CBA would like to discontinue Passbooks

I was asked, whether I would like to convert a passbook to an online account. While I have online accounts, I feel that I do not want to lead a cashless life. Big Brother would know every single financial transaction. In some cases cash is handy. As mentioned in another topic, there can be problems with online banking (e.g. in flooded areas, war zones, etc.). I am also aware of Lebanon, where accounts are frozen and people cannot take out money to pay their bills. As I age, my arthritic fingers might no longer cope with Banking apps and my eyesight is already deteriorating and it is difficult to see small print clearly. I think banks should allow customers to keep passbooks and do their banking in a branch
 One elderly lady told me that she would have to ask strangers to do her banking, as she cannot use computers. Some Seniors rely on support workers to do their grocery shopping. I would not want to hand over my credit card (especially if I cannot check online) to other people. Businesses have to cater for disabilities (e.g. build ramps). A cashless society would disadvantage many seniors and I am hoping that cash will stay with us for a long time.

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If I understand what you are saying, your fundamental issue is that you want to pay for things with cash so “Big Brother” can not track your purchases.

If you have an on-line account, you can still withdraw cash from the bank and pay cash as you go.

I remember being paid cash in little brown envelopes, and you had to go to the bank to deposit any savings, and pay off loans/mortgages etc. I think that the local bank manager possibly knew as much about us (in general) as Big Brother does now.

Seniors are obviously the most affected by major changes. My more elderly (than me) family members had difficulty coping with the TV remote, the video recorder, the microwave, smart phones, etc. As the aged ranks swell, you are right that businesses will have to learn to cater for older clients, and those with disabilities.

Cash will still be around for some time, but as the young ones who have know plastic cards all their lives age, the use of cash will dwindle and eventually disappear.

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You will find your password account will already be a electronic account (possibly an online type account without using the online function).

Converting means the passport is used and one can check transactions/balances online.

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Agree, there are still many older Australian’s who value their independence, and who are not digitally inclined, or capable.

Hopefully as a society we are not so cruel as to demand our older family members become digital citizens. In particular if they choose to remain feet firmly planted on this earth for a little longer.

Of course our banks are not known for their humility or understanding. The alternatives seem far from suitable. Or in instances reliable and trustworthy. Perhaps more need to think like an older Australian to understand better their needs. Made all the more difficult as branches continue to close, and outlets look more like ‘il Bar’, with standing service only.

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@whbaird is referring to the Commonwealth Bank Passbook. For those who don’t know what a Passbook is, I have attached an image of one.

The CBA want to get away from them as they are labour intensive and open to fraud. The book has your full name, BSB Account No. and your signature in the back. If you have possession of the book, you can see the balance and signature and can withdraw money. The downside of a joint account is that only the person with the book can use it.

There is no printed statement - the book is the statement - however backed up by computer records at the CBA. When you present at the bank, they note the last transaction and then print the subsequent ones. If you present at the Post Office they do the same thing in writing. Deposits and withdrawals come with little to no explanation, however the bank obviously has this information (wage deposit, rent deposit, transfer, interest etc). You can use it to withdraw cash, but you can do this with other accounts too (debit card, ATM, teller withdrawal), and then you have some anonymity with your spending habits.

After years of resisting, and a CBA imposed $4/month account fee, he lost his Passbook on a trip and had his hand on his heart hoping no one used it. It was never found. The easiest solution was to close it and open a Pensioner Account with a Debit Card & a posted statement. There is no account keeping fee, but he has to remember a 4 digit PIN.

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Not ignoring the need to support these people, but going on a bit of a tangent: isn’t that logic the wrong way around? The number of non-digitally literate people is currently at its peak, and it will continue to get smaller?

People in their 50s and 60s now have been living with technology and home computers for more than half their lives. They don’t suddenly become incapable of using them when they hit a certain age.

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No but they may decide that don’t want to be connected in some areas. There seems to be a growing trend by large organisations to assume that your interaction with them will be according to their desires not yours, for example requiring a mobile phone number in some situations.

I am happy to do my banking online as it saves me fairly pointless trips to the nearest town with a branch and I have a reliable NBN connection. I don’t feel like having a web-capable phone, paying for another connection I don’t need and leaving it on all day to make the system builders’ lives easier.

I can see that the abolition of hardcopy documents in our lives is spreading constantly but some consideration for those who don’t want to or can’t afford to get up to date is required. It isn’t as if online life is free of all problems and cost to the individual is the only downside of getting rid of paper.

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I guess it depends on the circles you move in. I was lucky in that I started programming on a mainframe in the early '70s, and then worked in technology areas for many years.

In my circle of aquaintences, I have a number of troglodytes that can’t get their heads around more than the most fundamental use of technology, who ring for assistance. Mind you, I have a tech-y friend that I call on to help when I get out of my depth.

Our city’s library are regularly running beginners’ IT for seniors sessions, so it would seem that there is a need and possibly a desire among seniors to use technology. According to the library staff that run the sessions, they have some people that keep coming back to do the same sessions over and over because the information covered just doesn’t stick.

So I guess it’s like anything; there are those that get it and many that don’t.

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Another topic that also covers this area is located at:

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