It Pays to Save
I never thought I would say this but I became an advocate for PC Financial. After many years with Bank of Montreal, I became frustrated with their transaction fees. I get charged $5 per month for transaction fees like Interac, which is my preferred method of payment. On top of that, I only get pennies worth of interest for putting money into the bank in which BOM is using to make more money for themselves. So with the advice of my sister, I opened up an account in PC Financial. My sister was raving about how she gets more interest from PC than other banks and that she doesn’t have to pay for service charges. Initially I had my doubts because why would a supermarket venture out into finance? It didn’t make sense to me but I tried it anyways because I wasn’t getting any good service from BOM. After I signed up, it was the best thing that happened to me financially. I see the interest rolling in. I didn’t have to pay for any transaction fees at all. It was convenient because I didn't have to go to Superstore for the ATM machine. I could use CIBC's ATM machines as well. I was actually rewarded for putting money into the bank! Because I was so satisfied, I got a MasterCard from PC financial as well. Now I collect points and every $2000 I use on my credit card, I get $20 worth of groceries. Sweet! So, from then on, I’ve been telling my friends to open an account at PC. They were amazed when I tell them how much interest they can make. They couldn’t believe it. I guess WOM marketing does work because I opened it on the advice of my sister and I've been telling my friends about it. So companies, start treating us better!
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sweet_pea
- Goodwill: Extremely delighted
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I tried to open a PC Financial account once. I won't try again.
At the time my only credit history was U.S.-based and they claimed they couldn't check it. Without a credit history check they wouldn't let me open an account (I wasn't even asking for a credit card.) I went to CIBC instead and had no problems whatsoever.
Not a great way to treat a potential customer, and now they've lost me forever.
Sad to hear about Peter's experience. I, too, am a PC Financial customer (though only accounts, not credit) for the exact same reason as Sweet_Pea. I couldn't stand how BOM kept changing their fees and rules and crap, almost as often as they changed their underwear! I switched to PC and haven't had any trouble at all, and yes, the interest is a nice (little) bonus at the end of the month. If you are like me and tend to do pretty much all of your banking online or through machines, PC is definitely the way to go.
My friend recommended me PC financial about 3-4 years ago. At that time I came from the US and the concept of bank charges in the personal account was alien to me. I opened a chequing account, got my free cheques, later on I got a Master Card from them, and further on opened a line of credit ($11,000). I could not be happier with my banking experience with them. And in all this time, I must have earned at least $300 worth of free groceries. I have made sure I put all my charges through PC Master Card, it adds more points and pay all my bills online, which adds points as well. I dealt with BOM in the past at work, and it was the worst bank service ever. So, yes, PC Financial has lots of advocates for it. I should admit, that opening an account can be a bit of a hassle, as they don't have branches in all places, but in the end, it is all worth it!
Sorry, and forgot to mention to Peter, PC financial is a subsidiary of CIBC, so CIBC has not really lost a customer, you are just paying the fees we don't pay :)
I've heard good things about PC mortgages. I try not to think about how brutally the Royal Bank is buggering me - but to see someone else complain about a $5 per month interact fee makes me feel like the world's biggest buggeree (I pay about $20 per month for the same).
Funny that no one here has considered credit unions. CU's have one of the largest surcharge-free ATM networks in Canada (2nd only to the Royal Bank). Many offer low or no fee accounts and unlike the banks their profits go back into the communities they are part of -- rather than shareholders. I bank at North Shore Credit Union (www.nscu.com) and have nothing but good things to say.
I had a PC Financial account for a long time. I liked it, but I'm now with Coast Capital Savings, and the no-fee banking is just as good but the customer service is infinitely better.
For savings, I prefer ING.
I am planning to switch my mortgage from RBC to PC Financial, lower interest rate being the key factor. Can anyone confirm with me if this is indeed a good idea? I have been banking with PC Financial for 3 years now, and I am very much happy with the low fees and groceries. However, when it comes to my mortgage, I decided to put it at RBC for stability and security reasons.
PC Financial PC master card are a bunch of crooks, they are run by Loblaws the current scam they are running is this 20 Dollars free grocery scam where they give you 4 -5 dollar coupons that require 50 Dollar Purchases Each to get the 5 bucks off works out to 10% off. They need to be stopped I started http://www.pcfinancialsucks.com for anyone with a horror story you can post anonymously. Beware!
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