Bank of Ireland has introduced a range of changes to its banking services including a digital account opening process and a new flat-fee subscription model.
The bank said the process of opening a digital current account by uploading supporting documentation using a phone will take less than 10 minutes
The bank is eliminating individual transaction charges for personal account customers and replacing them with a single flat fee of €6 per month for maintaining their account.
As a result, there will be no individual bank charges for contactless payments, ATM use, online transactions or over the counter transactions.
Bank of Ireland said the new pricing structure is simple and transparent, and responds to customer feedback that the current range of charges is complex and hard to keep track of.
It also means that all customers will pay the same flat fee regardless of how much they have in their account.
The bank's 'no transaction fees' offer – where personal current account holders with a minimum balance of €3,000 for an entire fee quarter are not charged account transaction fees – will end on November 23.
The bank will continue to provide free banking for seniors, students and graduates.
Bank of Ireland personal customers will also be able to add their credit and debit cards to Google Pay next week.
Gavin Kelly, Chief Executive of Bank of Ireland's Retail Ireland division, said taking the complexity out of everyday banking will help its customers to be more aware and in control of what they spend, save and plan for.
"We’ve completely overhauled our digital account opening process to make it easier and quicker than ever to open an account with us," Mr Kelly said.
"We’re also making banking charges easier to understand by doing away with 26 different fees and charges and replacing them with a simple flat fee, a similar pricing model to Netflix or Spotify subscriptions where you pay the same every month and consume as much as you want.
"With unlimited day-to-day transactions it offers value for money that allows you to do more with your account. I’m also pleased to announce that Google Pay will be available next week to Bank of Ireland customers, making it easier for those who prefer the convenience of paying at the counter with their phone," he said.
Darragh Cassidy of price comparison website, Bonkers.ie, said traditional banks are obviously starting to feel the heat from fintechs such as Revolut and N26 which continue to go from strength to strength in Ireland and charge almost no fees whatsoever.
"Up until today, Bank of Ireland's fee structure, along with AIB’s, was particularly poor value," Mr Cassidy.
"And as more and more of us have moved to card payments over cash due to Covid-19, continuing to charge individually for services like contactless payments was always going to be difficult for banks to do as the optics look so poor," he said.
He said this type of 'all-in-one’ free structure from Bank of Ireland makes sense and it also makes the bank’s charges far easier to understand, more competitive, and means there should be no more ‘bill shock’ every time customers receive their current account fees and charges statement.
