Co-op Business Account - good with bs!

Latest Articles

Co-op Business Account - good with bs!

Downsizer Forum Index -> Small Business Questions, Ideas and Advice

Author

Message

OtleyLad

Joined: 13 Jan 2007
Posts: 2737
Location: Otley, West Yorkshire

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 10:20 am Post subject: Co-op Business Account - good with bs!

I applied for a Coop business account for my new Electricians business; this was over 3 weeks ago (at least). I get sent a Debit card first saying the PIN will follow.
Then a letter saying my account is up and running.
PIN arrived yesterday.

So I rang up yesterday and said 'I have a cheque made out to 'Otley Electrics', is the account up and running and can I pay in the cheque now?
Yes of course you can sir.
So I drive from Otley to Harrogate (nearest branch) this morning and guess what?
Oh no, you can't pay a cheque in without a pre-filled Business paying-in slip.
Of course I haven't been sent any have I.

Thats probably cost me best part of ï¿½10 to drive there and back and pay parking fees - for nothing. And should I ever get a precious paying in slip book, I will have to do it all over again.

Can I swear now?

I am writing a letter of complaint and claiming the costs of 2 journeys off them.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 10:29 am Post subject:
Can you not pay in at the Post Office?

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 11:00 am Post subject: Re: Co-op Business Account - good with bs!

OtleyLad wrote:

Can I swear now?

I am writing a letter of complaint and claiming the costs of 2 journeys off them.

Did you not read my complaints on here about them? Other banks may well be evil, but they manage it by getting the most important bit right - being a functional bank. I'd love to support the co-op but I can't stand the way they put 'ethical' marketing ahead of good, basic customer service.

RichardW

Joined: 24 Aug 2006
Posts: 8443
Location: Llyn Peninsular North Wales

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 12:07 pm Post subject:
For the 1 day delay in getting the money cleared you could stick it the post for less than ï¿½1 & free up your time.

Behemoth

Joined: 01 Dec 2004
Posts: 19023
Location: Leeds

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 12:26 pm Post subject:
They sent me 5 paying in books.

OtleyLad

Joined: 13 Jan 2007
Posts: 2737
Location: Otley, West Yorkshire

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 12:42 pm Post subject:
Thing is I havn't been sent a Cheque book nor a Paying in book. I have no means of paying into the post office either yet. You'd think it was the 1950s the way they operate

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 12:53 pm Post subject:

RichardW wrote:

For the 1 day delay in getting the money cleared you could stick it the post for less than ï¿½1 & free up your time.

More than ï¿½1 when you add on the recorded fee, and still have to go to the Post Office to get the signed for receipt. I don't send cheques by post any longer after I got stung for ï¿½25 when a cheque went missing in the post.

RichardW

Joined: 24 Aug 2006
Posts: 8443
Location: Llyn Peninsular North Wales

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 1:43 pm Post subject:

Rob R wrote:

Why did it cost you ï¿½25?

If it goes missing in post then the sender can cancel it for free & issue another one. If you dont know who issued the cheq then think about keeping records that capture that information if possible.

In OT's case he will know where they live as he is working on site so can get a new one if needed.

No need for recorded or proof of posting (who are you going to prove it to apart from yourself?) so it can go in the post box.

But even with your inflated costs still loads cheaper than the trip to town & the wasted hours.

sgt.colon

Joined: 27 Jul 2009
Posts: 7380
Location: Just south of north.

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 2:44 pm Post subject:
I suspect it was a cheque Rob sent and banks charge a fee to cancle cheques.

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Tue Sep 24, 13 3:47 pm Post subject:

sgt.colon wrote:

I suspect it was a cheque Rob sent and banks charge a fee to cancle cheques.

Yes, I sent the cheque to the bank, expecting it to get there. It didn't and banks charge a fee when you go overdrawn. They don't give you the benefit of the doubt that 'the cheque is in the post'.

RichardW wrote:

But even with your inflated costs still loads cheaper than the trip to town & the wasted hours.

It depends how far away you are from town, there's more than a financial charge associated with it, and if you've used cheques to pay other people based on the funds being in your account you may have their bank charges to pay on top of that, as well as getting a reputation as someone who writes rubber cheques.

Mistress Rose

Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15993

Posted: Wed Sep 25, 13 6:57 am Post subject:
I can pay both cash and cheques in through the Post Office. The cheques go in a special envelope ( and yes they got the envelopes wrong, but I change the part that needs to be changed by hand) with a paying in slip and the Post Office send them off for me in bulk. Very convenient as we have a Post Office within walking distance and the bank is miles away. We are not with the Co-op.

vegplot

Joined: 19 Apr 2007
Posts: 21301
Location: Bethesda, Gwynedd

Posted: Wed Sep 25, 13 8:37 am Post subject:
For a business I would prefer to go with one of the high street bank purely for the convenience. I have no experience of Co-op.

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Wed Sep 25, 13 8:47 am Post subject:

vegplot wrote:

For a business I would prefer to go with one of the high street bank purely for the convenience. I have no experience of Co-op.

I think they put their ethics above banking, but when the application forms contained so many blank pages I question those too.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Wed Sep 25, 13 11:30 am Post subject:

OtleyLad wrote:

Thing is I havn't been sent a Cheque book nor a Paying in book. I have no means of paying into the post office either yet.

You'd think it was the 1950s the way they operate

I meant once you get your paying in book. You can also accept direct transfers if you customers are happy to pay that way, I pay a few local businesses that way and it ave them bank charges of paying in cash and cheques or accepting card payments.

	Downsizer Forum Index -> Small Business Questions, Ideas and Advice	All times are GMT
Page 1 of 1

View Latest Posts