Am I making this up? ATM charges around 1999

[gregdaviesiswonderful]

Having a disagreement with DH who thinks I'm making this up. It is entirely possible that I've misremembered this so wanted to check!!

Around the time I was at university (1999-2002) I was with NatWest who had a bank on campus.

I started off getting money out at various cash points around town as there was only a NW branch on campus, not in the local town.

Now, this is where I'm not sure my memory has failed me.... I distinctly remember after a term realising that every time I used a non NatWest ATM, I was charged (I have £10 flat fee in my head but this seems too much).

I remember my parents sitting me down and pointing out that I had spent over £100 just in charges to get money out as there wasn't a NatWest ATM in town.

So from then on in I always got money out on campus before heading into town for a night out.

My DH says this is bollocks and although atms have always had some that charge, there was never a time when bank 'brands' charged for not using their ATMs and the charges were minimal and hoc depending the machine you used.

Sooooo...
YANBU: I remember this also being the case
YABU: As DH says, charges have varied but not for the reasons you state.

Yep you used to get charged for using other machines in the 'link' for a time, it was about a pound though, not ten!

YANBU. My first bank account was with Abbey National and I can resent having to find one of their ATMs so I didn't pay charges. I can't remember how much though

There used to be networks, so Bank A could withdraw cash for free in Banks B C and D, and Building Society 1. But if you went somewhere else, there was a fee. The ones in shops you always seemed to have to pay for.

I never paid the fee as I was too cheap. And often used cashback in supermarkets. It was about £2.50 at one point, am sure of that.

Yes, you had to run around town looking for your own bank, but I think that didn't last very long.

YABU I think I don’t think banks have ever charged you for using other banks atms that I can recall. I remember some cash points (link?) charging but proper bank cash machines being free to use no matter what bank you were with.

Yes I do seem to remember it being cheaper to use my bank’s own cash points - went to Uni in 2000. Was it all those with a Switch symbol that were free? I think cash points in shops could charge what they liked and you could potentially be charged £2.50 to get £10, costing £12.50 total.

Yanbu I remember this well, although think it was about £2 charge or so

Yeah it was a couple of quid in places like shops and the pub

I think you've maybe misremembered?

The cash machine on campus charged you for cash withdrawaIs, not NatWest themselves.

I remember being charged about £2 or £3 at the machine every time I took cash out on my campus, and it wasn't clear there was a charge at all you only noticed on your statement. There was no charge if I went into town to use the actual bank's cash machine.

If you withdrew a lot of cash I can see how you could have racked up £100 or so.

These days the cash machines make it very clear if there's a charge at the point of withdrawl.

Link machines were free to use of your bank was in the network, otherwise there was a charge for using a different banks machine we used to hike up the hill to use the Yorkshire one past two others.

Sorry I mean yes you were charged but it wasn't NatWest charging you.

I found a very old article about it amp.theguardian.com/business/1999/aug/28/6

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LINK_(UK)

I remember being charged for using a cashpoint in 2000. I don't think it was a tenner though.

You’re not remembering wrong. I worked in this field at the time. Banks charged an ‘interchange’ fee to customers from other banks using their machines. There was a big consumer campaign against it, and the introduction of Link machines (previously ATMs were owned only by the individual financial institutions) meant that banks ended up absorbing the interchange cost themselves instead of passing it on to customers. The fee some machines now charge customers to use them is something totally different.

I phrased that badly - the introduction of Link machines wasn’t the cause of the end of the system but it did help precipitate the change in the banks’ approach.

This was definitely a thing. The charges weren't as high as £10, a quid or so. But I remember checking what banks I could use when choosing my bank account before uni to make sure there'd be cash points I could use.

Then there was also the charge for non bank cash points like you get in shops (and still exists) but that was separate.

My Dad still asks if it's a link even though they all are.😀

These are still about but it's £2 nearly got caught last week

I had a Link card in the mid nineties and couldn't use it in the HSBC machine on campus. Just didn't work.
But yes mainstream banks cost money. Also cash advance on credit card whacked on the fees.

And I see my memory was off in that it was the banks joining the Link network that sparked it all off!

I clearly remember always knowing where the Barclays machines were, however out of my way they might have been!

Yes there was a charge, then they introduced Link then scrapped them. it wasn’t £10 though!

Our local village machine still charges £1.50 transaction fee per withdrawal.

You are not imagining it!!

Double raspberry has it right - as do you, OP, mostly,. But it wasn't £10, it was a couple if quid (and I was still to cheap to pay that 😆).

I remember when the banks were forced to drop the charges I felt free!

Yes. As a barclays customer I could use Lloyds and barclays for free but not natwest or midland bank. Was like £1 or £2 though I think.