I begin to understand why people get confused with Banking.

Money. It's not rocket science. Even ISAs which are said to be too complicated are well within the mental grasp of a person of normal intelect.

It's pay day, so naturally I contact telephone banking to check everything's gone in OK. Only instead of getting a computer I get a real person pestering me about my soon to mature TESSA. Marvelous. I want a real person to speak to, i get passed to the automated service, and when I just want a quick balance from the computers, the operators cut in. This person persuaded me to have someone call me back later about my reivnestment options. There are only two reinvestment options, why does it need so much discussion? So anyway I say yes, and this afternoon someone rings me from the branch to arrange a time for a management to talk to me. I'm bright, I know what the options are, and what I want to happen, I don't need some financial "expert" patronising me.

But it's not that easy. I can see why some people dislike banking now.