Never Underestimate the, er, Narrow-Focused Thinking of a Bank, Especially Online

Never Underestimate the Stupidity, er, Narrow-Focused Thinking of a Bank, Especially Online

Not that long ago, my Husband and I (no, I’m not Queen Elizabeth, but it’s ok to read that part in her bitten-off high-pitched voice, I always do) opened a joint no fee chequing account at President’s Choice Financial. Because we wanted to open it with the least delay, we filled out the applications at the kiosk at a grocery store. Most of the procedure went well but here’s the exception.

Linking Our PC Financial No Fee Chequing Account to our Big 5 Chequing Account

To facilitate transfers from yet another no fee joint chequing account, this one at one of the Big 5 Canadian banks, we filled out a form at the PC Financial “office” at our local grocery store. So we were attempting to link two joint chequing accounts together. Sounds relatively simple, right?

Well apparently not. About two weeks after we applied, we received a form in the mail to sign and send back authorizing the link. We’d already filled out what was either the same form or a very similar one while at the kiosk. We’d also already spoken with “head office” about the link while we were at the kiosk. Anyway, we assumed they’d screwed up decided they needed additional information, so my husband completed the form and signed it and I mailed it back. (At least they provided a postage-paid envelope.)

It is important to note, at this point, that my husband did all of these steps both at the kiosk and on the mail-in form. PC Financial has to set a “principal bank account owner” on joint  accounts, and we agreed to make him the principal. So I did not speak to anyone at head office or sign any forms.

Another few weeks passed. I kept checking whether I could transfer to the other bank. Nothing. I began to wonder whether I should phone to find out why.

Then a light bulb went off.

PC Financial Uses Your Debit Card Number Not Your Account Number for Signing In

When you sign in to your PC Financial no fee chequing account using online banking, you use the number on your ABM card as your account number. You don’t actually use the bank account number.

This is kind of odd because in the case of a joint account, like ours, we each have ABM cards with different numbers.

So I decided, out of curiousity, and a healthy dose of suspicion, to have my husband sign in to the PC Financial system using HIS card.

PC Financial Did Not Link Joint Accounts Jointly

Sure enough, the JOINT accounts are linked when we access the JOINT bank account with HIS card. ONLY.

Does this strike anyone else as stupid?!

Computers are Dangerous Because They Do EXACTLY What We Tell Them to Do

I’ve been around long enough (remember Fortran 77?!) to know the principal danger of computers is that they do exactly what we tell them to do. They do not say “Hey, that sounds like a stupid idea. I bet you really want me to do this, right?” They just follow their code.

So this inability of me to transfer money from my joint account to my joint account using my ABM card isn’t really a sign of stupidity on the part of PC Financial. It’s a sign of a computer being programmed to do one thing and only that one thing. (We won’t ask out loud, though, about the programming team that set up the code this way. I’ll be generous and assume that all programming decisions were made by a committee, and we all know what happens then.)

Stay Tuned for Further Episodes in this Ongoing Saga

So I guess my next step is to call or write PC Financial to find out how *I* can get the two accounts linked so I can make transfers when I sign on.

CAUTION! Don’t Share your PC Financial Password Even with your Wife (or Husband)

Why, you might ask, don’t I just sign in under my husband’s ABM number to transfer the money? Because according to the brochure “Legal stuff” PC Financial gave us when opening the account, if I do, PC Financial will hold him responsible for ANY fraudulent activity in the account whether I am committing the fraud or whether his card gets compromised at a bank machine or grocery store!

Here’s the actual quote:
“If losses occur by bank machine or Interac Direct Payment
You will be responsible for ALL losses if

  • you authorize anyone else to use your card, PIN, password or the answers to your personal verification questions”

Note it doesn’t say that the loss has to result from the activities of the same person to whom you told the password.

Wish me luck on getting transfer access myself.

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How long did it take you to get an external account hooked up to your PC Financial account? I’ll never know now how long it took us because they hooked up my husband’s account not mine and he wasn’t watching. Please share your experiences with a comment.

How to Order Cheques for a PC Financial No Fee Chequing Account

Ok, first I opened a joint PC Financial chequing account and we funded it by depositing a cheque at a CIBC bank machine. Next I paid a bill from my account online. Our first set of cheques arrived in the mail on the second Tuesday after the Saturday that we opened the account. But I wanted to order another set of paper cheques. First, they only send you 50 cheques initially and we need tons to keep up with our children’s insatiable demand for small amounts of money for activities. Second, I have this terrible fear that PC Financial will suddenly start charging a fee for cheques just because I have finally opened an account. (I have extremely good luck with this kind of thing.) So I decided to try to order a second batch of 50 cheques using their online service. You can also order cheques for your PC Financial no fee account by phoning them at 1-8. Instead, this is what I did.

Ordering Cheques from PC Financial

There are a few changes to these steps. You may want to check the newer article: President’s Choice Financial Is Closing and Becoming Simplii by CIBC So I’m Ordering More Cheques

  1. To sign In to your PC Financial account/s
    1. Go to http://www.pcfinancial.ca/
    2. Make sure Online Banking is selected from the drop down list in the top right corner of the screen, then
    3. Click the Go button.
    4. In the Card Number field, type the number on your debit card.
      Do NOT type your account number. (Weird but true.)
      Do NOT click to select Save Bank Card. This is a terrible idea. Why give someone half the information to break into your account after they steal your computer?!
    5. In the Password field, type the password. (This is your long password, not the shorter one for telephone banking.)
    6. Click on the Sign In button.
  2. From the list across the top of the screen, click on: special requests.
  3. Under the account services section, click on the link called: order cheques.
    The Order Cheques screen will open.
    PC Financial reminds you that you have to change your address at least 24 business hours before you order new cheques. If your address has changed deal with that first. If your address is fine you can continue.
  4. If you have more than one chequing account, in the Order cheques for which account? drop-down list, select the correct account.
  5. To order the free cheques, click on the button called: quick order now.
  6. You’re done!
  7. If so desired, click on the button called: return to account services; or
    If you are not going to do anything else click on the Sign Out button.
    For extra security, close your browser session.

The cheques are ordered and should arrive in 7-10 business days.

PC Financial warns you that you cannot order another batch for at least 10 business days.

To Check on the Status of your Cheque Order with PC Financial

  1. Sign in to your account/s.
  2. From the list across the top of the screen, click on: special requests.
  3. Under the account services section, click on the link called: order cheques.
  4. On the Order Cheques screen, near the top, click on the View your status link.
  5. You will see a reference number and a status.
  6. Click on the Sign Out button and close your browser session.

Interestingly enough, seconds after I ordered my cheques, the status is reported as: complete.

So I guess there isn’t much information provided here, as I certainly don’t have the cheques yet, and I doubt they mailed them seconds after I ordered them. I’ll have to try to remember to check this again (notice the little pun on “cheque”!) to see if it ever includes info like when they were mailed, etc. I suspect it doesn’t.

When Will I Get my Cheques from PC Financial?

When we opened a new account, we received our cheques in the mailbox 7 business days later.

I have just ordered my second set of cheques online and I will report when they arrive. I ordered the cheques on May 2. They arrived Monday, May 13, 2013.

The PC Financial website says that cheques should arrive by mail within 7-10 business days after the order is placed.

I have just ordered another batch on Tuesday, February 25, 2014. They arrived on Monday, March 3. That’s just 3 business days!

What If I Want Really Fancy Cheques from PC Financial?

You may have become so used to spending money to buy cheques that you have an irresistible need to keep paying for them. Or perhaps you really think the recipients of your cheques gasp in astonishment at the amazing works of art underneath your exquisite penmanship. If so, you may be pleased to know there are cheques you can order for your PC Financial account that cost you money and have elaborate graphics. These cheques are actually sold by Davis & Henderson but the money to pay for them will be directly removed from your chequing account.

If you want to order this type of cheque, you can do so from the Order Cheques screen, by clicking on the button called: custom order now.

Because I never want to spend money on cheques again (although I will likely have to) I have not tested what happens once you click on that button. Perhaps someone who has will be kind enough to share their experiences with a comment. For now, be careful about what you are agreeing to spend if you do click.

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Do you still have to use cheques? Does paying for new cheques make you wince? Please share your experiences with a comment.