'Why you should always have cash in a world of IT meltdowns and bank glitches'

From the Marks and Spencer hack to banking systems repeatedly going down in recent months, we’re all a bit more wary of keeping our money totally digital.

But our world is now built for digital money, with cash already being phased out in many shops – so, how can you prepare and manage if your online banking goes down, and what are your rights?

The first thing is, obviously, take some cash out of the bank. Keep a couple of weeks’ worth of expenses available in cash, ideally stored in a fireproof box locked away safely in your home.

This will help you to make immediate payments for things like groceries. You can also easily repay a friend or family member if they make an online payment on your behalf while your online banking is inaccessible.

Don’t take out your life savings. This is an emergency fund in case your banking system goes down or there are problems with your account, such as it being frozen during a fraud investigation if identity thieves steal your details.

Try to keep your money spread across different banking groups. This is particularly true if you have more than £85,000 in the bank, because the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) only guarantees up to £85,000 per banking group. So, if a bank fails completely, you are only guaranteed to receive £85,000 in compensation – you might get more, but there’s no guarantee.

Secondly, having two current accounts and savings accounts across different banks gives you an emergency access fund for online payments and transfers if one banking group is taken offline due to hackers or technical issues. Check the Bank of England banking groups list to make sure your money is spread across different ones for best protection.

Knowing exactly how much cash you have in the bank at any time is simply good financial practice. But, more than that, it can help you reclaim missing money if something happens to an online banking system. It can also help you quickly identify if someone else is using your account for fraudulent activity.

Some banking apps allow screenshots; take regular pictures to keep a record of your balance. Or, you can make it a habit to print out mini statements from the ATM each week.

While banks keep incredibly accurate and detailed records, there is always the risk that a large-scale malware attack or hack could prevent traceability of your money. So, having records will help you restore your money to your account if it goes missing.

Often, the problem with banking IT issues affects only one part of their system, such as the phone app. Make sure you have online banking set up so that you can try to access via the website in the first instance of a problem.

You should also ensure your bank details are written down safely somewhere you can access if your phone is stolen or lost. This will help you immediately freeze accounts when you need to, and also access your account by directly visiting a branch.

As soon as your bank is experiencing an issue, get in touch with anyone due a payment from you in the next few days. Outages often only last a few hours, but can take several days or more.

Being prepared and getting in touch with people you pay by Direct Debit such as your utilities, credit card, and insurance providers will help you mitigate problems caused by the banking outage. For example, it can help freeze any late payment fees, or help you reclaim them as evidence of the issue after the fact.

If a problem with digital banking causes you a financial problem, your bank needs to pay the fees incurred. For example, if you are late paying something because of banking issues but the Direct Debit was scheduled to go out as usual, the bank should refund the fee.

This also counts for income, too. So, if you’re due to be paid your salary but there is a delay due to a banking system error which puts you into your overdraft as scheduled bills go out, you’re entitled to get overdraft fees and fines refunded.

If a banking IT issue has caused other problems, such as missed time off work to sort out the issue, or caused big delays such as not being able to buy a house on the contracted deadline, the bank should also make this right.

However, they may not always make this easy for you. The first thing to do is write a formal complaint to your bank outlining the full details, the financial cost and other costs (such as stress and inconvenience) and what you what them to offer to resolve the issue.

If they are unable or refuse to assist, you can then raise a case with the Financial Ombudsman. This is an independent body that mediates disputes and they will look at all of the provided evidence to make a decision. Sometimes, that might be in favour of the bank if they decide you were not inconvenienced (or there was not enough evidence to support that claim). Often, a partial compensation will be suggested if the Ombudsman recognises the bank’s errors but does not agree with the extent of claimed damages. Other times, your full complaint will be upheld and compensation provided.

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