New Current Account - which is best??

missgiggles2008

Hi....I apologise if there has been a recent thread on this topic. I am just wondering about changing my current account and wondering what is the best one to get. I am always in credit, and rarely go overdrawn, and am favouring a main high street bank. I am with Alliance and Leicester at the moment and I am not impressed with their service I am getting.

I would quite like to get an easy account to deal with online, to transfer money etc. I might even open a savings account with the same bank if the transferring money is easy as well.

Please let me know any thoughts on this, I would be most appreciative.

KingPin_2

HSBC Bank or First Direct you can't go wrong with these

halight

I think first direct are offering £100 at the momrnt for moving to them

apt

I also like First Direct, but it is not an account to leave money in. Also First Direct no longer offer decent savings options unless you have an offset mortgage with them. If you can put put with less service than First Direct then Halifax offer decent interest on the High interest current account and some good savings options.

ragingbass

I take it you've read Martin's article on this? http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/compare-best-bank-accounts

I'd be tempted to go for the First Direct one (if you can pay in the £1500 a month) as they're offering £100 to sign up and then £100 if you want to leave later. It pays no interest but I think you can open up a linked savings account and manage moving money around online. I've heard nothing but good things about First Direct's customer service too, although I should point out that I don't bank with them currently so have no first hand experience of it

missgiggles2008

Thanks for your advice, I usually only have £1000 a month to put in, so would this affect the £100??

also what did you mean £100 to leave later? they PAY you for leaving if you choose to do that??

Am torn now between HSBC and the First Direct - I have read the article on the website but still unsure. Signed up to Alliance and Leicester for the £100 incentive, but they have been really difficult to deal with - enough for me to move banks!

apt

I'm not that keen on Martin's current account article because it ignores customer service and emphasises what will make customers the most amount of money in the short-term. While it is certainly possible to change your current account every year there are many practical disadvantages to this and most people would be well-advised to have at least one current account which they are happy with and keep over the longer term. Which one this is will be depend on circumstances. Some particularly value the service at First Direct or Smile. If you use a lot of foreign currency transactions Nationwide is a good choice, for credit interest Halifax has been better than Alliance and Leicester over the long term etc. etc.

missgiggles2008

Yeah....I see what you mean. I have my current account with Nationwide that I will always keep open for those foreign transactions and I also think they are really good - never had a problem with them.

I have very few standing orders etc, because I live at home. I just want to get a good deal with one bank and settle with them. Now I only use my nationwide for online survey money etc. I would like an account where it offers an incentive, as I have a £490 overdraft I am trying to clear, fortunately again this is interest free.

I would never bank with alliance and leicester again as it has such poor customer service. An clear, online banking current account is also one of my preferentials.

ragingbass

For the First Direct offer, it's part of the t&c's that you'd need to pay in £1500 a month to qualify for the £100. Also, if you don't transfer that much in then I think they'd want to charge you £10 a month for the account. So all in all, it doesn't sound like the right one for you. If you did want to check it out it's on http://www.firstdirect.com/1st-account/overview.shtml?WT.ac=BA0366.

Abbey are also doing a bonus £100 for switching, but as you're current experience with A&L isn't great then I think it'd be more of the same given they're both now owned by Santander.

I'd have a look at Halifax's High Interest current account. They're not doing any bonus cash sign ups at the minute, but if you pay in £1000 a month then you get a good interest rate of 5.12% AER. I've also had no problems with their customer service

missgiggles2008

Thanks very much. What about Lloyds?? No one has really mentioned them?

ShelfStacker_3

apt wrote: »

I'm not that keen on Martin's current account article because it ignores customer service and emphasises what will make customers the most amount of money in the short-term.

While I agree with you, remember that the site is entitled MoneySavingExpert - the overall ambition is to get the cheapest stuff and the highest rates of interest possible, and !!!!!! everything else. This of course leads to companies offering unsustainably high interest rates and poor service like Halifax, Abbey and Alliance and Leicester getting recommended highly over everything else, but that's just a natural product of what the site aims for.

Like I say, I don't agree with it, but if you wanted a truly fair balance of value for money and service you'd go somewhere like Ciao for a recommendation, or look at some of the threads here.