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NAB Classic Banking - No Account Keeping Fee

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I went into NAB yesterday to close the account that I opened last year during the free $100 promo (http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/16795) - I know, I should have done it as soon as they deposited $100 but I couldn't get my lazy ass to their branch office and do it.

Anyway, when requested to pay the last $4 account keeping fee, and - in true OB spirit - I asked if they can waive it. The nice lady teller said she couldn't but suggested that I just open another one and she can credit it back since NAB not going to charge account fee for Classic Banking accounts any more. She said it started since on 4/Jan. No fee and no minimum amount deposit and I get a cheque book as well.

http://www.nab.com.au/wps/wcm/connect/nab/nab/home/personal_…

Note that on NAB website, they said this should start from 22/01 but you can have your account open now and enyou no fee.

There are many similar no frills account offering from other banks but they all Internet-access type. This NAB account is a low interest type suitable for anyone just want a regular saving account with a benefit of a large ATM networks, branch access and cheque book. I write at least 1-2 cheques a month and regular receive cheques so this is perfect.

Related Stores

National Australia Bank Group (NAB)
National Australia Bank Group (NAB)

closed Comments

  • you try and get out and they drag you back in lol sounds okay though

    • -1

      LOL, that's true. Couldn't say no to the nice lady - she actually keep on insisting.

      Having one with no fee like this one is handy for me to issue cheques when needed.

  • +2

    Definitely worthwhile looking into opening up NAB accounts, they are abolishing Account Service Fees on many transactional accounts and have already removed overdrawn fees and reduced late payment fees

  • i have the student clasic account and they said it will convert over to the no fee one on jan 22 automatically. can anyone else confirm this? btw just open a nab isaver and link them to get a higher interest rate. you can also open a nab gold account and link it to the isaver and then simply transfer $5000 into the gold account and then back out into the isaver to avoid the $12 monthly fee. just set up an auto payment every month both ways. the nab gold account is the only savings account that i know of that doesnt charge fees for using the gold visa debit card overseas for purchases and ATM cash advances and it also offers free travel insurance if you pay for your airfare using it. if anyone know's of any others in Australia please let us know?

    • +1

      Student classic banking accounts shouldn't be incurring fees unless your student status has expired. Regardless your account will automatically have its Account Service Fee removed from your account.

      iSaver accounts opened before 12 January will be earning bonus interest which totals 5.15%. The NAB GOld Banking account monthly service fee will remain at $10 unless $5000 is deposited per month into the account, but does not need to stay there.

      The Service fee remains because with the Gold Visa Debit card you do get the benefits of 90 day purchase protection, extended warranty on purchases and complimentary travel insurance provided you purchase your tickets using the card.

      edit - The Gold Visa Debit card won't incur any fees for using the card overseas with the NAB, however the overseas operator may charge a fee for using the ATM

    • Students have never been charged for classic banking anyway..?

      I joined… ~18 months ago, and never paid account fees for classic banking. I moved to the gold account (10$/month) and, as you say, you just xfer 5k from one account into it, then back out, and you don't have to pay for that month.

      No transaction on overseas purchases (/currency conversion) and no intl ATM fees.. I believe they're the only one around doing that. Now, if only there was someone who'd allow me to use intl bank transfer without getting stung with a $30 fee…

    • +1

      The Student Classic Account never had account keeping fees.
      I know this is kind of irrelevant now, but…
      You were suppose to go to the bank once every year to extend your student account (except for the 1st 24 months). Basically, you student account has a validity of 24 months, after which NAB assumes you are no longer a student and coverts your account to a regular (non-student) one. You are supposed to have brought some form of proof that you are a student so that they can extend the validity beyond 24 months.

      • +3

        And stay a student until you reach 55 and then get a seniors account free

    • of course the Wizard Clear Advantage mastercard also is free for overseas ATM cash advances, but doesn't come with all the gold stuff eg travel insurance

  • I was planning to apply only after 21 Jan, seems now I can pop into NAB.

  • http://www.suncorp.com.au/suncorp/personal/everyday_banking_…

    Im sorry but this is no bargain, all banks now offer these accounts, and if they dont they will soon.

    If they were paying me $100 to open the account that would be a little differnet.

    Some example of fees that will cost you long term with NAB -

    Lost/Stolen Card Replacement Fee $20 per card issued in Australia. $100 per card issued overseas. Where second or subsequent replacement card issued in a calendar year.

    Do you think its fair to be charged $20 if your card is stolen?

    • http://www.suncorp.com.au/Suncorp/personal/_media/pdf/schedu…

      Do you think it's fair that the bank you linked to charges $12 for a replacement card?

      Sounds like a silly/unreasonable little gripe to me.

      • -2

        aren't lost/damaged/stolen cards meant to be replaced for free? $12 is a rip. Why would I pay them to keep MY money with them!

        • +3

          I love how (quite often, these days), OzBargainers completely forget about the fact that you're dealing with a business, not St Vincent's.

          I'm sure you make more than 12$ interest per year anyway. If not, withdraw all your money and keep it buried in your backyard if it's such an issue.

          Like I said, silly gripe.

      • That link is to outdated Suncorp accounts that aren't offered anymore. I've replaced 2 cards in the last 6 months on the Everyday Basics and wasn't charged a thing.

      • The nice guy at the counter in Suncorp waived the replacement fee when I lost mine.

    • do SunCorp have Bank Branch like NAB-Australia Wide, and ATM in Australia Wide?

      do you get charge for Withdrawing Money from SunCorp Branch? NAB doesn't…

      • You don't get charged for withdrawing from branches with the Everyday Basics Account from Suncorp.

        • I'm not 100% sure, but I think it was more about the # of branches / ATMs comparison.

          No. of SunCorp branches & agents = sub200
          No. of NAB branches alone = 786

          No. of NAB ATMs = 1282 (and another 900 in the UK, and 300 in NZ, which you won't be charged any fees for as far as I'm aware)
          No. of suncorp ATMs = .. well, I don't know. Looks like less than 100 @ http://www.suncorp.com.au/Suncorp/servicelocator/

          I would imagine your options for withdrawing from SunCorp without incurring a fee would be very limited (only withdrawing via EFTPOS may be an option?). If someone's with SunCorp (CyberGenx), would you care to elaborate?

          By the looks of things, it's a bit of a no-brainer comparison.. Whinging about a stolen card fee vs. copping a ~2$ fee every time you actually need to withdraw money from an ATM. I'd take the convenience of the sheer number of ATMs and availability of branches any day.

          • @pais: I wasn't comparing anything, I was just answering david2's question.

            Actually, since you brought it up, where I live (QLD), the Suncorp ATM's seem to be in more convenient locations than the other banks.

            And yeah, they never charged me for my last 2 replacement cards and I find their banking staff and customer service at a level above the big 4 banks.

            That said, this NAB Classic Banking account is very attractive, with the added bonus that you can use it with a cheque book for no fee.

          • @pais: Hey there, you mentioned that there is about 300 NAB ATMs in NZ. Do you know which website provides locations for these ATMs? I'm going to NZ this year, so would like to find out, but I can't it anywhere on the NAB website or google search

            Cheers

            • @b00gie: Sorry mate, I only got the raw numbers pertinent to branches, agents, ATMs, etc. I'd recommend you give them a buzz and see if they can help you out!

    • +1

      _ am I missing something here?

      …Where second or subsequent replacement card issued in a calendar year.

      To me that infers that's if you lose it once you can get a replacement free its the second lost card that you pay for AND that's if it's in the same year (12 months)??

      Where as your linked Suncorp account charges $12, so only when you lose 3 cards is suncorp cheaper.

    • Its only for the second time your card is lost/stolen in a calendar year… so yes i think its fair. they give you one free card replacement a year, and if you can't look after your stuff then they charge you for the second one.

  • +2

    let me ask you something… if you lose the card isn't that YOUR fault?

    when you request a new card, you call up talk to a CSO, they get another person to print out a new card, cancel the old one and then send the card to you.

    All this is incurring significant cost. Do you think this is all done for free?

    I am no friend of banks but surely anyone can see that doing all this involves significant labour.

    Or are people so oblivious to the world around them that all the banks should kiss your ass becuase you have a few bucks with them?

    • +2

      +1 for having a grip on reality.

    • if you are with Commonwealth, ANZ, Westpac and other big banks, they don't charge fees for STOLEN(such as wallet stolen & police filed) card. I remember if you LOST the card personally then the bank would charge you for replacement fees.

      the thing is: STOLEN card get charged for $20???

      banks provide facilities for their customer who hand their money to them(bank), so no fees should be charged. If you gonna get charge, like pais said, bury the money @ backyard is easier. NO que when you need to withdraws any money… :-P

      • "NO que when you need to withdraws any money"

        only if your neighbours don't see you when you deposit…

      • "I remember if you LOST the card personally then the bank would charge you for replacement fees."

        I must be lucky as ANZ have obviously been forgetting to charge me the lost card fees ever since I've had their Gold card

        • Well considering how they used to sting people who missed a payment (or in my case when I transposed a figure and paid a few cents less) they make more money by being sure you have a card …

  • -3

    Why was my post removed?

    Extremely lame.

    Do we really think banks need advertising on ozbargain? seriously.

    • I am certain there'd be a good reason for it mate. Check the guidelines.

    • I still see your post (if there's only one), it hasn't been removed. It has a few negatives so it has been hidden. Just tick "show hidden comments" above and you should see it.

      • Thanks - just like too many negative votes can kill a deal, negative votes on comments can hide the comment. Just do what ohsnap says and you'll be enlightened

  • -1

    My point is this is advertising a free account which nearly all banks offer and is free advertising for NAB. There will be differences between all bank accounts but is it worth posting on here that NABb are now offering one? no, is posting this comment worth my time, obviously not.

    BTW most banks dont charge for stolen cards. Lost cards should be charged for and most people woult understand the cost to produce cards. Most banks dont charge for stolen cards however as this would be a little unfair, it appearrs NAB however do :)

    Enjoy.

    • +2

      When you say nearly all banks are offering free accounts, do you know of fee free banking for ANZ and for Westpac? :)

      (I'm not saying there isn't. I'm seriously asking as if there is, I'm interested)

      I know ANZ offers fee free banking if you are a student, senior or can show them $50,000.00 I think. Though I think the $50,000.00 only gets you free banking for 6 - 12 months and you have to keep showing them the money to get the free banking offer renewed.

      Westpac I thought had no "fee free" banking.

      • Agreed, I always had the idea that even after shopping around the best you could usually do (if not a student) is like a $2 monthly fee. I know a lot of banks offer to waive the monthly fee if the balance is over $X000, or BOQ has a 'reverse charges' account if your balance is over ~$2000. Still, for that $5 monthly fee I'm pretty sure it's better to put your $2000 in a term deposit and get more interest for it ($~$8).

        It's good that NAB is offering a 'free' account, and hopefully more banks will follow suit, but so far I don't believe that many (if any) have.

        Also, I'm not sure that ATM networks are that much of a selling point nowadays, because if you're diligent you'd just get cash out at Woolies/Coles or even McDonalds with a 50c cone. I'm pretty sure ING Direct doesn't have any atms and they give you a bonus for using eftpos for a $200 cash-out. Actually they might be the only other 'bank' that has no monthly fee for this kind of account. Weren't they offering a $50 bonus for taking up their account?

        Personally I have an account that lets me waive the $4.50 fee because my entire savings with the bank are more than their threshold, so this allows me to keep $100 in the eftpos account and the rest in high-interest accounts, with no fee.

  • Commonwealth Debit MasterCard is fee-free for the life of the account as long as you deposit $2000 per month. Must apply before 29th January 2010.
    http://www.commbank.com.au/personal/accounts/debit-mastercar…

    • Yeah there's the catch… $2000 per month = ~$8 interest per month so you could potentially keep that $3 by just paying a $5 fee and collecting the ~$8 interest.

      • $2000/month deposit does not mean you need to maintain an additional balance of $2,000/month. You can withdraw as soon as the money goes in.

  • -1

    Westpac do i have a feeling ANZ best is $2 and CBA i have no idea, but then you have all the smaller banks which do and some were even refunding all ATM operator fees. I dont know if any such offers are still around but some worth looking at would be the bankwests and ubank and st george and the like.

    • I have UBank. They have some issues with slow processing of cheques and the like.
      St George is reported to have charged "inactive account fees" on an OzB member who just went on holidays for a few months.
      Bankwest I've considered.

      Have you heard of any fee free business chequing accounts?

      • No the inactive account fees where some time ago and it while I was working overseas for a few years - a little different - I think they have changed. My point in the other post was to uBank or was it westpac I think, saying if you mess with people once, it can take a long time to get their loyalty back

      • I have my business' bank accounts with Credit Union Australia. The only fee I incur is a 35c cheque deposit fee — no monthly account keeping fees. You can deposit cheques and cash through their [limited] branches, or any NAB branch by using an encoded deposit slip. Naturally, you can also receive payments by direct deposit just as you would any other account.

        My withdrawals are all electronic which works just fine for my needs, although your mileage may vary.

        Whilst the big banks may be convenient, I've been keeping my money with credit unions for more than a decade as they are not operated with the shareholder-profit-comes-first mentality of the banks. Having said that, NAB is becoming a serious contender for my personal banking needs but I think fee-free business accounts with a bank may still be a pipe-dream.

    • Sounds like you had a sour experience with NAB in the past.

      You can't make these claims that 'every other bank' has fee free accounts and then say only Westpac do.

      FWIW, when I opened my NAB account last year they were the only bank out of the big 4 that were prepared to offer fee free banking on a GOLD account. All I had to do was have $5000 go into the account each month, which could come from anywhere and could go straight back out straight away.

      I prefer not to rely on a smaller bank for my everyday transaction account.

    • +1

      No.

      NAB is the only big 4 bank offering unconditional no monthly account service fee full-featured (EFTPOS, Visa Debit, Cheque, Branch Withdrawal) transactional account.

      i.e. even with 0 balance & no deposit every month, no monthly service fee.

      CBA conditional no-monthly account service fee transaction account:
      a) Open a new personal transaction account by 29 January 2010, and
      b) Deposit at least $2,000 a month (every month)
      or you pay $6 per month (or $4 per month for restricted access, i.e. no branch withdrawal)

      Westpac: (was a former employee)
      Deposit at least $2,000 a month (every month)
      or you pay $5 per month (or $3 per month for restricted access, i.e. no branch withdrawal)

      St George:
      Deposit at least $2,000 a month (every month)
      or you pay $5 per month (or $3 per month for restricted access, i.e. no branch withdrawal)

      Small banks:

      ING Direct Orange Everyday does rebate ATM operator fee when you withdrawal $200 or more. (the catch is, no branch access, you can't withdraw say 5K easily, have to request a bank cheque or xfr to other bank)

      In terms of overdrawn account fee
      Nab charges $0 (was $30)
      Westpac charges $9 (was $40 before Nab abolished the fee)
      St George charges $9 (was $xx before Nab abolished the fee)
      CBA charges $10 (was $30 before Nab abolished the fee)
      ANZ charges $10 per account per day

      Story:
      http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/08/03/2643705.htm

      • In terms of Nab lost/stolen card,

        The fee is only charged when that happened more than once in a same calendar year.

        "Where second or subsequent replacement card issued in a calendar year."

        Which means if you lost your card in Oct 2009 (for the first time in the year) and again in Jan 2010, you wont be charged for this fee.

        I was even told by a branch manager, for genuine "stolen" with a police report, the fee can be waived.

      • +1

        I am a former Westpac employee who used about 10 different banks' transactional accounts (including
        NAB Classic (Visa Debit), CBA Streamline (Debit MasterCard), Westpac Choice (Debit MasterCard), ANZ Visa Debit, St George Complete Freedom (Visa Debit), HSBC Onling Savings (with ATM access and Visa Debit), ING Direct Orange Everyday (Visa Debit), BankWest (when I was a student), etc.

        After all, now I only have,
        ING Direct Orange Everyday (salary paid into), main transactional account, no monthly fee, no ATM operator fee for withdrawals >= $200

        NAB Classic banking, backup transactional account, no monthly fee, wide ATM availability (with rediATM) for easy cash/cheque depositing, emergency ATM withdrawal (i.e. < $200), branch withdrawal (i.e. >=$2000).

        UBank (backed by Nab) high interest bearing savings

  • CybergenX

    Back to your point about should we allow "advertisng" for banks here .

    Likewise should we do the same for Woolies and Coles and Nestle, and Microsoft and Apple and Canon and so on they all are highly profitable.

    The point here is to share ways that people can save money, and the only way with a bargain (smartypig type deals excepted) is for people to spend something, its just spend a little less.

    Sure Banks dont need to be here, but as consumers NOT all are aware of what deals are around, look at the questions and comments here.

    Your points later about the fees and their justification make some sense and help towards the awareness of all the other aspects - that's why we share our thoughts even though we dont always agree

  • -2

    The fact of the matter is if your paying money for a personal banking account your not doing your research, its not a bargain. The fact that a Larger bank offers the same, and smaller banks offer the same ie Suncorp goes to show its not an amazing offer, decent, but not really a bargain? Would it not be more productive to give credit to those that broke the zero account keeping fee ground in the first place than reward those trying to catch up because trust me, they will be the first to screw you again when things turn around :)

    All of the big banks offer waivers, im not going to waste my time doing your research for you - www.google.com.au. If you were silly enough to waste your time doing transfers each month 5k lol when you could have had the same with another bank without havting to do that good for you.

    • +2

      I've been with NAB Gold Banking for about a year now, don't get charged fees (5k waiver), have free intl use (of high importance to me), extended warranty on select items and travel insurance… Coupled with an iSaver account to offer competitive interest as a savings account. I'm quite happy with that, and look after my card so this whole "stolen card" notion that you keep over-playing and repeating is not really relevant (and, not to mention, the example that you've linked to nullifies your point..)

      Should banks be allowed to advertise here? That's really irrelevant in this particular post, and I believe best left to the discussion forums. If the deal sucked, the votes would evidently reflect that. If you could substantiate these sweeping generalizations that you've made (with links/proof), not only would I be very happy to read about changing banks for a better deal, but I'm sure the votes would follow-suit to reflect that it's not deal-worthy.

      At the end of the day, you're yet to substantiate your claims and link to a real apples v apples situation to help the community of consumers.

      • Yes, the fee/commission free withdrawal from international ATMs is a big incentive for me as well. Any other account/bank seem to charge fee + commission for a withdrawal.

    • Thanks to this topic I switched my suncorp account to the fee free account. I think bargains like these are good.

    • Yep Good point - skip Ozbargain and go to Google instead it all there… But wait isn't Google one of the BIG fellas too??

  • I can finally cancel my ANZ, St.George Banks & get this fee-free account instead!

    at least NAB doesn't charge me when I withdraw any of my cash from them from a counter! (imagine when you need to withdraw $2000 or more, ATM just can't do it!)

    I would say this is a BARGAIN!

    • FYI, ATM can do $2000 and that is the max all ATM in OZ can do :) Even if you want to withdraw more than $2000, most of the time the bank won't allow you to withdraw more than $5000 without prior notice (at least 1 days).

  • Did NAB really make you get a new account just to get rid of the fee? They couldn't just click a button to make it happen?

    If you're with Commbank, you can get a transaction account fee free under a current promotion if you deposit $2k/month, you just need to ask to get moved to those T&Cs.

  • Im in the same position but I wouldnt be prepared to open another account to waive the fee. I work for a bank and its extremely easy to waive fees.

    It is true that if you simply ask the question and be nice about it and explain the situation to the bank rep, they will more than likely waive the fee for you.

    One thing I dont like about nab is the phone banking is only 8-8 mon-fri and usually you are on hold for 15mins+ for a rep

    • Telephone Banking is 24/7, the call centre is currently open from 8am to 9pm and will be opening at 7am from the 23rd of January. Also some sections of the call centre are open on weekends, but as of the 23rd of January the call centre will be in operation from 8am-6pm with the exception of our cards security team, which is open 24/7

      That is the thing though, it is always up to the bankers discretion as to whether a fee will be waived. With these NAB accounts, there is no pleading or arguing to have fees removed, nor are there stipulations stating that X amount of funds need to be deposited per month - except for the Gold Banking account, which is basically the top of the line transactional account offered by NAB.

  • Some options you guys may also want to consider:

    http://www.gatewaycu.com.au/ (I think this started as the CU for Comm Bank staff - but anyway can join). Access your money using a Comm Bank credit card (they don't advertise this well) at Comm Bank ATMs. No fees that I have ever experienced (free direct debit / credit).

    If above sounds too hard, http://www.qantascu.com.au/ - CU for QANTAS staff - but anyway can join if they know a member. You can use any ATM you like. The fee structure recently changed - it used to be 40 free transactions a month, but now instead they pay the first $25 a month of fees. Using Westpac / St George / EFTPOS / cheque book counts $2 towards that.

    I use the above options as well as NAB (I get fee-free banking with NAB due to my home loan).

  • Have used the NAB for a couple years now, and have never paid $0.01 in fees for anything. (I have my wages put in and its over 2K per month)

    ATM's everywhere, (and you can now use Rediteller as well)

    I accidentally overdrew my debit account once, and was not charged.

    I make any number of ATM, bill pays and "pay anyone" internet transfers for $0.00 fees.

    I have a linked savings account and debit card - all fee free.

    NAB truly are a great bank to deal with +1 from me for fee free banking - stick it to the others!

    Sounds like someone here had a run in with NAB to me as its plainly obvious that this is a bargain compared to other banks everyday savings accounts.

  • Does this account include free unlimited ATM withdrawals from NAB and rediATM ATM Machines?

    • Yes.

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