A strange thing has happened in the last few days. I went to withdraw £10,000 cash from my HSBC account in Swindon which is in credit by about £50,000

However, HSBC will not let me take out anything over £1,000 cash over the counter. I gave them warning, but they say they must know what I will use it for - they want to see evidence of hotel bookings etc.

In short, they refuse to give me my cash. HSBC say it is new internal rules to help prevent money laundering. But for example, what if I want to buy a £5,000 car? It said I’d have to put down a deposit and show them the receipt first.

Cash block: Can HSBC refuse to issue large sums of my money over the counter?

I find this outrageous and an invasion of privacy – why do HSBC get to decide what I do with my money?

In the meantime I can take out only £1,000 per day until I shut my account which I shall do and all that time they will be investing my money and gaining interest from it. P.H.D, via e-mail.



Lee Boyce from This is Money says: It would be logical for a bank to have a cap on the amount you can withdrawal over the counter without notice – if dozens of people went in asking for large sums, especially in smaller branches, they would risk running out of cash stocks.

Calling up a day in advance and giving notice of the amount of cash needed, then entering the branch with a passport and another form of ID should be sufficient. However, in your case, Swindon branch staff have not allowed this and wanted more information.

I understand you feeling that it’s your money and that you should be able to have access to it how you see fit.



But I can also understand HSBC doing what it can to prevent fraud – there has been a rise in the number of sophisticated scams duping people out of their money in recent times.

Last year saw the rise of courier scams which work by hoodwinking customers into withdrawing money from their bank – and handing it over to a fraudster pretending to represent the bank.

However, if you give sufficient notice and want a large sum of cash out and can prove who you are surely the bank has to give it you? It is your money after all.

I asked HSBC if this is the case and whether its policy has changed.

A spokesman from HSBC said: ‘We may ask about the purpose of a cash withdrawal when the transaction is large, unusual and out of keeping with the normal running of a customer’s account.

‘In these instances we may also ask the customer to show us evidence of what the cash is required for. The reason for this is twofold, as a responsible bank we have an obligation to our customers to protect them, and to minimise the opportunity for financial crime.

‘Transactions involving large sums of cash have inherent security issues and leave customers with very little protection should things go wrong.

‘So it’s only correct that, when appropriate, we ask customers the right questions and explore whether an alternative payment method might be safer and more convenient for them.

‘There is no restriction on the amount a customer can to withdraw from their accounts electronically, via cheque or banker's draft.’



