Halifax Student Account. Did you get the full £3,000 overdraft

morverngirl

Daughter was told she could have £1000. in her first year, up to £2000 in second and £3000 in third year.

melancholly

rb10 wrote: »

I really don't get what the problem is here. It's exactly the same as when MSE had a big thing about overdrafts on non-student accounts being suddenly removed: a bank can give it's customers an overdraft facility if the bank wants to.

of course they can - however if one bank is not giving out the advertised maximum amount to many students and other banks are, it's well worth knowing.

the issue with removed overdrafts was also a specific problem with HSBC - other banks were honouring their promises to reduce the interest free overdraft over a period of 3 years after graduation but HSBC suddenly changed it's mind (and gave very little notice, which was particularly rubbish!).

when students are deciding what student account to pick, this kind of information is pretty important - i don't know how anyone could even dispute that?!

Lokolo

melancholly wrote: »

of course they can - however if one bank is not giving out the advertised maximum amount to many students and other banks are, it's well worth knowing.

the issue with removed overdrafts was also a specific problem with HSBC - other banks were honouring their promises to reduce the interest free overdraft over a period of 3 years after graduation but HSBC suddenly changed it's mind (and gave very little notice, which was particularly rubbish!).

when students are deciding what student account to pick, this kind of information is pretty important - i don't know how anyone could even dispute that?!

rb10 wasn't talking about student overdrafts being taken away. There are a lot of threads in Current Accounts and Budgeting with people complaining that their overdrafts (as in normal ones) have been taken away for X reasons. Then MSE started a whole thread saying "Has your overdraft been taken away? Completely unfair blah blah blah" like this one.

Although its beyond me why some people need £3k overdraft.

mark_dumpleton

Exactly! My point from the news article is that, when asked if my name could be used, I want other students to know that it seems highly unlikely that they will get anywhere near the £3000 overdraft.

It's especially important for students going into their second year of uni. I had to pay a £300 deposit on my house for the next academic year a couple of months back, and on the 1 July I need to pay nearly £900 rent for the summer months, plus bills etc.
The way this works is that when I get my first student loan payment in September, it would pay for the next installment of rent etc as well as 'paying off' the rent for the summer. It's not as easy as everyone thinks to get a part time job, especially if you go back home to a really small countryside town in the summer!

Just to let you all know, as some of you wondered about my circumstances:
- Customer for 12 years, parents customers for over 30
- Had £100 overdraft with them in current account since 16, no problems paying it, mostly in credit in a/c
- Experian credit check came back perfect
- On electoral roll at home, etc so identity can be confirmed
- Mobile contract held for a year and a half, paid in full by DD each month
- Number of DD's on my account, paid in full each month

It's not that I can't get the full £3000, it's that both I (and it seems many others!) cannot get more than £1750, when it's needed for the summer and moving into new housing etc; and it's for the better of new students starting this year to learn that they will probably get nowhere near the advertised £3000 limit!

Lokolo

mark_dumpleton wrote: »

Exactly! My point from the news article is that, when asked if my name could be used, I want other students to know that it seems highly unlikely that they will get anywhere near the £3000 overdraft.

It's especially important for students going into their second year of uni. I had to pay a £300 deposit on my house for the next academic year a couple of months back, and on the 1 July I need to pay nearly £900 rent for the summer months, plus bills etc.
The way this works is that when I get my first student loan payment in September, it would pay for the next installment of rent etc as well as 'paying off' the rent for the summer. It's not as easy as everyone thinks to get a part time job, especially if you go back home to a really small countryside town in the summer!

Just to let you all know, as some of you wondered about my circumstances:
- Customer for 12 years, parents customers for over 30
- Had £100 overdraft with them in current account since 16, no problems paying it, mostly in credit in a/c
- Experian credit check came back perfect
- On electoral roll at home, etc so identity can be confirmed
- Mobile contract held for a year and a half, paid in full by DD each month
- Number of DD's on my account, paid in full each month

It's not that I can't get the full £3000, it's that both I (and it seems many others!) cannot get more than £1750, when it's needed for the summer; and it's for the better of new students starting this year to learn that they will probably get nowhere near the advertised £3000 limit!

A few points:

a) You cannot get an overdraft under 18. It is illegal.
b) Summer job? I earnt just under £2k over summer. My friend got just over £2.5k.
c) I don't see you complaining to the lottery about their advertising of winning a £110 million jackpot... Thats got even less odds!

mark_dumpleton

Lokolo wrote: »

A few points:

a) You cannot get an overdraft under 18. It is illegal.
b) Summer job? I earnt just under £2k over summer. My friend got just over £2.5k.
c) I don't see you complaining to the lottery about their advertising of winning a £110 million jackpot... Thats got even less odds!

I don't want to get into an arguement of other peoples points here!
My mistake about the overdraft, i've had a debit card with them since I was 16, thought that my OD was also since then!

I've said about a summer job - people have different individual circumstances, and a job isn't always possible. For example, one of the reasons is that I live in a small town in the middle of the countryside when i'm at home, and would have to travel a LONG way to get anywhere, which isn't practical or really possible. This isn't about just me anyway, it's about many students and the point of this is to help new students who are going to be applying for bank accounts this summer

At least the £110 million jackpot can actually be won.

LemonTree_3

Before I've opened my student account I had already a current account with Halifax. The overdraft for this account is/was £10.000.
However, on my student account they were only willing to give me £500 overdraft in the first instance. I've asked for the £3.000 right away but I was turned down: in branch I was told that I cannot get £3.000 in my first year of holding a student account (but I was already in the 3rd year of studies (out of 4 years)).

I reckon that only very few people will get the full amount of £3.000 and I feel that Halifax should not advertised the £3.000 because they won't give it to you!

MSE_Martin

Thanks guys,

This is an important thread for a number or reasons...

1. If Halifax has been saying £3,000 overdrafts available in year one but no one gets them, then its been misleading.
2. We're soon reassessing our new best student accounts guide. Halifax changed the market place as other banks used to say what the student account 0% deal would be (most students dont have credit scores so there's much more uniformity available here than in normal accounts) but Halifax started an 'up to' and begame top of the best buys.

If it turns out the vast majority of people don't come close to the 'up tos' then it shouldn't be best buy.

If we could keep on track that'd be great.

Martin

OxfordJimmy

First year, gave me £500 to start. Complained loudly after a month, upped me to £1800 without many problems.

A year later (so Nov of 2nd year), came up for review. Applied for £3000 by posting slip, told my application was rejected. Went in branch. Told was rejected, offered to try again, which they did. Ended up being rejected. Couldn't give me a reason why.

So I went back into branch a second time, and stood at the help desk for about half an hour as the lady wrote a long email to head office detailing:
- perfect credit rating & that they'd given me a Halifax credit card with a £1k limit, so that clearly wasn't the problem
- huge amount of credits to account each month - fulfilling all their criteria (summer job income, student loans, other credits)
- how I thought they were misadvertising the product if the maximum was £1750/1800 (which is what they claimed)
- that I'd leave if they didn't give me the overdraft or a very good reason why I didn't meet their criteria

And within 24 hours, I had a £3000 overdraft! (within another 12 hours it was sitting nicely in a fixed rate bond...) :rotfl:

schmeln

I was given £1750 in my first year. I live with my partner who works full time, has a good credit score and has a mortgage and savings with them, I have a good credit score, work part time and am a mature student. I was therefore very surprised in the first year when they refused to up my overdraft limit! I thought it was because only my student loan was paid into the account, and then transferred straight out, so I made sure I had wages paid into it and used it more steadily. I managed in the second year to up it to £2750 as I needed the money for moving house, though that took some wrangling. I have never received the full £3000 and I am now finishing my third year. Disappointing...but then that's £250 less that I have to find after I graduate I suppose!