Best bank in the uk?

Question

i need to change banks !

Answer 1

LloydsTSB.

Answer 2

Bit of a clumsy question because you haven't said what you want out of your bank plus there really is no "best" bank - they all have their positives and all have their weaknesses.

If you are mostly overdrawn, then take a look at the Alliance & Leicester Premier Direct Account. This usually gives you £1000 interest free for a year, before it starts charging 5.9%. You need to be earning a minimum of £6,300 per year to open this account (and probably a relatively good credit rating). It also pays a very good 6.5% interest when your account is in credit.

Always in credit? Then look at the Halifax High Interest Current Account which pays 6.17% interest. You must make payments into your account of £1000 or more per month to get this interest rate. Also gives you a £100 account opening bonus after two months assuming you have paid in the £1k per month.

Abbey does an 8% interest Current Account, but this high rate only lasts a year. Like all high interest current accounts, you usually MUST pay in £1000 or more per month to get the high interest rate. Fall below this and it will revert to nominal.

To be honest, I would be VERY suspicious of high interest current accounts (which come with "bonuses" like a free £100) - I just can't help thinking that it is attracting a large number of customers and then in a year or two they will start charging a yearly fee to all of these accounts (and hope you stay with them) so that they can rake back the bonus payments and the high interest they have paid out.

This is why the nominal charging banks (like Barclays - 0.05% per year) have said they will NOT look into charging customers a fee on their current account, which is why they have not jumped onto the high interest bandwagon.

In the short term, the banks are making a loss with their high interest, bonus-giving accounts. But they know when they start charging a yearly fee (which I think they inevitably will) they will get back all of the losses from the bonus payments and the high interest.

So you can't really win. Best bet?

Go with a nominal paying current account and shove your savings into a specific savings account. Chances are, all of the 1% and less paying banks will remain fee free and all of the banks charging more then 3% interest per year will start charging a fee in a year or two. First Direct was the first bank to "test" the waters - and you can bet a large number of other banks will be jumping on the bandwagon.

Also, the smaller banks - like the building societies - can have "problems" processing things like cheques, which is probably due to having far fewer staff. The larger banks are just greedy but generally are not as bad as people make out.

I have been with Barclays now for a number of years and apart from a S**t interest rate, I have never had a problem with them. In fact, they have impressed me, letting me know almost straight away when my debit card was fradulently used - and sorted it all out straight away including writing off the loss so that I didn't lose a penny. Plus their internet banking is recognised as one of the best out there (it is very good) so I don't really have any real reason to move. As they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

If i have any money floating around, it goes straight into my savings account. Otherwise, high interest current accounts are capped at about £2500 per year, so the most you will ever make is £120 per year after tax, which hardly makes it worth it when:

1. A high interest savings account could earn you more

2. Chances are these accounts will be charged a yearly fee in the near future (and that high interest rate will be reverted back to nominal again).

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

hsbc offer most deals, and provide higher interest than ne 1 else,

hope i could help :o)

Answer 4

dont know

Answer 5

Don't go to Abbey. I'm away to cancel my account with them. Was a nightmare to open an account, even more of a nightmare trying to make an appointment about my account. They cancelled my appointment and didn't even tell me. Not even when I was sitting there.

Answer 6

sorry none of them???

Answer 7

The Nationwide is pretty good.