Blur were right. It really is.
I changed my bank account a couple of years ago. Went with a famous internet bank because they were offering a £50 sign-up fee. And since then I've had nothing but hassles and inconvenience.
They tell you when you sign up that you can withdraw up to $500 from a cash machine. Fantastic! But the first time I tried to do it--I was moving house and needed a deposit for my rent--the machine wouldn't let me have the money. I went to another machine assuming there was something wrong with the first one, and that wouldn't give me the cash either.
When I phoned the bank, they told me my account had been frozen because a £500 withdrawal was outside of my usual spending pattern. I had to confirm that I was me and that I really wanted the money before they would unfreeze my account and let me have it.
The same thing has happened to me three times now; and it happened again this morning. It's a good thing I have a little cash left in my pocket, or I wouldn't be able to get home to ring them and tell them to give me my goddamn money.
I know what they will say. I have been withdrawing money more regularly than usual, and since the withdrawals are uncharacteristic, their security measures automatically shut me out of the account. But I am taking the money for reasons I don't think I have to justify, especially not to the bank making a profit out of my custom. It's my f****** cash, isn't it?
As soon as I can I will be moving my account somewhere else. If I can find a bank that doesn't lock its service up with a cast-iron chastity belt to prevent even its users from getting at the goods inside. If I can't I may have to consider purchasing a cookie jar.The old ways, sometimes, are a lot less irritating and inconvenient than the new ones.
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