Is access to banking a human right ?

[John105]

How about access to a credit card?

Seems like 30 years ago any employee with a pulse is issued a corp card. But some had bad credit and they were declined. Or, co travel and co being slow to reimburse ruined their credit.

Today, it seems many employees are expected to foot the bill (I was last and this job), and get reimbursed. I have traveled with a guy who could neither secure a hotel nor rental car, and I couldn’t pay for him wrong dept. but what if I carried a balance, my co won’t reimburse for interest.

A person could say I don’t travel. But then they could get let go.

I guess long story short not everything is a right simply because it’s needed to perform.

How about a person who has no passport nor real ID and can’t obtain it? And on and on..

 

[Fla]

Intriguing question. It's a bit like trying to get by without a drivers license or other form of ID. Who would try?


I guess if one choses a path in life, one could get by without any of this (bank account, cell phone, few other things). But once down the trappings of the middle class and/or a desk job, these things become required?

FWIW I have a friend of mine that is legally blind and he has never had a driver's license. Not once in his entire life. But the state will issue (did issue in his case) an id that is the legal equivalent of a driver's license but doesn't allow you to drive. I'm sure that Australia and every other modern country will do something similar. The same person worked for a living and has several bank accounts, retirement accounts, investment accounts and all of the rest and has had NO trouble getting any of them. I know because I'm the one that drives him to many of his appointments and to the bank, etc etc.

 

[Fla]

Quit making ASSumptions about the OP. How do you know those aren't all just hypothetical questions on his part ?

Twice the OP said "I can't". There's nothing to assume, other than perhaps that you didn't bother to read the thread.

 

[alarmguy]

No, absolutely should not be a human right.
The OP isnt giving enough information? Who cant open a bank account? Go to a bank deposit money, done, account is open. I dont even go to bank buildings anymore.
Unless you are hiding money from someone and you willingly are not going to a bank because it will be seized, but then at least here in the USA there is money orders.

Im just not understanding the "why" in his country that he can not open one unless there is a need to hide money from collection.

 

[SubieRubyRoo]

In the US it's real simple, you get a job and they pay you in cash (sometimes) and by check (most of the time). Some employers give you the option of using direct deposit. I shouldn't need to explain how to handle cash. A check can be taken to any of the numerous check cashing services and cashed, usually for a fee. But I've cashed them in grocery stores and they never charged a fee as long as I was making a purchase. But if you have more than $5 in cash or check I've never seen a bank or a credit union that wouldn't allow you to open an account. You can also take the check to the bank that is written against and they are obligated to cash it, even if you don't have an account there. Their obligation is to the person that owns the account and they are obligated to pay the person that he has written the check to, regardless if that person has an account there. Once you have a bank or CC account you can set up direct deposit with most employers.

Speaking from person experience, I starting working real jobs when I was 13 years old and people have been giving me cash and checks from day one. I simply carried the checks to the bank that they were drawn on and cashed them. I got a CU account after I joined the military but I never had a checking account until years after I left the military. I paid for everything in cash except my car payment which I had to mail. For that I walked to a store just outside of the base that I was on and I bought a money order for 39 cents and sent that to the loan company. And that was the 3rd bank loan that I had had at that point so I had GOOD credit even though I had never had a bank account! When I was in the military we were paid by check twice per month, I picked up my check and carried it over to the CU and deposited it and took out what ever cash that I thought that I would need.

I have never seen anyone have any difficulty getting a bank or CU account unless they were a known thief or scam artist.

Regardless

You're missing the point. Before electronic banking, you went to work, and you got paid cash or check in hand. When you paid bills, you either showed up where you owed money to pay, or you mailed them a check. Now, with direct deposit being MANDATORY for many businesses already, and increasing in use, this is where Shannow's post comes in.

My employer DOES NOT offer printed checks, it is mandatory to have DD. This means it's all digital, and if the internet goes out (which affects ATMs as well!), or you get deemed persona non grata for whatever reason, with a few keystrokes you're now completely penniless (see Canadian truckers). You now no longer have unfettered access to "your" money, and even if you do today, it's only at the whim of whatever bank you use combined with what that bank's regulators allow it to do. If you or I removed someone's ability to access their own property (money), we'd be called thieves and prosecuted.

It's nearly impossible these days to simply say "I do not want to partake of any designated storage for the fruits of my labor other than in my own pocket, and remain free of the system and its inherent pitfalls." That's why Shannow's asking why, with all of the other irrelevant things various groups are calling "rights", the right to life, liberty, and property (including access to your money) are ones we really need to be discussing.

 

[Fla]

He never said he didn't have a bank account. If he decided to close a 40 year old bank account last week then he'll still be in this predicament;

If he closed a previous account why would he be in any predicament? Just go to another bank or a CU and open a new account. People do it all of the time. I closed two accounts before I left California and opened another one on the other side of the country and in a state that I had never been in and I had no difficulty what so ever.

or if he was thinking about closing his bank account and the banker advised him you shouldn't because of the reasons in the original post and brought it up as a discussion topic here.

 

[kschachn]

Twice the OP said "I can't". There's nothing to assume, other than perhaps that you didn't bother to read the thread.

Yes, “bothering to read” is a problem here.

 

[PimTac]

In a capitalistic society a person needs a safe place to store their earnings/wealth. That place has been banks and other institutions for a long time now. Two things are happening, the banking model is changing. The days of a brick and mortar bank are slowly going away. Secondly, society is drifting towards a social credit system which is dangerous. A person can be denied a bank account if their credit score does not meet the standard. Who decides that score is a topic for another day.

China is big on social scoring. The UK has been in the news of late. Is Australia headed in that direction? It is a very slippery slope.

 

[Pew]

If he closed a previous account why would he be in any predicament? Just go to another bank or a CU and open a new account. People do it all of the time. I closed two accounts before I left California and opened another one on the other side of the country and in a state that I had never been in and I had no difficulty what so ever.

OP is in Australia. I don't know if Australia has any specific regulations revolving around this specific issue.

 

[alarmguy]

In the USA anyone can open a check and savings account, the do NOT check your credit score.

We still have not heard from the OP why he cant open an account in his country.
It's a long thread based on no information. Maybe the OP is just posting a question for discussion vs his actual situation?
If so he is posting a question related to the entire western world but I cant help think, this is something for some reason being posted because of his country. After all, we are our own country and not subjected to the whims of other countries.

Banks in the USA do not check your credit score, they do check your banking history through another system to see what you have been up to, such as negative balances ect. Banks have to be extremely careful in the USA to make sure they do not present as being bias against one segment of society which is a protected human right here in the USA and banks go out of their way to make sure they do not discriminate. Race, Religion ect ... so everyone is treated equally. Actually in many cases here in the USA there is a BIAS to help the under privileged, it's an actual requirement by every agency in the USA that regulates banks in order to do business and expand. It's why banks keep brick and mortar buildings open at a loss in disadvantaged areas.

https://www.cnbc.com/select/credit-scores-opening-bank-accounts/

 

[Astro14]

Because of the importance of a bank account in modern society, I actually have multiple accounts with three different banks.

If one account has a problem, I can move money across banks and accounts to circumvent the problem.

For example, when a fraudulent check was presented, and cashed, on my wife’s NFCU checking account, taking her balance to zero - I moved an equal amount of money into her account until the fraud investigation was complete and the funds restored.

Back to the OP question.

He said that without an account he can’t do those things. Never said he didn’t have an account, merely talked about how access to a bank account enables all the rest.

His point: an individual must have a bank account to execute many of society’s requirements.

Since it’s a “must have” for those things, I think access to banking should be a human right.

The nature, and fees, of that banking are a separate discussion.

But access to banking is an essential part of success, so that access should be made available.

An example of the success that access to baking can bring is micro-loan programs in many third world countries.

 

[alarmguy]

It's not a human right and never should be, any honest person can have a bank account in the USA.
If your a criminal of some type the bank will not give you access to their system preventing others from being defrauded by you.

It's not an issue in the USA, one can make an excuse to make anything a "right" if you want to have individual liberty that is wrong.

 

[Shel_B]

An example of the success that access to baking can bring is micro-loan programs in many third world countries.

Bingo!

 

[PimTac]

OP is in Australia. I don't know if Australia has any specific regulations revolving around this specific issue.

That’s the big question but I know Australia can be heavy handed. I know several Australian expats and the recent changes that were made to their Aged Pension ( Australian Social Security) and access overseas has changed their routine. It’s one way how a government or a financial institution can throw a monkey wrench into things.

 

[Hall]

Twice the OP said "I can't". There's nothing to assume, other than perhaps that you didn't bother to read the thread.

I can't help you with a lack of reading comprehension. Just because the OP phrased it that doesn't mean they're referring to themselves. They could be quoting someone else that has this issue/concern.

 

[UncleDave]

No.

Banking a service, not a right.

Services can never become rights. Who is obligated to provide you with it ?

 

[loneryder]

I think the OP is thinking about the future with his question. People and companies are being de-banked because of their politics. It's a new phenomenon that we historically have not thought about. It has the potential to get worse with the digitalization of banking and everything else.

 

[SaberOne]

My initial reaction was…
However, the more I think about it, I would have been better off without one myself.

 

[Pelican]

I can't have a job without an account to deposit my pay into.
I can't do my tax (or child support) without a bank account.
Can't buy a house, car etc....
Can't hold stocks or bonds..

So with the inability to exist without one ?

Should access to a bank account in Western society beva human right ?

There are ONLY 3 inalienable Human Rights!
1) Right to Self Defense
2) Right to Nourishment
3) Right to Shelter
These one is born with!

All others are NOT human rights, they may be rights or boons bestowed by society upon an individual or group of individuals.
That's why I find befuddling that a University gives a degree in human rights with a 3 yr study.

 

[totegoat]

More of a necessity than a right.