Why Is There a Fee to Withdraw an Online Collection?

At Viing, we believe fees should be simple, transparent and only charged when they are genuinely necessary.

That is why creating a collection is free, contributors are never charged, and we do not deduct anything from the pot while it is being collected.

In fact, most Viing collections can be completed without any platform fee at all.

The only time we charge a processing fee is when money is withdrawn from the pot and transferred to a bank account. Here is why.

Bank transfers are an important option

Every collection is different.

Some organisers want to choose a gift, voucher or printed group card. Others would prefer to transfer the money to the recipient or withdraw it to purchase something themselves.

We want Viing to remain flexible enough to support all of these choices.

Providing bank transfers comes with real costs. Payments must be collected, processed, safeguarded and transferred securely using regulated payment providers. There are also operational, security and compliance requirements involved in offering this service responsibly.

Without a processing fee, we would not be able to continue offering bank transfers as an option.

We would rather give organisers that choice than remove it altogether.

We only charge when we need to

Viing’s 5% processing fee only applies when money is withdrawn to a bank account.

There are no fees for:

• Creating a collection

• Contributing to a collection

• Sending the funds as Viing Credit

• Choosing a gift or voucher from Viing

Printed cards and ViingBoards have their own clearly displayed product prices, while physical gifts include standard delivery in the product price.

You always know what an option will cost before confirming it.

Other platforms may describe their collections as “free”

When comparing online collection platforms, it is important to look beyond the word “free”.

Some other platforms may describe their service as free while recovering their costs through the way the pot is spent. Fees, deductions or margins may be built into products, vouchers, exchange rates, recipient options or other parts of the service.

In some cases, a charge may apply regardless of what the organiser ultimately chooses to do with the money.

Viing takes a different approach.

We do not automatically take a percentage from every collection. We only charge a processing fee when money is withdrawn to a bank account and the associated costs arise.

If you choose another way to use the pot, such as selecting a gift, voucher or sending Viing Credit, the bank-transfer fee does not apply.

We believe this is a fairer and more transparent way to operate. You can see the available options clearly and make an informed choice without hidden deductions or unexpected charges.

Established since 2015

Viing has been helping people collect money and messages together since 2015.

That history matters.

When you organise a collection, you are asking friends, relatives, parents or colleagues to contribute money. They need to feel confident that the service is legitimate, established and able to handle their contributions responsibly.

Viing is not a temporary collection page or an untested service. We have years of experience supporting group collections for workplaces, schools, families and communities across the UK.

Over that time, people have trusted Viing to help them mark birthdays, retirements, leaving occasions, teacher gifts, celebrations and many other important moments.

Our experience has helped us build a service designed around security, transparency and flexibility.

Your money is handled securely

We understand that trust is especially important when people are collecting money on behalf of a group.

Viing works with regulated payment providers to process payments and transfers securely. The funds cannot be used until the occasion has ended, and safeguards are in place to help protect collections and reduce the risk of fraud or unauthorised activity.

We also take our responsibility to organisers and contributors seriously. Offering a reliable collection service involves secure technology, payment processing, fraud prevention, customer support and ongoing compliance.

Our aim is to make the experience feel simple for the customer while managing these important responsibilities behind the scenes.

Think of it as the cost of making everything easier

Organising a collection manually can mean:

• Sharing personal bank details

• Chasing people for payments

• Checking who has contributed

• Keeping track of messages

• Matching names to bank transfers

• Coordinating everything through a busy group chat

Viing brings the money, contributions and personal messages together in one place.

Contributors can take part quickly, while the organiser can see everything clearly without repeatedly chasing the group.

Because contributing is so straightforward, organisers often find that more people participate and that the final pot is significantly larger than it might have been through cash or manual bank transfers.

The fee does not simply cover moving money from one account to another. It supports the secure and convenient service that makes the whole collection easier to organise.

Honest, flexible and transparent

We want Viing to be a service people can trust.

That means:

• Contributors are never charged

• We do not take money from every pot

• Fees are shown clearly before you confirm

• You remain free to decide how the money is used

• We use regulated payment providers

• We only charge where there is a genuine cost to providing the service

Bank transfers may not be the right choice for every collection, but we believe they should remain available for the people who need them.

By charging only when a bank transfer is selected, we can continue offering that flexibility while keeping the rest of the Viing experience as accessible and cost-effective as possible.

We would rather be open about the fee than describe everything as free while recovering the cost elsewhere.

That is part of being an honest, established and transparent service.

Bring people together, collect money and messages in one place, and choose what works best for your occasion—with no hidden surprises.