Australians are being warned to make bookings if they want to withdraw money as banks go digital
- ANZ & NAB no longer allow withdrawals
- Banks are shifting to the digital age
- QLD woman was refused money by her bank
More Australian bank branches are banning cash withdrawals, with customers now advised to call ahead if they want a large amount from a bank clerk.
ANZ and NAB have announced that they will no longer allow cash withdrawals at some of their outlets, due to more online banking than cash.
The move comes after Queensland woman Taryn Comptyn was unable to withdraw money from her local bank branch and eventually closed her account in a now-viral TikTok clip.
The Commonwealth Bank and Westpac have no limits on over-the-counter withdrawals.
But RateCity’s director of research, Sally Tindall, said the major banks are now advising customers to call a branch ahead of time if more than $10,000 in cash is needed to buy a used car so they can give notes to sellers. who are wary of PayID scam.
ANZ and NAB have announced that they will no longer allow cash withdrawals in some of their branches
“They’ve really stressed that you have to call ahead if you’re going to withdraw large amounts,” she told Daily Mail Australia.
“If you’re withdrawing amounts over $10,000, it’s worth calling ahead to make sure they have the money available at that branch.
“When you talk about buying and selling second-hand items, there are so many scammers out there trying to scam you with the latest pay ID scam, many people on Facebook Marketplace are saying, ‘No PayID.'”
Steve Mickenbecker, financial services executive of the Canstar group, said holding large amounts of cash in a branch was a security risk as more banks went digital.
“It’s not surprising they have a lot less cash – it’s a security risk and dead money sitting in a safe somewhere,” he told The Australian.
In her TikTok video, Ms. Comptyn went to her ANZ branch to withdraw $3,500 to pay for renovations, but didn’t have her ATM handy.
“I thought ‘that’s fine, I’ll just go to the register,'” she said in the clip.
The cashier tells me they don’t have any more cash in the bank, you can only spend it through the ATM, but she said, “Don’t worry, I’ll give you a card so you can just tap it.” instead of your card”.’
However, when Mrs. Comptyn tried her temporary card at the ATM, an error message flashed repeatedly.
The ANZ first announced in March that some of its outlets in Victoria would no longer dispense cash.
The bank did not disclose which branches are involved and maintains that only a “small number” are involved.
ANZ said only eight percent of its customers use branches to access their money, and the vast majority have moved to online banking.
However, critics warned that the transition to cashless banks could cause significant harm to the elderly and disabled who still rely on branches and physical money.
The number of bank branches in Australia has fallen by about 30 percent in the past five years.
And the number of ATMs has dropped even more, with numbers showing they’ve fallen from a high of 14,000 in 2017 to about 6,000 last year.
The Reserve Bank estimated that only 13 percent of transactions were in cash by the end of 2022, a halving in just three years since the start of the Covid pandemic.
ANZ has been contacted for comment.