Commonwealth Bank and Westpac forced to give back customers hundreds of dollars each

As many as two million Australians could soon see, or are already seeing, extra money in their bank accounts, following an investigation by ASIC.

The corporate watchdog released a report in July showing ANZ, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac were holding millions of low-income Aussies in high-fee accounts.

Among them, many relied on Centrelink payments to get through the week.

The two million Australians affected, including many First Nations customers, will receive a total refund of $28 million, according to the Better banking for Indigenous Consumers report.

Some Aussies have already reported seeing the money appear in their accounts.

One CBA customer shared his surprise on social media when he saw $105 appear in his account.

‘I have this too. They paid me $777.64… I have no idea what’s going on,” said another.

“I just got paid $475.49? I’m confused too but happy lol,” said one CBA customer.

ASIC Commissioner Alan Kirkland previously said the banks had caused financial stress for many Australians who were already struggling to make ends meet.

“Banks knew that many of these low-income customers were holding inappropriate accounts with high fees, and it took ASIC intervention to force them to take action,” Commissioner Kirkland said.

“Before our research, most banks only provided their customers with difficult ‘opt-in’ processes for switching to low-cost banking options, forcing some consumers to travel hundreds of miles to their nearest bank branch.”

To date, more than 200,000 customers have been transitioned to low-fee accounts, which is expected to save them $10 million in annual savings going forward.

Customers will receive their money back in the next 12 to 18 months.

‘Banks need to ensure they have systems and processes in place so that low-income customers can easily switch to low-fee accounts, regardless of their location.

“We expect all banks – not just those we reviewed for this report – to consider these findings, improve the accessibility and distribution of low-fee accounts, and dedicate sufficient resources to specialized First Nations services,” said he.

One of the worst examples of fee damage was a low-income ANZ customer who was charged $3,606 in dishonor fees, but it was the Commonwealth Bank that had the accounts with the highest fees among low-income customers in the research.

A regional NSW pensioner was charged more than $2,280 in dishonor fees in one year

In the Alice Springs region, which has one of the largest postcodes by area and is one of the most deprived in Australia, low-income customers are more likely to be charged excessive fees than anywhere else.

In total, 3,054 low-income Alice Springs customers from the four banks in the study were collectively charged more than $200,000 in fees, mainly overdraft fees ($115,325) and dishonor fees ($37,674).

A pensioner from regional NSW was charged more than $2,280 in dishonor costs in one year, while someone receiving a Centrelink carer payment was charged $1,772 in bills.