President’s Choice to CIBC – Are You on Board?

PC Financial Free Banking Ends

On August 16, 2017 the news broke that CIBC is ending its almost 20-year relationship with President’s Choice Financial and will offer free banking through its own Simplii Financial. This news put 2 million PC Financial (PCF) customers in limbo as everyone is trying to make sense of this breakup.

The main reason people signed up with online banking provider PCF was to avoid big banks like CIBC (and pay no banking fees for basic banking) and now customers are all back under the same giant. CIBC mentioned there will be no change in anything such as account information or fees and business will be as usual under CIBC’s new free banking division Simplii, but confusion and uncertainty remain palpable.

There are talks about CIBC’s cutting some features customers have been enjoying for free with PCF and also declining in customer service satisfaction. PCF offered excellent customer service provided by call centres located in Canada. So it will be interesting to see if it starts to move over to India or somewhere else. A PCF representative mentioned to me that CIBC is moving over all PCF reps under its wing and customer service will be provided by the same group of people as before.

For now, customers remain cautious and will wait and see how the transformation plays out. There are other free online banking providers out there and if things go downhill, CIBC will definitely lose a good chunk of loyal customers who have been with PCF for years.

I have a video on this and you can watch by clicking the link below or on the picture at the top right.

The End of President’s Choice Financial

Banks Are Charging Ridiculous NSF Fees

Bank Has No Limits for Fees

Just received a Notice of Changes flyer in my mailbox from TD Bank. The flyer is full of as usual information. That is, fees are going up on some services. One fee increase made my eyes pop out in wonder.

New NSF (Non Sufficient Funds) fee will be $42.50 starting May 1, 2008. Paying $42.50 NSF fee is way too much and absolutely ridiculous. We all know that banks are only interested in making money, and they don’t care about their customers. Average bank clients are not valued or respected by these banks. We tend to be loyal to our banks, and they are taking advantage of this. Most of us do not research and shop for a better bank. What you can do to get a better deal and treated as a valued customer by your bank? Follow these simple tips below:

• Banks basically measure your value by looking at your bank balance. If you have accounts with many banks, you may want to think about consolidate them into one account in one bank. This will give you more money in one bank and hence more value.
   
• Have an overdraft protection attached to your bank account. An overdraft protection will protect you from NSF situation because this feature will pay extra money if your account falls short. There is a charge involved with this option but it’s not as ridiculous as NSF fee.
   
• A decent overdraft protection fee should be somewhere around $5. You should pay this only when you use it. If your bank charges monthly recurring fees to have this option, change your bank. A good example is President Choice Financial. Their overdraft protection fee is $4.95, and you pay only when you use it. You will also be paying an interest charge on overdraft balances but still it’s a lot better than paying $42.50.

• And last but not least - never write a cheque if you don't have money in your account (I know you all know this).
  First Published: ADawnJournal.com Mar 16, 2008

Still paying banking fees?

Stop Paying Bank Fees

Are you still paying banking fees? If you are, you should look at free banking options. A monthly fee of $12 or $15 can trun into a considerable amount over the years. Follow these steps to eliminate banking fess.

A. Consider banking online with a finanicial institution who gives you lots of value added services. An example is President Choice Financial. I get free checks (which TD, CIBC would never give) and earn at least $100 in free groceries just for using their services. It's like a double-dip bonus. I am banking free and getting free money for free banking.

B. If you are not comfortable with online banking, find out what is the threshold to avoid bank fees at you local branch. Usually this threshold level is $1000 but it can vary bank to bank. Shop for the best deal and never pay any transaction,ABM or checking fees.

C. Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) provides interactive tools, cost of banking guide and information about different types of accounts and banking service packages available in Canada on their website. Click on the above link and then click on For Consumers and it will take you to a page where you can do your research on banking and other financial products and services.
First Published: June 22, 2007 ADawnJournal.com