£100 for joining Alliance + Leicester

CowboyChic

Some of my experiences with A&L, the account and this offer...

My partner and I both switched our current accounts as per instructions (one referring the other) back in August, and neither of us has received £100 or the £25 for referring.

They managed to screw up the switching service spectacularly, the whole thing was a mess. You have no idea what's going on and why DD have disappeared from the old account but not yet appear in the listings for the new one. Worst of all my mortgage went unpaid as A&L instructed my previous bank to cancel my old direct debit before the new one was set up. I have an ongoing complaint about this as not paying your mortgage is BAD! Credit rating will be affected, please be very wary of A&L switching service.

Other DDs have gone missing, and frankly their customer service is not good when you call to make an enquiry.

The internet banking is dreadful - as someone said previously you have so many pieces of 'security' information to remember to actually login, that you have to write them down. Customer number, 5 digit PIN, security picture (!)...Which kind of defeats the purpose of security!

A&L inter-bank transfers take FOREVER! With my LTSB account I could make a payment to my RBS account and it completed within seconds and was available to withdraw from RBS almost immediately. A&L takes the old fashioned 3-5 working days. Really not good considering many other banks now offer same day transfers. And not practical if you need to transfer money in a hurry (like when their switching service screws you over!).

Oh... and all that bright orange hurts your eyes!

Hopefully this helps someone decide, its only my experiences but as soon as I can i am getting the hell out of dodge and back to Lloyds.

I'd think really carefully, if i ever get my £125, it's certainly not been worth it.:undecided With 2 of us going through the switching process separately but at the same time, both having the same problems and both feeling like it was terrible, I can imagine we are not alone!

Andy_Hamilton

I contacted A&L about unpaid joining fee. They replied quickly via secure email (you have to log into your account to read it). They said it's 15 weeks from opening the account, mine was at the end of July so it should be on it's way in a couple of weeks.

They did !!!! up 2 direct debits with the switching function. One was my mortgage protection and my broadband. Both of which I have had to set up again myself.

I'm not overly struck on the bank but my £3000 interst free overdraft makes a very cheap loan for the rest of the year.

Andy_Hamilton

Woo HOO!!!!
I got paid today. £100 for very little work.

aqueoushumour01

has the £100 offer expired now? I was going to do this a while ago and never did so would serve me right if the offer has gone

Andy_Hamilton

A&L offer has finished.
First direct have copied and are now offering £100

aqueoushumour01

Andy_Hamilton wrote: »

A&L offer has finished.
First direct have copied and are now offering £100

First direct have had this offer for ages - i signd up in June.

System

Following my complaint re: A&L bouncing direct debits (details earlier in this thread) I got two letters, one saying we've done nothing wrong so tough and the other saying we're very sorry here's £50!!

I checked my account and there is indeed a credit of £50 marked as 'Ex Gratia Goodwill Payment'.

So it's worth complaining if they've messed you about but make sure you send your complaint to Group Customer Relations.

Regards
UNDERGROUND

jimbow25

I phoned them today to ask about the £100- I opened my account 15 weeks ago this week so I would have expected the incentive by now. The helpful woman on the phone agreed I'd met all the criteria so would highlight my not havign received the payment...apparently I should expect something in the post saying the money is on the way as well.

I can't say I'm particularly struck on A&L- the internet banking isn't as clear as the HSBC or Lloyds ones I've used before, and the logging seems more of a faff with all the different passcodes, reminder pictures etc. Even the paper statements are less detailed (I have 3 monthly standing orders to other accounts of mine and they all appear identical on statements- they don't print the reference).

They've not been _bad_- switching the direct debits and standing orders went without a hitch- but I might move on if and when another good offer appears.

Brummygold

I opened a premier current account up on the 21st August. On the whole i have had no problems with the switching service or direct debits transfer. My salary was transferred to the account and has been paid in twice since the account was opened. A few days ago my salary was last paid, on the same day i transfered some money online to a A&l savings account i have. The amount of money showing as availiable in my current account was enough to cover the transfer to the savings account as my salary had been paid in. I checked my online statement today and it states that i transferred the money before i was paid which shows up as a negative balance on my statement and next in line is my salary which puts my balance positive. I have still not received the £100 bonus and am expecting it anytime soon, could they use the above as a justification not to pay it to me.

Gambit

Brummygold wrote: »

I checked my online statement today and it states that i transferred the money before i was paid which shows up as a negative balance on my statement and next in line is my salary which puts my balance positive.

I've noticed this before with another bank account I had as it seems some banks put the debits first followed by the credits instead of the order in which the transactions were made. It's a bit crafty really but that's the reason why now I never transfer money out of my current account until the day after my salary gets paid in...just in case!

Have you contacted them to ask them why this was the case? As other banks (such as the co-op for example) have the right view that when the money is in your account its yours to do with as you like! You have the right to transfer it all over the same day if needed.