Should I stay or move?

Moved from Nat West at least 10 years ago after banking with them (at different branches) for about 40 years- I decided I needed to be rewarded for keeping a generous amount of money in my a/c. Loyalty certainly does not pay.

Since then have been with Intelligent Finance (when there was decent interest to be had) and then moved to Halifax- nice little £5 (x2) per month now sadly reduced to £3 (but still x 2)

Back in the days I only had one current account but now I play the switch game or have opened those that give interest.

If you bank with any of the big banks you are covered if they go bust. (I forget the new limits but they are high.) It's now considered better to spread the load a bit too in case there is a technological blip with online / card transactions meaning you cannot access any of your cash.

I would open a second 'donor' account and groom that for a switch that will give you a cash gift. Then switch the main a/c too but to a different provider giving another monetary welcome pack.
There are several deals for new customers listed including TSB & M&S. Nationwide has the £100 gift with a referral plus 5% on £2.5k interest for a year.

Rollers_63 wrote: »

I perhaps have been stuck in one of those "it works so I will carry on using it" scenarios without considering or looking for anything else. Katie Hound makes a good valid point about spreading the load and not putting all your eggs in one basket.

Having more than one current account is useful. You can use multiple accounts to exceed the £300 day limit for example.

As for being less vulnerable. You are in one way, because you're likely to have access to at least one account. However having multiple accounts and transferring money round to meet funding requirements leaves you more vulnerable. If each bank has a problem once a year, then someone with 1 account will have a problem once a year. Someone with 2 accounts will have a problem twice a year etc. If you have 8 then you have to be really committed to what you're doing.

Rollers_63 wrote: »

I have been with my bank Natwest, for 37 years. Not had any real big issues apart from the occasional blip with their cards not going through for customers, but then again most banks have the occasional problem.
There is a lot of news around about RBS and losses after their bail out and PPI fines etc, and I can't help but wonder that there are banks out there in a much better financial shape for the future. I am considering a change for pastures new but wonder if it is just a case of the grass is greener. Has anyone made the switch and found life on the other side to be better? The long term sustainability and efficiency of my bank is always a consideration.
Thanks for your anticipated thoughts.

I have had an account with RBS for donkey's years and I'm closing it - I have just opened a new account with Bank of Scotland. I'm not closing the RBS one because of their financial state, simply to get interest and cashback on my account! (that was not my original plan, but the account I was offered had me do a rethink)

Is Bank of Scotland better? Well they pay me interest on my balance, I can earn cashback on things I buy. RBS pays nothing, so on the face of it, Bank of Scotland is better. If you live in England, have a look at Halifax which I believe is a trading name of Bank of Scotland. I think they offer very similar accounts.

As for RBS and their finances, that for me is not a factor in deciding whether to move. Your money is safe as the first £85K is covered by the UK savings guarantee, so anything you have above that needs to be with a different bank - but check as some banks share licences so the 85K is covered for the group. For example, Bank of Scotland and Halifax share a licence, so it's 85K over the two brands. Lloyds has a different licence even though all 3 are part of the Lloyds Banking Group, so it has a separate 85K guarantee.

RBS is a big bank, at the moment backed by the Government so it's in no danger of collapsing. Also, if everyone left RBS, that would effectively close it down making the situation worse as the taxpayer would be hit with the costs. I'd think that's a shame for all the branch level staff who are usually a pleasure to talk to. I wouldn't have much sympathy for the big bosses though!