The Ombudsman for Banking Services (OBS), Neville Melville, has announced the launch of a webpage on its website ( www.obssa.co.za) that will direct bank customers to resources that will enable them to reduce their bank charges.
The issue of bank charges has grown over the last few years and, judging from the information gained by the OBS through a competition that it is currently running, they are a concern to most South Africans.
Of the total of 15 525 entrants to the competition, 7 825 people identified fees and charges as the aspects that their banks could most improve on.
The OBS has long held the view that the best antidote to raising bank fees is public pressure.
A strong consumer lobby in the United States succeeded in bringing about a reduction of fees or, in some cases, an abandonment of fees in respect of some bank accounts in that country. Individual customers can reduce their costs of banking by being selective in how they carry out their banking.
The fees for online banking are, for instance, a fraction of the cost of over-the-counter banking.
It is also cheaper (and generally safer) to draw money at your local supermarket than from a bank's autoteller machine.
The OBS office itself managed to reduce its bank charges by 13 percent in 2005 by relying on the electronic transfer of funds, instead of using cheques, for account payments.
This saving was achieved despite a significant increase in the flow of funds through the OBS's account.