Do you have an account with a big bank? Do you pay fees? You bet you do.
Maybe it’s time to switch. President’s Choice Financial and ING Direct are both trumpeting the joys of no-fee banking.
So, let’s compare the two challengers and what they have to offer.
President’s Choice Financial – or PCF for short – is owned by Loblaws. Launched 12 years ago, it’s in every province but Quebec and has more than one million customers with no-fee bank accounts.
ING Direct, owned by a big Dutch bank Internationale Nederland Groep arrived in 1997. The parent company is the largest bank in the world by revenue, Here it’s known for high-interest savings and low-interest loans. It launched a no-fee daily chequing account, called Thrive, early this year.
Q: How much money can you save with no-fee banking?
A: PCF says up to $200 a year. ING says $185 a year.
Q: How many automated bank machines can you use without paying fees?
A: PCF offers free access to 3,800 ABMs. This includes its own machines and those operated by CIBC, its online banking partner.
ING offers free access to 2,500 ABMs in the Exchange network, usually located near credit unions (the bulk of the network’s members).
Q: Do you pay to order cheques?
A: PCF doesn’t charge for cheques. ING gives you 20 free cheques and charges $10 for each 20 cheques you order after that (or 50 cents apiece). Both offer free cheque clearing services.
ING offers free unlimited email money transfers as an option to using cheques. PCF charges $1.50 for each email money transfer.
Q: Do you pay for monthly statements sent by mail?
A: PCF offers free online access, but charges $1 for each monthly statement sent by mail. ING has free online access and won’t send monthly statements by mail for no-fee chequing – no matter what you pay.
Q: Do you earn interest on your no-fee account?
A: PCF pays a five-tiered interest rate, starting at 0.05 per cent on the first $1,000, going up to 0.25 per cent on the part of the balance between $10,000 and $25,000 and to 0.5 per cent on the balance over $25,000.
ING has a three-tiered interest rate, starting at 0.25 cent on the first $50,000, going up to 1 per cent on the part of the balance from $50,000 to $100,000 and to 1.1 per cent on the balance over $100,000.
Q: Do you pay for overdraft protection?
A: PCF has a $4.97 minimum charge that applies in each month that overdraft protection is used. There’s also a fixed rate of 19 per cent a year on overdraft balances.
ING has a feature called Whoops Protection that covers overdrafts up to $250. You pay no fees or interest, as long as you put the money back into your account within 30 days.
Q: Can you talk to a real person face to face?
A: PCF has people in its pavilions near many grocery stores, including Fortinos, Zehrs and Real Canadian Superstore. An online store locator gave me 50 places to visit in a 60-kilometre radius from downtown Toronto.
ING has one Toronto café where you can talk to a real person. It’s at 111 Gordon Baker Rd., near Highway 404 and Finch Ave. E. A second café is planned for downtown (across from the Eaton Centre) next year.
Closing argument.
Barry Columb, president of President’s Choice Financial: “We cater to all your banking needs, including index mutual funds with our partner CIBC. We also have a loyalty program that lets you earn PC points on transactions and redeem them for free groceries in our stores.”
Brenda Rideout, chief marketing officer, ING Direct: “We’re giving Canadians the features they want to use, including access to mobile banking. People love the email money transfers and email alerts. They’re telling us it’s about time we offered a no-fee chequing account.”