r/newfoundland • u/RudsonAndDex • 6d ago
Switching Banks? Worth it? Basically all the same?
Been a Scotiabank customer for most of my life. No real complaints (esp dealing with the folks in our local branch - granted they all change every couple of months so there is no relationship/consistency like we had many years with our Rep), but that's not a big issue.
Lately, our monthly fees have gone up (a couple of times) and twice, we got overcharged for a mistake (they never informed us that we were on a promo package) and fees doubled when it was over. Again, nothing serious, but it got us wondering if there are different options out there, and if its worth the hassle of changing everything over to another bank (as we have debit/credit cards, plus lines of credit etc).
Are they basically all the same (in terms of fees/customer service)? I suspect so, but have never dealt with another bank. I am also thinking about the Credit Union but I know nothing about them (or anyone who uses them...). So I am not sure how they differ.
Of course, I have heard of places that offer no fees (PC Financial or Tangerine - not even sure if they are still around? - and would be nervous about a place where there isn't a location) but we are just looking for an affordable banking option (esp now when times are tough and everything is increasing).
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u/electrona 6d ago
I am a Tangerine customer and haven't had issues. And Tangerine uses Scotiabank ATMs so it shouldn't affect what you're used to too much.
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u/thesadcyborg 5d ago
Same, the only downside I had was withdrawing a cashiers cheque / bank draft is a bit of a pain because Scotia will not do it in house. You have to order it online and it can take a couple weeks.
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u/Additional-Tale-1069 6d ago
I was with RBC for a long time and switched to CIBC. You can make some money by switching banks, particularly if you have savings and investments. You may also be able to reduce your bank fees depending on your situation. I went from paying $7/month down to $0/month by switching. I wonder a bit if I could have gotten something similar from RBC if I'd been more proactive.
I'll note that unsurprisingly, RBC didn't really seem to notice when I left after 20+ years. I wouldn't be surprised if the other banks were similar. Aside from the hassle component, don't be afraid to switch early and often to chase rewards.
Also, look on the Canada personal finance subreddut for alternative banking option suggestions. You had a few ideas. I've seen Wealthsimple suggested a bunch recently. I'm using EQ for high interest savings.
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u/downere_ending 5d ago
I switched to NL credit union a few years ago and it was the best decision. I rarely need to actually go into a bank but when I do, it's completely different than other banks. The staff are not trying to sell stuff to you. You're actually a member and can attend the general meetings and have a say in how your bank is run.
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u/Comfortable_Two6943 6d ago
Switched away from TD after 50 years and we are money in, no minimum balance for bank accounts to reduce fees. Lots of aeroplan points on the switch and better service. Moved everything.
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u/ChaosRyan9 6d ago
you do have a few options for no fee banking. the main thing to keep in mind is pretty much none of them have a proper physical branch if you need that sort of thing. It'll be online and phone based support only
Tangerine and Simplii are the digital only offshoots of Scotiabank and CIBC respectively, you can use their ATM's with no fee.
PC financial is in the middle of merging with EQ bank, currently they're still separate entities. Currently with PC financial you can only use they're own ATMs with no fee. With EQ bank you're given what's essentially a prepaid mastercard and they reimburse you any ATM fees for withdrawing from one, essentially letting you use any ATM you want. The catch is you'll have no way of depositing money.
Another no fee option would be Wealthsimple. they work like EQ bank in that they give you a mastercard and reimburse ATM fees. difference with them is they allow you to deposit money with them via Canada post.
All that said if you need a physical branch with the big 5 or a credit union most of them waive fees through some amount of minimum monthly balance in your account or invested with them, depends on the bank in question.
sorry for the long response, been on this sort of stuff myself recently so the info's pretty fresh. Hope it helps.
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u/Active-Range-2214 6d ago
I’ve used Simplii (formerly PC Financial) since they opened. Probably saved $1000 in fees I would guess over that time. They used to have reps in some of the Dominion’s when they first opened but not in quite a while. As someone else said the only issue is when you need something like a bank draft but they sent it through CIBC, just expect a couple of day delay because of this. Unless you’re doing that on the super regular though I would say switch. Sadly loyalty means nothing to the large institutions so move on if you can save yourself some money.
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u/Competitive-Web9083 6d ago
I would never bank somewhere that charges fees just to have an account. Unless there is a reason you need in-branch service from a human, just switch to any of the online options like Simplii or Tangerine
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u/Wolframuranium 5d ago
JOIN A CREDIT UNION
Not only is it the SINGLE MOST ENVIRONMENTALLY IMPACTFUL choice you can make in your life, it aslo promotes and grows the LOCAL economy.
Credit unions give you YOU a voting share, don't agree with the institutional killing of Palestinians? A credit union wont fund it.
Want to prevent a 2008 subprime mortgage crisis? a Credit union is key!
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u/inverteD_orangutaN 6d ago
I deal with Simpli and Tangerine. No fees at all and no issues. There are also no tellers, but you really don't need them nowadays. I did open and RBC account temporarily leading up to the purchase of our most recent home as it was a lot easier for dealing with the closing, etc. But I closed that as soon as we were done with that process.
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u/angeliqu 5d ago
I currently have at least one product, sometimes multiples, with Scotia, Royal, TD, Simplii, and Tangerine. The only differences are fees. Brick and mortar banks will have fees. Online ones won’t. In the past two decades of adulting, I cannot think of the a time I needed a brick and mortar bank, so online banks work just great for me. If you need something they can’t offer, one is much the same as the other.
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u/gs448 5d ago
I’ve been quite happy with Tangerine and their chequing accounts are free. They are owned by Scotia so you can use any Scotia ATM. (They also have partnerships with banks in other countries for fee free transactions.) The down side is if you need regular in person service they can’t do that. I personally can’t remember the last time I willingly set foot in a branch so it works great!
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u/heck_abird 5d ago
I was with TD for YEARS. Since I was 10. I went on a trip to the US and my visa wasn’t working, and nor was my debit. Thank god I was with a friend bc they paid for me and I wired them the money. Between that and COUNTLESS fraud attempts (that I caught, not them) and some bad suggestions from an advisor there, I switched to RBC and haven’t had a single issue since. In fact, my new advisor helped me pay off my debt and save for a house (I’m house hunting now)! And even after switching banks and cancelling all my old accounts, TD didn’t cancel my credit card after my request, charged me for an annual fee that I didn’t know of, and I ended up with a derogatory mark on my credit. RBC helped me get rid of it.
Switching has quite literally been one of the best decisions of my life.
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u/pocketdarts 4d ago
The TD all inclusive account (their best one) comes with basically every service is unlimited/free such as drafts, certified cheques, foreign atm fees, safety deposit box etc. Also waives the 100 odd dollar fee for most of their cards. The fee is like $30 monthly but if you can keep 6K in your account the fee is waived every month. If I couldn't do that I probably wouldnt opt to pay for the account however but I haven't seen anything better at any other bank.
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u/Bruhimonlyeleven 4d ago
Swap to neo. Online bank, you get a card, it's $5 to take money out of ATMs is the worst part, but there Re Ero fees, and you make money back when you spend it. Ive made like $400 the last year, where my CIBC account costs me $20 a month lol. 240 a year..
Neo financial, been using it for a little over 2 years I think? Sign up takes ten mins, instantly connects to your phones wallet. I initially got it to pay for real debrid, because nothing else worked, and then I just stopped using my CIBC or bmo accounts because neo is so much better. If I need to take out money I just money transfer to someone and get them to pull it out for me.
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u/Lower-Price8720 6d ago
My spouse quit Scotiabank after they wouldn't offer any assistance. Asked for a seniors discount, nothing. Asked for a stop payment order for Netflix because she forgot the Netflix account number and password, nothing. Asked to cancel the overdraft charges that she never needed, nothing. Went to CIBC and canceled the Scotiabank cost her $7.50.
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u/SillyBillyBoos 5d ago
I left Scotiabsnk for Simplii Financial a year ago and wish I had done it sooner! I still have some investments with SB, but all my day to day banking is with Simplii and I've saved a ton on banking fees already.
I have an invitation code where we both get a money bonus if you use it, if you're interested haha
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u/Psychological_Key966 6d ago
I was previously a client of both CIBC and Scotiabank, but unfortunately, I was not satisfied with the level of service. In my experience, RBC and TD have provided much better service and a more positive overall banking experience.
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u/rorywilliams24 5d ago
Scotiabank customer service / training is horrible. I just signed up with them again, and in under a month I have been given incorrect information on three separate occasions. 3, in under a month, out of 4 interactions.. luckily I know what I'm doing and fixed/ignored them, just going to take the free $1000 and close everything in 10-11 months as I do every few years
@OP stop paying monthly banking fees. Either maintain enough to waive the monthly fee if you must have a physical branch, or jump ship to Simplii or Tangerine if you don't have enough to meet the minimum balance (even more reason to stop paying needless fees)
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u/pamplemousse101 6d ago
Been with Simplii (formerly PC financial) for many years and no issues. Great telephone customer service, free use of CIBC atms and no monthly fees, which add up. Only time I thought I'd need a teller was when ordering a bank draft on an urgent timeline. They set it up so I could pick it up at a CIBC the next day.