Canadian banks have historically, and continue to, charge Canadians astronomical fees for an essential service. For example, Canadian banks charge clients for transactions that bounce out of their account—up to $48 per transaction! Banks then try to persuade these customers who have been blatantly ripped off to apply for credit in the form of an overdraft to prevent this from happening again. These services are neither free nor widely accessible to the working class.
While the Federal Government has done some regulation to restrict the blatant greed of Canadian banks, per the new legislation to limit these not-sufficient-funds (NSFs) to $10 in the new year, these chains on the already struggling working class are going to persist.
Working within the financial services industry myself, I too have been witness to these predatory practices. In September, a customer relying on government assistance came in after being burdened by these fees. They were desperate, worried about how to afford basic necessities that week. When my coworker raised their case with a supervisor, the response was blunt: “We aren’t a charity!”
– Sydney M., Victoria
