Where best to bank for DDs. - Page 3

I am 100% with you.  I was going to transfer to wise and use Sabadell as a backup to see if I could literally move 100% to wise as I am a resident.  I feel so sure there is something we will fall afoul of and would need at least 1 full year to confirm that Wise can in fact replace Sabadell (or similar).

I keep watching and listening to someone who is in the exact situation but it seems most people have UK bank accounts and they are not residents.

If you ever get to confirming this would you PLEASE post it here.  Much appreciated.  

Kerri

Hi There Billy here also from Ireland I will be retiring to Spain. Maybe vinuela or torrox in 2023 thanks for posting this I will need a bank as well 

Regards 

From Tara co Meath 

I think people on here who are fairly new to living in Spain (or moving to Spain) should perhaps listen a little more carefully to people who have lived here for a long time.... and have experienced ridiculous banking problems.

The banks see you as easy money,and  yes of course, we will hear from someone who says they have had no problems, but you would struggle to fill a telephone box with all those people, and easily fill a football stadium with those who have had problems, basically you won't escape the banks charging you ridiculous rates, causing you stress, and making problems for you if you try to involve a non Spanish bank in your transactions to avoid them getting a slice of your money.

And that is exactly my point!  Banks have far too much control (everywhere) to make it easy to live here AND transact with an internet bank in another country.  LOL  

Thanks for your post.

Kerri

Hi Patrick 8,

                   You are so correct! I am not a cynic or a negative person, but banks in Spain are at best terrible and at worst surreal.

I have changed to wise and I have one’dd Left to change, gestagua! It has taken 18 months to escape sabadell, and the whole banking system here is a joke.

If you can avoid them.

All the best 

Al 

Here is a classic example of just how dodgy and devious Spanish banks are..... 

About 2008 my local bank in Mijas, put up a very large poster in the window trying to attract UK customers with an existing euro account with them, to open an account in English Pounds, offering a interest rate of 4% per year with a 2 year deposit, with no withdrawal within that time or, if so, a reduction of the 4%.

My wife and I, had discussed subscribing to a well known health type plan, well advertised on the Costa Del Sol, but on further inquiries discovered it was just a glorified taxi service to the hospital and nothing of the sort of what it implied (something along the lines of Bupa in the UK).... 

So we thought if we deposited in this "new" account at our local branch it would be a safety net should we need funds for any medical treatment, and at the same time receive 4% on the money should we not need it.

We fetched 2 × £10.000 from the UK in cash to avoid the ridiculous exchange rate and commission the bank wanted to charge if we made a transfer to them from our UK bank...(they wanted about 7% of our money), so much less rate than we would have got changing it in the street shops in Fuengirola!!

So seemed a good idea to deposit the English Pounds in cash in the bank, very much touted for in their shop window.

Not so, if you did not let them exchange your money transfer, and let them rip you off with  the ridiculous charges, they wanted to charge us an instant one per cent for just taking the deposit in cash!...

My 4% being reduced to 3% on the first day of the 2 year deposit!... I declined to make the deposit to the female branch manageress (who was always friendly and waved, smiling, every time I had used the bank over the years.... but not today, no smile, no wave, when I walked back out with my £20,000.

About 2 weeks later going in to the bank for other reasons, the manageress lit up like Blackpool illuminations on seeing me, and rushed around the counter to tell me with the biggest smile yet, that she would accept my deposit without the 1% percent commision because I was a good long time customer and she had told that to the head office in Madrid.

So all back on again now, plus we didn't really want 20 grand hanging about in our apartment......

Deposited the cash next day, got all the paperwork.... (needed a wheel barrow for that!) And thought.. well hopefully we won't need to touch the money and in 2 years we will have our 20 grand back and 4% on top.... what could be simpler?... that's what it implied in the shop window...TWO YEAR DEPOSIT if no withdrawals 4% interest added... Happy days!... no mention of any fees, commisions, taxes, admin charges, or the such like, on the massive poster in the bank window.... and the smile back from the manageress!... off we skipped happily down the road...

What could possibly go wrong?, we had checked with them at the counter that our understanding of the account/ deal was correct and in line with the advert in the window....

Tomorrow I will reply with the reality of it, you may be surprised, but you newbies will be a bit better aware, than some of you seem to be on here sometimes.. ?

Bank Scam (part 2)

About a month after opening this new UK pound account, I received a statement, telling me I had been deducted £20 admin charge?..... my wife suggested it could be for the dozens of triplicate forms we signed when opening the account?... so it showed my balance now is £19,980!...

Not great but we let it go.

Same time next month,same letter, same £20 admin fee, balance now £19,960..?

Bit worrying, best get down to the bank next door to the very well known British supermarket on Mijas Costa... (the bank used by most Brits due to its location next to the shop) and see the smiley waving manageress for an explanation?

After queuing for an eternity, as usual, I was told  ' this is normal banking practice in Spain '.... and she clearly did not want to discuss this in front of the other queueing Brits who could not help overhearing hidden expenses concerning their new, super dooper, account they were trying to rope everyone into.. I was told to come back when they had more time to investigate my query... (otherwise known as professional fobbing off)...

My self and a couple of others in the same situation discussed this in a large group meeting where a Spanish guy who held Spanish lessons attended...

He told us CLEARLY do not put ( in to a Spanish bank.... it will disappear slowly until it has all gone... we Spanish put it under the mattress!... (I had heard that before, but thought it was a joke)...

The next month the usual £20 was taken PLUS another £50!!!! .... almost done for speeding, to get to the bank to get our money back.

3 months and my £20,000 balance is now down to £19, 890.

After clarifying that the £20 will be taken monthly,and the £50(called this one commission) taken quarterly I demanded to close the account immediately...... no smiles from the manageress, just a very angry face and an unsuccessful attempt to fob me off.

Told I could not have my money back for 5 days, and if I wanted it back in sterling there would be a 1% charge on the total plus another admin fee.... or if I accept a bank transfer it would be subject to their rip off fees?.... 

Final part tomorrow

Love your story…. So typical of Spain and as you say after experiencing the Spanish banking system you understand why the Spanish keep their cash at home.

I was in my bank, queuing for what seemed like an  age, and an irate Norwegian who was also in the queue behind me stormed to the front and shouted “ this is a joke, banks should not operate like this in this century, I feel like I’m back in the 1970s in Norway, this is a total waste of my time and I’m changing banks”

I controlled my laughter as everyone looked on nervously and I thought good luck with that one! Frying pan and fire comes to mind! 

I saw them in a bar outside and apparently they had bought a property and this was their second visit to a Spanish bank, and I informed them of Wise and to try to start with them as although not perfect they are the best you will get!

keep writing its priceless 

regards 

Al 

(Found time to finish today)

After a lot of debate, I decided to go for the 1% penalty and hope for the best?

Told to come the following Wednesday to collect what is left of my £20,000 they had use of for the last 3 months.... !

Arrived at the bank as arranged, the manageress had a face full of thunder, and I am convinced a bank robber would have been more appreciated than me.. 

She asked me to sign for the money (with no specified amount on the paperwork) and literally threw a large brown envelope over the counter, it was all in used £20 notes, and looked very much like my deposit (or what was left of it).....

Would not reply when I asked how much was supposed to be there?... so we went to the car and counted it?

£19, 180 !!!!!!!  losing £820 on a supposedly good investment, I worked out it was about the same amount if I had let them take out 24 × £20  &  8 × £50 if I had left the money for the full 2 years... plus of course the promised 4%, which I am certain would have been subject to some sort of penalty?..... 

The Spanish guy was spot on.

Moral of the story is..    the more your bank manager smiles at you... the more he intends to rip you off..... sometime soon!

Foot note

No other bank in Fuengirola seemed to be touting for British sterling accounts.... only the one next to the Well known, much used British supermarket.

This is a terrible story.