Do we give too much power to banks and other big Companies?

Thank-you for another great response yanstill! I think that banks in the UK are quite bad. It's probably different in other countries, but in the UK, they feel that since people need bank accounts, they will always have customers, and so their power corrupts them. Because they won't go bankrupt, and people need a bank account to get credit and to pay bills conveniently, they only seem to care about customers who are rich, or company accounts, as these are what make them the most money. Once, I tried to make an ATM withdrawal at a different bank's ATM machine. Well, the ATM came up with the message that it had run out of money, so I tried to make the withdrawal somewhere else, but found that the money had been taken out of my bank account, even though the first machine hadn't given me the money! It took me months to get the money back, as my bank and the bank who owned the ATM refused to take responsibility for the error, then my bank said they would get my money back within 6 weeks, but after 6 weeks claimed they didn't know what I was talking about. This was a nightmare, as I needed the money, and was on a very tight budget. But there was nothing I could do! In the UK, there are "watchdogs" and other organisations who are supposed to make sure banks don't behave in this sort of way, but I think they must be run by the banks, or are receiving some sort of bribe, because they only do their job after the newspapers tell people about the way the banks are behaving. If it's not part of a public scandal, they don't care! As I said, I don't think this is the case in all countries, but the UK is becoming rather a mess; if you're not rich and powerful here, you don't count. I do advise checking your bills and accounts though, as some companies do make a genuine mistake, and will put it right if you tell them. All the best yanstill, and here's hoping the UK's shoddy practice doesn't spread to other countries :-)

i just applied for a credit card,for students,several days ago,today i received it,and i asked some questions online,it is surprised that they responded to me in a minute.i don't choose the automatical way to pay the money,i pay it myself,go to the bank and give them the cash.things are in order,i thought so.maybe there are too many banks in China,including foreign banks,they need to compete with each other,and we have many choices...but maybe it is because i don't often use banks or ATMs,then i didn't notice this. i guess in UK,everyone is linked to the banks,so things are different,if banks keep doing like that,how can citizens trust them?and what if they all stop using banks?(just a if,i know it is impossible,maybe bankers think like that too).it will need a long time to rebuild that trust.

I'm glad that the banks in China are trustworthy, and don't take their customers for granted! Banks in the UK used to be the same about 10 years ago, but it's just recently that they have begun to treat their customers like this. I think as you say that people rely on them, so they don't think they need to trust them. Without a bank account in the UK, you can't get paid your wages or benefits, without losing some of that money (if you get a cheque cashed over here, you have to pay a fee to the company who cashes it), and everything becomes very inconvenient. We used to have some bank account facilities at Post Offices, which were not owned privately, so they were useful for people who didn't want to use the big banks. But now the government are closing the Post Offices, and have stopped the banking facilities, as they don't make a profit for them. Some of the banks in the UK charge a fee for customers who only have a small income - luckily my bank doesn't do this. I think you're right - if everyone refused to use banks, they might change their ways, but really most people wouldn't do this, because of the inconvenience, and having to pay more to use other payment methods. It is good to know that Chinese banks look after their customers, and allow you to choose the payment method which suits you! At least Chinese banks are trustworthy, and are there for their customers :-)

I'm glad to hear that lols! Dealing with banks over that sort of thing can be a nightmare, although with the recent exposees on TV documentaries, and Banking Authorities taking action against certain Banks (because of the media coverage, I think), they do seem to be more willing to rectify problems for their customers at present. Hope you continue to have trouble-free banking :-)

Well, I'm glad you've not had the nightmare of over-charging! The cost of living does seem to be getting higher, and taxes too. That's life I suppose!