"Not so hidden" credit card surcharge?

cin_xy SG

Did you know that DBS charges a minimum of S$15 for every online ibanking transaction that you make using their any of their credit cards?

Well, i didn't. I am an obsessive online shopper and have been paying for my spoils through normal ibank transfers. After they have sent 3 of their cards to me through phone solicitation at no surcharge at all, i see the 3 credit card numbers appearing in the dropdown list under "my account" for selection when i do subsequent ibank transactions.

I am not a person who goes into the details. So i just went ahead to charge some of my online transactions to my credit card following the usual process thinking that i would just have to pay for it at one go when the statement arrives.

So my statement finally came today, and i found that i actually incurred an additional S$60 for 4 x transactions worth S$192.80. I actually had to pay an additional 32% of my actual spend to DBS for their "CASH ADVANCE FEE".

Unaware of this charge, i called their customer service and they directed me back to the ibanking page and told me that there is actually a link when you select your account indicating the additional charges. An unassuming link under the box. Who would have known? Who would have noticed?

Should we call this a "not so hidden" charge?

They could have added a prompt along the process so that people who are really used to the ibanking process will really be aware (e.g. a pop up with a tick box to ensure users have read the terms?).

What more can i say? Just pay and move on... never to use that exorbitant service again. It's not about how much additional i had to pay, its more like the principal behind things. If i had to pay 5% admin fee for every transaction i make, i think that makes more sense dosent it?

Junyang700 SG

DBS - Dumb Bank "For The" Stupid.

Its like that one lah. This bank pretty damn unreliable.

My friend did a wrong bank transfer back then and they say "too bad its your problem." Lost about $150 plus. I called them and they say you have to ask the wrong person to send you back the money. And when I ask for the person's contacts, they said "Sorry but we cannot give out the contact"... So how am I going to contact the person myself! =X

I have heard of more ridiculous happenings,
such as fingerprints of the deceased so that the family members can withdraw the cash for the deceased.

and also fake ATMs being built by spammers, depleting entire savings of up to $8,000, and all DBS replied was "its your fault that we have fake ATMs".

I closed my POSB account btw. =)

skythewood SG

Well, if you think DBS is bad, it will be more convincing if you compare it to the standards of other banks.

Otherwise, it will be more prudent to say that banks are bad.

So how do other banks fare when facing the various issues that was brought up?

HeartHunter SG

Warrent Buffet had once quote:

The best investment ideas are found, not sold.

Those organizations who fail to realise customer value:

The best products sold conveniently are always below expected quality.

And imo, the most stressful organizations are those who always struggle with firefighting, while the more successful ones are those forward looking.

If commercial banks had such extensive customer 'complaint' handling centres, they might have figured their operations may involve directing customer fire to some misunderstanding and later direct them to other means, perhaps law of contract. By right these organizations will fail sooner or later as they are not compulsory organizations in life, but somewhat some govt/law tries to make them 'survive', at the cost of taxpayers' money.

dbs_bank SG

Hi cin_xy

I am Wanda from DBS Bank. I read your post regarding charges you incurred relating to your credit card payments via i-banking and would like to clarify the following:

- When you make a ‘funds transfer’ from your credit card via ibanking, the card transaction is treated as a ‘cash advance’ which will attract relevant charges on your credit card since the cash advance facility is utilized. The definition of "cash advance" is defined by the card associations and all financial institutions abide by it. Funds transfer debited from your deposit account will not incur charges.

- When you make a ‘bill payment’ which is charged to your credit card, there are no charges for such transactions. For example, when the recipient is a bill payment organization and you are using your credit card to pay via i-banking, this is not considered a cash advance and does not attract any charges.

If you require further assistance, please email me at [email protected].