After significant backlash, the Commonwealth Bank has decided to 'pause' changes it announced only yesterday that would see some customers hit with a cash withdrawal fee. The bank admits it communicated the decision poorly, and has now given itself six months to explain itself to affected customers before it imposes any changes
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TVTranscript
00:00A loud reaction to a quiet decision.
00:05Don't they make enough money now, what do they have to rob us for?
00:09Why should I have to pay $3 to make a withdrawal on my own money, it's ridiculous.
00:14It's absolutely disgusting.
00:16Yesterday the Commonwealth Bank announced some customers would start paying a $3 fee
00:21to withdraw their cash from branches and post offices, generating anger online, before politicians
00:29joined in.
00:30Now the Commonwealth Bank is in damage control.
00:33Clearly we've done a poor job of communicating aspects of this change for our customers.
00:40We're going to pause the changes that we announced and we're going to spend the next six months
00:46individually engaging with each of those customers.
00:49CBA wants to close its complete access accounts held by 1.2 million customers and transfer
00:57them to Smart Access, which includes the withdrawal fee.
01:01The bank says 90% of those affected will be better off, but it will now engage with the
01:07remaining 10%.
01:10We will be in contact with all of our customers to explain which group they fit into and give
01:17them instructions on what they need to do, including if they need to do nothing.
01:21The Commonwealth Bank posted a $9.5 billion profit last financial year.
01:27Nevertheless it says it needs to impose withdrawal fees because the service is so costly.
01:33The bank is now trying to work out if just those who use it should help pay for those
01:37costs or all of its customers.