The Hindu Business Line : ATMs can let you down!

Take the case of Automated Teller Machine (ATM). It is a common sight these days, with banks competing with one another in setting up an ATM. . While it is good to see the development and feel the bank has come closer to the customer (within reach from home), the user is apprehensive about relying on the machine entirely.

The facility, though available round the clock throughout the year, could let you down.

The complaint list is long and endless. "They are easy to operate. But you can never guess when it would deny you the access to your account. Only if you are able to access the account can the transaction be processed," lamented one user.

"The reason cited for declining the transaction has more often been unacceptable," said my colleague Mr Narayanan. The machine declined his card with a response, which stated `expired card', although the validity is for another two years. He did not give up, but swiped it again after two minutes, when the machine asked him to `contact the bank'. Presuming this to be a connectivity snag, he tried yet again and succeeded in withdrawing the cash. "All this happened in a matter of seven minutes and using the so-called `expired' card," said Mr Narayanan.

There have been instances of transactions being turned down for want of minimum balance in the account, even though the user's (customer) request have been well within limits, of the ATM chest going dry, of the machine running out of paper.

Bankers point out that the account statement request in the beginning of the month or on the payday was really huge. "We have to be ready with the stationery during this period, particularly at the ATMs installed in the client's premises. Each user makes a request more than twice or thrice, anxious to know if the salary has been credited to his account. Earlier, the ATM stationery purchase was centralised. But in a competitive environment, we cannot afford to wait for our indent to be processed by our regional/head office. We do keep some reserve. But even that tends to dry out," observed an officer in a private sector bank.

While bankers are trying to persuade customers to use the ATM instead of coming over to the branch, the user, though content with the luxury, is not fully convinced with the technology.