banking

[missvee]

;) Thanks for your advice everyone. How do I go about opening an account from the UK and do they only want a nominal fee to open it?
Missvee

[MotherBear]

Take a look on this page of the Master Website List where you'll see quite a few websites of NZ banks. ?Perhaps clicking on a few of those might answer some questions, but I'm sure other folks will have their own helpful suggestions. ? :) Not having done it myself yet, I have no knowledge to pass on but I hear it's quite easy to open an account from the UK.

[justNoZi]

;) Thanks for your advice everyone. How do I go about opening an account from the UK and do they only want a nominal fee to open it?
Missvee

hi Missvee,

it is fairly easy to open an account.

the national bank have an overseas applicants link which allows you to apply for an account. i think they then ask for ID to be faxed.

I would have done this but there was a an NZ immigration expo on - believe one is coming up soon back in UK? - and there were 2 or 3 banks looking for customers at this. I had my passport/driver licence etc and was able to open up an account pretty much there and then.

And the good news was i dint need to make any deposit at the time or tell them i would be depositing at least X amount when i got here.

as i said this was for national bank but i think most banks have a link on their website to allow account applications from overseas/immigrants.

[Dawn]

Really helpful thread this, I was just gonna post a similar question myself :) What about changing your money though - what's the best way to do this and who are the best people to do it for you? And should we change it all and how do we know when the best time is to do it or should we just change a bit and leave some here - how do we transfer it and change it at the same time? :-/

[nattydread]

missvee,

i hope i don't put a spanner in your works here,
but, i believe i read you are a midwife..
if so , and you will be working presumably, for one of the DHB's, then as a government employee, Westpac can do you a special account that doesn't have many of the charges you would normally get..

My wife is a midwife too, and we've had the account for some time now..

i'd recommend westpac for anybody working for the government,,
you can get good deals on home loands this way too...

cheers

[missvee]

Well, choices, choices. I wasn't considering Westpac because of the negative feedback they have but if I get a better deal working for the Health Board i will look into that. Thanks for that and thanks to everyone for your advice.

By the way, I have savings as well as current accounts and wanted to know do I have to transfer my money now before I get to new Zealand?
Vee

[missvee]

:) Thanks again everyone. I have gone with Westpac. Partly because of the advice from Nattydread, me working for the Health Board. The other reason is becuase they were the only bank to answer my email. That ticks the box for customer service. Hope they keep it up.
Vee

[MotherBear]

Why we're paying banks too much
5:00AM Tuesday April 10, 2007
By Martha McKenzie-Minifie

New Zealand bank customers pay higher fees on personal accounts than those in the United Kingdom and Canada, according to a new study.

The Fujitsu Consulting study shows New Zealanders pay an average of $111 a year for transactions on day-to-day personal accounts.

But bank customers in the UK pay more than 10 per cent less at $98. Canadian banks also come out cheaper at $103.

Experts blame the lack of regulation on banking fees, but authorities say they have no plans to tighten the rules. Customers wanting to complain about high fees have few places to turn, with the Banking Ombudsman, Liz Brown, saying it is out of her control.

"Banking in New Zealand, while not highly regulated, is competitive."

More here .

[MotherBear]

Dig deep for answers on bank fees
5:00AM Wednesday April 11, 2007
By Martha McKenzie-Minifie

Shopping around for the right bank account can save money - but experts warn that finding a good deal is not as easy as it should be.

Our survey of the banking behaviour of three Herald readers showed one could save $108 a year by switching accounts.

Another planned to cut paper statements to save about $36 a year on fees, but stay with the bank they chose for its mortgage rates.

Only our superannuitants, bank fee-free over 65s, had cottoned on to the best banking deal.

They said they kept watch on their money to avoid overdraft fees - recognised as one of the most aggravating charges.

The survey results came from running details of their banking styles through the Consumers' Institute subscriber-only online bank fee calculator.

More here .

[MotherBear]

ASB joins banks repaying millions over hidden fees
5:00AM Saturday June 16, 2007

ASB is to pay more than $4 million in fines and compensation after admitting it breached the Fair Trading Act by not properly disclosing currency conversion fees to customers.

It is the sixth major bank to plead guilty in a Commerce Commission-led crackdown on the practice, which has now cost New Zealand banks more than $26 million.

ASB agreed it had failed to disclose fees of up to 2.35 per cent on credit and debit card currency conversions between March 2002 and March 2005. In the Auckland District Court on Thursday, it pleaded guilty to 26 charges of breaching the act and was fined $600,000. It agreed to place $3.5 million in a compensation fund for customers and pay $80,000 in costs.

The commission said New Zealand banks had now paid out over $26 million in relation to the hidden fees.

Other prosecutions involved ANZ, National, BNZ, Westpac and Kiwibank.

Proceedings continue against American Express, Diners Club, TSB and The Warehouse Financial Services. Affected ASB customers used ASB Bank, Bank Direct, Sovereign Go, NZ Home Loans and AA MasterCard cards, and will be compensated next month.

Commission chairwoman Paula Rebstock said: "Banks must be upfront about all their fees and charges, so that customers can shop around and get the best deal, and in doing so put pressure on the banks to lower charges."

She said the commission was also investigating the reasonableness of late payment penalty fees on credit cards.

- NZPA

From here .