How the banks in NZ can milk you dry...

If the finance companies are run by the "cowboys", then the banks are operated by the "cartels". I find that the banks in NZ are more inclined to earn money and double up the returns for the shareholders rather than providing good service to their customers. They would charge you left, right and centre on every fricking transactions. If you tally up all those fees, penalty charges over time, they can be very costly.

In the last financial year, the top 5 banks (ANZ, ASB, BNZ, National Bank and Westpac) in NZ had a combined after tax profit of more than $2.7 billion. It would be interesting to know how much of that money came from fees, charges and penalties.

Here are some of examples where the banks will milk you dry:-

1. Charges to close an account
2. Internet fees: You get charged to transfer money to another account. You get charged to set up or amend APs even though you are doing the work online all by yourself.
3. Mortgage application fees to renew existing loans
4. Fee for third party lodges funds into your account (particularly on deposits from overseas)
5. Penalty fees on one account which is running out of cash even though you clearly have the cash in another account
6. Over the counter fees
7. Penalty fees on early repayment on mortgages
8. Cash handling fees on top of over the counter fees
9. Penalty fees automatic payments on public holidays
10. Charging to replace faulty cards
11. Mortgage title release charges
12. Fast cheque clearance fees between same banks