The Overdrafts Pricing

Yes but in reality I doubt you will have a overdraft of thousands not unless you are earning so much, it begs the question of why would you need one?

I have a £250 fee free overdraft, and don’t pay any account fees. Had my account for years.

Not really Alex. If someone needs to use their overdraft, they will. It’s not always a case of supply and demand. Sometimes, it necessary.

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That last line - “Potential, assets, fees” refers to this comment before (in the other thread):
https://community.monzo.com/t/overdraft-position/14362/39?u=garete

http://www2.firstdirect.com/1/2/rates-and-charges/charges#banking-charges
For First Direct:
image

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That’s still considered demand as despite the pressure they may be under, the person does have a choice - to use the overdrafts, use an alternative or not at all :slight_smile:

I wonder what people here see as the fine line between ‘fair enough’ and ‘resentment’? Especially when many people are happy to jump around banks for free money (something I like but could never be arsed to do)

I don’t usually use an overdraft but this month I had to buy some short notice flights…so I went in for 11 days. I got charged 45p instead of £5.50 I would here - off of about £200. That’s enough to annoy me personally…even my credit card would only have charged £2.48.

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In my personal situation, if that happened I would move the funds back from savings - even if that cost me some interest there

That one is a valid point and I get where the resentment would come from. Would this scenario make you think more about how you would fund the short term item in future (set up emergency savings or other means) to avoid the higher fees?

In truth the fee structure has made me think more in this way whereas previously my go-to has been my overdraft I am now building up an emergency pot for this type of scenario. So from a personal perspective it is already changing my behaviour for the better.

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I have a rainy day fund that moves £1 a day
so that actually offset £60 or so…so I guess in the future maybe I will avoid it. Plus I’m quadruple paying a loan so that will be gone in March and overdrafts should be a thing of my past.

I just can’t help but think in general that an overdraft that is more expensive than a credit card is not helping promote better finances and managing money in one place. At 45p I didn’t even need to think about using a credit card in emergency but at 50p a day, it would have been the financially more sound choice.

Yeah it’s an interesting one. Personally I have see the cost in the following order (excluding offers).

Highest - overdraft - very short term
High - credit card standard rates - short/mid term
Medium/Low - personal loans - mid/long term

Though I agree in recent years a lot of what made overdrafts more expensive (various fees + interest) have gone to a more standard model more comparable with a credit card which may be why people stay big them longer. The main benefit with credit card is the forced (albeit minimum) payment.

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But now it is:
Highest - Monzo overdraft
High - Payday loan
Medium - Regular overdraft
Low - Regular loan
:wink:

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I see what you did there :joy:

Though only if you have or chose to use them.

I think that it is generally advisable to use borrowing facilities in line with what they are designed for , wherever possible. I know it’s not always easy or possible for people to do this, though.

Overdrafts are designed for occasion a short term (days, rather than weeks) small loans (perhaps 15% of monthly income).

If someone finds themselves using an overdraft on a regular basis, they’d more than likely be better off with an account which offers free, or very cheap overdrafts in my inexpert view.

Monzo overdrafts are expensive, especially in comparison with other banks, but I think that this may be deliberately so. It’s probably the first step on a journey for them. A reputation for cheap lending might end up unbalancing their financial situation.

I have to say, though, they deserve great credit for providing a forum for customers to express their views on Monzo policy.

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Really? I used to work for a payday loan. Back when I was there, the market interest rate was 0.8% a day. So borrowing for £100 for 1 month would cost £24 for a 30-day month. Borrowing ‘£100’ from Monzo would cost £15 for a 30-day Month.

Monzo is cheaper than a payday loan.

Then again it depends on the amount you’re borrowing from because the pricing strategy is different… One’s fee-based the other’s interest-based.

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Sort of, by making it simple, straightforward & giving the user confidence that they won’t have any unexpected fees, more users will hopefully want to use the overdrafts, despite the fact that they can very clearly see the relatively high cost.

It sounds like you’re forgetting that people don’t read the small print, that the banks don’t give you the tools that you need to properly control your finances to avoid undesired fees and that when you do make a mistake, the fees are disproportionate. This is how they make half their revenue on current accounts. And why users want a better service from Monzo.

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How much does your legacy bank charge you for unplanned overdrafts & Direct Debits bouncing due to insufficient funds? Those are the fees that I’m referring to, that Monzo doesn’t charge.

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We are talking about them because there’s a very clear between the two sets of charges :slight_smile: & those were the fees that I was referring to here -

You’re talking about this pricing as though it’s completely separate from the rest of Monzo’s benefits but it’s not. To give you another example, people who value Monzo’s rich transaction data, categorisation & Targets will be more keen to use the overdrafts in order to keep their transaction data in their Monzo account.

I disagree for the reasons I’ve explained earlier in this thread.

& don’t forget this (tap the :arrow_down_small: to view the full post) -

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It costs me about £13 a month with my legacy bank for a £2000 overdraft