PERSONAL ...BANKING SPECIAL .....Click & Save: Using Net Banking can Help You Avoid Many Fees

Click & Save: Using Net Banking can Help You Avoid Many Fees 

Simple steps like opting for e-mail alerts, online money transfers and ensuring adequate balance in the account will help customers escape several service charges and even get discounts on loan rates

If you have the habit of scrutinising your bank account statements closely, you would have noticed that charges on services like SMS alerts, debit card fees, demand draft charges, among other things, have gone up recently. Several public and private sector banks, including the State Bank of India, Canara Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank, have either increased service charges in some categories or introduced new ones, in the last few months.
The most noticeable and much talkedabout charge has been the SMS alert fee, which used to be free in case of most banks until recently.
“Our view is that banks cannot levy charges for mandatory SMS alert services like net banking/ATM debit and credit card debit. However, if the customer has signed up for additional alerts, then the bank can levy a fee as per agreement. When a bank decides to make changes to its charge structure, it has to intimate customers individually or by issuing a public notice 30 days in advance. This will give customers, who do not wish to pay for the service, enough time to discontinue it,” says AC Mahajan, chairman of Banking Codes and Standards Board of India (BCSBI).
There is very little a customer can do in this scenario, except taking measures to avoid paying those charges whenever possible. “If you want to save on charges, the most important thing is to find out the details of charges levied by the bank on different services. For example, if a bank says a client will be allowed four cash transactions at a branch, you should see that you do not exceed the limit. You can use the alternate delivery channels like Internet banking or ATM for transactions beyond the limit. You should also update your address in case of any change, so that you need not have to pay statement-returned charges,” says VN Kulkarni, chief credit counsellor with the Bank of India-backed Abhay Credit Counselling Centre.
Changing with times
Think of it: When you can make payments within minutes through the net banking channel; spending time, effort and additional money to get a DD issued just does not make sense. Similarly, online fund transfer can also help you save on cheque leaves. Most banks levy a charge for issuing additional cheque books. If you actively access emails on your smartphone and have signed up for e-mail alerts, you could consider discontinuing the SMS alert service. After all, banks alert customers about transactions through SMSes as well as e-mails. While many banks have started charging for SMSes, email alert continues to be a free service. “Technically, any operational expenses incurred by the bank will be passed on to the customers. Further NEFT/RTGS transfers are much cheaper mode now compared to earlier demand drafts,” says Rajiv Raj, co-founder and director with financial counseling firm Creditvidya. Simply put, banks typically levy lower charges for transactions done through the Internet channel, compared to the ones conducted at branches. You should use technology to conduct your banking transactions and save money, say experts. What’s more, getting tech-savvy can help you reduce your interest rate, too, depending on your bank’s policy. For example, State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur is offering a discount of 10 basis points on interest rate if the borrower applies for a home or car loan online. “We have done this to encourage borrowers to move to Internet banking. Nearly, 15% of the applications are now being made through the online channel,” says Sanjay Singh, chief general manager — retail banking, SBBJ. Similarly, ensure adequate balance in your account to avoid paying non-maintenance of minimum balance charges. If you have more than one account that you do not use often, ensure that you carry out at least one transaction in a year to steer clear of non-maintenance charges. “Not only you are charged usual fee for nonmaintenance of balance, any transaction in that account will attract additional charges for every cash transaction, extra cheque book leaves at . 5 per leaf issued during the month,”

Preeti Kulkarni ET130726