Online banking using a smartphone…

[ChrisG]

Try living in Germany. A lot of places, especially outside of big cities, are cash only, and if they do take cards it has to be a German EC card. No Visa or MasterCard.

I've been here since April and I've probably withdrawn more cash in that 9 months than I have in 20 years in the UK.

[Stalbansclaret]

What is the current interest rate for a ‘standard/normal/everyday’ Chase savings account?

Thanks

Currently 4.1pc . I agree with the posts above that Chase is a brilliant online bank. The app works superbly, they pay decent interest rates on savings and it’s easy to speak to someone if for some reason you need to. I actually lost my debit card recently and in the 10 minutes before I realised and phoned Chase someone used it for two contactless transactions. Chase refunded me these amounts with minimal fuss.
The only downside I’ve had with them is that when I sold my flat recently I discovered they can’t accept CHAPS payments . My solicitor got round this by using the Faster Payments system instead.

[IanMcL]

I have been out with people whose batteries have run out, what then ? I on-line bank at home only.

I think your friends have sussed you!
"BFCJG mate - my battery flat. You don't mind picking up the tab, do you? Cheers pal"

[basil6345789]

Is it any less safe to use your UK debit card in, say, Portugal?l

[claptrappers_union]

Online banking is so convenient for making transfers, paying bills, etc.
Don’t tell me you are using a chequebook and snails’ mail!

I have a client who pays by cheque. My Barclays app allows me to pay it in by taking pictures of it. It goes into my account; then I have to transfer it to my business account to avoid the fees.

[claptrappers_union]

Often wondered with the amount of Banks closing on the high street now, why not utilize one of the massive building they vacate and put all the banks in there - each bank rents a counter.

It's lower overheads for all the banks and gives customers that human touch back

If there's room, you could also have the local Post Office in there and a business centre where you can hot desk with a coffee and rent meeting rooms and so on.

[Croydon Claret]

Often wondered with the amount of Banks closing on the high street now, why not utilize one of the massive building they vacate and put all the banks in there - each bank rents a counter.

It's lower overheads for all the banks and gives customers that human touch back

If there's room, you could also have the local Post Office in there and a business centre where you can hot desk with a coffee and rent meeting rooms and so on.

It's already a thing but there are very few of them at the moment

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/ ... get-acces/

[Big Vinny K]

Often wondered with the amount of Banks closing on the high street now, why not utilize one of the massive building they vacate and put all the banks in there - each bank rents a counter.

It's lower overheads for all the banks and gives customers that human touch back

If there's room, you could also have the local Post Office in there and a business centre where you can hot desk with a coffee and rent meeting rooms and so on.

A community type bank is being discussed in Wales.
The issue with multiple banks sharing the same premises is primarily around technology.
If it’s just for deposits and withdrawals (rather than opening accounts, mortgages etc) it’s probably easier.
The Post Office effectively do this now via its Horizon system and commercial agreements across a number of banks allowing their customers to use Post Offices. It’s free to personal customers but charged for businesses (usually)

Banking hubs though are definitely a good idea if the banks can be persuaded to invest in this.

Paying in cheques via your mobile app via the imaging technology is pretty common across all banks now.
Cheque clearance and how long it takes together with cheque fraud is the issue now - but to he honest I think it’s only a matter of time before cheques are ceased. They were going to do it in 2018 until a last minute lobbying changed the decision but volumes are reducing significantly year on year and the infrastructure to process cheques is not worth the money now.

[claptrappers_union]

It's just seems like a no brainer to me. Even if they use their own systems, just scaled right down.

Get companies like WHSmith, Ryman or the Co-op, and Card Factory in there as well with a small Cafe Nero. It's doesn't need to be a huge space.

[Big Vinny K]

It's just seems like a no brainer to me. Even if they use their own systems, just scaled right down.

Get companies like WHSmith, Ryman or the Co-op, and Card Factory in there as well with a small Cafe Nero. It's doesn't need to be a huge space.

Long way from being a no brainer.
If it’s a scaled down system which is basically deposit taking and withdrawals then we have that already with Post Offices.

You have to ask yourself why would a bank want to do this ? What’s in it for them ?
All banks have massively cut their branch networks - the only one who bucked the online banking trend and thought having a high street presence was the way to go was Metro Bank and look what’s happened to them.
The banks that have grown the fastest in the last decade in terms of new customers are all the new start up online banks like Starling, Monza, Chase etc. They of course have no branches.

Even in a multi bank hub type situation is that going to really make the difference in banking with someone for the vast majority of people these days ? How many people under 35 years old have even been in a bank ?

[Mala591]

What kerfuffle (in setting up a new smartphone) has to gone through when your smartphone is lost or stolen?

[Loyalclaret]

Banking hubs already exist, suspect it's not through choice but a nudge
www.cashaccess.co.uk/hubs

[dsr]

Long way from being a no brainer.
If it’s a scaled down system which is basically deposit taking and withdrawals then we have that already with Post Offices.

You have to ask yourself why would a bank want to do this ? What’s in it for them ?
All banks have massively cut their branch networks - the only one who bucked the online banking trend and thought having a high street presence was the way to go was Metro Bank and look what’s happened to them.
The banks that have grown the fastest in the last decade in terms of new customers are all the new start up online banks like Starling, Monza, Chase etc. They of course have no branches.

Even in a multi bank hub type situation is that going to really make the difference in banking with someone for the vast majority of people these days ? How many people under 35 years old have even been in a bank ?

Customer service, perhaps?

The big thing a bank hub could do is give customers someone to talk to. You're more likely to get an answer to problems if there is someone you can ask, rather than a set of different people (new person every call) on a "helpline".

Remember there is little or no limit to how a bank can declare that black is white on the end of a phone. When my Dad died, they took the wrong name off the jing account - they declared him to be still alive and my mother was dead. And when I asked for this to be corrected, they declared that not only had they not taken the wrong name off the account, they declared also that it was not and never had been a joint account.

The branch could look at the cheque book and confirm there were two names on it; the head office declared that this wasn't possible. That was an issue that couldn't have been resolved without a branch.

[bfcmik]

I have only been into my bank (Nationwide) about 3 times in the last 4 or 5 years. And that is only because the government insist on sending me refunds by cheque!

[Clovius Boofus]

Not that I partake, but surely a larger screen than a smartphone is preferable for such 'activities?

[Clovius Boofus]

Please ignore my above post. I read misread the thread header.

[Loyalclaret]

Please ignore my above post. I read misread the thread header.

[Big Vinny K]

Customer service, perhaps?

The big thing a bank hub could do is give customers someone to talk to. You're more likely to get an answer to problems if there is someone you can ask, rather than a set of different people (new person every call) on a "helpline".

Remember there is little or no limit to how a bank can declare that black is white on the end of a phone. When my Dad died, they took the wrong name off the jing account - they declared him to be still alive and my mother was dead. And when I asked for this to be corrected, they declared that not only had they not taken the wrong name off the account, they declared also that it was not and never had been a joint account.

The branch could look at the cheque book and confirm there were two names on it; the head office declared that this wasn't possible. That was an issue that couldn't have been resolved without a branch.

I agree with you that customer service has deteriorated with the reduction in branches but we are talking about a 20 year plus slide here since banks started using call centres and the online banking first came in.

Sorry to hear about your dad but when my own dad died recently I went into his Halifax branch and was told that probate and deaths could only be dealt with on the phone in their centralised call centre.

Even if these banking hubs do start popping up I can’t see anyway this will improve customer service. The banks aren’t going to start decentralising their processes and giving much functionality back to the branches. I doubt whether there would be more than 1 or 2 staff from each bank and it’s likely to be more counter transactional services.

Not saying any of this is better for customers but getting rid of staff and premises are 2 of the biggest things banks have done to reduce their costs which they needed to in the low interest rate economy in particular.

[dsr]

I agree with you that customer service has deteriorated with the reduction in branches but we are talking about a 20 year plus slide here since banks started using call centres and the online banking first came in.

Sorry to hear about your dad but when my own dad died recently I went into his Halifax branch and was told that probate and deaths could only be dealt with on the phone in their centralised call centre.

Even if these banking hubs do start popping up I can’t see anyway this will improve customer service. The banks aren’t going to start decentralising their processes and giving much functionality back to the branches. I doubt whether there would be more than 1 or 2 staff from each bank and it’s likely to be more counter transactional services.

Not saying any of this is better for customers but getting rid of staff and premises are 2 of the biggest things banks have done to reduce their costs which they needed to in the low interest rate economy in particular.

It was 17 years ago. No doubt they have changed procedures.

[Paul Waine]

One of these for example is somebody setting up a new payee and making a couple of small payments of a few quid and then following it up with a bigger payment - many fraud systems will detect this pattern and allow the smaller payments through and hold the bigger one.

Around 20 years ago I led a piece of work in building one of these unusual transaction monitoring systems for the bank fraud team and it’s still basically the same thing in use today (but with many new rules and new things to consider)

Interesting, Big VK. I've often sent a small amount, one which I've chosen, and asked the intended recipient to confirm the exact amount they've rec'd before sending the large amount. Of course, it relies on me knowing exactly who I intend to send the payment to and is just a simple check that I've entered the sort code and account details correctly. I guess I started doing that before the bank would confirm that the payee I intended to send the money to matched with the name on the bank account.

[Paul Waine]

I have only been into my bank (Nationwide) about 3 times in the last 4 or 5 years. And that is only because the government insist on sending me refunds by cheque!

My banking app is set up to accept a photo of the cheque. I was told this last year when I took a cheque to the branch to pay in. It was a lot easier than manually paying in the cheque into one of the automated machines.

[Paul Waine]

A community type bank is being discussed in Wales.
The issue with multiple banks sharing the same premises is primarily around technology.
If it’s just for deposits and withdrawals (rather than opening accounts, mortgages etc) it’s probably easier.
The Post Office effectively do this now via its Horizon system and commercial agreements across a number of banks allowing their customers to use Post Offices. It’s free to personal customers but charged for businesses (usually)

Banking hubs though are definitely a good idea if the banks can be persuaded to invest in this.

Paying in cheques via your mobile app via the imaging technology is pretty common across all banks now.
Cheque clearance and how long it takes together with cheque fraud is the issue now - but to he honest I think it’s only a matter of time before cheques are ceased. They were going to do it in 2018 until a last minute lobbying changed the decision but volumes are reducing significantly year on year and the infrastructure to process cheques is not worth the money now.

A community banking, ticket office, post office (when they've sorted Horizon), tech support/internet centre and citizen's advice centre is the way to go. Link it to one or two coffee bars and a mini-supermarket and it will be the central hub for every village and small town in the country. Pub in one corner, nursery in the other. Something for everyone. GP surgery and gym on the same block. Bus stop outside and a carpark with several fast charging points. All sorted.

[Stalbansclaret]

Banking hubs already exist, suspect it's not through choice but a nudge
www.cashaccess.co.uk/hubs

The Pendle MP has been trumpeting on social media recently that one is going to open in Barnoldswick. Personally I struggle to see why anyone, bar maybe a business paying in cash, really needs to go into a branch nowadays. Certainly younger people don’t go anywhere near them. And I worked for a bank for 32 years.

[ClaretDiver]

interesting thread. I was watching Rip Off Britain on break the other morning and they had a case where a guy had been a victim of fraud to the tune of £29k from his Barclays account. They refused to refund after investigation as it was shown that all the authentication factors via online banking on his smartphone had been fully satisfied.

When he pushed it further with police reports etc, what had actually happened was that his phone had been stolen out of his hand whilst on a call. The fraudster was then able to change things like Face ID etc in order to ‘access’ the account as the bank account holder. He then used the device to transfer the £29k….

Barclays accepted this and refunded the guy.

[Big Vinny K]

interesting thread. I was watching Rip Off Britain on break the other morning and they had a case where a guy had been a victim of fraud to the tune of £29k from his Barclays account. They refused to refund after investigation as it was shown that all the authentication factors via online banking on his smartphone had been fully satisfied.

When he pushed it further with police reports etc, what had actually happened was that his phone had been stolen out of his hand whilst on a call. The fraudster was then able to change things like Face ID etc in order to ‘access’ the account as the bank account holder. He then used the device to transfer the £29k….

Barclays accepted this and refunded the guy.

Funny that - the font of all knowledge Jakub said that can’t happen.
As said 70% of all fraud and scam cases are refunded by the Banks and the new regulations that are due to come in hope to increase that to 95%.
I am not anywhere of any bank mobile app that does not ask you to tick the box(es) saying you are know the payment is valid, etc. This does not exonerate banks from refunding customers in fraud cases at all - every case has its own individual circumstances and there are a number of other things banks are required to have done to justify refusing to refund a customer (who even then will have the complaint and ombudsman process if the bank still refuses)

[Jakubclaret]

Mr high & mighty maybe you just don't know as much as you think you do, because let me reassure you that box exists it comes up every time I'm sending money online to people. I'd screenshot but you can't for security the picture will come up blackened.

[Big Vinny K]

Mr high & mighty maybe you just don't know as much as you think you do, because let me reassure you that box exists it comes up every time I'm sending money online to people. I'd screenshot but you can't for security the picture will come up blackened.

I know the box exists you idiot.
Do you not understand basic English ?
I have literally just said that above
I have said that just because the box is ticked does not exonerate (shall I used the term “let off” for you ?) banks from paying out if the payment ends up being a fraudulent one.
Which bit of that exactly are you struggling with ?

[Jakubclaret]

If you can't engage without insulting please don't quote me & I'll do the same & then everybody will get on just fine. If you want to chance your arm feel free to tick boxes & get ripped off but I would not be confident of getting my money returned.

[Big Vinny K]

Chance your arm ?
What are you talking about now ?

You really ain’t getting this are you ?

Go spoil another thread please.

[Jakubclaret]

Everything had settled down, absolutely no need to start things back up again. So I doubt I'm the 1 ruining threads.

[TheFamilyCat]

My banking app is set up to accept a photo of the cheque. I was told this last year when I took a cheque to the branch to pay in. It was a lot easier than manually paying in the cheque into one of the automated machines.

I occasionally have to pay cash in, but it's much more convenient to do it a post office.

[claptrappers_union]

The fraudster could then change things like Face ID, etc, to ‘access’ the account as the bank account holder. He then used the device to transfer the £29k….

Barclays accepted this and refunded the guy.

There are lots of obstacles though. If someone did that to me, even though I was on a call and grabbing my phone, to add a new ‘Face ID’ you need to enter my passcode, the Face ID login only works a certain number of times to log into so the app would likely ask for the 5-digit pin. Then when transferring money to a new account you'll need my physical card, and the correct one, to enter in the expiry date and that code on the back of the card.

Sounds fishy to me.

[Big Vinny K]

There are lots of obstacles though. If someone did that to me, even though I was on a call and grabbing my phone, to add a new ‘Face ID’ you need to enter my passcode, the Face ID login only works a certain number of times to log into so the app would likely ask for the 5-digit pin. Then when transferring money to a new account you'll need my physical card, and the correct one, to enter in the expiry date and that code on the back of the card.

Sounds fishy to me.

Why do you need your card to transfer money online ? I have a number of bank apps and not one of them need my card details if I want to transfer money to a new payee.

A number of bank mobile apps also work on Face ID all the time (ie no limits before you have to put in a passcode)

[claptrappers_union]

For new Payees, especially if I'm sending a large sum. I need those details, maybe it a security thing I have enabled or something.

Sometimes login into Barclays the Face ID doesn't always work (unlike all the other apps) and I have to put in the the login code (again, I thought this was a security feature, probably a glitch)

[claptrappers_union]

It did it on my old phone with Fingerprint ID too

[Venkys4eva]

My account as so little in, it wouldn't be worth it for the fraudsters

[Big Vinny K]

For new Payees, especially if I'm sending a large sum. I need those details, maybe it a security thing I have enabled or something.

Sometimes login into Barclays the Face ID doesn't always work (unlike all the other apps) and I have to put in the the login code (again, I thought this was a security feature, probably a glitch)

Nope that’s not a glitch. Barclays is one of the banks where after a certain number of Face IDs they ask you to put in a 5 digit passcode you have set up with them (it’s not your phone passcode)

[claptrappers_union]

Also, I can't imagine multiple FaceIDs accessing the Banking App either.

I know parents who let their kids access their phones for games. So, I can't imagine them being able to access banking apps and so on. That's just a presumption, though.

Unless ClaretDriver has misremembered the details, I can't imagine it happening with the Barclays app. If someone swiped my phone, accessing my money wouldn't be a genuine concern.

[Loyalclaret]

I don't have face or finger print set-up on my phone however with my wife's iPhone, even if you stole the phone whilst the keylock was off, you would still have to use Face ID or 6 digit pin to use Apple Pay. Even if you had gone through security to access one account, to select another account/card would require Face ID or 6 digit pin again.

[Croydon Claret]

If you use Google/Apple pay then set it so that the device needs to be unlocked before a payment can be made.

It's slightly less convenient but a lot more secure than an open access payment system

[Foshiznik]

I'm a Monzo Initial investor account holder and so use nothing but their app and apple pay and the only scam i was a victim of in my entire life of banking was with Natwest and someone accessing my account in branch, adding a £1000 overdraft and then withdrawing it all. Only got refunded after i took it to the Financial Ombudsman and after about 2 years.

In short, you are no more likely to be a victim of a banking scam if you are using nothing but a smartphone over cash and physical banks than you have ever been with a debit card over cash. I'd say the opposite in fact.