Saving tip: Avoid visiting your bank branch

Are you being slapped with some charges, which are visible only at the end of the month or quarter when your bank statement or your passbook is updated? May be you are not banking the right way. Don’t be surprised. The list of charges by banks has gotten longer.

The list of service charges and fees has expanded from about 1.5 pages to three or more pages as banks are encouraging electronic payments and discouraging customers to visit branches.

So the more you visit a bank branch, the more you will be charged.
For example, there are cheaper ways of getting a copy of your bank statement than rushing to a branch. For a duplicate account statement via the internet or through an ATM and you will pay just half the amount you would have paid at a branch.

There are also different charges using a bank’s customer care service differently. For instance, ICICI Bank charges Rs100 for a duplicate account statement requested at a branch or through the customer care service without an interactive voice recording system. So opt for the computerised answering system and pay half the amount for a duplicate statement.

Transactions done via electronic channels do not add to the branch’s burden and hence are charged lesser. For example State Bank of India will charge you Rs5 for each debit transaction in a savings bank account after you have already done 30 debit transactions in 6 months, if done at a branch.

Also, if you send in a request for an amount to be debited directly from you account for an investment or charity or insurance premia and a signature verification is sought then you will have to pay Rs50 in case of HDFC Bank and SBI, not to forget the service tax and cess charged additionally. Even to set up a standing instruction for debit, you have to pay `50-150 depending on the bank.

Though you have the freedom to withdraw money five times a month from other bank ATMs, some banks will charge Rs12-25 for a balance enquiry at the ATM not owned by your bank. In case your transaction at other bank ATMs is rejected because you do not have the required balance, then Kotak Mahindra Bank and ICICI Bank charge Rs25 per transaction for certain types of savings accounts.

Cash can also prove to be heavy if you deposit it in the wrong place. A statement on the ICICI Bank’s website states, “On deposit of charge/cash in a collector box, a charge of Rs100 will be levied. The charge will be Rs300 in case the deposit amount is above Rs500. Repeat instances of cash deposits through the cheque drop box will attract an enhanced charge of Rs500.”

And do remember to check whether the address you have furnished to the bank is correct. In case ATM, debit cards or personal identification numbers that you should have received are returned to the bank, you will have to shell out Rs50 to compensate, says SBI in its charges list.

Also, don’t ask your relatives to deposit or withdraw cash bank branches closer to them. Banks levy charges for using a non-home branch, meaning a branch apart from where your account is registered. Kotak Mahindra Bank charges Rs50-10,000 on the basis of Rs2.5 per Rs1,000 deposited or withdrawn at non-home branches. HDFC Bank levies a charge for third-party transacting on your behalf for cash transactions at non-home branches. ICICI Bank allows the first cash deposit in a non-city branch per month free, but later Rs5 per Rs1,000, subject to a minimum of Rs150 will be levied.

So, if you have shifted your location away from your bank branch, then close that account and open a new one closer to your new home. Other ways to save money include internet banking, phone banking or even ATMs where you are permitted to transact apart from plain cash transactions. Also, in case a bank is charging you for non-maintenance of quarterly balance, then check whether you have maintained a fixed deposit of an equivalent amount. Most banks don’t levy non-maintenance charge when you have an FD.

So, it is imperative to have an internet banking and telephone banking personal identification numbers as many banking activities come at either no or a lesser charge when done online, via phone or at an ATM. But if you do not have a computer at home be cautious while banking using public computers.