Natwest current account VS Alliance and Leicester

Gordon_the_Moron

I will come clean, I work for Natwest, however as a simple customer service assistant I have nothing to gain if you go in your local branch and open an account. I use the account and genuinely recommend it!

I will make one thing clear, if you can refer friends to A&L it is the one to go for, no questions about it. A&L may also be the one to go for until the 5% current account offer drops to 1% below BOE base, however look at what I do with a Natwest account and I wonder if the tiny difference in rates make any difference worthwhile in the time between now and then (and you will have to make the effort to close the A&L account afterwards, otherwise you will be charged £5 per month for underfunding if you don't pay any money in)

You may wonder why I would suggest using a current account (Current Plus which is free, I honestly think Advantage Gold and Advantage Premier are rip offs) when they pay a pitiful 0.1%.

Simple, open the account and register for online banking. Also open both a cash mini ISA (which access is instant to, no penalties and an interest rate of up to 5%, which applies to me, nothing at present can trump that other than the 5.2% with bonus which has dropped to 4.5% for new accounts and goes down at the end of next march) and also open an E-SAVINGS account, 4.2% instant access savings account, transfers between that and current account are instant online. Keep no money in your current account, I have a £100 interest free overdraft. As soon as I get paid I put it all in the E-SAVER at 4.2% leaving £0 balance, when I reach -£99.99 or near I take some money out of the E-SAVER (no penalty) if I make a spur of the moment decision to spend over £100 (rare) I pay using a credit card with 56 days interest free and pay it off straight away.

Natwest's online banking interface is simple to use, you can view the ISA, current account, and E-Saver online and you can also view and pay your credit card with it (if it is not a Natwest card you can still pay it)

If you think as an employee I am biased here are some comparisons:

ICICI Hi-save: 5.15% but impractical for this as you need instant changing between saving and current account

Barclays: E-Savings rate lower than 4.2% unless you have over £100,000 in the account

Lloyds TSB: Very marginally over Natwest rate (0.05% over) but rate falls to below 4% after six month bonus ends.

HSBC: E-saver useless for this, higher rate than Natwest but no interest if you make a withdrawal during the month.

If any other bank offers an account that can do this trick better, please feel free to post it. I am now going for a drink which the interest on having my money out of my current account for a month has paid for.

Incidentally the drink I'm having I highly recommend too!!!
http://www.badgerales.co.uk/beers/tangle.asp
(I don't work for them either LOL!)

grumbler

Gordon_the_Moron wrote:

...Also open both a cash mini ISA (which access is instant to, no penalties and an interest rate of up to 5%, which applies to me,

Congradulations - you have £25K+! However, even Barclays pay 5% on balances £18K+

...and also open an E-SAVINGS account, 4.2% instant access savings account, transfers between that and current account are instant online. Keep no money in your current account, I have a £100 interest free overdraft. As soon as I get paid I put it all in the E-SAVER at 4.2% leaving £0 balance, when I reach -£99.99 or near I take some money out of the E-SAVER (no penalty) if I make a spur of the moment decision to spend over £100 (rare) I pay using a credit card with 56 days interest free and pay it off straight away.

Do they give free overdraft to everybody?:rolleyes: And even if they do, it is a trifle. With all this hassle you make no more than £3.36 :eek: p.a. by using it. Majority of credit cards offer about the same interest-free period on purchases. Many of them offer much more, for example cashback, inroductory 0% for many months ... I use my debit cards only in Aldi and to draw cash for local market shopping.

If any other bank offers an account that can do this trick better, please feel free to post it

Nationwide: 4.25% current account, 4.55% e-savings account. No currency exchange fees (Natwest: 2.65% + £0.75 purchases, 4.9%:eek: ATMs). Online banking is one of the best.
BTW with A&L I have free travel insurance

I am now going for a drink which the interest on having my money out of my current account for a month has paid for.

What can you have for 28p?

UKTigerlily

I just wanna Natwest Step account! But I don't think they accept bills only as ID :!! I am not gonna get a driving license when i'm exempt from driving!

flossy_splodge

Surprised not to see discussion on this as yet. Cov B Soc have a current account paying 5.10%, requiring £1000 per month funding and I believe all the usual add ons that come with new attractive offerings . Check it out. Most Cov B Soc accounts are good - offering not the top rates but certainly above average and I find the service in branch is excellent. Went into the Branch near the Ricoh Arena in Coventry and discovered they offer House insurance in a different way too. Have now got an excellent policy at way less than anything else I have had a quote for. Recommend a look see.
http://www.coventrybuildingsociety.co.uk/coventryfirst/home.aspx?si=!!184B5673-2DD4-4486-A455-843EB96EB654}
(Sorry, you'll have to cut and paste, not sure why that doesn't work as link.)
Also includes a £250 free overdraft and access through telephone, internet, post and branch. can't be bad.

grumbler

flossy_splodge wrote:

Surprised not to see discussion on this as yet. ...

Coventry BS - 5.10% Current account
coventry building society current account
Coventry BS 5.1% and 250 free money

Best Current Account Martin's article:

For a consistently high rate, but without the initial bonus, go for the Coventry Building Society’s First account. It offers 5.1% on the whole balance, up to a maximum of £250,000, as long as you pay in over £1,000 per month. It’s marketed as a hybrid Current and Savings account, but it has all the usability of normal current accounts – debit cards, instant access etc. (no cheque book though).

Gordon_the_Moron

grumbler wrote:

Congradulations - you have £25K+! However, even Barclays pay 5% on balances £18K+

Yes I have, anyone with a smaller ISA I would advise to look around, but I can't find anything to beat the rate I get!

Do they give free overdraft to everybody?:rolleyes: And even if they do, it is a trifle. With all this hassle you make no more than £3.36 :eek: p.a. by using it.

I got the overdraft when I opened the account (employed elsewhere on <£10k pa), offering someone an overdraft does depend on circumstances/credit rating. Maybe a small bonus to obtain, if millions of customers did it would it not be worthwhile, £££ millions in our pockets not the banks?

Majority of credit cards offer about the same interest-free period on purchases. Many of them offer much more, for example cashback, inroductory 0% for many months ... I use my debit cards only in Aldi and to draw cash for local market shopping. Nationwide: 4.25% current account, 4.55% e-savings account. No currency exchange fees (Natwest: 2.65% + £0.75 purchases, 4.9%:eek: ATMs). Online banking is one of the best.

I don't suggest using Natwest out of blind loyalty, I suggested it to see if anyone had any better suggestions, you have, I will be moving to Nationwide, when I first looked at their site it said 3%ish current account and I couldn't find an E-Saving account. I virtually never travel abroad so not worth it for that, if I do I draw cash and exchange it interest free before I go.

BTW with A&L I have free travel insurance What can you have for 28p?

See above, don't need it!

Satisfactory?

Gordon_the_Moron

grumbler wrote:

Coventry BS - 5.10% Current account
coventry building society current account
Coventry BS 5.1% and 250 free money

Best Current Account Martin's article:

I need to be able to pay cash in to my account easily and regularly (Natwest not my only job, that is only part time 2 days per week, also self-employed in a job involving cash handling) and I live over an hours drive away from any branch.

flossy_splodge

Don't know if you've heard of it but there's a wonderful invention called the Postal service!!!! Allows you to send cheques etc to your account for the purpose of getting them added to your balance; assuming you're the payee!!

flossy_splodge

Btw grumbler, you've restored my faith. Hadn't seen the post you've highlighted. Soetimes don't have time to trawl everything. Good to see it was out there.

Gordon_the_Moron

flossy_splodge wrote:

Don't know if you've heard of it but there's a wonderful invention called the Postal service!!!! Allows you to send cheques etc to your account for the purpose of getting them added to your balance; assuming you're the payee!!

Pain in the !!!!!! to deposit cash though, I'd have to deposit it as cash into another account then send a cheque from it.

grumbler

Gordon_the_Moron wrote:

I'd have to deposit it as cash into another account then send a cheque from it.

Isn't it much easier to make online BACS transfers nowadays?