Booked a Nano in 10 minutes

Having caught the Nano fever from my parents (Read my previous blog - Mom wants a Nano (more than my dad), I too decided to book one Tata Nano for the family and to improve my chances at the 'lottery'.

But I have always dreaded to go to a bank especially to apply for a loan. On Wednesday my fears were all laid to rest when I stepped into SBI for a loan for Tata Nano. The procedure for applying for a loan was simple and just took me 10 min.

Here's what to do to book Nano in 10 minutes:

1. Carry Nano booking form.
2. Carry a PAN card Xerox, a salary certificate from your company, a photograph and a cancelled cheque of your savings account.
3. Go to Manager with these documents and fill up the way he tells you.
4. Next go to cash counter with Rs. 4,200 that includes stamp paper duty and processing fee.
5. Bring acknowledgment slip to the manager for the stamp paper to go along with your loan form.
6. Complete the processing by signing the form where ever Manager tells you.

The loan application form and booking forms were collected by the Bank’s manager and it was over in a matter of some 2 dozen signatures. With the bank giving me a 100% loan I had nothing to worry about. Whats more, my EMI will not start till allotments are announced after 90 days.

I was flummoxed for a bit as I continued to sit there in front of the manager even after he handed over the acknowledgment, expecting some more paperwork to be carried on.

Full marks to SBI (St. Marks Road) who have set up a special cell for Tata Nano and helped a customer like me to get hassle free loan. Contrary to other banks this bank was not at all crowded at around 3 pm (despite being a zonal branch) and I quickly made my way to cash counter. The staff was courteous and I wondered why they don’t have such breed in private banks where one doesn’t even get a smile from the executive.

In fact the contrast is too sharp between SBI and ICICI Bank which I happened to visit on the same day. Even with no queue I had to take a token and wait for my chance for atleast 8 minutes. Applying for a new cheque book at ICICI Bank took me double the time of what I took for applying for a car loan in SBI.

Who would’ve thought private banks would be more impersonal than public sector banks. Well, I got my proof in the pudding when I ate it.

Incidentally, my mother did stick to her resolution of booking a Nano and paid for the booking amount on her own (without a loan from the bank). Refer to -- Mom wants a Nano (More than my Dad) for the back story.