Ally Langdon has lashed out at an executive at Australia’s largest bank after he imposed a $3 fee on customers for withdrawing their own cash.
Commonwealth Bank customers were in for a rude shock on Monday when the bank announced it was closing its ‘Full Access Account’ and switching it to ‘Smart Access Accounts’, which have a $3 fee for each withdrawal from a branch, office emails or telephone. .
Angus Sullivan, the bank’s retail banking services executive, attempted to defend the new allegation Tuesday night during a cross-examination by Langdon on A Current Affair.
“It doesn’t sit well with families who are struggling while our banks make billions,” he said.
“What a way to say Merry Christmas and thank you for your loyalty.”
But Sullivan responded by saying the new fee was a “very modest cost.”
“The reality is that handling cash is expensive,” he said, despite the bank’s profits of nearly $10 billion this year.
He also insisted that the change was only “relevant to around 10 per cent of CBA’s customer base”.
Angus Sullivan insisted the fee would only affect about 10 percent of CommBank customers.
“What a way to say Merry Christmas and thank you for your loyalty,” Ally Langdon joked.
“And for our Full Access customers, about 90 percent of them will be better off or have a neutral outcome.”
Customers who had government concessions were excluded from the changes, Sullivan said.
There were also free options for people who wanted to avoid the fee, including ATMs and deposit ATMs.
Langdon was not satisfied with the executive’s responses and said banks could do more to help Australians amid a cost of living crisis.
“I don’t know if most Australians feel the same way about their bank supporting them,” he said.
‘Do you know what would be welcome? An interest rate cut. That would get you off the naughty list.
Mr. Sullivan laughed at the suggestion.
“This is not my responsibility to make that happen,” he said.
‘But I appreciate that customers are having a hard time right now. I certainly hope that we can explain these changes in a way that makes our customers feel that we have taken them into account.’
Australians went wild with the interview on social media.
“What a pathetic response from this CBA spokesperson,” one of them said.
‘Just be sincere and honest. These are benefits and bonuses for high-level management. You treat people like idiots. In fact, have some respect for your customers.
Another customer said he would close his account after the fee was introduced.
‘Commonwealth Bank. Tomorrow I will close my 35-year account with you and withdraw the $365,000 IN CASH,’ they said.
“Take your money somewhere else, in banks the money speaks for itself,” urged another viewer.
Meanwhile, Anthony Albanese’s government has urged the Commonwealth Bank to reconsider the fee.
Housing Minister Clare O’Neil criticized the decision and asked the bank to reconsider.
‘It doesn’t seem fair or appropriate and this is a huge bank making huge profits. Come on, guys. It’s Christmas. We don’t need this now,” O’Neil told Nat Barr’s Sunrise show.
Defending the new fee, Angus Sullivan told Ally Langdon that handling cash was ‘expensive’
“This is not something the bank should do and we are asking them to reconsider.”
Queensland Rural MP Bob Katter has also spoken out about the fee.
He called it an “act of defiance and contempt for the people of Australia”, in an interview with Channel 10’s The Project.
Commonwealth Bank told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday that it “continues to offer its customers free cash withdrawals from our national ATM network.”
“The monthly fee for the Smart Access account is currently $2 less than the Complete Access account and both accounts offer similar features,” the spokesperson said.
Smart Access, the bank’s main transaction account, already had a $3 assisted withdrawal fee before Monday’s announcement.
Customers affected by the transition must pay the new rate starting January 6.