Just to get a break from Icesave......What features would you like on online Accounts

grnglide

Unfortunately what I want from an internet savings institution is exactly what IceSave provided.

Simple single immediate access account, immediate access ISA and range of term accounts. No "bonus" rates for the first year, interest rates stay competitive because your account doesnt become an "old" one.

And immediate opening online so you know what interest rate you get for term accounts.

Methinks those days are gone now:(

Oblivion

I will certainly add my vote for the display of the current interest rate alongside your account statement. There is absolutely no excuse for not providing this information in an online environment, and should be made compulsory. I am sick and tired of trawling around websites trying to find the latest rate for a discontinued account, quite often not finding it included at all.

I would also like to see a standardisation of the online requirements regarding proof of identity for opening a new account. It currently varies from the sublime ... simple inclusion of passport number and/or driving licence number and all done ... to the ridiculous ... having to hunt around for professionals to certify your documents and then send them off in the post, even then to often have them rejected.

Bottom line ... if it's an online account, then everything should be capable of being transacted ONLINE.

Dave.

Primrose

If we have to have call centres for online banking, I want them based in this country where I can understand what people are saying. And a swifter resonse with more staff employed would be helpful.
I totally agree about transparency regarding interest rates and would like a personal e-mail to be sent to every customer whenever the rate changes. But what I DON'T want to read is an notification saying "the interest rate on your account has changed". I want to see a statement saying "Your interest rate has INCREASED OR DECREASED."

SGE1

Icesaver wrote: »

One I feel is transparency of Interest rates. We open an account knowing it's rate but over time they change (generally downwards).

Ironically, Icesave did that quite well... you got the interest rate in the account details section every time you logged in ;-(

arjar

I've said somewhwere else that I'm really fed up with the lack of transparency, and the 'pump and dump' tactics used by most savings institutions. I suggest a concerted campaign is needed next year when the FSA assumes responsibility for regulating savings accounts, to require all deposit takers to:

a) display the current and all previous rates used to calculate interest on an account, and the periods they applied to, both online and on printed statements;
b) advertise a minimum rate of interest that they guarantee to maintain on any variable account (perhaps base rate - x). This would put an end to the extraordinarily cynical practice of introducing similarly named 'new' accounts whilst slashing the rates on existing ones - sometimes to less than 0.5%; and
c) publish at regular intervals the total deposits they hold, and the average rate they are paying across the board. The movement of this (or a similar) indicator over time would provide a very good clue about the real competativeness of various institutions over time.

Icesaver

Certainly appears that issues surrounding interest are our main concerns. I agree that Icesave were good in this direction together with their guarantees of future interest based on Bank of England rate, probably the reason so many of us invested there. Pity it all went the way it did

elektra

Jonbvn wrote: »

Being part of the faster payment system would be good.

Especially when they now come under same licence - eg B & B and Abbey.

Stompa

I'd like to be able to set it up so that the bank sends me an email immediately every time a transaction occurs on my account. Cahoot will do this, though unfortunately the email usually arrives a few days after the actual transaction.

Organic12

Completely agree on the need for interest rate transparancy. Funnily enough, I had a day off work on Friday and ended up ringing around checking the rates on a couple of my accounts. The relevant websites proved useless so I was forced to phone, press 1 for this and 9 for that, listen to hideous hold music though my call "is important" and finally speak to somone who had to look up the information themselves.

I have some accounts with A&L. If I transfer money online b/w my savings account to my current account, it clears overnight. If I phone and ask them to do it for me, it clears immediately. Why???!! When I phone them to do the transfer for me, I always get asked, "You do know you can do this online?" I've choosen online accounts so why is it quicker for me to phone?

I also always get confused by A&L's three balances that show on my current account. There's the available balance, running balance and some other one. I know the available balance includes my o/draft so I ignore that but have to guess the uncleared deposits/payments to agree the other two.

~Chameleon~

grnglide wrote: »

Unfortunately what I want from an internet savings institution is exactly what IceSave provided.

Simple single immediate access account, immediate access ISA and range of term accounts. No "bonus" rates for the first year, interest rates stay competitive because your account doesnt become an "old" one.

And immediate opening online so you know what interest rate you get for term accounts.

Methinks those days are gone now:(

I quite agree! Out of all the online accounts I have/had I found Icesave (and also KE) the easiest and most transparent to operate.

The most important change I would like to see across other accounts is, as most have already mentioned, to have the current interest rate listed somewhere prominent in your accounts. I get really fed up having to trawl lists and old rates tables trying to find the current rate, particularly with those banks that are continually opening different issues of the same account just to confuse the hell out of you :mad: