Just opened one - attracted by interest rate. BUT:
1) It takes about 25 minutes to get through to someone on the phone with a query. 2) You can only deposit on-line via direct debit - ie you must suck from a nominated account. You cannot generate a BACS to "push" it in - you cannot specify a sort code and account number and transfer in from another organisation.Any ideas why this would be - seems to be a shortcoming to me.
It's much the same on Nationwide's Esavings account. You can only transfer back and forth to your 'normal' flexaccount and you can only do it from th website. i dont' find any problem with it; I use the normal accoutn as a staging place for BACS etc.
I guess it keeps their costs down and enables them to keep the rates higher.
Robert
So they can proclaim high interest rates without many taking advantage of them?
Tiddy Ogg.
It's also more secure - even if a third party gains access to your account, they can't do much damage.
Although transfers between Flex and Esavings are instant. Is there a B&B "current" account? I assume that DD and BACS take about the same length of time to process (once the DD is set up of course.) Tesco savings accounts also use(d) the DD method.
I can't see how it is more secure - please can you explain why you think it is.
Because they could only transfer money between your own accounts. They can't move it to their own. So they're not likely to bother as there's no profit.
Icesave does exactly the same thing.
I'd guess it's so they can have all the information if/when people complain about payments going missing.
Otherwise they'd get situations where someone transfers money in but gets the details wrong and then Icesave are blamed for losing money that goes out of one account but never arrives in the Icesave account.
Not that money still can't go missing, but much like a passbook driven savings account where it isn't possible to do anything to the account without presenting the passbook, it's not possible to do anything to an Icesave account without Icesave being aware.
Tim.
I still do not understand - I think you are wrong.
How can a third party being able to transfer money into a named/numbered/and known account be a security risk to anyone?
judithorpete wrote: ...
I'm thinking more of withdrawals - my own on-line savings accounts (all of them) only allow money transfers between that account and a specific nominated bank account, in either direction. So a third party cannot withdraw money even in principle.
As for deposits, that's perhaps more subtle. I imagine having large unidentified and unaccountable sums deposited to one's savings account might cause embarrassment to some.
Also means that they don't have to worry about money laundering checks as the money can only come from a nominated account the financial institution hosting that account would have the onus of monitoring deposits etc..
Regards
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