Online Banking

By Michael Russell

Before you do this, make sure to compare existing offers from at least three different facilities, such as banks, building societies and other financial institutions. Your bank doesn’t necessarily give you the best deal just because you are currently banking with them. It pays to shop around before you make a decision and inform yourself. Most financial institutions worldwide offer online banking these days. So it shouldn’t be too hard to find something suitable for your needs.

What are the benefits of online banking? For starters it is a convenience, as it allows us to deal with our banking needs totally from the comfort of our home or office. As long as you have an internet connection and an online account set up, you are set to go.

Most banks offer a host of different activities in your online banking account such as: transfer funds (moving/sending money from one account to another), pay anyone (send money from your account to another account), schedule your regular bill payments (organizing your bills to be paid on a certain recurring date), check balances of your account anytime (whether day or night), apply for an online loan, see a list of all/any transactions you have made from your account and the ability to print them out if needed, financial planner (the ability to plan your finances via a help function), order cheques (you can even order cheques to pay your bills if you like online).

Online banking is easy to learn and apply. However, there is a serious side to it and that is internet security. Banks go to great length these days to keep your money and your data safe from online crooks. You will be supplied with a password, which you should change as soon as you have your account set up. There are also rules and regulations (the fine print) you will have to agree to, before opening your account. It certainly pays to read them in detail prior to adding your signature to the contract. Yes, you will be entering into a contract with your bank, just as you do with offline activities. So make sure you read this contract carefully before signing anything. You will avoid nasty surprises if you do this correctly.

As with many things these days there are always pros and cons to apply a certain method such as online banking. On the positive side online banking is great because: it eliminates cutting down trees and therefore it is beneficial to the environment, you can check your account balance anytime 24 hours/7 days week, you don’t have to spend time waiting in bank queues, you can send money to anywhere in the world with a click of a button, it simply is an easier way to do your banking. On the negative side, online banking might not be a good option for some because: someone could steal your money from your account via hacking into it and you will need your own computer to do online banking (you can do it in an internet café, but this is not recommended due to security reasons). Some people still wonder whether online banking is safe. It also eliminates a lot of jobs in the workforce. When you get paid via cheques you will still have to go to your local branch to cash them.

Whatever it is you believe regarding online banking, you will have to make the right decision that is best suited to you and your needs. For most of the people who choose online banking, it is probably the convenience factor that really convinces them the most. As an online banking customer you have legal rights to protect you and your identity. These are also called consumer rights. They have been established to protect you as the customer and to make sure that the bank is operating within the law.

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