Switching banks will be easier in future. Rival banks will have to forward clients' information, including debit orders and Fica status, to the new bank without cost.
This recommendation, similar to the recently introduced changes in the cellphone industry allowing you to keep you number when you change companies, was made by the Competition Commission Banking Inquiry report released last week.
This, together with the fact that the commission is encouraging a comparison of bank fees, means customers can simply leave their banks if they're unhappy with their charges and move somewhere cheaper.
Ombudsman for Banking Clive Pillay said banks were very unco-operative when customers wanted to move "from bank A to bank B".
"They place a lot of obstacles in the way. They won't move information to the other bank," said Pillay.
The ombudsman said he received a number of complaints about the people switching banks and this proposal was "a good thing".
Another positive move would be the establishment of a central Fica (Financial Intelligence Centre Act) database. Pillay said this would save a lot of time for people moving banks.
And customers who are shopping around for a better banking deal will be able to compare services and fees with a centralised calculator service.
The commission said the calculator should be easily accessible. Potential customers should be able to input their own requirements - with assistance if necessary - and get free information about which bank would meet their specific needs.
Another bold proposal is that the minister of trade and industry should allow comparative advertising. Comparative advertising is prohibited by South African laws on the use of trade marks.
Although the commission's report only contains recommendations, it said that if after two or three years these recommendations had not been implemented or implemented badly, the commission would revisit the idea of obliging banks to provide basic banking products.
"This would enable customers to compare prices and choose their bank accordingly this in turn would intensify price competition," the report said.
Pillay said although they could expect fewer complaints relating to people switching banks, the role of the ombudsman would be expanding to include enforcement and monitoring of compliance with the proposed codes of conduct for information disclosure and switching.
He said they would be busier, but it was a "good" busy. "It is good to be busy with something constructive."
However, South Africans eagerly awaiting paying lower bank charges will have a long wait before they have more cash in their pockets.
While some of the recommendations, like pricing information and using "plain language", would be relatively easy to implement, others require changes in the law. And Parliament is already oversubscribed with legislation until after the election next year.
The R5 cap on dishonoured debits could take longer to implement as it would have to be imposed under amendments to existing legislation or first be investigated by the minister of trade and industry.
Permitting banks to compare their prices in advertisements will also take some time as it is currently not allowed in South Africa.