Below are case studies of the transactional habits of three Members. They each operate their accounts in different ways and this determines if they pay a fee. Although the situations of these Members may differ from your own, it is easy to adapt many of their transactional strategies to help you bank fee free.

Case Study 1

Jane is a teacher and has her wage paid directly into her Victoria Teachers Credit Union Everyday Account. She has specified that a certain amount of her wage is redirected into her Budget Account so money is set aside for bills and expenses. Jane has organised her transaction habits so that she banks fee free:

  • Jane takes out cash at a CBA ATM to cover her weekly expenses and weekend activities, up to four times per month. (Cost per month = $0)
  • When Jane makes a purchase using her Visa Debit Card and doesn’t require cash out she always presses ‘credit’. (Cost per month = $0) 
  • Jane pays all her bills via Bpay straight from her Budget Account. (Cost per month = $0) 
  • Jane transfers money via Internet Banking from her Everyday Account into her Online Saver multiple times in a month. (Cost per month = $0)

Total cost per month = $0
Jane has conducted all of her banking fee free.

Case Study 2

Adam is a Business Manager at a Primary School. He is saving to purchase a house and is eager to avoid paying fees. Adam displays good transaction habits which results in him paying no transaction fees each month.

  • Adam no longer writes cheques and instead he:
    • Performs electronic transfers through Internet Banking, using the BSB and Account numbers of external accounts. (Cost per month = $0)
    • Has Direct Debits taken directly from his account (Cost per month = $0)
    • Makes online purchases using his Visa Debit Card. (Cost per month = $0)
  • Adam has part of his salary allocated straight in his Bonus Saver Account to help him save for his new home. (Cost per month = $0)
  • Adam uses EFTPOS and pushes ‘savings’ to get cash out when making purchases five times a month (Cost per month = $0)

Total cost per month = $0

Case Study 3

Michelle has recently finished her studies and has started working as a teacher.

  • Michelle makes two purchases a week by pushing ‘savings’ through EFTPOS. (Free transactions per month for EFTPOS = 6, transactions used = 8. Cost per month: 2 x $0.50 = $1.00)
  • To withdraw cash Michelle makes 6 CBA ATM transactions per month. (CBA ATM free transactions per month = 4, transactions used = 6. Cost per month: 2 x $1.80 = $3.60)
  • When Michelle needs to make transfers to family Members she uses external transfers via Internet Banking using a BSB and Account number. (Cost per month = $0)

Total cost per month = $4.60

While Michelle pays a small fee, this is lower than the $5.00 flat fee offered by some major banks. Michelle also has the potential to bank fee free by making some minor changes to the way she conducts her transactions. For example:

  • When she is making a purchase and does not require cash, Michelle should push ‘credit’ using her Visa Debit Card as this is an Unlimited Free Transaction. This will help keep her within the 6 free EFTPOS transactions per month when she uses cash withdrawals.
  • Michelle should limit her CBA ATM withdrawals to 4 per month. If she requires additional cash she should push ‘savings’ when making a purchase using EFTPOS and get cash out at the same time.