I do a lot of bank errands for my mom and our family business. I’d say, I go to the bank to pay bills and such almost every other day. I’ve been doing this for almost two years. All this time, I never quite understood why Quezon City has this ordinance on prohibiting cellphone activities inside banks. I’ve always found it terribly inconvenient and irritating. I’ve been meaning to rant about this for a long time. I’m not saying that I’m the type of person who receives text messages all the time, but honestly there are times when urgent messages and calls just keep coming in. And it’s not once that being unable to reply, receive or make calls gets me into trouble with some people. It gets worse if I’m stuck in bank queues that last for an hour.
A few days ago, I was paying some credit bills at some bank along Commonwealth. It was apparently a busy bank day. Imagine, I got a queue number of 98 and the lone teller (the rest were on lunch break? I don’t know) was serving number 30-something. I couldn’t put off the errand some other time because the bill was due that day and I had to pay before clearing cut off. It was midday and I was in urgent correspondence with someone prior to entering the bank. I couldn’t go out of the bank because I would forfeit my queue number so I discreetly communicated while in my seat. It didn’t escape the security’s attention, apparently, so he raise his voiced at me and told me to stop what I was doing. Fine, I said. For a while people looked at me. But there was this crazy woman who kept staring at me as if I was about to declare a hold-up. I was quite pissed, really, thoughts running through my head went like, stop staring at me people, or I’ll throw my goddamn phone at you.
So, please, someone explain to me, because it has escaped my understanding for the longest time, why civilian customers are prohibited from engaging in telecommunication activities inside banks?
law student, national democracy activist, film school graduate, photography hobbyist
you can, maybe with a low voice. haha, i do make calls inside bank premises and alikes, but i have not been told to stop what i was doing.
perhaps they are too concern about the disturbance it will cause to the supposed to be ‘quiet office’, lol.
or they’re are thinking you’re a suicide bomber with a mobile-triggered bomb haha.
“In many parts of the world, cellular phones are not allowed in banks because they are used by criminals to alert colleagues outside the bank of potential targets leaving the building with large sums of money.
Withdrawing large sums of cash can be very risky business by itself, even more so with cellular phones hidden on other persons in the bank.
Unscrupulous individuals have also been known to use celluar camera phones to take pictures of people inputing their secret code numbers when withdrawing money from banks’ ATM machines. This makes the theft of the card much more valuable – and dangerous for the bank customer. “
Mukha ka lang talagang kriminal. DUH. Hahahahaha.
I don’t run bank errands, but my mom does them herself (and I make her do my bank errands) because she became friends with the bank manager, as in the type that they’ll get pedicures done together. It’s really good to make your banking transaction with a trusted bank, even if it’s not really a commercial bank or whatever. Hindi Metrobank bangko namin, pero as they say, you should be in “good hands”.
On another note, ano naman kasi yung “urgent correspondence with someone” mo? IM me for details na lang.
i usually do bank errands too for my family…but of course, the hundred thousand thing is better with their hands…hahaha…baka kasi ubusin ko at hindi na makaabot sa bangko…and i also do my own bank transactions for my self…and i also wondered why phones are not allowed…actually, the banks here at my divine city confiscate the phones and they’ll give you numbers for you to claim it later,like in baggage counters(i do believe different branches have their own protocols on safety)…i give a nod to the comments before me because they are quite logical and i also think that way…but besides, no matter how cocky it gets and how irritating it was for you (it was also for me, especially when my 1day crush was texting with me at that time) to be an instant star with a security guard introducing you with a shout to the audience, still we need to consider…it’s for our safety after all…
and hey, lets me tell you…im considering your recommendstions on movie…and im on my way to “now and forever”, the korean movie you once posted…