Moving to the UK and banking with HSBC

olly300

Lokolo wrote: »

Money is taken from you available balance usually straight away but will not show on main balance or statement for a few days after (usually).

Not strictly true.

Some organisations will take up to 7 working days to debit your account for example train companies, there as others like supermarkets will debit your account immediately if it's a working day, or on the next working day.

And other companies such as petrol stations where you can pay at the pump will ring fence money and will not release it until a few days later. So you should always if possible make sure you are not close to your overdraft limit.

In addition HSBC premium has monthly fees. If you are going to be a student at a recognised institute of higher education then you can actually get an account which is free.

Lokolo

olly300 wrote: »

Not strictly true.

Some organisations will take up to 7 working days to debit your account for example train companies, there as others like supermarkets will debit your account immediately if it's a working day, or on the next working day.

And other companies such as petrol stations where you can pay at the pump will ring fence money and will not release it until a few days later. So you should always if possible make sure you are not close to your overdraft limit.

In addition HSBC premium has monthly fees. If you are going to be a student at a recognised institute of higher education then you can actually get an account which is free.

I did say usually straight away. I didn't say all the time

And HSBC do not let new foreigners (sorry if that sound dergorioty) have a current account without Plus. According to threads on this site anyway...

gt94sss2

tng11 wrote: »

I found out I have a £500 overdraft limit on my account and that it is "interest free"- so if I use it will there really be no fees?

Yes.

Also, if I use my debit card at stores does the money get taken out of my account immediately and I can see the transaction details right away?

It usually takes a couple of days for the transaction to appear on your statement. However, your HSBC internet banking will include two balances:

- Balance
- Available Balance

and the 'Available Balance' figure usually changes immediately to reflect your spending on the debit card. This balance also includes any agreed overdraft you have.

Finally, do bank accounts in the UK actually appear on your credit report?

Normally, if opened now - they do.

Regards
Sunil

gt94sss2

olly300 wrote: »

In addition HSBC premium has monthly fees.

HSBC Premier (which the OP is talking about) does not usually have a monthly fee - its free if you meet their qualification criteria.

If you don't qualify then HSBC will normally eventually downgrade your account to a (free) current account, rather than making you pay fees (unless you want too!)

Regards
Sunil

tng11

gt94sss2 wrote: »

If you don't qualify then HSBC will normally eventually downgrade your account to a (free) current account, rather than making you pay fees (unless you want too!)

Regards
Sunil

I've been told that minimum balance requirements are waived as long as I still qualify in my home country (which I do).

I have HSBC Premier in Canada, US and Hong Kong and I found the service to be slightly better than mediocre. As long as the UK HSBC isn't a total disaster it's all good.

glider3560

I've been an HSBC customer (standard service, not Premier) for just short of 5 years.

In that time, I've never really been able to fault them. They've always been honest with everything they say, their online banking is probably the best in the UK and there are always staff available in branches (very little queueing, perhaps due to the number of self service machines in branch).

I've got a friend who qualifies for Premier due to an account he holds back home in South America. He's never had any problems either and finds the ability to transfer funds between UK and account back home to be very useful.