It is the same with every bank. Sometimes they just cannot keepm up with every single transaction.

The idea is that you control your finances and not the Bank. You would know what goes into your bank account every week and month and you would know roughly what you would have available to spend once all your outgoings are taken.

From here it is a matter of simple maths to know what you have spent and what you have left to spend. If you lose track then of course you can check with the online bank or ATM but it is still up to you to note whether the payment for the late night chinese or the new laptop has been taken out or not. If it is not listed then you have to assume the payment has not been accounted for and therefore you have this sum less to spend

I do agree that if the bank can agree to the payment of something in real time using a card directly linked to a bank account then the account should reflect this immediately but it just does not always happen this way and the only solution is to carry cash so that when your wallet runs empty you know it is time to stop spending.

Carrying cash really is the only solution to the dilema.

Can anyone offer any insight into debit card payments with HSBC and whether it is the same for all banks. I have found recently that there is a delay in money coming out of my HSBC account, which causes problems because I think the cash has gone so pay for something else then both payments go at the same time and I end up in the red.

For example, I purchase something on a Friday lunch time but the money isn't debited until the following Tuesday. I appreciate it is the weekend in between but in this day and age you'd think the money would be debited the minute I make payment.

Has anyone else noticed this? Are there any suggestions for a better debit account to switch to?

Thanks.