Standard bank query

[ians]

What are your rights when it come to late payments?

I was told by Standard bank during a recorded telephone call, that if i dont pay my bond by the due date that i not longer have any rights as a consumer, ie the CPA no longer protects my rights as a consumer.

I was told that they, Standard bank have the right to harrass me from the day after the payment was due, at anytime of the day or night, weekday or weekend and as many times as they choose.

I can understand if you dont take the call or, if i switch them off etc, which i have never done. As a bussiness owner for over 20 years, I have found that it is always best to communicate with suppliers or anyone for that matter who you owe money.

What i dont appreciate is when the bank calls me at 9 pm at night, then start theatening me to make payment within 24 hours, for an amount of twice the outstanding balance. I told the person what they can do with the threat, "call me during banking hours" and switched off the phone.

[Dave A]

There's no doubt, when it comes to collecting on defaults Standard Bank does not muck about.

[ians]

I dont have a problem with them not mucking about, when it comes to collecting on defaulters. As bussiness owners, we know what it is like having to collect money from people, its the manner in which they do it that concerns me, telling customers that they no longer have any rights, or calling people all hours of the night, maybe i should try it and see what reaction i get.

As i mentioned above, if i am behind with my payment, i dont have a problem with them contacting me during "banking hours" to discuss the issue. Do you call the director of the bank at 9 pm in the evening or 4 am when you log on in the morning and find there is a problem with your bank account, in fact, chances you dont even have the bussiness bankers telephone number, you can call a national number which will tell you to piss off and call them during banking hours. i also realise i am wasting my time and energy even going into this topic, because i know there is nothing i can do about it.

I know what i have to do is get back to a point where i no longer need the bank, problem is i get greedy and see things i want and i go out and get them. The overdraft starts, hp, loans etc and end up back in the same place, making the banks rich. 3 months to go and no more vehicle hp, then its just the bond. My wife and i should both be debt free by december this year.

[BusFact]

My wife and i should both be debt free by december this year.

See, you just needed to rant to feel better. You already knew the answer to your problem.

Bank advertising is very deceptive. They are not their to be your partner through thick and thin, only when its thick. When things get thin, they become your nightmare.

[ians]

Yip, i agree. Complaining on this froum will not change anything with regards to the bank. My little issues i have with them are so small and insignificant, they wouldnt even waste their time responding. All they do is move my credit rating up and down a scale. Because my bond was a little late this month i will move back up 2 points. I like to keep it like that, otherwise i go down to a 2 or 3 rating again, then they rip me off R250 and dont RD the bond. With a 6 or 7 rating at least they return it and only charge me R115.

[ians]

I looked into the fees for FNB, then contacted a bussiness banker at Standard bank (my favourite bank) and discussed fees, and this is what i have decided.

A cheque account for the bussiness which will be the main account for deposits and general transactions, efts etc.

A bussiness saving account which will be used to pay debit orders and be used as a savings account. The plan ( i hope it works) is to put the full vat amount which i invoice out every month into this account and the amount to cover debit orders. There are a few perks with this savings account we dicussed. If the account has more than R6500 all the transactions are free and so long as the amount never goes below R1000, you dont pay a month service fee. Thats how i understand it works, i will discuss it in more depth before i open the account.

A bussiness card, which will be used to do daily purchases etc, with a small limit ie. R1000, because the total amount used in this card will be debited from the savings every month.

The reason i need to do this, is one because i like stuff, and secondly because if i got money in my pocket it burns a hole until i spend it, so i am hoping this will help me to manage my funds a little better.

Is it going to work, i hope so.

If you have any better suggestions please feel free to comment.

[Darkangelyaya]

You might want to look into this: www.newera.org.za.
There is a class action against the four major banks, including Standard and FNB, and the Reserve Bank, of which I am one of 240 complainants. The purpose is to obtain transparency in banking practices, so that consumers know what is actually happening to their bonds/money/debt.
Through a process called securitization, your bond/credit card/vehicle finance debt may have been sold by the bank, to a third party, meaning that you legally don't owe them anything, and that they have NO right to harrass you for payment.
The Banks bully the consumers into accepting whatever they throw at us, almost like the classic schoolyard harrassment.
It takes a bit of digging, but go and read up on it.
(And according to the NCA, the banks MAY call you at 21h00 in the evening)

[Mike C]

A bussiness card, which will be used to do daily purchases etc, with a small limit ie. R1000, because the total amount used in this card will be debited from the savings every month.

Hi ians - by business card do you mean business credit card? If so you are going to be whacked with quite a lot of extra charges for the convenience of R1,000.00 per month.