new current account

jeaniej_2

My youngest son is joining the armed forces in September. He does not have his own bank account yet. I would like some idea on the best current accounts for under 18s, he is 16 years old. I am also looking into a contract mobile phone for him any advice much appreciated.

Alias_Omega

Hello,

Welcome to the forum.

Any bank account will do really, they will issue a solo card until he is 18 years old.

Im sure mobile phone contracts wont be given until 18yrs old. If you want a mobile for him, i would recommend 02 simplicity, you pay X amount each month for a sim card, with X amount of calls and mins free. You provide the handset, and it can be cancelled with 30 days notice (runs from month to month).

If you want some more advice, there is a mobile phone & current account sections within the forum.

This is a link to the current account section..

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.html?f=20

This is a link to the mobile phone section..

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.html?f=14


Regards,

AliasOmega

HappilyMarried08

Hi,

My sister is in the RAF. I have her set up on my mobile account, as she is only 16 yrs old. They are happy for her to have a contract. It comes out of my bank and she transfers the money to me each month. This is with Orange. They give 10% off line rental for HM Forces.

Cat695

Don't get a contract phone for him....training is rife with thieves....if it gets nicked he is still paying for a phone he no longer has(yes they will make you pay till the contract ends).....get a pay as you go one and then pay for his top ups!!! they are banned from using them during the day so will be locked in his locker (a wooden box or wooden locker so easily broken into and they do often)


And don't believe for one second that he is a smart lad that will lock it away everytime.... for the first few weeks he won't have time to think or sleep or have any sort of normal life

and he will be given a bank account when he joins (abbey national) though you can get him one prior (he will need all the paperwork with him when he joins so his pay can go in it)

Please believe me when i say ( i trained recruits for 2 years and have seen it all) 16 yr olds are useless when it comes to their own personal admin when mum and dad are not around to sort them out!!!! so DO NOT get him a contract phone....you have been warned!!

CHR15

Whe I joined up Lloyds bank applications were in amongst all the other tripe like the Official Secrets Act and such.

It was the local branch which everyone joined. They were awful.
Not like the rest of the Country, these people knew just how bad we would be once we had access to money.
Cashpoints constantly swallowed our cards if we went overdrawn. Snotty letters-a-plenty, we all got them, just different names on the top.

He would be better off having his home branch back home, he may get a better level of service from a branch nowhere near a New Entry training establishment.

I agree with Cat, the phone will go missing. He will probably waste his own money on a flash one once the money comes in (and his friends want one too) so anything you buy will soon go to waste.

It will also give you something less to hassle him about for not ringing home. He will be a VERY busy man, the phonecalls home do not last long.

jeaniej_2

Thanks guys for your advice I wont be getting a contract phone.
Cat, is the theft of personal items so bad? Would it advisable for my son not to take laptop, games console or anything of any value? Does stealing of valubles happen in the initial training or is this the same throughout phase 2 as well?

CHR15

He won't have time to play on any of that stuff. Leave it all at home.

He will be given a full outfit of Kit. He won't need too much else except a few sets of clothes for weekends and evenings he gets off.

Stealing goes on everywhere, not just in training. Probably no worse than any other Gym or someplace with communal living etc.

Alias_Omega

jeaniej wrote: »

Thanks guys for your advice I wont be getting a contract phone.
Cat, is the theft of personal items so bad? Would it advisable for my son not to take laptop, games console or anything of any value? Does stealing of valubles happen in the initial training or is this the same throughout phase 2 as well?

For the first 6 weeks, his day will be something like this..

5:00am - Get up, shave, shower,dressed into rough clothes
5:30am - Off to mess for breakfast
5:45am - Return from mess
6:00am - Start to clean the toilets, showers, room, bet space.
7:00am - Start to get dressed into uniform
7:30am - Daily inspection of uniform, bed space, accomodation block
8:00am - 5:00pm ** army training**

5:30pm - Dinner from the mess
6:00pm - Change out of uniform, start washing clothes, ironing, polishing
9:30pm - Bed time for early start..

Well thats how it was in the RAF..

Cat695

Alias_Omega wrote: »

For the first 6 weeks, his day will be something like this..

5:00am - Get up, shave, shower,dressed into rough clothes
5:30am - Off to mess for breakfast
5:45am - Return from mess
6:00am - Start to clean the toilets, showers, room, bet space.
7:00am - Start to get dressed into uniform
7:30am - Daily inspection of uniform, bed space, accomodation block
8:00am - 5:00pm ** army training**

5:30pm - Dinner from the mess
6:00pm - Change out of uniform, start washing clothes, ironing, polishing
9:30pm - Bed time for early start..

Well thats how it was in the RAF..

Man i LOVE the Corp!! lol