Offer a great service and then take it away

I've never heard of that, but it sounds like a very nice program. Seniors who are not able to pay their own bills and take care of their own banking need someone to help. Often, at least here, these senior citizens go to live in retirement or assisted living centers and don't do their own banking at all.

I don't know how the elderly manage with their finances, cash and bill paying these days. I know the ones in homes depend on the management to do everything in that area but for people living at home it must be hard. Most elderly people wouldn't have a clue about computers, people like my dad. He pays some bills by direct debit which has been set up for him. He uses a cheque book and he gets cash when he goes to town. But there are some issues with him going to town. That seems like a stupid service to offer in the first place due to that very security issue. Whoever thought that one up and the person who put it into action, both should have been fired!

Because banks spent their money foolishly and caused their own failure..and the bail out was spent on upper management luxuries....banks are stopping alot of the "Freebies" that the customers liked and used and are now making them pay for those services or do without. Bank of America has stopped all free checking accounts unless you have a huge huge balance. They stopped all the little extras like Free Cashiers Checks if you had an account with them and soon...they will be charging for using a REAL PERSON TELLER! Yes, you use the automated ATM machine or they will charge you a fee to use a teller. Didn't say how much the fee would be it isn't going to be a quarter! I would go into my BofA and they'd have someone there to greet me and ask why I was there (well, duh!) and I'd say to make a deposit and they'd say "You can do that with the ATM machine, let me show you" and I'd say, "no, I'd rather use a teller...I what I can to keep people working". THey'd look at me like a calf looking at a new fence and then walk away. But for every ATM...there goes at least one job..

I haven't seen this service offered here but can understand that it was doomed to fail. Anytime cash starts moving outside the common restraints it is subject to shortages or just plain disapearance.

I do not think in my country they have this kind of services. The population in China is huge. The bank will never have enough employee to work if they provide this kind of service.

I've never heard of this kind of service, but it does seem like a lovely idea. Problem is, they take it away! :-( However, I'm definitely not surprised if they stop any good/convient service, as everything's being scaled back, due to financial crisis, change of rules/regulations, complaints made by whoever, that sort of thing. It's very sad to hear they scale back on the services because it's a legitimate services, and it helps seniors a great deal. They do have banking in nursing home facilities, I know because my husband's grandmother would have my husband wheel her downstairs to the bank a few times when we visited her. (she's passed away now, it was quite a few years ago) I'm disabled now, and I rely so much on commputers, and so I do all my banking online. I really hope to one day teach my mother-in-law how to use a computer as she's getting full of arthritis, and it'll be nice to do things from the comfort of her own home. :-)

I agree. Most seniors are getting into using a computer now. I have never heard of that service before and I can see how it would be a security issue. Don't think I would want to drive around with cash for someone else in my pocket. If they did want to provide a similar service, they could consider sending someone to go into those seniors homes and teach them how to set up the online banking system with username and password, and then set up the telephone banking as well for a back up or if they do not have a computer. By adding a new service that can help just as much as the other one if not more, no one will complain that the other one was taken away.