Consumers are now seeking out CommBank ATMs
The number of non-CommBank customers using its ATMs has jumped since the bank dropped its ATM fees on Sunday.
Since CommBank announced it was removing ATM withdrawal fees on Sunday, it has seen a 24% increase in non-CommBank customers using its ATM network. The jump in the number of consumers using CommBank ATMs over the past three days highlights just how much Australians hate being charged that annoying $2 fee to access their own money.
The bank, which has the largest ATM network of all the banks with over 4000 ATMs throughout the country, saw the biggest increase in its ATM usage on Monday, with a 33% jump. It also boasted 2 million views on its Facebook video announcing the changes since the video was posted on Sunday.
After CommBank made the announcement on Sunday that it would be dropping ATM withdrawal fees for all Australian non-bank customers (existing customers already don't pay the fee), the rest of the Big Four didn't waste any time doing the same. Westpac, ANZ and NAB each announced that they too would be dropping their ATM withdrawal fees for non-bank customers.
The move by the Big Four will save consumers a lot of money. Research by finder.com.au released in February revealed Australians are forking out almost $800 million a year in ATM withdrawal fees. The research showed that half of consumers withdraw cash at an ATM outside of their own bank's network at least once a month, and one in five does this every fortnight.
In an ironic turn of events, it'll now be the Big Four that are losing out, with industry estimates predicting the move will cost the Big Four up to $500 million a year in lost revenue. As such, the government has said it will be keeping a close eye on the banks to ensure they don't make up for the loss by hiking up fees and charges elsewhere. "We will be watching the banks carefully to ensure they don’t pass on these costs to consumers in other ways," said Treasurer Scott Morrison.
While this is certainly good news for consumers, customers of the Big Four will still be charged ATM fees when they use an ATM that isn't part of their bank's network. Online banks such as ING, ME Bank and Macquarie have offered their customers free ATM withdrawals at any ATM in Australia for quite some time, proving the Big Four still have some catching up to do.
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