Some of Canada's major banks experiencing online banking outages

Some of Canada’s major banks experiencing online banking outages

On Thursday morning, Canadians reported countless issues while trying to access their online banking services at a number of major financial institutions.

Issues were reported on social media by users of BMO, RBC, Scotiabank, and Desjardins Group.

Hi Valerie. We are aware of a technical issue, and we apologize for the inconvenience. We know how important accessing your account is. Rest assured that we are working to get things back online as quickly as possible. Your understanding and patience is appreciated.

^VF https://t.co/jAczEAxsKu — BMO (@BMO) July 22, 2021

BMO told one customer that they were “aware of a technical issue” and were “working to get things online as quickly as possible.”

Similarly, RBC confirmed on social media that it was dealing with technical issues earlier, although the issues have reportedly been resolved.

Earlier today, access to RBC Direct Investing was temporarily unavailable. Service has been restored. We thank you for your patience ^SB — RBC (@RBC) July 22, 2021

Canadians banking with Scotiabank also reported challenges when trying to access online banking services, although the financial institution did not appear to respond to messages on social media.

Hey @scotiabank, you experiencing server issues today? — Sean McNamara (@seanahit) July 22, 2021

Quebec-based financial institution Desjardins Group also tweeted that its online services were unavailable “due to a general breakdown.”

@DesjardinsGroup Looks like there’s an issue with the group retirement savings plan site pic.twitter.com/Mg6AQuydw2 — Sara Hill (@sarahill22) July 22, 2021

And while there were some reports of online banking services for TD being inaccessible, the financial institution stressed that they were “not aware of any current issues.”

Hi Matthew, we picked up your tweet about our online banking services! We are not aware of any current issues with TD Easyweb or the TD app. Please send us a DM to chat further and see how we can help ^GH https://t.co/ScTSvE5mvK — TD (Canada) (@TD_Canada) July 22, 2021

Hey there Ennui! We picked your tweet and we can advise that our websites are currently still up and running. If you’re running into issues with our sites, feel free to reach out and send us a DM! ^JD https://t.co/ScTSvE5mvK — TD (Canada) (@TD_Canada) July 22, 2021

At this point in time, it’s unclear what may be causing these issues across the major banks.

Daily Hive has reached out to BMO and RBC for additional comments.

TD customers take to social media to express outrage over login issues

TD customers take to social media to express outrage over login issues

A number of Toronto-Dominion customers took to social media Friday to report problems accessing their online banking accounts and issues with the mobile app.

The bank said on Twitter Friday at 4.pm. EST that the issue is now resolved.

The technical issue we were experiencing today with our online and mobile banking channels has been resolved. Once again, we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. — TD (Canada) (@TD_Canada) January 31, 2020

“We are aware that some customers are having issues logging into EasyWeb and our mobile app. We are working to resolve and apologize for any inconvenience,” the bank wrote three hours earlier.

A service interruption notice on TD’s EasyWeb login page said only a small percentage of customers were disrupted. However, some customers claimed the issue were more widespread, with some reporting problems logging into the trading platform as well.

So How are we going to be compensated? I have not been able to log into my account nor web broker to trade. Since you take significant service fees for holding my money, I’m sure when the service fails you will address it accordingly. — Hmmmmmm (@Socabouy) January 31, 2020

I was offered $10. The operator stated that he fought for that money for me. Complete joke — Raw_b (@Rawb2tanks) January 31, 2020

It’s everywhere, affecting everyone - including access to their #webbroker platform — a lot of money is being lost by people who can’t trade in their portfolios.

“small percentage” = TD lie. pic.twitter.com/udk9eRkMJ5 — CT (@ThisIsTheTaxman) January 31, 2020

You’re not the only one ghosting companies that don’t do digital well

In a Leger poll conducted on behalf of TD, nearly two-thirds (63%) of respondents say they are shopping online more frequently than ever before, even though about the same number (66%) rarely made digital purchases pre-COVID and preferred in-person shopping. What’s more, 81% expect the businesses they support to adjust to meet their digital needs, and 84% won’t hesitate to take their dollars elsewhere if they have a poor digital experience with a company or service provider.

In short, the pandemic is forcing consumers to re-evaluate who they do business with based on the quality of an organization’s digital offerings. And, given that these new digital habits are likely here to stay—72% of Canadians polled say they expect to spend more time in the coming year engaging with companies remotely and ordering items online—businesses and service providers must invest in their digital platforms if they want to retain their customers.

What Canadian consumers want

Organizations that want an edge with consumers should pay attention to what Canadians value most when engaging with a company online. According to the TD survey, that means an easy-to-use website (cited by 73% of respondents), transaction confirmations (69%), and tracking/shipping status updates (65%).

More specifically, 87% say they want to receive an order confirmation via email or text message within the hour of purchase and shipping, and tracking information sent quickly thereafter; 81% want a thank-you email or text message with confirmation the product has been delivered/is ready for pickup; and 76% want to get a digital receipt via email or text message.

Other critical factors cited by at least half the respondents include fast shipping/delivery (64%), good/easy return policies (64%); a website with good searchability (58%); and easy access to customer support (52%).

As for what a company should avoid in a digital strategy: Telephone feedback surveys and electronic reminders to leave a review (on Google, Yelp, Facebook, etc.) were definite no-nos for 81% and 71% of respondents, respectively.

Digital offerings from TD

None of these survey findings are lost on TD, which has been a pioneer in the financial services sector in terms of implementing client-focused technologies.

“Our goal has always been to innovate in ways that empower our customers with highly personalized, digital experiences,” says Rizwan Khalfan, Chief Digital & Payments Officer, TD Bank Group. “In many ways, COVID-19 accelerated the digital journey we were already on. Our strong digital foundation made it possible for us to pivot quickly when our customers needed us most and we were able to triple our digital capacity for customer-facing capabilities.”