Ouch, ouch, ouch. :(

Just phoned my bank and managed to extend my overdraft so I'm covered for the rest of the month. Majorly pissed off that the money I put in on Friday hasn't appeared yet though.

That'll teach me I guess!

Down here, transfer between different banks take a few days, I think a couple of working days.

Still, that's quite a lot to lose. How much is the pound in euros anyway?

I think it's around the one pound/.70 Euros mark - I think. I'm shockingly unaware of that!

The bank I sent the transfer from said it would be three to five working days which was cutting it close, but they counted Saturday as a working day so I should have been okay. Won't be cutting it so close next time!

That's a lot.

And shame on you, you anti european isolationist you. Never mind I also had no idea how much my symbol of possible unification, err, I mean coin is worth. :)

Disaster!
Know how it feels though that is terrible with you having transfered money.
Bank not sympathetic seeing you had tried to transfer in time? What am I saying, they are a bank so of course not :-(

The girl on the phone was really nice when I asked about it, but because they don't count Saturday as a working day she said there was nothing she could do.

Really sucks doesn't it?

I'm mostly too paranoid for direct debit. A while back, someone tried to pull a fast one and empty my account and since then, it's checks all the way.

Even those I'm leery of though. Were it not for the bizarre social stigma that paying in cash always seems to carry nowadays, I'd do nothing but that *sigh*

Thanks for this. Would you believe that I honestly had never given any kind of thought to this problem?

checks? Thought you were English? Shouldn't that be cheques? *g*

Some things - like TV licenses - offer reduced rates if you pay by DD and my bank offers a fraud insurance thing free of charge so even though there's never been a problem it would be covered.

I get where you're coming from though, and I'd be tempted to do the same.

checks? Thought you were English? Shouldn't that be cheques?

I actually wasn't sure how to spell it, to my great shame *g*

Yes, I'm English, but I grew up in France and sort of over-compensate by English-izing absolutely everything to stamp out any remaining French vocabulary as a result.

At home, I still speak Franglish after all :)

Pardon a tangential question from an American who's never been to the UK, but what's a TV license?

TV licensing is the main way the BBC is funded in the UK. Since they're supposed to be the equivalent of a public service broadcaster they're not allowed to carry adverts from commercial bodies. The license system comes under review regularly and each time it does there's always calls to scrap it but it never quite happens. Every home with a TV in the UK needs to also have a license and it's around £130 a year for one (there's special rates for pensioners so they don't have to pay as much). That's the case even if you never watch the BBC.

that just sucks.

doesn't it just?

That SUCKS!!!!


Gabrielle

It's kinda my fault but it really does suck!

It DEFINITELY sucks! Those fees seem unconscionably high!


Gabrielle

They kinda are, although there are banks which charge more. Some even charge about 25 quid to send you a letter.

My stars! That is OUTRAGEOUS! That's DESPICABLE!!!


Gabrielle

Banks and their wonderful charges. You gotta love 'em.

Mind you, the biggest problem we had recently was when we set up the new Standing Order for the rent. Top of the form - it asked whether it was weekly or monthly, so we said weekly, woman in branch checked it, and we sent it off. A week and a half later, after the first payment was supposed to have gone out. The form arrives at home, asking us to complete it.

There was another section near the bottom asking whether it was weekly or monthly. Now firstly, if I say I want it weekly, then I'm not going to say I want it monthly later on on the same form, and secondly, why didn't the woman in the branch pick this up?

Gotta love 'em, right?