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Email this6:43 am
December 20, 2019
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I needed an account for my 11 and 13 year old and other than the big banks nobody offered children accounts. Tangerine was the only digital bank I could find that did but I thought I would try an experiment with PC Financial instead.
Here is what I did...
I opened 4 accounts under my login at PC Financial and received 4 cash/credit cards.
In the app I named them..
Child1 Saving
Child2 Saving
Child1 Spending
Child2 Spending
I then tied their email address for e-transfer to their spending accounts.
I give them $25 allowance each week and it goes directly to their spending account.
Then I give them $100 each month for saving and that goes directly to their saving account.
The kids can ask anytime to move from saving to spending or from spending to saving and I can do that in seconds in the app.
Tap is set at $250 via PC and I was not happy with that and asked for it to be turned off but they said it was preset and cannot be turned off. I figured no big deal because I keep $25 in the kids spending accounts unless they ask for more for a purchase of sorts.
Long story short, I slapped a sticker on the back of the card with their names on it and since nobody ever handles cards anymore the kids have had no issues going to the variety store or A&W to use their funds. It is teaching them how to save and spend using a card.
I am happy with using the PC accounts like this and the only way it could have been better is if the kids could have had it in their name so they could move from saving to spending via the app by themselves.
I figure as a beginner account I am glad to help with this and according to PC Financial the kids accounts are coming within a year and at that time my kids will be experts so I will give them their own accounts.
5:19 pm
October 21, 2013
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Steinbach CU has a kids account through age 14 which pays 3.15% for the first $2000 and currently 1.05% thereafter.
I'm not familiar with all the details, but i know some other CUs also have kids' accounts. with attractive rates and various termination dates. For those who are interested in CUs, it's worth looking around.
It must be a rude awakening though when you age out of these accounts though.
8:08 am
September 11, 2013
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$200+ per month for 11 year-olds' allowance these days?! Is that the going rate these days?!
6:19 pm
April 20, 2019
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Bill said
$200+ per month for 11 year-olds' allowance these days?! Is that the going rate these days?!
Kamwest is very generous. My future kids could only be so lucky
4:45 am
December 20, 2019
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It's really only $100 per month which is $25 per week.
The other $100 is to teach them to save for a future car or something.
Also getting them cash cards to put it on and making them pay their own cell phone bills teaches them responsibility and prepares them to be financially responsible as they grow.
PS. We us public mobile and between bonuses, referrals, loyalty etc the kids have those plans for around 9 bucks each. My wife applies all her savings to my daughter and I apply all mine to my sons and they have really nice plans for almost free.
5:03 am
September 11, 2013
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KamWest, you said they can transfer to spending anytime, so an 11 year-old could blow $200+ per month - I'd have never left home! And, just wondering, to stay in their favour at what age is one required now to provide a smartphone to the kids?
5:44 am
December 20, 2019
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They can use their money as they like, I do not monitor their spending account the $100 in spending they can do with as they please but they have to pay $10 cell phone monthly. It gives them a bit of freedom. The savings account, my son just used some of the money to buy an aquarium, I do have to authorize what comes out of savings.
I was going to get cell phones to the kids at 13 but my son got it at 11 so I had to do the same for my girl. The phones are hand me downs from my wife and I and traditionally my son gets mine and my daughter gets my wifes. The cell phones are controlled with family link and I can turn them off with my phone. The kids have to do their chores to earn phone time and I have the peace of mind to know where they are if they go out because family link tells you where your kids are.
@Bill - you really cannot get around the phones anymore, especially in covid times, my 11 year old girl chats with her friends and I did not have the heart to say no. Times are so different now, the phones give them contact with people during isolation.
6:13 am
May 24, 2016
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Sounds like a good plan to me. Generous, but if you can afford it, why not. A lot depends on the child - I’ve got one saver and one spender - both financially schooled the same way. Good luck!
9:09 am
September 11, 2013
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KamWest, you're doing a great job of raising your kids' awareness of money stuff, as JenE indicates in the long run they'll do what they want with your guidance. And good for you with the chores, etc to earn stuff, that's valuable modelling too that some parents neglect.
I'm fully aware cell phones are not optional any more for kids unless they want to be pariahs, my grandkids are very young yet and I was just wondering at what age they now get access to the whole world and vice-versa.
9:12 am
December 20, 2019
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Yes with cell phones getting used for everything it's like a calculator, it is becoming important the kids master the skills.
The problem is most parents do not have filters and schedules on the phones when Family Link by Google is free. I can say phones off and they shut off. I can disallow sites and apps and it filters smut regardless of what network they hook into.
You can also set the age level so my son had to ask me for the next level when he turned 13.
11:04 am
April 14, 2021
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KamWest said
I was going to get cell phones to the kids at 13 but my son got it at 11 so I had to do the same for my girl. The phones are hand me downs from my wife and I and traditionally my son gets mine and my daughter gets my wifes.
You've noted that you try to treat your kids fairly and uniformly. It might be a good idea to switch with your wife every once in awhile and reverse the order of passage for phones to your son and daughter, just to be consistent. That way, no one can say anyone played favourites. 
7:41 am
December 20, 2019
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Maybe someone can help me here...
In my kids daily spending accounts what happens if my kids don't have enough money and a subscription or something hits the account. Most of my kids subscriptions (ie phone) are prepaid so I'm hoping it will just reject and no harm done but I see this in their service agreement.
Isn't the whole purpose of a spending account that you have to front load it to spend the money?
Why would there be an NSF charge? It should just reject the transaction.
I'm kind of wanting to test this but am not prepared to donate $40 bucks for the privilege.
7:47 am
December 20, 2019
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Second question
Does the wealth Simple Cash account just reject or does it charge a similar fee?
7:51 am
December 20, 2019
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Seems to defeat the entire purpose of a prepaid cash account
8:07 pm
September 28, 2023
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It's a good lesson for the youngins' on how fee-hungry the Canadian banking industry is.
If the kids can view the balance of the account on their own, I would educate them about that fee and how to avoid it, and offer to split the pain with them if they muck up. They will only lose $20 once or twice to become great budgeters I'm guessing.
If the kids have to ask you for their balance, I would have them get you to set up and take care of any recurring charges (if they are video gamers that industry is quickly going subscription crazy). It would be really hard for them to try and avoid NSF's if they can't view their balance while out and about. You could deduct the recurring amounts from their allowance so they still learn to budget around monthly charges.
I would maybe see if any credit unions in your area have kid's accounts... I guess it's old fashioned now, but I still remember trips up to the teller desk to deposit my money earned doing odd jobs for neighbors and seeing the balance grow on the receipts.
Great work on your setup, learning how to handle money digitally is a great skill to learn... my folks would keep cutting up the ATM cards that RBC would send, and when I got my first credit card, I got a fast lesson on compound interest acting against me.
7:55 am
July 15, 2022
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KamWest said
Second questionDoes the wealth Simple Cash account just reject or does it charge a similar fee?
I just googled Wealthsimple NSF and this is what it says:
NSF (non-sufficient funds)
In order to ensure your deposit does not get rejected, make sure you have enough money in your bank account to cover the total of your deposit before you submit it. If you do not have enough funds in your bank account, or if funds are added to your account after submitting the deposit request, you will incur an NSF rejection.
We don't charge you anything for NSF rejections, however, your bank may charge you when they occur. Unfortunately, we are not able to reimburse NSF fees charged by your bank if the deposit was made in error.
8:22 am
December 20, 2019
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Yes so you see the PC NSF fee is bogus because it's basically a debit card. Anywhere else if you have not enough funds in your account the system basically says insufficient funds and the charge is refused with no fees to the user.
PC Financial automatically adds overdraft protection on accounts and charges insane interest. I removed overdraft because I simply wanted the transaction declined. Instead you now get a $40 fee on a debit transaction which is absurd.
The whole point of a pre paid card is so you can only spend what is on the card, it should auto reject if more.
I was going to use my card for hotels, the bill is $250 and I transfer $250, now if the hotel tries to charge an extra $50 it gets rejected, except now I get a $40 NSF fee.
For the poorer people
PCFinancial is taking advantage of the poorest demographic which needs a pre paid card but then gives only an option of an insane interest charge or an insane NSF fee.
I read somewhere that the government is stepping in on NSF fees, they are absurd, its basically no different than a visa card rejection and that is another pet peeve, you get a fee when you go over the credit limit on the regular PC Mastercard which should also just reject the transaction.
Anything to bilk the customer out of more fees, PC Financial says no fees yet the poor people (not me) needing these cards are being ripped of.
I have a good mind to chime in on the PC Reddit string to bring this to light.
12:46 pm
February 4, 2017
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My experience with PC Financial was short lived. Rude, unhelpful, and uncooperative. My wife has their CC but never again would we commit funds to their banking arm.
1:12 pm
September 28, 2023
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The PC Money account was one of the first all in one prepaid card bank accounts, but competition has outvalued it in nearly every way.
The PC credit card is only worth it if you do a lot of grocery shopping at Loblaws grocer along with gassing up at Esso/Mobil.
Also, if the rewards points are tied to a specific program (PC pts, Aeroplan, Avion, Scene, etc) I need a higher reward rate to offset the flexibility lost as compared to cash back.
Since I don't have a Loblaws grocer close to me, the PC offerings are not enticing.
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Back to the NSF discussion, I find it kind of predatory that banks charge these fees on the transactions. In my mind, PC (or other banks) should just accept or reject the billers preauthorized withdrawal without fee (just as debit/credit cards do at any ATM or POS). It would then be up to the biller (cellphone company, etc) to charge the customer a penalty for failed billing if they choose to do so... but I guess this mindset is why I will never be located in a corner office high up in a tower on Bay street.
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