Bank at fault?

YorkshireBoy

lp908tdg wrote: »

Should she make a list of the every single item that she spends?

In short, yes!

It's what I, and others, have always done...as soon as I signed a cheque I deducted the value from my available balance (I remember schools played havoc with my accounting because they could take anything up to a term to cash the cheque!). Likewise, as soon as I entered my PIN (be it in an ATM or POS) I deducted the value from my available balance.

But I ALWAYS had more money than I actually thought I had.

I've never incurred overdraft charges. Coincidence?...I think not!

scottishsavingsgirl

I have noticed the same thing (but only with Tesco) when paying for something with my card (BoS account).

I'm not sure if it's Tesco themselves (online banking always shows the Tesco debit being made 3/4 days after the actual transaction) or whether it's the bank's system. All other transactions go straight into the "pending" section on my online account.

Might be worth making an enquiry to Tesco:

https://www.tescohelp.com/tesco/forms/cs_form.html

bengal-stripe

lp908tdg wrote: »

......what I don't understand is why there is a difference between her bank TSB, and both of mine, Santander/Halifax.

There are two types of debt cards, off-line cards which do not require authorisation for every transaction (as long as it is under the shop's floor limit) and on-line cards that do. That's the reason why on-line cards cannot be used in trains or planes.

colsten

lp908tdg wrote: »

Should she make a list of the every single item that she spends?

Simply put: yes, she should. In her own interest.

Because she is the only one who knows how much she has spent (and how much she is committed to spend imminently, e.g. with SOs, DDs, CPAs due to come out overnight).

bambos

LP- you ask if it's the banks fault that your partner is going overdrawn when she's spending money on her account and the balance isn't updating quick enough...........

No it's not the banks fault as I believe that it's the customers responsibility to ensure balances are kept up to date and monitored. I check my balance daily (sometimes twice daily) and could tell you at any one time what my balance is down to the penny. I always deduct any transactions from my balance and write it in my book so I have a running total of my account.

I noted you ask if your wife should write down every transaction? In short, yes she should as I do and it prevents any costs being incurred.

We do all know what banks are like at times but there is a level of responsibility for the customer to monitor their own account and know what their balance is.

meer53

So if the banks systems went down for any length of time, how would your partner monitor her account ? Or would she just not bother ?

It's her money, not the banks, she needs to keep a running total.

Archi_Bald

May be an example will help.

Mary gets paid £2,000 salary every 7th of a month. She has no other income.

Mary has the following commitments:

• 12th: Mary withdraws £200 cash
• 12th: Mary pays £20 by debit card at Boots
• 12th: Mary pays £800 rent to landlord by SO
• 15th: Mary pays £600 to pay off credit card by DD (amount rounded for convenience)
• 18th: Mary pays £45 by DD for gym membership
• 19th: Mary pays £80 by debit card for her monthly shop at ASDA's
• 3rd: Mary pays £200 by SO into a savings account

This brings the total commitments between salary payments to £1,945.

Questions:

1. what is the available balance on Mary's account on the 8th? (Hint: at least £2,000)
2. over and beyond her above commitments, how much can Mary spend on the 8th without going overdrawn before she receives her next month's salary? (hint: not more than £55)
3. what will happen if Mary spends £250 on her debit card on the 8th? (hint: her available balance will be reduced by £250 in the next day or two but still show £1,750 on the 12th. Mary will go overdrawn no later than the 3rd when her SO to the savings account executes)
4. when deciding on an additional expense, should Mary ever take note of her "available balance"?

Herbalus

lp908tdg wrote: »

I understand your point, what I don't understand is why there is a difference between her bank TSB, and both of mine, Santander/Halifax.

Well in actual fact there probably isn't a difference. It depends very much on the retailer and their processing times. The relevance of the other thread is that some transactions are offline (meaning no connection to the bank to check available balance) and some are online (meaning the retailer checks with the bank that there are available funds). So if you pay with an offline card (and most are, including all contactless transactions), then the bank simply doesn't know that your £10 has been spent.

It can take a few days before the retailer will pass the transaction to the bank, and then the transaction will be debited from your account.

The only alternative to not writing down every transaction is to create your own buffer. So you work towards building up £200 in your account that is left each month after all spending. That way if you make a mistake in your budgeting and accidentally go over your new "£0" (£200 in actuality), you won't get stung with charges.

mgdavid

lp908tdg wrote: »

...........If i have £10 and I spend £10 i should not be allowed to spend it again.
........

You need to take personal responsibility for your money. You should not attempt to spend it again.

Cyberman60

lp908tdg wrote: »

I understand your point, what I don't understand is why there is a difference between her bank TSB, and both of mine, Santander/Halifax.

Different computer systems !! :eek: