PC Financial Experiences?

[orangeTANG]

Well, I think I've had enough with TD and their insane charges to have a chequing account with them. Right now I have 3 accounts, a daily chequing that costs me $14.95 / month, a 2nd chequing that my mortgage and other payments get drawn from that costs me $3.95 / month, and a 3rd that right now is free because I have my mortgage through them but will soon go to $3.95 when my mortgage renews in October.

It is crazy to think it costs $23 / month to put my money in a bank, when 99% of all transactions are done electronically or through Web banking. I'm seriously considering moving to PC Financial, to save myself almost $300 / year in bank service fees. ($500 including my wife's accounts)

I'd like to hear other people's experience with PC Financial before I make my decision, both good and bad. I have a TD in my neighbourhood but a CIBC not too far from me. We also shop quite often at Lawblaws so I have access there as well, although I don't typically carry a lot of cash with me.

(To add, TD Bank was the only bank that would not guarantee a rate for my mortgage more than 30 days out because I already hold my mortgage with them. Since I followed up with other brokers, the rates have gone up 0.2%, and likely more to come before TD would commit me to a rate.) I'll be forced to move my mortgage from TD now, to save myself minimum 0.2% in my mortgage, likely more since they couldn't touch the rate I was given in the first place.)

[jvincent]

I have been using PCFinancial for many years now and could not be happier. We have all of our accounts, line of credit, and mortgage with them.

We do all of our banking online and the only time we ever had to go to one of the kiosks is when we open accounts since they need to see ID.

I honestly haven't had a single bad experience with them (I hope I have not just cursed myself).

[dmr]

ditto - I love PC financial and PC Mastercard - been a customer for years and never saw why I would need anything else for my basic banking needs.

[northern33]

Another satisfied PC customer. Have a chequing acct. and a mastercard with them...no issues whatsoever.

[sliceleft]

They don't have branches or tellers, so if you want to buy travellers cheques or transact with some other 20th century documents, they are no good. But like the other posters, I have used PC for everything for over ten years and have never had any reason to complain. Go for it. And PC points are the most useful credit card feature you can have -- you always need groceries, and PC doesn't route you through the Kingston store to buy your orange juice (unlike, say, Aeroplan).

[hummer1829]

I have been using PC financial and Mastercard for around the last 12 years and I am a very satisfied customer.

They are associated with CIBC, so if you need a bank draft and/or money orders for example you call customer service and they send it to a CIBC branch and you pick it up there.

I have investments with another bank and that bank tried to sell me "daily" banking services. The bank acknowledged that PC financial was a good service and there is nothing they could offer that was truly "no fee" or that required a minimum balance to waive the usual service fees.

The PC points are great. I often use them at Loblaws to buy gift cards for other stores, for example I used the points to buy a couple of Best Buy gift cards and then I bought a laptop @ Best Buy.

[orangeTANG]

Great everyone. Thanks for the feedback. My wife and I went to Lawblaws today and opened a number of bank accounts and new LOCs. I think to get around some of the inconveniences around certified cheques, money orders etc, I'll leave a small portion of a LOC at my TD branch (close the rest of my accounts) and just draw off it if need be, then interact email the money from my PC account back to it to pay it back off. There's no charge on a TD LOC unless you use it, and the rate is the same as with PC. Its not like I do this sort of thing often.

We also got a few bonuses, as soon as our direct deposit paycheques go in there we each get $50 worth of PC points plus we each got a coupon for a box of PC ice cream sandwiches. Thats $100 worth of groceries, and 12 ice cream sandwiches just for opening free bank accounts. That's more than TD or RBC have ever given me even while bending me over on service fees.

[Weazl]

You had me at ice cream sandwiches!

[jsttaylor]

Sounds like I should switch too. One question though, my better half still receives an actual pay cheque that needs to be deposited at a bank or ATM machine. How us this accomplished with PC?

[jvincent]

You can deposit cheques at any CIBC bank machine or at the bank machines in the Loblaws.

[brucestats]

always liked pc for their points system, but count me out of the hate TD crowd. Been with them for over 20 years, and I cant remember getting a service charge for several years. The local manager offered me free banking and other perks. She just recognised I was a loyal client, and rewarded me accordingly. I suspect I may have lucked out with my particular branch personnel, but to say TD is just terrible is not true in my case.

[orangeTANG]

I never said I hated TD, I simply said I don't feel that I get $300 a year in value for having my accounts with them. I don't know where banks get off charging $15 / month for a bank account, no matter which bank. I spoke to TD, who also holds my mortgage, my TFSA and about 50% of my investments and all they could do was discount my bank account fees for 6 months. Those 6 months finally past and I figured I'd try something new, and keep $300 in my pocket. Same with my mortgage, any other bank offered to hold my rate for 120 days, but TD would not do it for more than 30. Well, rates have gone up a minimum of 0.2% since I got locked in somewhere else and there's no possibility TD will be willing to match, so my mortgage will be walking too.

Who knows, maybe I'll be back with TD in 3 months, 6 months or a year from now, but I think I need to prove to myself that I need that kind of service at the cost.