Banking at the Post Office - here's what you need to know

A_Nice_Englishman

You can

Withdraw cash from your usual bank account using your card
Pay cash into your usual bank account using a card or paying in slip
Check your bank balance using your card
Deposit a cheque using a paying in slip

Cash can withdrawn at an ATM or as cashback in many shops (which are likely to be nearer than a Post Office)

I can't remember the last time I paid cash in. I get one cheque a year (expenses from a charity I
volunteer for). My bank insists I use a pre-printed paying in slip at a Post Office but I don't have any so I just wait until I'm in town and use the bank branch. If that's a week or two so what?


Balances can be checked at an ATM or from the comfort of my armchair by phone or online

Post Office banking seems to have become more of a social service for those unable to use technology and who never visit a medium/large town.

Edit: The cash withdrawal process at a P.O. is barely any different to an ATM. You just tell the clerk how much you want instead of pressing a button.

Midzone

Its a shame that ALL banks don't offer the same facilities at the post office e.g. paying in cash. I know Santander, Barclays and First Direct let you pay in using your debit card so that the cash is instantly available in your account whereas Lloyds and Natwest don't you have to use a paying in slip and then await a few days clearance before funds appear in your bank account.

Post office banking is a good idea and works well from my experience but needs some standardisation of services available.

stclair

Midzone wrote: »

Its a shame that ALL banks don't offer the same facilities at the post office e.g. paying in cash. I know Santander, Barclays and First Direct let you pay in using your debit card so that the cash is instantly available in your account whereas Lloyds and Natwest don't you have to use a paying in slip and then await a few days clearance before funds appear in your bank account.

Post office banking is a good idea and works well from my experience but needs some standardisation of services available.

I totally agree with this it should all be standardised. Who walks round with a paying in slip with them lol

r2015

which basically means picking up the occasional parcel when my usual postie is off

I have to go to the sorting office which is an 8 mile round trip by car or 4 buses.

I think I have 5 post offices in a 2 mile radius from my home, there are a lot more post offices than bank branches these days.

You are lucky, my local sub-post office just closed and if I want to go to a post office I either have to take 2 buses and walk 2 miles and queue inside a WH Smith or if I take my car it is £2.00 for parking and still a 1 mile walk from the car park to the post office and back.

I just love predestination of town centres. :rotfl:(where is the sarcasm smilie when you need it?)

Robisere

There are 5 PO's within 3.9 miles of Louth town, I live in a village 2½ miles from the town. Our village PO closed some years ago, but the local Parishes fought to get a mobile PO for all surrounding rural villages and won.


I can often park directly outside our main PO in Louth and carry out my (occasional) business. The space is limited, but there are spaces nearby and three car parks within a 200 yard radius. Parking fees are £1 an hour in the official parks. There may be queues at busy times, so I avoid those times if possible. If I have to queue, I don't mind: and I am disabled. It's all about planning, if I cannot use the mobile PO I work out the best time for the town centre PO. Louth is a Georgian town with narrow streets and parking can be a problem on the three Market Days, so planning is necessary.

KxMx

Both my banks (Santander and HSBC) offer pay in via debit card at the Post Office. In fact I picked Santander when I needed another account and that was a deciding factor for me.

I can service both cash deposits at one location, and I find it quicker. HSBC in branch require a pay in slip & Santander are slow in branch, both in waiting time for the counter (as they deal with complex enquiries there unlike HSBC where it is deposits and not much else) and the time taken to process my deposit through their IT system (nearly always involves coins so no machine to use instead).

I do stick to cash deposits only as cheques take far too long.

I am disabled and have to spend my limited energy carefully. Post Office banking allows me to do this.

A_Nice_Englishman

KxMx wrote: »

Both my banks (Santander and HSBC) offer pay in via debit card at the Post Office. In fact I picked Santander when I needed another account and that was a deciding factor for me.

I can service both cash deposits at one location, and I find it quicker. HSBC in branch require a pay in slip & Santander are slow in branch, both in waiting time for the counter (as they deal with complex enquiries there unlike HSBC where it is deposits and not much else) and the time taken to process my deposit through their IT system (nearly always involves coins so no machine to use instead).

I do stick to cash deposits only as cheques take far too long.

I am disabled and have to spend my limited energy carefully. Post Office banking allows me to do this.

I presume you run a business as you're paying in cash and cheques.

It's quite difficult to receive an income other than through a bank account so your cash customers must be going to the bank/P.O. to withdraw cash, giving it to you, then you're going to the P.O. and paying it in again. It seems so inconvenient for both of you.

KxMx

Not quite sure where you got that from my post, no I don't run a business.

Just day to day banking for my general finances.

I'm on a very low income and have to be strict about managing my money. So I need to pay back coins occasionally if I've not spent all of the cash withdrawn for the month or a particular expense. The second account is a useful pot for emergencies or to save & fund bigger items like new glasses which is next on the list (cannot have contacts).

I get 6-8 cheques a year, the majority from survey site payments, they do not offer another payment method.

Zanderman

A_Nice_Englishman wrote: »

Cash can withdrawn at an ATM or as cashback in many shops (which are likely to be nearer than a Post Office)

I can't remember the last time I paid cash in. I get one cheque a year (expenses from a charity I volunteer for). My bank insists I use a pre-printed paying in slip at a Post Office but I don't have any so I just wait until I'm in town and use the bank branch. If that's a week or two so what?

Balances can be checked at an ATM or from the comfort of my armchair by phone or online

Post Office banking seems to have become more of a social service for those unable to use technology and who never visit a medium/large town.

Edit: The cash withdrawal process at a P.O. is barely any different to an ATM. You just tell the clerk how much you want instead of pressing a button.

Each to their own. Our small town has lost 4 banks, and now has only one ATM. Our thriving PO offers a wide range of banking services that we have now lost. We don't actually 'bank' there, but it has useful services for our other bank accounts, such as those listed in the post you were replying to.

I would disagree that PO banking (whatever your definition of that is) is "more of a social service for those unable to use technology and who never visit a medium/large town"

We use technology - online banking, apps, challenger banks - you name them, we use them - we are definitely not 'unable to use technology'. But we still need to use a counter service now and then. And why should we wait to do counter transactions until we visit the nearest 'medium/large town' when we can use the PO in our small town?

You may only get one cheque a year but that doesn't mean everyone does - cheques are alive and kicking - not as common as they used to be but still essential for many transactions.

Don't let preconceptions cloud your judgement - POs are no longer populated by technology-averse grannies collecting pensions and buying stamps. They are actually gaining business - and usefulness for us all - as banks close and they take on some of the banks' business via counter services. Indeed many of the new challengers need the PO for deposits etc.

A_Nice_Englishman

KxMx wrote: »

Not quite sure where you got that from my post, no I don't run a business.

Just day to day banking for my general finances.

I'm on a very low income and have to be strict about managing my money. So I need to pay back coins occasionally if I've not spent all of the cash withdrawn for the month or a particular expense. The second account is a useful pot for emergencies or to save & fund bigger items like new glasses which is next on the list (cannot have contacts).

I get 6-8 cheques a year, the majority from survey site payments, they do not offer another payment method.

Oh, fair enough. I just couldn't think why an individual would need to pay cash in to their account but you've provided one.