MONEY MATTERS.- Session 1.- How to sell yourself.

-Sarah Hughes: Excuse me, I'd like to open a current account in your bank.

-Clerk: Yes, please take a sit. Do we have any previous records from you in this bank?

-Sarah Hughes: I don't think so.

-Clerk: Ok, in that case, I must ask you some personal data. What's your name, please?

-Sarah Hughes: It's Hughes, Sarah Hughes. That's H-U-G-H-E-S.

-Clerk: Is Sarah spelt with a final h?

-Sarah Hughes: Yes, it is.

-Clerk: Now I also need to know your ID number and address

-Sarah Hughes: It's X-23879532 and I live at 5, Mirador Street, Granada

-Clerk: What kind of account would you like to open?

-Sarah Hughes: Actually, I'd like to open a joint account with my husband.

-Clerk: No problem. We have excellent conditions for our current accounts. May I ask if you have a mortgage on your house?

-Sarah Hughes: No, we haven't, thanks God. Luckily we haven't been affected by the credit crunch.

-Clerk: In that case, we can offer you a very suitable financial product. The classic current account where you can pay your bills and save money at the same time. If you go into the red and spend more money than there is in the account, we have an overdraft facility. That means that the bank agrees to be in this situation as long as the overdraft stays in a certain amount, which is € 3000. There are also charges that are taken from the account if you go overdrawn, and of course, you have to pay interests on the overdraft.

-Sarah Hughes: What's the interest rate?

-Clerk: It's 5.4

-Sarah Hughes: Well, that's quite high. And what about the credit cards?

-Clerk: We will provide you with two credit cards with no extra expenses. We know how important it is nowadays for our clients to pay with plastic.

Apart from this, we also have some other financial products available, for example, a life insurance for you and your husband, some unit trusts and a private pension.

-Sarah Hughes: I already have a life insurance and a private pension thanks, but could you tell me a little bit more about the unit trusts?

-Clerk: Sure. Unit trusts are shares in investment companies that put money from small investors like you into a range of companies. It only takes €1500 to turn you into a shareholder.

-Sarah Hughes: Well I can't make a decision right now, I'd like to think about it and talk to my husband.

-Clerk: You have plenty of time, no problem, Mrs Hughes. Here you have a leaflet with all the information you may need about our unit trusts. And back to the account, how much would you like to deposit with this account?

-Sarah Hughes: I've thought of €6500 to start with. Is that OK?

-Clerk: More than enough, we usually ask for €500 minimum (pause). Also, let me remind you Mrs Hughes that you can check your account balances and transactions through internet banking, and you can even apply for a personal loan online with immediate approval. And if there's a problem you can always phone the bank's call centre.

-Sarah Hughes: Yes, I'm familiar with internet banking, thank you

-Clerk: Well, you said you wanted a joint account so I'm going to need your husband's personal data as well and a copy of his ID.

-Sarah Hughes: I'm afraid I don't have it at the moment. Had I known this before I would have brought a copy of my husband's ID with me.

-Clerk: There's nothing to worry, Mrs Hughes, you can hand in that copy another day if you like.