Most people think that the safest place to keep their money is to have it in a bank account. That may be true, but to keep a new breed of bank bandits at bay, it is necessary to maintain some sort of regular account transactions.
The government is ever ready to invoke it's " Inactive bank account " laws. In the past, accounts that have made no movement in a seven year period were deemed inactive - and quickly seized by ASIC. Now the period of that " inactive " law has been reduced to just three years.
You can certainly claim the money back - once you discover it is missing - but only the bare emount taken. No interest is paid for the period it is sitting in " consolidated revenue " - and the " recovery process " usually involves reams of paperwork - and could drag on for months.
Another " money trap " concerns savings deposits on a fixed term basis. You negotiate with the bank to get an agreed term of interest by leaving your money for a nominated number of months.
When this term is about to expire the bank writes you a letter giving a week to arrange withdrawal or reinvestment of funds, and promises to reinvest both capital and interest if they have not received a response.
When the bank uses this " automatic reinvestment " option, the new interest rate charged is at the bottom of the interest scale. In the majority of cases, those who take the trouble to call and discuss the matter are offered a higher rate of interest.
It seems that both banks and the government take advantage of those people who are not skilled in the management of their money. You would think the banks would give warning that an account was reaching the " inactive " stage - and was in danger. Some do - but there is no such obligation, and many do not !
The same applies to maturing fixed terms. The astute get a higher interest rate on reinvestment - and the lower rate that applies to automatic reinvestment benefits the banks.
The losers are usually honest people who think that their nest egg is safely earning interest and see no reason to disturb the account. In this day and age - the new " bank bandits " use the law instead of a gun.
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