# What do you use for your day to day account?



## JustAGuy (Feb 5, 2012)

I've been using BMO since my parents got me a bank account and quite frankly I think they're a terrible bank. I've lost track of the number of times I've been charged monthly fees when I shouldn't have been, they had the wrong SIN assigned to my account at one point... their website insists that I can't do any TFSA transactions because I'm not Canadian (born and raised and address is Canadian...)

I want to switch but am not 100% on what the best options would be. If anyone's particularly happy with their bank I'd be interested to know.


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## canadianbanks (Jun 5, 2009)

I think you'll have very similar experience with any of the Big 5 Canadian banks. It's just the way it is in Canada, because of the lack of real competition.


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## Eder (Feb 16, 2011)

CIBC has been pretty bad the last 52 years I've had an account there. atm they have frozen my checking account 80kcash and my Investors Edge 440k cash...just another day. I haven't bothered to call them yet because I lose brain cells as soon as they answer.


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## Koala (Jan 27, 2012)

I've had many problems with RBC over the years, at 2 different branches. I've recently switched to TD and so far no fees that I shouldn't be charged and they actually treat me great.


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## CanadianCapitalist (Mar 31, 2009)

I've never had an account with BMO but I've had bank accounts at Royal Bank and TD Bank. I have no complaints. Both provided impeccable service. Sure they might occasionally make a mistake, but they always rectified it promptly.


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## Four Pillars (Apr 5, 2009)

Eder said:


> CIBC has been pretty bad the last 52 years I've had an account there.


Lol - are you serious about 52 years?

Surely they are allowed one screwup per decade?


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## Sasquatch (Jan 28, 2012)

I've been with Presidents Choice Financial ever since they first opened and have not paid one red cent in fees....ever.
Their chequing account has no fees and no minimum balance, free cheques etc. etc.

No screwups of any kind in over 10 years, all is good.

What's there not to like 

And, no, I don't work for them !


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## nathan79 (Feb 21, 2011)

I used to be with Scotiabank but got fed up with their high fees for everything. I switched to Coast Capital Savings last year and haven't regretted it for a second. I don't carry a high balance or make a lot of transactions, so their "Free Chequing Debit and More Account" was the perfect fit for me.


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## Square Root (Jan 30, 2010)

I know w like to complain about the Canadian banks And much of it is justified, but I just spent a couple of hours on the phone trying to set up basic banking services in the US. Much worse there. They haven't got a clue. Their idea of e-payments is an email request to send out a cheque on your behalf. Really!!


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## GreenAvenue (Dec 28, 2011)

Yeah complaining is easy.... so I'm going to join you guys 

My European bank allowed me to electronically transfer money from my account to any other bank in Europe. None U.S. or Canadian bank offers that service, moving to Canada set me back 30 years. I hadn't seen a cheque in years, as a matter of fact I started dealing with cheques for the first time in my life when I moved to this part of the world. The North American banks have a long way to go!

As for Scotiabank... they refunded me the penalty I paid when I refinanced. I left the money on the account b/c I wasn't using it anymore, it was about $9000 and I figured: they'll find out and than correct it, I was just sick and tired of calling them over and over again to get stuff corrected. 

Opened RESP for my 3 children but never saw that government grant for instance, called them, got the next lame excuse and it was corrected, etc., etc, Scotiabank is probably the worst bank I have ever been with. I'm ashamed I have a LOC with them. I closed my mortgage with Scotiabank, I closed savings accounts, and moved over to PC Financial. It's true you can't deal with someone in person but I was used to that already. Why would you need to go to your bank if they just do their work? Never had any issue with PC. For questions I go to a booth or call. And of course I still have my bank account in Europe, that still works fine as it has been since 1983...


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

With millions of accumulated customer account-years you can probably obtain bad service stories for every bank. It seems to be the luck of the draw. I left BNS many years ago for RBC because they kept making mistakes in my bank book acct. Although I am undoubtedly paying more fees than I might elsewhere, the service for 40 years at RBC has not been bad. No major screw-ups on any accounts. 

Their estate dept. is another story - I could write a book about what a PITA they are. 

It seems to me you can't expect any bank to be perfect, so the measure of tolerability should be in how they respond when they do make a mistake. 

To OP: from your multiple problems it sounds like their data banks have you mixed up with someone else, and for some reason they are not able to ferret out and correct all the wrong files. Probably time to move elsewhere and write a letter to Customer Service telling them why.


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## JustAGuy (Feb 5, 2012)

Yep, that's my plan... I'm tried of dealing with correcting things every year. I have no complaints with the bank that I had in Australia, and now that I'm back in Canada I feel like I'm done wasting my time with my current bank.

I've heard a few good things about pc... maybe I'll look into them a bit more.


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## cedebe (Feb 1, 2012)

I'm surprised no one's mentioned ING Direct yet. While I still maintain accounts at RBC, my primary accounts are now with ING. 

They allow free withdrawals and deposits (CAD only, I believe) at any bank/credit union that's part of the Exchange network and their customer service is great -- quick to answer the phone and accurate info.

Most importantly, no fees whatsoever! (except for ordering cheques, but I only write them for rent anyway)


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## eulogy (Oct 29, 2011)

I haven't had any problems with any banks really, though I've moved around a lot.

I started at Scotia when I was a kid. I remember bringing in rolls of change and I vividly remember the teller having a dirty look on her face about it. Never went back.

I then went to a credit union that my parents went too. They charged me for debit card use and I didn't want to pay for such a service.

I then went to CIBC and I had a youth account, so I didn't have to pay for their fees.

I eventually migrated toward PC Financial. Than to TD and ING.

I currently have both a TD and ING account. No problem with either. I do not like keeping $1500 in my bank account to avoid fees at TD. I might move it to RBC and take advantage of their no fees if you have other products. But I don't know. I rarely ever need a teller. If it wasn't for the fact that I have a US dollar account and put money in it once a year, I wouldn't see a teller for literally a few years.

I just can't give up that account though because sometimes I'll need a service that ING can't provide.


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## Gunstar (Nov 8, 2011)

I was a customer at CIBC for a little over 10 years and switched to RBC just under a year ago. So far I have had no complaints about the service, and I like the functionality of the online interface and mobile aplication better. 

I do 95% of my banking online, so that is the most important component for me.


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## Eder (Feb 16, 2011)

Square Root said:


> I know w like to complain about the Canadian banks And much of it is justified, but I just spent a couple of hours on the phone trying to set up basic banking services in the US. Much worse there. They haven't got a clue. Their idea of e-payments is an email request to send out a cheque on your behalf. Really!!


It took me about 3 hours in the office of a Wells Fargo branch to open an account...it seems our social insurance number makes their heads explode.


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## Eder (Feb 16, 2011)

Four Pillars said:


> Lol - are you serious about 52 years?
> 
> Surely they are allowed one screwup per decade?


Yes, my mother opened my savings account 52 years ago. I've been doing business in the same small town branch the last 25 years but they still have no idea I'm not laundering money and freeze my accounts to keep our world safe from whatever.

I think they screwed up more than once in the last 10 years haha.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

JustAGuy said:


> I've been using BMO since my parents got me a bank account and quite frankly I think they're a terrible bank.
> 
> [ ... ]
> 
> I want to switch but am not 100% on what the best options would be. If anyone's particularly happy with their bank I'd be interested to know.


The question is what type of transactions do you do? Also - are you comfortable dealing with online and phone service instead of a branch with people?

If so, I've been happy with President's Choice for about ten years. The three times I found an error, by the time I was ready to call to report the error - it has been fixed. I'm not doing anything fancy (i.e. payroll deposit, cheques, TFSA, Interest account). The overdraft has a much higher fee than it used to. 

Also - by paying attention to where Loblaws stores and CIBC ATMs, the only fees I've paid have been for using another bank's ATM. It's usually been about $3 over three years.


I've also got an ING Direct account for when their interest rate is higher. Again, no complaints. I did look into their Thrive chequing account but noticed that only the first set of cheques is free.

I've also maintained a TD bank account to make deposits/withdrawals to my TD Waterhouse brokerage account easy and withdrawal fee free.



Cheers


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## RoR (Jan 18, 2012)

I have a TD account. No issues. Not a huge fan of the $10/mon I usually pay. But switching it would be a huge PITA. 

I have been cheque free for months now! I refuse to pay for them. Cheques should be free.


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## meddlesomemarmots (Feb 16, 2011)

When I first came to Canada a couple of years ago - I signed up with TD for my everyday banking. They were always okay - bugged me a little how long I'd have to wait in branch in the line ups, but hey, its a big bank so I guess that's going to happen. The fees sucked though - was no way of getting around them taking their share.

About a year and a bit ago, I got an offer from a local credit union to pick up a $100 Safeway card to change my payroll over to one of their chequings - and by keeping a $2,000.00 balance, it's free - I don't think I've paid a fee to them as of yet. Much easier to get seen to in branch, and any bigger issues seem to be dealt with more promptly. Very happy with my current set up.


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## DanFo (Apr 9, 2011)

I'm with TD..I had a small account with Royal but closed it after they added fees... I always make sure i have the min balance in the accounts with TD to avoid any fees...I haven't had any problems so far (25years) but I don't do any real complicated transaction either


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## uptoolate (Oct 9, 2011)

Have banked with RBC, CIBC, BMO and now TD and PC Financial. I have never really had any big issues with any of them. PC Financial is ok but I do like to have a manager that I can talk to when the need arises. It is nice to know some of the same tellers for 30+ years and have them know who you are.


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## Four Pillars (Apr 5, 2009)

I've used CIBC for forever. No complaints.

As SR said upthread, it's unlikely there is much difference between any of the big banks.


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## financialnoob (Feb 26, 2011)

I was with Canada Trust and then they got bought by TD. The minimum balance for chequing accounts is pretty high to avoid fees, but the extended hours/Saturday service is nice, and some branches are also open on Sundays.

They're really customer-service oriented, and I've always had good experiences. Though I went in 4 times over 8 months and twice I got calls from their customer service people asking if everything went okay and if I had any complaints. Thought that was a bit of overkill, good intentions but kind of annoying.


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## JustAGuy (Feb 5, 2012)

hmm.... I'm debating opening a thrive chequing account via ING specifically to get the $100 bonus for having payroll switched to there...

but it looks like filtering my money into President's Choice Financial might be more convenient for actual day to day use...

need to do more research 

Does anyone know how it works with credit cards? I mean... I have my mastercard through bmo. If I want to continue using that card do I still need to have a bmo account? or would I still be able to function with that fine if I close down the chequing account? Seems a little dumb to close it since I just bought cheques a short while ago.... but I'm annoyed with having to keep 2000 minimum in my bmo account.



Eclectic12 said:


> The question is what type of transactions do you do? Also - are you comfortable dealing with online and phone service instead of a branch with people?


Well the way I operate right now is:
- pay is done via direct deposit
- I buy 90% of my purchases directly on my mastercard so that I can get airmiles
- I pay off the credit card as soon as it appears in my transactions.
- I tend to transfer money to people via interac money transfer
- I have to pay my rent with cheques
- I have one hobby that I have to pay in cash once a month
- at christmas and birthdays my family tends to give me a cheque which I have to deposit
- If I vacation to a foreign country I tend to get out foreign currency from the bank

I do occasionally receive cheques in foreign currency which I've always gone to a teller to deal with, but I've never even tried that at an atm... not sure I trust it to catch that the cheque is a different currency...


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## KaeJS (Sep 28, 2010)

JustAGuy said:


> Does anyone know how it works with credit cards? I mean... I have my mastercard through bmo. If I want to continue using that card do I still need to have a bmo account? or would I still be able to function with that fine if I close down the chequing account? Seems a little dumb to close it since I just bought cheques a short while ago.... but I'm annoyed with having to keep 2000 minimum in my bmo account.


You do not need a BMO Bank account to keep/use your BMO MasterCard.

As for the $2k minimum for your plan, you will get this at every big bank you go to. If you want free banking, you'll have to give up the bricks and mortar, convenient big banks.


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## JustAGuy (Feb 5, 2012)

Well, I've opened up an ING thrive account. At the very least I'll get my next paycheque in there for the free $100 bonus they're offering until the end of this month. Hopefully I can get my BMO account closed by the end of the month too


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

JustAGuy said:


> [ ... ]
> 
> Does anyone know how it works with credit cards? I mean... I have my mastercard through bmo. If I want to continue using that card do I still need to have a bmo account? or would I still be able to function with that fine if I close down the chequing account?
> 
> ...


I've got both an AMEX and CIBC visa that I've paid out different chequing accounts. Mastercard is big so I'd be surprised if any bank account would bar them from being a bill payment. Worst case, ask when doing research or opening the account.


Based on your list - it sounds like an online bank will work for you - except for the foreign currency. The next consideration is the number of transactions. Most of the online banks are unlimited for a lot of their transactions. In comparison, TD CanadaTrust offers a Value account that's $3.95 / month or $1.5K minimum balance *but* is limited to 10 transactions a month.


As I say, I've done well an online bank but to each their own ....


Cheers


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## Kalergie (Jan 7, 2011)

I also come from Europe originally and I cannot believe what the big 5 make us pay for here. 
A Canadian friend of mine told me enthusiastically about the new email interac feature. I mean, that is not new. Thats just a way to charge 1.5$ for something that should be free. And I dont believe in cheques. They are unsafe and outdated. 

For example: My landlord who I gave post dated cheques, was able to cash 3 cheques BEFORE the intended date at once! Besides the fact that my landlord is a savage, I was obviously furious that she was even able to do so! Needless to say, I got heavily penalized for not having 6000$ on my account. I went to my branch (Scotia) and even the branch of her bank (RBC) where she cashed the cheques. Both said that they arent responsible. "Do you know how many cheques we get every day? We cannot look at all details." At least Scotia reimbursed me the penalties.


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## JustAGuy (Feb 5, 2012)

ha, I know
part of my frustration results in having just lived in Australia for a year, where everything was nice and convenient. I paid my rent online, and I currently keep my account open with about $7 and don't get dinged with any penalties


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## doctrine (Sep 30, 2011)

I've been at PC Financial for over 10 years and am quite happy about it. As far as I know, there is no Big 5 account that doesn't have no bank fees without minimum deposits or some equivalent transaction fee (like $5k for TD Select - $5k!). 

I had several accounts with RBC over the years, and closed them down as they slowly added fees, including the most insulting one, a $0.75 fee to withdraw my own money from a "Bonus Savings" account I had for 20 years. Seriously? Bye bye RBC.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

Kalergie said:


> [ ... ]
> 
> And I don't believe in cheques. They are unsafe and outdated.
> 
> For example: My landlord who I gave post dated cheques, was able to cash 3 cheques BEFORE the intended date at once! Besides the fact that my landlord is a savage, I was obviously furious that she was even able to do so! Needless to say, I got heavily penalized for not having 6000$ on my account. I went to my branch (Scotia) and even the branch of her bank (RBC) where she cashed the cheques. Both said that they arent responsible. "Do you know how many cheques we get every day? We cannot look at all details." At least Scotia reimbursed me the penalties.


Hmmm ... I can understand your frustration but IMO, this is not a safety issue. 

If the landlord had photocopied the cheque and cashed it - then I could agree. In comparison - I've seen more fraudulent credit card charges.


I'm probably biased as I'd seen newspaper reports of this issue ten plus years ago.

Cheers


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

Let's not get into rhetoric please. Cheques are not outdated. There's a lot to like about cheques actually, if people would be smart enough to know how to use them properly. 

Most people are very sensitive to fees these days and the fees for electronic money transfers are significant. My free monthly banking plan includes somewhere between 5-10 cheques per month, plus the cheques themselves were free. So if I buy something from a friend, I can write him a cheque for the exact amount I owe him, he deposits it in his account at the ATM and doesn't pay a penny in fees. And I don't have to sit there all day doing tech support with him on how to handle electronic payments that are loaded with fees like landmines.

And for the record, automated payments are equally unsafe. I've had incidents where the vendor took out their automated payment before the 1st of the month. They quickly admitted their mistake, but as with the cheque story above, I was vulnerable to all sorts of fees and overdrafts. It can happen whether with cheques or automated payments.

It's also VERY unsafe (far more unsafe than cheques themselves in fact) to give any vendor unfettered access to take the money out of your bank account whenever they want.


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## JustAGuy (Feb 5, 2012)

Yeah, I find it a little odd how here in Canada billers can withdraw your money when they choose.

Here I had to submit a form with my bank information and BCHydro automatically takes the money out when they want

In Australia, my landlord gave me his bank information and I set up my account to automatically pay the bill when it was due


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## Kalergie (Jan 7, 2011)

the-royal-mail said:


> Let's not get into rhetoric please. Cheques are not outdated. There's a lot to like about cheques actually, if people would be smart enough to know how to use them properly.


You mean, if banks would be smart enough to process them properly?  

The incident with my landlord taught me personally not ever to give out cheques again before a payment is due even when postdated. So yes, maybe that was naive from my side but how are you supposed to know that the field on the top right corner is obsolete as no bank actually looks at it when cashing a cheque?  Maybe Im too detail oriented as I am from Germany!


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

That's a good point. And your comments certainly cause me to want to be more careful about giving out this type of cheque. As things stand now, only my landlord (who keeps hounding me to grant them debit access to my bank account) gets postdated cheques from me. A couple weeks back I goofed and wrote Jan 26 (the day I wrote the cheque) on FEB's rent cheque and when I realized my mistake moments later, checked my finances and decided to just hand it over like that and not waste a cheque. I went down and passed it through the office slot and expected it would be cashed right away. It wasn't. They still didn't cash it until after the 1st.

I have a bunch of post dated cheques here that someone wrote me for the next few months. I doubt the banks want to manage millions of post-dated cheques, so they probably want the individual to manage that process. Since reading stories like yours on here I have been more careful not to deposit the cheques before the post-date.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

Kalergie said:


> You mean, if banks would be smart enough to process them properly?
> 
> The incident with my landlord taught me personally not ever to give out cheques again before a payment is due even when postdated. So yes, maybe that was naive from my side but how are you supposed to know that the field on the top right corner is obsolete as no bank actually looks at it when cashing a cheque?  Maybe Im too detail oriented as I am from Germany!


Hmmm ... do you honestly think the driving force is "smarts"? *grin*

Post-dated cheques being cashed before the date started being reported (and not dealt with) as soon as the banks replaced the people with machines.

Why cut into the profits is the banks by flagging the dates?


Since you came from Germany, the banks won't advertise this and I suspect you've had a lot of other things to deal with so I don't know how you'd find out (CMF?).

In my case, it was reading the newspaper, which prompted me to ask the bank directly.


Cheers


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## PDog (Feb 16, 2012)

A somewhat related query . . . 

is there much of a difference in online banking performance of the big 5 banks? Used CIBC for years. Since the turn of the year, transactions are lagging; direct deposits are now being quoted as taking 'two full business days' to be available to update accounts through downloading transactions. Suddenly I'm finding myself with more than the usual receipts from purchases. One (honest) telephone rep told me they did have online issues at the end of the year. When this came up with another rep, both they and a supervisor demanded to know the name of the previous rep (I had not idea, but I indicated that I wouldn't tell them even if I did know it).

Anyway, wondering if there are other alternatives for those that use considerable online services and don't want to experience what I consider excessive delays.

thanks


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## Dave (Apr 5, 2009)

I am very happy with my ING Thrive Account. However, I am not impressed with their interest rates on the saving accounts. 

Dave


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

Dave said:


> I am very happy with my ING Thrive Account. However, I am not impressed with their interest rates on the saving accounts.
> 
> Dave


Really? 

I would have thought the GICs would be the problem ... why tie up money for a year and a half to earn 1.4% when the ISA is paying 1.5% without restrictions?

What savings account are you comparing to?


The part I don't like about the Thrive chequing account is the $12.50 for 50 cheques, after the first book is free. I've become accustomed to free cheques with PCF.


Cheers


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

the-royal-mail said:


> Let's not get into rhetoric please. Cheques are not outdated. There's a lot to like about cheques actually, if people would be smart enough to know how to use them properly.
> 
> Most people are very sensitive to fees these days and the fees for electronic money transfers are significant. My free monthly banking plan includes somewhere between 5-10 cheques per month, plus the cheques themselves were free. So if I buy something from a friend, I can write him a cheque for the exact amount I owe him, he deposits it in his account at the ATM and doesn't pay a penny in fees. And I don't have to sit there all day doing tech support with him on how to handle electronic payments that are loaded with fees like landmines.


Cheques are archaic. Europe has safe regulated cheap electronic transfers. They are pretty much the standard for anything peer to peer here and it's glorious (although, maybe not as profitable for the banks or post offices)

Germany phased out cheques over a decade ago.



> As of 2010, many countries have either phased out the use of cheques altogether or signaled that they would do so in the future.


This is also why Europeans rarely use credit cards compared to NA's. Most other countries are following Germany's lead on this



> In Finland, banks stopped issuing personal cheques in about 1993 in favour of giro systems, which are now almost exclusively electronically initiated either via internet banking or payment machines located at banks and shopping malls. All Nordic countries have used an interconnected international giro system since the 1950s, and in Sweden, cheques are now totally abandoned. Electronic payments across the European Union are now fast and inexpensive—usually free for consumers. In Poland cheques were withdrawn from use in 2006, mainly because of lack of popularity





> Direct bank transfers, using so-called giro transfers, have been standard procedure since the *1950s* to send and receive regular payments like rent and wages and even mail-order invoices.


Welcome to the 20th century



> The US still relies heavily on cheques, due to the convenience it affords payers, and due to the absence of a high volume system for low value electronic payments.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheque


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## yyzvoyageur (Apr 10, 2009)

HSBC's Premier service is a good deal if you can maintain their minimum requirements ($100 000 with the bank and its subsidiaries). Sounds like a lot I know, but you can keep your family's RRSPs, RESP and TFSAs with their discount brokerage (InvestDirect) and enjoy $6.88 commissions, and not have to maintain a minimum balance in a chequing account. I pay no fees. In fact, HSBC will refund the $1.50 charge incurred when withdrawing cash at a different bank's cash machine. I was also able to open a US-domiciled account (a Hong Kong-domiciled account too) and get a US MasterCard with no forex fees. I also enjoy cheap currency conversions (about 0.4%) when I transfer through their "Global Transfers" function. It works well for me.


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## zidane (Jan 8, 2012)

@mode3sour

it sort of makes you feel that living in Canada is like living in the stone age.


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## JustAGuy (Feb 5, 2012)

zidane said:


> @mode3sour
> 
> it sort of makes you feel that living in Canada is like living in the stone age.


Yes. Yes it does.


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## 44545 (Feb 14, 2012)

President's Choice (PC) financial, all the way.

I get my banking done faster with a few mouse clicks than I could with human interaction. Why pay for the latter? I also use cheques a lot. (optional share purchase plans, rent etc)


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

CJOttawa said:


> I get my banking done faster with a few mouse clicks than I could with human interaction. Why pay for the latter? I also use cheques a lot. (optional share purchase plans, rent etc)


Exactly, but why physically write and deliver cheques when you could "potentially" do it for free with a few clicks (not a pre-auth payment, but rather an auto monthly payment)


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## larry81 (Nov 22, 2010)

I use: TD Select service + TDWH + MBNA Smartcash

Anyone have better alternatives ?


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## Elbyron (Apr 3, 2009)

KaeJS said:


> If you want free banking, you'll have to give up the bricks and mortar, convenient big banks.





doctrine said:


> As far as I know, there is no Big 5 account that doesn't have no bank fees without minimum deposits or some equivalent transaction fee (like $5k for TD Select - $5k!).


I guess nobody here has heard of BMO's Club Sobeys chequing account? It's the first no-fee no-minimums bricks & mortar bank account, and you can even earn either Air Miles (up to 125) or Club Sobeys points (up to 3000) for setting up automated bill payments and deposits. You only get 25 cheques for free ($9.95 for 50 afterwards), and have to phone in to request them. And there may be a $1 for some teller-assisted transactions, but the option of having a teller is a pretty big improvement over PCF and ING Thrive. It means you can get a bank draft without waiting a week for them to mail it, or be able to withdraw a large amount of cash without having to call in to get your ATM limit temporarily pumped up. And teller deposits are free, which is great if you've got large deposits that you are afraid of dropping into an ATM. 

They also offer a Club Sobeys savings account, but it's interest rates are even lower than PCF and they only give you 1 free withdrawal per month, charging $5 for each additional one. But if you don't withdraw often, it may still be useful as you can get additional Air Miles or Club Sobeys points for setting up automatic transfers. 

Some of you might be wondering if these Club Sobeys points can be converted to Aeroplan (since when setting up your Sobeys account you can choose which to collect). Unfortunately, the answer is no. 

Apply for the Air Miles version here (except Quebec), or the Club Sobeys version here. For those in Quebec, where "Sobeys" is still IGA, you can apply here for the Air Miles version.
Full details can be found in this pdf.

I should warn you that many people have reported that BMO will do a hard credit check. And it takes 2 - 3 weeks to get the card & PIN by mail, but if you visit the branch that you specified on the last step of your application, you can get a temporary card sooner than that. If you're a new customer you may have to go into the branch anyway to show a couple pieces of ID. But be sure to apply online first - they usually don't allow you to open this account in-branch.


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## Argonaut (Dec 7, 2010)

As someone who works for a bank I agree that we are in the stone age here. A world without cheques and with easy transfers to other institutions would be great. I wonder how the elder folks in Europe have adapted.. here a lot of seniors do not use cards with PIN numbers for example.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

Elbyron said:


> I guess nobody here has heard of BMO's Club Sobeys chequing account? It's the first no-fee no-minimums bricks & mortar bank account,[ ...] but the option of having a teller is a pretty big improvement over PCF and ING Thrive.
> 
> It means you can get a bank draft without waiting a week for them to mail it, or be able to withdraw a large amount of cash without having to call in to get your ATM limit temporarily pumped up. And teller deposits are free, which is great if you've got large deposits that you are afraid of dropping into an ATM.
> 
> [ ... ]


It's good to hear of other accounts - Canadian Tire also has a savings/TFSA account but I haven't heard any comments


I suspect the part about "having a teller is a pretty big improvement over PCF and ING Thrive" is going to depend on one's need for a teller. In 9+ years, I haven't had any issues - but haven't needed a draft.

As for withdrawing cash - I wrote a cheque for something like $35K when buying my house without an issue, no phone calls required.


To each their own ...

Cheers


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## Elbyron (Apr 3, 2009)

Eclectic12 said:


> It's good to hear of other accounts - Canadian Tire also has a savings/TFSA account but I haven't heard any comments


Perhaps because the topic is day-to-day banking accounts? Savings accounts cannot be used for paying bills, ATM withdrawals, or Interac transactions. So they rarely satisfy the typical day-to-day banking needs of most people. 


> I suspect the part about "having a teller is a pretty big improvement over PCF and ING Thrive" is going to depend on one's need for a teller. In 9+ years, I haven't had any issues - but haven't needed a draft.


I'm quite surprised you haven't needed a draft for over 9 years... do you just pay for large purchases (like vehicles) in cash? How do you manage get enough cash from ATMs for something like that? Or is it just that you haven't bought a vehicle in over 9 years?


> As for withdrawing cash - I wrote a cheque for something like $35K when buying my house without an issue, no phone calls required.


Of course you don't need to phone if you're just writing a cheque, but getting $35K in cash would take you 70 days to withdraw with a daily maximum of $500, right? Oh, and if you ever want to buy my house, I don't take personal cheques - and neither does my lawyer, or any real estate lawyer that I've ever heard of.



> To each their own ...


I fully agree... each person has different requirements. Some want free cheques, some want free electronic money transfers, and some want the option of a brick & mortar bank for quick drafts & cash. Now with the BMO Sobeys account, the third option is now just as free as the first two. And of course, there's no reason you couldn't get all 3 accounts if you want all 3 features! Personally, I only have a PCF account but I'm strongly considering opening a BMO account and linking the PCF to it, so I can transfer funds and get a draft a lot faster the next time I need one.


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## mrPPincer (Nov 21, 2011)

pcfinancial is nice for day to day banking, no fees is nice, and it does not require a minimum balance to have no withdrawal fees.

When you consider that even at todays interest rates a minimum balance of say $1000 in a no interest acccount is equivalent to $20 in fees per year, why not keep that cash in a separate high interest account payng 2% or more and keep a low balance in your day to day account?

Another point is that it may be better to keep larger amounts in a separate acccount from your bill paying account, if only just for peace of mind.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

Elbyron said:


> Perhaps because the topic is day-to-day banking accounts? [ ... ]
> 
> I'm quite surprised you haven't needed a draft for over 9 years... do you just pay for large purchases (like vehicles) in cash? How do you manage get enough cash from ATMs for something like that? Or is it just that you haven't bought a vehicle in over 9 years?
> 
> ...


Yes ... the thread is for chequeing accounts - though I've yet to see a comment on the Canadian Tire savings account in a savings type thread either.

As for drafts, on checking my records - the PCF cheque was to a TD bank account so that I could get a certified cheque for buying my current house. Interestingly enough, the owner did take a personal cheque as the down payment. The remainder is what the lawyer wanted the certified cheque for.

So it's more like two drafts in 30 years (both house purchases), with the last one six years ago. 


Large purchases have all been handled with cheques and/or credit cards, including the last vehicle purchased (i.e. car 3), bought in 2009.

For vehicles, I'm usually buying last year's model that being cleared out, with some sort of incentive financing on top of discounts. A price is agreed on, a credit check is then run, followed by cutting the dealer a cheque for what I'm paying up front. About a week later, I sign the financing, collect the car and drive away. I'm usually paying off the financing early. 

All three cars I've bought were done this way. Car 2 was bought nine years after car 1, car 3 was bought fourteen years after car 2. Note that car 2 was given to my brother who drove it another two years before a driver under the influence crashed into it, totalling it. *sigh*

Bottom line is that I haven't needed many drafts nor large sums of cash.


Hmmm ... I guess "just as free" depends on whether one uses cheques or drafts more often (i.e. the cost of future prints of cheques compared to paying courier charges to get a draft faster). 

I like the idea of linking the two accounts - especially if there are no fees for having the account.


Cheers


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## xkalay (Aug 29, 2012)

*President's Choice*



mrPPincer said:


> pcfinancial is nice for day to day banking, no fees is nice, and it does not require a minimum balance to have no withdrawal fees.
> 
> When you consider that even at todays interest rates a minimum balance of say $1000 in a no interest acccount is equivalent to $20 in fees per year, why not keep that cash in a separate high interest account payng 2% or more and keep a low balance in your day to day account?
> 
> Another point is that it may be better to keep larger amounts in a separate acccount from your bill paying account, if only just for peace of mind.


Be careful!!! Their "no fee" is a myth.... They do have fees and some are so high it should be considered theft. I have had nothing but problems with them and I am looking for an alternative to President's Choice Banking. Stay away!!


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## MrMatt (Dec 21, 2011)

1. Credit Card
2. Line of Credit 
3. Savings account

I do have a basic checking account for automatic transactions that need one, but that's all I use it for.


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

xkalay said:


> Be careful!!! Their "no fee" is a myth.... They do have fees and some are so high it should be considered theft. I have had nothing but problems with them and I am looking for an alternative to President's Choice Banking. Stay away!!


Someone registered to make this comment?


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## Barwelle (Feb 23, 2011)

andrewf said:


> Someone registered to make this comment?


Maybe someone who works for BNS, attacking the competitors to try to influence people to sign up with their new acquisition...


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## KLR650 (Sep 12, 2010)

xkalay said:


> Be careful!!! Their "no fee" is a myth.... They do have fees and some are so high it should be considered theft. I have had nothing but problems with them and I am looking for an alternative to President's Choice Banking. Stay away!!


There are no fees on regular day to day banking, such as withdrawals. There are fees for some things...their NSF charge is $40 I believe.

I have been a customer of PC Financial for well over a decade and always have been very happy with the service. One time I made a mistake and paid my phone bill to the wrong Bell acct. Called Bell and they were USELESS (Bell deserves their own gripe thread). I called PC Fin'l and they had it all sorted out within a week or two, even though none of it was their fault.

Have also been with ING Direct for years and use TD Waterhouse for investing--very satisfied with both.


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## Echo (Apr 1, 2011)

I've banked with TD ever since I was a kid (my mom worked there). Like most of the country, I was addicted to using debit, so TD kindly recommended their unlimited chequing account for $12.95/month. This sounded good to me, since I was paying over $20 a month in extra service charges. 

Then when I started getting my finances under control and had enough $ to maintain the minimum balance, I switched to the $3.95/month Value account, kept the $1k minimum balance, and started using a cash back credit card for daily transactions and recurring bill payments so I could keep my debits under 10/month.

After TD raised their account fees and minimum balances last summer, I switched to ING Thrive and got the $100 bonus for switching my payroll. 

So now I have the ING Thrive account, but I keep the TD account open with a $1,500 balance to waive the fees. I keep it open because I still hold my mortgage, RRSP, TFSA, RESP and small business account with TD, and sometimes I use the account to move money around. I use the MBNA Smart Cash card for my everyday spending and bill payments.

No complaints with ING. I like the free email transfer option, which I use regularly.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

xkalay said:


> Be careful!!! Their "no fee" is a myth.... They do have fees and some are so high it should be considered theft. I have had nothing but problems with them and I am looking for an alternative to President's Choice Banking. Stay away!!


Technically, you are correct - though "no fee" is a myth for all banks that I am aware of. That's why reviewing what one is comfortable doing and what one's typical transactions are is a big part of determining how appropriate the account/services are IMO.


As for the "high fees" that should be considered theft, can you provide any examples? 
A quick comparison of the PCF schedule and other banks shows the PCF fees as being almost the same, cheaper or free. 




KLR650 said:


> There are no fees on regular day to day banking, such as withdrawals. There are fees for some things...their NSF charge is $40 I believe...


The NSF charge for all NSF sucks. As long as it was below the coverage threshold I'd setup, it used to be charged to the borrowing account - which was pennies in interest compared to the NSF plus interest charges now.

However, compared to other banks - it's pretty much the same fee.


As for errors, I'm now up to five. Only one has required a phone call and that was ten minutes to investigate then request the charges reduced. I've spend more time in line at the other banks and a lot more time arguing over issues. So overall, I'm quite happy.


Cheers


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