So FMF in the following post put a staggering point out there, Americans have spent over 4.3 Billion dollars (that is with a B) to take their money out of an ATM. Un-believe-able!!!
In my world, the trickery is even more evil (this is in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, if you don’t remember):
- If I use my “home” bank machine, there is no charge to take money out of my account (well, that isn’t true since I have to pay a monthly charge to leave my money in the bank).
- If “Interac” is at a store, there is no charge for that privilege (however, there are “white” debit machines appearing that WILL charge you $1.50 per transaction, so BEWARE).
- If I take money out of my bank at work, using the “Co-op” here, it costs me $1.50, which is charged to my account at the end of the month. So I have to remember that if I need money, I need to go to the branch of my bank, which is a mile away from my office, to get money out (usually before I get into my office).
- If I want to take money out at a local Convenience Store, this will cost me $1.50-$3.00 up front which is taken directly from my account, before I get my money, and then $1.50 service charge from my bank.
WTF?!?! Pardon my rude TLA, but this is INSANE, folks. This is MY money, yet I have to pay almost $5.00 to take $20.00 out? An entire INDUSTRY has grown out of this; people can buy ATMs and run them and make a living off people taking money out of their banks.
This isn’t money laundering like the “Pay Cheque Advance” places. This is taking money out that you have earned people. YIKES!
How do you escape this?
- Don’t use money, buy on credit, and be very careful to pay it all back
- Take out money only at your bank, and make sure there isn’t a limit to the number of ATM withdrawals you have in a month.
- Buy with Interac, and if the store has a “White” machine, leave and say, sorry, I am not buying then.
- Carry cash!
Folks, this kind of death by a thousand paper cuts is why Debt Reduction is so darn hard these days.
Stay alert folks!
The added benefit of buying on credit is that you get an itemized list of your purchases which you can most likely download and track with your favourite accounting software. Cash doesn’t offer that! The downside is that credit can be misued in the hands of the undisciplined.
It’s sad that it comes down that society is better off borrowing money and paying later instead of paying righ tnow.
Yup, I have a PC Mastercard and have racked up over $500 in free groceries over the past year, so I agree!
–C8j
I agree with anonymous. I also bank with PC Financial and I use the CIBC machines to get money. I also get points whenever I use my debit card at Loblaws.
Have you looked at President’s Choice Financial? They have a free banking package that gives you unlimited interac debits and unlimited ATM withdrawals from PC Financial machines and CIBC machines. The only downside is that they are web and phone based, no branches. I switched over to them 6 months ago and haven’t paid a nickel in fees, plus they offer a free savings account that pays real interest (only 2.75% but better than the big 6 banks). Ingdirect also have a Canadian division with similar features (fewer ATMs for free withdrawals though)