Daft Letter

I am a self employed tradesman and my bank actually charges me to pay cash in.

I much prefer bank transfer as it is a pain getting to the bank to put cheques in which then take a week to clear (if they don't bounce).

I say lets get back to cash and matresses

Pay in cash and your a terrorist ....

http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/08/11/pay-with-cash-your-neighbour-could-be-a-terrorist-banned-u-k-ad-suggests/

Leaving aside the cost issues for businesses (what about the extra insurance premium for having cash on the premises?), I always pay with a card and if a business doesn't take them (or has a minimum transaction value) then I go elsewhere unless I happen to have cash on me.

Cash isn't safe (a stolen card can be cancelled, stolen cash can't), and it's not convenient: it rather defeats the point of giving my business to the corner shop near my office if I have to walk half a mile to a cash machine first.

Surely that's only if you spend over £100, below that I'm not sure any service is anymore caring.

So if I needed to send you payment for something - how would I acheive that as we don't have the same facilities here. That is assuming I don't want to use Paypal or get into discussions with you about bank account numbers

regards
Bernard

Addendum, I've just checked my Paypal Account as I've have just been advised it will be 3rd May before I can use it to buy an item of ebay. I transfered funds on 21st they took it out of my bank on 27th. How long does electronic transfer take?

During that time I've missed out on the ebay purchase (as it happens it went for more than I wanted to pay).

So I'm not sure this is a good way to transfer funds (without storing cash in the Paypal "bank")

Bernard

It can take as little as a few minutes to transfer money from one bank account to another via Internet Banking, even if they are different banks.

The process that PayPal use must be an older method because you are not initiating the transfer, they are asking for the money.

I know it only takes a few seconds to transfer funds (I sent money, via my phone bank account, to a bank in Sydney (Aus) when my son was in his gap year). He could draw on it almost immediately.

I was making a point that sending a cheque can sometimes be quicker than some of the popular internet options, which seem a bit tardy in letting you use your own money.

I'm a bit like the engine driver in The Wind in the Willows - "I don't holds with ........"

regards
Bernard

Frogherder I could, in theory still pay a foreign cheque into my account, but it would cost me so much in fees it wouldn't be worthwhile.

We do everything by bank transfer. Free in Euro countries and for a fee outside the Eurozone.
I recently inherited a small sum and the solicitor wanted to send me a cheque. I asked him to send it to my brother and I would collect the money from him, but that wasn't allowed. So he transferred the money. I lost a bit in fees and exchange rates, but not as much as I would have if I'd presented a cheque to my bank. Assuming they would handle it even - we have banking shops now, which don't actually hold any cash other than in the ATM.

Sending a cheque would never be quicker what with the postal time and waiting for the cheque to clear.

BACS is the system the banks use to transfer money between them selves.

It's a non profit organisation which handles millions of pounds everyday.

It usually takes 3 days to clear a transaction during which time the monies are held in the BACS system.

Guess who owns and runs the system?

The banks!!!

and there's no profit???

A savvy business will instead keep that cash in order to buy materials/etc in stead of putting it in the bank.

Using cash they can get a better deal, becuase the peeps they buy it off don't have to declare it/bank it, etc

The Black economy is a way of circumventing the Usury based enslavement monetary system which is designed to leech a portion off the wealth from the ordinary person's toil.

Plastic cards are OK until you lose one or the machine decides not to give it back because it's made a mistake with the PIN then you not only can't get at YOUR MONEY due to the ever increasingly complicated "prove who you are requirement" but will have to wait about 7 days for a new card and probably have to go to the bank with at least 3 proofs of identity

I heard of someone who was recently asked for a "Certified Birth Certificate" I suppose that means that someone in authority has to sign that they were the baby named on the "Birth Certificate"
Life just keeps getting more complicated

I had the same thing recently when I verified my bank account with Paypal, previously I had just registered my card and it was instantaneous.

Never been my experience. I often over the counter withdrawals at banks and all they've ever asked me for is my A/C no. and a signature! I don't know whether this is a good thing or not though

Is that 'long form' or 'short form'?

It's when the toll machine in France eats your card that you worry!

Fortunately it was on the way home and my replacement AMEX blue card arrived the same day we got home, total from reporting eaten to receiving new card was 2 days!

I find it insulting that some banks (Santander amongst them) want to see a passport or similar when closing an account with them and transferring the money to another bank account in the same name!!

Off course we have to remember we're all drug dealing gun running money launderers!

Be careful using Cash Machines on retail parks. It can be hard finding out who's responsible for them if anything goes wrong. All you get off the shops is that it's nothing to do with them