Banking is a service that is used by people from all walks of life. From entrepreneurs to businessmen, from students to professionals in the office, everyone needs to have a bank account for their day to day transactions. With the latest trends, online banking is also on the rise as going into a physical branch is both difficult due to time constraints as well as cumbersome. Online banking makes it super easy and swift to transfer money and pay bills right from the comfort of your couch. With online and mobile banking on the rise there’s one more thing that people probably take for granted but it holds its own ground in terms of importance.
Say hello to the good, old and humble SMS. Yes you can subscribe to SMS banking alerts for a nominal monthly charge. Given below are some solid reasons why you should be subscribed to SMS alerts service. In a nutshell, it’s a great informative tool and you will learn why in a moment.
Check & Balance:
This is a real important reason why you should subscribe to getting SMS alerts. The bank notifies you of each incoming and outgoing transaction and then you can tally it at the end of every day, week or month that you actually have the correct amount of money against your bank account. Also if you pay using your card most of the time, you’ll also have a fairly clear idea of your monthly expenses against your income which could in fact help you plan for the next month if you need to save some money by trying to cut down on unwanted expenses.
Safeguard against Fraud:
Because the bank notifies you for every transaction or changes that you make to your account, risk of fraud is minimized and you get to know of any fraudulent or unwanted transactions right away. For e.g if you pay your phone bill, you’ll have to first add the number in your online banking portal and you will get an SMS that will inform you of the number, amount and time etc. of the transaction thus you can be sure that you did the transaction or if someone else misused your account details.
Amount Reversal:
Sometimes it happens that a transaction doesn’t go through the first time and you try again thinking that it was due to some error. But unfortunately the amount has already been deducted and you end up paying twice the intended amount. Or you bought some merchandise at a Point of Sales and had to return it due to any reason. The merchant will generate a request with the bank for refunding your amount after which you will be notified via SMS once your amount is debited back into your account. Similarly if you go to an ATM to dispense cash but the machine gives any error yet you get an SMS that your amount was debited, you’ll not only be able to lodge a complaint with the bank for a refund but you’ll also be notified once the amount reversal to your bank account happens via an SMS.
Get Timely Reminders:
If you’re using a credit card, it’s highly important to keep track of your outstanding amount and pay the bills on time to stay away from paying fines and interest. Having an alerts service enabled helps to remind you to pay your bills on time and thus saves your money in the long run.
Manage Expenses:
If you’ve got supplementary cards for your family specially your children then you would want to keep track of their expenses so things don’t get out of hand. SMS alerts will let you know each time a transaction is done so you can stay aware of your family’s spending habbits and keep them under control and within your monthly budget.
There you go folks, these are five important reasons why you should consider subscribing to SMS alerts if you haven’t already. Few reputed banks like Standard Chartered, Habib Bank Limited, Faysal Bank and Silk Bank are some of those that offer SMS alerts to their subscribers on Debit/Credit cards.
