HSBC Bank stuns a credit card user by sending him a bill for a tenth of a rupee, and demanding a 2000-fold transaction fee to receive it
HSBC Bank stuns a credit card user by sending him a bill for a tenth of a rupee, and demanding a 2000-fold transaction fee to receive it
A credit card user was amused to receive a bill for 10 paise, but his amusement turned to outrage when the bank demanded Rs 200 as transaction fee.
Divige Satish, a HSBC credit card holder, is also wondering how he is expected to pay: it has been years since anyone saw a 10-paise coin. The minimum in circulation is 50 paise.
A journalist based in Delhi, Satish had paid the bank Rs 6,470 in September against a balance of Rs 6,470.10. The bank promptly sent him a bill for 'Rs 0.10' in October.
"For a moment I was confused and thought I was reading it wrong, but it was correct," he told MiD DAY. "I can't pay by cash because I can't find a 10 paise coin."
Satish is furious that the bank is trying to charge him Rs 200 as transaction fee to collect just 10 paise.u00a0 He called up the bank's call centre on Wednesday.
"They didn't know how I should make the payment. The executive said I could do as I wished, which is not an answer any customer would accept," said Satish.
He is apprehensive the bank may jack up the amount next month if he doesn't pay. "I may give them a cheque because I don't want to take a chance," he said.
S R Powar, an employee in a bank, said, "This is nonsense.
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What maths is this? The HSBC monthly statement of Divige Satish clearly states that his total payment due is 10 paise (circled in red), yet he has been asked to pay Rs 200.10 as his monthly payment |
"If the amount due is below 50 paise, it should be taken as zero, and if it's above, it should be rounded off to one rupee."
He said in 30 years of banking service, he had never seen a bill, or processed one, for 10 paise.
"The bank has no business sending such a bill. Even a beggar won't accept 10 paise," he said.
C V Giddappa, General Secretary, Credit Card Holders' Association of India, was outraged when he heard about the bill.
"A Reserve Bank guideline states that anything below 50 paise should be rounded off to zero... It's the law of the land," he said.
He suggested Satish just ignore the bill. "This is what happens when the human touch is lost and we depend too much on computers," he told MiD DAY.
