Switching your everyday transaction account is now easier

Credit Card Deals

	Interest Rate p.a.	Balance transfer Rate p.a.
ANZ Low Rate	13.14% p.a.	0% p.a. for 9 months
Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card - Balance Transfer Offer	20.99% p.a.	0% p.a. for 8 months
HSBC Credit Card	17.99% p.a.	0% p.a. for 6 months

Shop around and save

If you want get yourself a better deal with your transaction account — the account you use for your day-to-day personal banking — there hasn’t been a better time. Australian’s pay $300 million a year in account keeping fees. But there is no reason you should pay too. There are a variety of no-fee accounts you can switch to. It’s time to get yourself a better deal.

From July 1st, you will receive a helping hand from the banks to make it easier to switch transaction accounts. Your old bank must now provide your new bank with a list of regular credits and debits from the past 13 months. Sign a single form and your new bank uses this information to complete the paperwork on your behalf.

Regular bills will be charged to your new account and your regular payments will seamlessly flow from your new account.

What does this mean for you?

This means that switching to a new transaction account has never been easier. The banks do the hard legwork and you benefit with a better deal. You have more reason to change and more ease to do so.

Jenny makes the easy switch

Jenny wants to find a better deal on her transaction account. She finds her way to savingsaccountfinder.com.au and finds a much better deal. She will save her $60 a year in account keeping fees alone by switching.

Jenny applies online for the new transaction account. She signs a digital form giving permission for her new bank to find all her regular credits and debits with her existing account and gets a choice of which payments she wants transferred to her new account.

She is advised by her new bank to keep her old account open until she is certain that all her regular credits and debits are transferred over.

Jenny’s new bank guides her through the process and she happily finishes the cost-saving transition.

So Jenny, our Finder user, scored herself a winning deal. But what does this mean for our prospects of getting a better deal from our banks?

A new era in banking competition

Banking competition will be more customer-focused than ever. The banks have had their hand forced with consumer-friendly legal changes to the banking industry. A flow-on effect is that consumers will shift to the best deals more than ever simply. Consumers — once shackled but not necessarily loyal — will find that bank competition will become ever more furious as banks must meet their needs to survive. The ultimate winner is yours truly.

Tips to take advantage of the reforms change around direct debits:

Switching bank accounts is easy. Don’t stay with the bank you’ve always been with if there is a better account on the market.

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Credit card offers:

HSBC Credit Card	Bankwest Zero Platinum Credit Card	Virgin Flyer Credit Card	ANZ Low Rate
0% p.a. for 6 months on balance transfers & no annual fee	0% p.a. for 9 months on balance transfers & platinum benefits	0% p.a. for 8 months on balances transfers & reward points	0% p.a. for 9 months on balance transfers & low rate

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Credit Cards Comparison

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			Interest rate (p.a.)	Balance transfer rate (p.a.)	Annual fee	Cash advance rate (p.a.)
	ANZ Low Rate	A low rate on purchases, balance transfer and a low annual fee.	13.14% p.a.	0% p.a. for 9 months	$58 p.a.	21.49% p.a.
	HSBC Credit Card	No annual fee for the life of the credit card. Plus a low balance transfer offer.	17.99% p.a.	0% p.a. for 6 months	$0 p.a.	21.99% p.a.
	Bankwest Zero Platinum MasterCard	Exclusive Offer to Credit Card Finder. No annual fee credit card with platinum benefits.	17.99% p.a.	0% p.a. for 9 months	$0 p.a.	21.99% p.a.
	Commonwealth Bank Low Rate Credit Card	A low interest rate offer on purchases and balance transfers.	0% p.a. for 5 months (reverts to 12.99% p.a.)	5.99% p.a. for 5 months	$78 p.a. ($48 for qualifying customers)	21.24% p.a.
	ANZ Platinum Credit Card	No annual fee for the first year and a balance transfer offer.	19.39% p.a.	0% p.a. for 9 months	$0 p.a. annual fee for the first year ($87 p.a. thereafter)	20.99% p.a.

* The credit card offers compared on this page are chosen from a range of credit cards CreditCardFinder.com.au has access to track details from and is not representative of all the products available in the market. Products are displayed in no particular order or ranking. The use of terms 'Best' and 'Top' are not product ratings and are subject to our disclaimer. You should consider seeking independent financial advice and consider your own personal financial circumstances when comparing cards.