Banks are pressuring customers to sign the new agreements because Friday is the cutoff day for changing 50% of bank locker contracts which is causing chaos. The absence of uniformity, not only between banks but also between branches, has made the procedure difficult. Despite consumers being advised to visit and update them, many bank locker locations lack the requisite paperwork for signing the agreements. The inconsistent stamp tax denominations amongst branches in the same state have angered customers leading to chaos in bank branches.
ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, and Axis Bank branches demand a Rs. 500 stamp paper, but other public sector bank branches take a Rs. 100 stamp fee.
The RBI gave banks the directive to require customers to sign new contracts by January 2023 in response to a 2021 Supreme Court judgment. Later, the RBI requested an update to the Indian Banks Association’s model contract, extending the expiration date to December 2023. The updated agreement required banks to prevent building collapse, fire, and theft while limiting their responsibility to 100 times the yearly bank locker rent.
By the end of June 2023, the regulation required 50% of locker customers to have signed the revised contract. Agreement supplements needed to be signed by clients who had already signed their initial agreements.
Also read, World Bank President Ajay Banga Named in 2023 List of Great Immigrants.
Why there is Chaos regarding the new Bank Locker Agreements:
There is also no accepted method for determining who is responsible for paying the stamp duty. The majority of banks assume that clients will pay. SBI, however, asserted that it would pay for the supplemental agreement’s documentation costs.
When customers submit the updated locker agreement, Indian Bank offices are advised to solely collect the required stamp duty amount in accordance with state legislation, the bank replied. Customers must file a new, revised, or supplementary agreement in light of the RBI’s modifications if a modified agreement was submitted before February 28, 2023, the bank explained. In this scenario, the bank would be responsible for the stamp duty.
The bank made it clear that existing locker renters are exempt from the one-time registration cost. When customers come from beyond the area, different procedures are also followed. Mumbai native Ravi Agarwal shares lockers with his children, who reside in the US and the UK.
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