Before I go on, it is worth noting that rediATM is not one ATM provider, but essentially a syndicate of smaller ATM providers that have an ATM brand banded together under the rediATM mark and spearheaded by Cuscal. The providers of the ATMs under the rediATM brand are usually the smaller institution such as credit unions.

Originally, we noted that all the rediATMs we tested were $1.75 for a cash withdrawal, and free for a balance enquiry (showed as $0.00 on the screen). This was also substantiated in reports from the field by readers of ATM Fee Tracker.

Whilst on a trip interstate I came across a rediATM installed in a restaurant. As I always do with ATMs in unusual locations, I tried it out. It offered me a balance enquiry at a cost of $1.00 and a cash withdrawal for $2.00. I took some cash out to get a hint at who the provider was and it turned out as Savings & Loans Credit Union. There was a second rediATM installed in the local Saving & Loans branch a couple of kilometers down the road which also charged the same direct fees.

On my return home I honed my ATM seeking cruise missile to the local rediATM in a CUA branch which we had previously tested. This one was charging $1.00 for an balance enquiry and $1.75 for a cash withdrawal. Again, the free balance enquiry was gone.

A little further afield from home I found a freestanding rediATM in a shopping centre food court. This one asked for $1.00 for a balance enquiry and $2.00 for a cash withdrawal just like the Savings & Loan ATM across the border.

In previous correspondence with Cuscal by ATM Fee Tracker Australia, they noted that each ATM provider is free to set their own direct charge fees. We are sure, though, that Cuscal provides ‘guidance’ to their ATM sub network providers as to what they should charge.

I can only conclude from this that the days of rediATM operators playing nice and offering free balance enquiries and some of the cheapest cash withdrawals of any ATM network are gone. Sure, a $1.00 balance enquiry is still cheap compared to much of the competition, but surely it doesn’t cost that much if the NAB can do it for 50 cents. And with a variable cash withdrawal fees across the different providers in the rediATM network, you won’t know what you are up for until you see the number on the screen should you choose the rediATM. It may not end up being worth lining up for a rediATM to get cash out in some cases when there is another brand of ATM close by with no line!

Email 1 – 20 March, 2009

I have recently checked my bank statement and have found that I have been charged $2.00 for a withdrawal at the local workers club. I bank with Westpac, but when I questioned the fee was told that it was a charge from the Bank of Western Australia. I was politely put through to Bank West and explained the situation. The main point of my argument was that at the time of withdrawal, there was a change of screen on the ATM which said that I was going to be charged $0.00 for the transaction, so I thought nothing of it and proceeded with the transaction. I thought that the banks have a duty of disclosure to let us (the consumer) decide whether or not we accept the charge. In this instance I feel that I have been mistreated and/or misled as the fee was to be $0.00.

Bank West has said that they will have the ATM checked, but at this stage were not prepared to reimburse my $2.00.

We asked the source to send us a picture if they went back to that venue and the ATM was still showing a charge of $0 and… 
Email 2 – 3 April 2009

I have since been back to the ATM in question and the screen has not changed, however this time I cancelled the transaction as I would have been charged the $2.00. I have attached a photo of the screen to make sure I’m not making this up.

So far, I have not been contacted by the bank regarding this matter and I am after some advice as to what I should do next to have this problem rectified….

is this not a case of “Obtaining Funds By Deception”?

We have suggested that Consumer Affairs may be able to advise on how best to proceed.

But isn’t it interesting how larger corporations manage to act so quickly when they have something to gain, and so slowly when there’s as little as $2 at stake?

There are two morals to this story…The first is to check your statements, since it seems that what the screen tells us may not always be true.

The second – if the banks are so unwilling to give our source (and how many others) back $2 then it must be worth something…If you use the same ATM each week, because it tells you the transaction cost is $0, when really it is charging you $2 each time (Hey, your busy so you don’t check your bank statement that thoroughly); 52 weeks in a year, $2 a week….there’s a $100 + and that’s just you. How many people use an ATM each day?

In the 3 weeks of ATM direct charging, ATM Fee Tracker Australia has seen over 4,000 visits and served almost 15,000 pages. We never really imagined seeing this kind of traffic so early in the website’s life. At least one third of the traffic, if not more, was driven by the mainstream media. We have done radio, newspaper and TV interviews and we thank those journalists for their time. 

Since the launch of the site, we have had feedback through comments and email from users with input on the fees they have seen which we have incorporated into our tables. We thank you for that. In addition to the general public, some banks and ATM providers also provided feedback and clarification which is greatly appreciated.

Why am I telling you all this and giving you statistics on our site? Well in amongst all these visits and comments there are a couple of interesting points.

Firstly, quite a number of visits are coming from behind interesting host-names! Visits from within networks of all the big 4 banks figure in the top 25 network locations we have had visits from. To those of you at Westpac, NAB, Commbank and ANZ… hello.

In addition to the big 4 banks, many of the smaller financial institutions figure in both the top 25 and top 100 network locations we have had visitors from, as well as the Reserve Bank of Australia, the APCA and some other interesting names.

Now, the second and more interesting point. Considering we had so many visits from inside the banking sector, it was only a matter of time before someone on the inside of one of the big 4 banks commented.

Last week, we had an interesting comment that one of the big 4 banks had a great deal at an ATM in a remote part of Australia. We almost missed it given that our comment spam killer put it straight into the recycling bin. This particular comment related to a very low direct charge fee at an ATM of one of the big 4 banks. After some investigation, we found the comment was from within the network of the bank that ATM in question belonged to and the email address that was used for the post was bogus. As a result, we did not feel comfortable approving the comment and making a song and dance about it. However, if the poster is out there reading this, we are still interested in what you had to say. Please send us an email (info@atmfeetracker.com) to clarify and confirm what you know. Any discussion on this can remain anonymous.

For our readers in the general public, keep those comments and emails coming. It is only with your help that we can really keep a watchful eye on these fees. To those inside the banks, feel free to drop us an email if you have anything you want to say, clarify or correct. We know we are not always right and we are not too proud to print a correction if required.

I withdrew cash from a commonwealth bank ATM Prospect road, Kilburn SA at 11.30 pm and the fee was $4.80 . This is not my bank
 Anonymous

What makes this so unusual? Firstly, this ATM is not remote but in a suburb of Adelaide just north of the CBD. Secondly, it is a Commonwealth Bank ATM - the CBA were direct charging a fairly standard $2.00 for a balance check or withdrawal from our tests.

ATM Fee Tracker has done some late night checks at ATMs around Melbourne, but we do not have a Comonwealth Bank check late at night so far. I can feel a night time reconnaissance mission coming on.

Have you seen an unusually high fee, or a fee we do not have in the ATM fee table? Drop us an email at info@atmfeetracker.com with as much detail as possible (ATM brand, location, transaction type, time of day) and if possible a picture of the screen.

This leaves the last bank standing with a disloyalty fee as Adelaide Bank. We have asked Adelaide bank if they will be changing their policy, especially given their Bendigo Bank cousins have dropped theirs, but no response has come through as yet.

So here is what is a little crazy. If you check your Commsec cash account balance at any non-CBA ATM, that’s going to cost you $2.00 even if you are using a rediATM where you would otherwise get a balance check for free. Want to actually get some money out while you are at that rediATM? Well instead of the $1.75 the rediATM folks would charge you, Commsec is going to charge you $2.00. So instead of paying $1.75 for a rediATM balance check and withdrawal, you’re up for $4.00.

Basically, Commsec is paying rediATM $1.75 and pocketing $2.25…ca-ching, ca-ching.

The above fees for the scenario are based on information accessed on the Commsec website and our ATM fee table as at 16th March 2009. For more information:

http://www.comsec.com.au/Public_FrameSet.asp?Page=HProducts
http://www.comsec.com.au/public/news.aspx?id=1048
 http://www.atmfeetracker.com/atm-fee-table/

Bank West has also confirmed they have dropped their disloyalty fee since our post on March 12th. We are still trying to get confirmation from NAB that they will drop their disloyalty fee. NAB’s fee tables still show a $0.50 disloyalty fee for most accounts, and NAB customer service did not answer our direct question on this issue (par for the course with many of these banks).

However, using Suncorp’s ATM locator shows some rediATMs, depending on the search location, as “Designated non-Suncorp - ATM Operator Fees waived”. I did not understand exactly what that meant, so I contacted Suncorp customer service by email. They responded to me on 12th March 2009 with: 

Suncorp has recently announced that a number of Designated Non-Suncorp ATMs will be
made available for your convenience.  These are selected Redi Tellers and other
 ATM’s.

This means that at these devices, the ATM Operator Fee for withdrawals and balance
enquiries that is charged to your account if you proceed with the transaction, will
be subsequently waived. As these devices are not owned by Suncorp, the ATM Operator
Fee will still appear on the screen at the time of the transaction and will be
debited from your account; however, the fee will be waived and reimbursed on your
next statement. A number of designated Non-Suncorp ATM’s will be made available for
customers in Queensland and Interstate areas.

To view a list of Suncorp and Designated Non Suncorp ATM’s, please copy and paste
the below link into your Internet Browser:

suncorp.com.au/suncorp/servicelocator/

The Designated Non Suncorp ATM’s are included in this list, and are the only ATM’s
that we will waive the fee.

I am not sure how Suncorp announced that there would be access for Suncorp customers to “Designated Non-Suncorp ATMs” by way of a waived fee, but I cannot find it on their website. There is not even a mention of it on their FAQ page for the introduction of ATM Direct Charging when we accessed it today.

Now, a warning to Suncorp customers standing at their local rediATM assuming they will have the direct charged fee waived by Suncorp…BE CAREFUL. The waived direct charge fee only applies to rediATMs (and other ATM brands) designated by Suncorp. The ONLY way of knowing if the direct charge fee, which you must accept to get your money, will be subsequently waived by Suncorp is to check the ATM locator on their website. Not very convenient unless you are carrying an internet enabled mobile phone or your laptop with mobile internet access…and who doesn’t in the new century. 

Here are some examples of what you need to be careful of as a Suncorp customer:

Travelling from sunny Brisbane to gloomy Melbourne (or vice-versa) you stop in Dubbo and need some cash to take with you to the Western Plains Zoo. There are no Suncorp ATMs in Dubbo, but there are six rediATM locations. However, at only one of those rediATM locations will the direct charged fee be waived according to the Suncorp ATM locator.

When in Melbourne, you are staying with relatives in the outer north eastern suburbs, say around Eltham. There are rediATMs in both Eltham shopping centre and the nearby Greensborough shopping centre about 1km away. However, neither of these have waived fees for Suncorp customers. You need to head over the Yarra river to the Pines shopping centre for a rediATM which is a 7km drive from Eltham. And if that one is out of service, the next closest Suncorp ATM to Eltham is an 11km drive away in Preston.

Looking over the Disloyalty Fee page, this leaves Adelaide Bank and Bendigo Bank as the most significant institution to continue charging a disloyalty fee. Their disloyalty fee stands at a whopping $1.50 until it changes to $0.10 on 1st April. The banks, which are part of the same group, say the change cannot flow through until the 1st April as they must give customers a minimum period of notification of fees changes. In my opinion, I am sure the customers of Adelaide Bank and Bendigo Bank would quite happily accept the fee change without the minimum notice period. Their shareholders may have a differing opinion.

Prior to writing this post, we still did not have confirmation of HSBC’s intention regarding disloyalty fees. One reader of ATM Fee Tracker Australia has pointed to a statement on HSBC’s FAQ on the reforms that indicates HSBC will not charge a disloyalty fee (below, accessed 12th March 2009). 

At what ATMs will HSBC cardholders be subject to direct charging?

When the ATM Reform becomes effective on 3 March 2009, all HSBC cardholders:

• will NOT be charged an ATM Operator Fee when using an HSBC ATM
• will NOT be charged an ATM Operator Fee when using a Westpac*** branded ATM.
• MAY be charged an ATM Operator Fee when using an ATM that is not an HSBC or Westpac*** branded ATM. This fee will be charged by the ATM Owner (NOT HSBC). HSBC cardholders will have the option of cancelling the transaction without any charges being incurred.

 After some deep searching on HSBCs website, I found confirmation that HSBC does not charge a disloyalty fee for using a foreign ATM in a document called “Personal financial services charges - your guide”. Also worth noting for HSBC customers is the sharing arrangement with Westpac, whereby HSBC customers can use Westpac branded ATMs (not ST George or BankSA) as if they were part of the HSBC ATM network.

Update 15th March 2008: Bank West has confirmed by email that is will not charge a disloyalty fee for using non-Bank West/CBA ATMs.