Canara Bank to charge Rs 60 a year for SMS alerts

State-owned Canara Bank today said it will charge Rs 60 per year for SMSalerts beginning October 2013.canarabank_b_16-06-2012
“We wish to inform that in line with the industry trend, our bank is compelled to charge Rs 15 per quarter per customer with effect from October 1, 2013, for SMS services and those who have opted for SMS alerts,” Canara Bank said in a notification.
However, the bank said senior citizens, small savings account holders, basic bank accounts holders, and financial inclusion savings account holders will not be charged any such fee.
Among other state-owned banks, IDBI Bank, State Bank of Patiala and Vijaya Bank also charge customers for sending SMS alerts.
In March 2011, the Reserve Bank of India had issued guidelines to banks on online alerts to customers for all types of transactions, irrespective of the amount, involving the usage of cards, the Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram, had said in Parliament recently.

However, the RBI has not issued any guideline on charges for SMS alerts, he added.