I used to do that when I was dealing with small change for a local club, and the shopkeeper saved on having to pay the bank to get change for his shop, and I got £10 or £20 notes to pay into the bank instead of a lot of heavy change, so we were both happy.

I know DanniRaeand I do love being outside, especially in nice weather but the walk from home to Guildford where my nearest branch is would take about 1hr 21mins.

sodapop
I don't think there was any need to be snippy. I merely asked whether people had particular reasons such as preferring f2f contact or was it a reason to go outI live in the real world so I'm well aware that not everyone is comfortable with online banking and I'm also aware that my own and other people's banks are closing branches. I used to do personal banking all the time until my local Halifax closed 2 branches, 1 here and another 4 miles away.
It was never a case of me preferring online banking, more the logistics of distance and time.
If you don't like any question on a thread there is no need to be short with the OP.