I am working as a Software Engineer for about 8+ years and very much dependent on the salary bank account for all the transactions.From the beginning I had unlimited Transaction on my ATM card for cash retrieval from any Bank ATM without any charges.I has used ICICI, HDFC & Citibank with these features.Now my present company has forced to use ICICI account (Which I dont like).Now ICICI says that in non-ICICI bank ATMs, more than 5 transactions will be charged (just like a normal account in any bank) which is ridiculous. One CC/Bank representative says am in Privilege Banking, other says I am not. I have a good salary and FDs with the bank but still I am told that I do not satisfy their conditions which are not properly explained.My question is, Is not Salary Bank given more privileges on any bank? Is ICICI bank misbehaving in my case?Further I perform 30-40 online transactions per month on average, which are free for salary accounts, thankfully ICICI bank doe snot charge for it. I cannot use other bank accounts since the transaction charges will be too high for the no of transactions.Is there any solution for this?Sample this: I have been to some ICICI ATMs which do not have power back up and wont work on any power cut, its so pathetic sometimes.
mhsabir
Xclusive
Staff member
I have used ICICI & my firends too & it was never a problem. I rarely make more than 5 ATM transactions, forget 5 outside network. But, my friends literally draw loose cash from ATM several times & I have never heard them complaining. But then, I am not sure of the number of outside network they would have tried. Now, coming to your situation, how did you come to know of the limit, was in some sort of general document or was it when you checked something about your account, because customer service reps can be clueless sometimes & may do a mess up in checking up some specific account criteria & may rattle off normal policies. My general suggestion to anyone is that if you intend to use an ATM which is more convenient, you may as well open an account & transfer money at the beginning of the month to that other bank & take out money from that ATM - Like a BOSS 
Sushubh
Admin
Staff member
I have stopped bothering about small fees for taking out cash from third party ATMs. I do not have StanChart ATM in my locality. The convenience factor alone is a good enough reason. I use Kotak Mahindra ATM in my locality even if the bank's own ATM is present in the sector. Reasons are simple... Few people use this ATM and hence it is not abused much and has never failed for me. ICICI/SBI/HDFC ATMs are heavily abused and they tend to be down more often. Have suffered enough in the past. I believe my StanChart account allows me unlimited transactions for free from third party ATMs. But most of the cash I withdraw is from a SBI Debit Card.
Sushubh
Admin
Staff member
5 ATM transactions in any case should be enough. Stop taking out 100 or 500 bucks at one time. Take into consideration your monthly cash transactions and start taking out week's or 10 days worth of money in one single transaction.as for kotak. they do not have a branch here in my sector. and i really do not want to open another bank account. i am trying to apply for an icici credit card. if it works, i would discontinue my stanchart bank account and credit card permanently. icici has a local branch and their online banking is much more useful compared to stanchart.
mhsabir
Xclusive
Staff member
Yes, I am just saying in case if you use it too frequently & are ending up paying a lot in fees. Five in a month is fair enough. I do not have an ICICI ATM within 3 KM of my house & hence I transfer to an other bank A/c & use that since I already have an account there, even otherwise I doubt I cross more than 3-4 even then.
Sushubh
Admin
Staff member
oh i take out enough money in a transaction to last me a week or 10 days. i usually do not make more than 3-4 transactions per month and i believe most banks do allow 5 transactions for free as per the RBI ruling. have not seen charges for ATM transactions in the last year or so. i just wanted to say that i prefer to deal with a safer ATM than official ATMs because of past bad experiences. SBI ATM has twice caused issues with transaction. money would not come out but would get deducted from the bank account. it is a major hassle to get such charges reversed.
D
Deleted member 13033
online translations are free mostly in pvt banks I think...rather SBI takes Rs 5 per transaction if anyone makes neft transfer...
mhsabir
Xclusive
Staff member
I am not sure of the reliability of a particular bank, but the scenario you have mentioned should be theoretically handled easily, and you should be able to get the money by following up with the bank with somewhat reasonable effort.
A
agantuk
Bhatakti Aatma
If your company has asked to use ICICI account, then it HAS to be a salary account. If not, then they should not be forcing you to use it. From my experience, Citibank has by far the best accounts. Unlimited other ATM, NEFT, DD, Cheque book etc. free. ICICI salary accounts also have free any ATM facility. Your account has in all likelihood not been converted. In this case, ask the person in your company who handles the banking division to submit a request to ICICI to convert it to a salary account..
