Which bank?

In the last month or so I have been seriously thinking of changing banks due to issues which i've not been happy with with my current bank - Abbey.

I have been with Abbey for over 10 years and have found that they have gone downhill over the last few years. I've never really had to go to a branch or use their telephone banking service as I do everything online. A few months back I had to resort in calling their telephone banking service as they failed to send me a letter informing me that my multifunction card was due to expire and that a new card was at my dedicated branch - this in fact was the second year running that this has happened.

The call centre I spoke to is based in India where I found that the advisor who i spoke to had no clue on what to do and couldn't answer certain questions i asked. He couldn't even tell me if my card was actually at the branch. There I went to my branch where they couldn't find the card and had asked me to call the lost cards section to cancel my 'new card'. Eventually they did find the card where to me they seem to be very disorganised.

Looking at several money sites I see that the Alliance & Leicester have a premier bank account on a 5% interest rate. I credit my account with more than 1500 per month and never go overdrawn.

I would prefer to have an account with a high interest rate, call centres in the UK abd have online banking facilities.

Has anybody got experiences with A&L and would you recommend them or are there other Banks that can be recommended?

TIA

Pedge

Reply to
Pedge
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Customer service is rubbish and the rates on savings have just dropped so I guess the current account wont be far behind.

Woowich seem ok and the online banking is one of the best.

Reply to
Jo

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I am happy with Smile, prefer them to Alliance and Leicester who I was with previously.

Reply to
John

First Direct

Reply to
Snuggles

Hardly surprising.

They are stupid... I got letters complaining that I was not paying in a monthly sum into my account... despite the fact that I had more than 10K in my account at the time.

They are idiots and not to temper my words, wankers.

Move elsewhere.

Axel

Reply to
axel

I'm with the Halifax, and happy with them. Good online banking, and their call centre staff know their stuff. For example - I wanted to open an account. They offered to either post the forms out to me, or to make an appointment for me at a branch (and they could confirm that the branch had an appointment slot open then), despite it being well past closing time for the branch, about 8PM IIRC. And the appointment had been booked when I turned up at the branch the next day :-)

Reply to
Simon Finnigan

Natwest?

They have Online Banking - which I fidn OK (you might be able to demo it first) Cal centres are CURRENTLY in the UK and staff have been very helpful everytime I have needed them...

Reply to
mo

In article , Pedge writes

FWIW we're with Barclays and are fed up with their antics. Anyone recommend a bank thats good for small business, and has a good online bank facility?.

Who also can understand the needs of a small business;-)....

Reply to
tony sayer

I have had plenty of luck with the Bank of Scotland for the last 20 years. Their charges are not the lowest but the service has always made up for it. The Online banking is fine and if they manage to stay away from the Halifax side of things they should be fine for the future (I hope)

Hope this helps

Andy

Reply to
me

Please no!! IME they have the most disjointed approach to customer service I've ever experienced. I moved my accounts from NW to First Direct 6 or 7 years ago, my wife did the same 2 or 3 years back, and my parents 4-ish.

To say that NatWest and First Direct are worlds apart, would be putting it politely IMO. "There is another way" - oh the irony!!

Rgds

Jon.

Reply to
Jon Pitts

A few months ago I walking into a branch of Natwest. Right in front of me was a large advert that proclaimed "You should try a different bank!"

I thought that this was quite amusing, and perhaps not the message they meant to send.

Reply to
rob

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