MSE News: Reaction to Halifax's changes

jambosans

amjack wrote: »

I really don't know what to do. It seems like I'm trapped with Bank of Scotland, and will be even more out of pocket for doing so.

Seeing as the amount you pay for using your overdraft by £100 or £1000 is the same, it may be worth setting up a savings account. This way, you can put away a set amount each month, earn a bit of interest, and when you've saved up the total amount of the overdraft pay it off in full.

There's not much else you can do, you either borrow or save your way out of the overdraft. Borrowing may be the cheaper solution, but as you've explained, your personal circumstances makes applying for credit difficult. Therefore saving may be your only alternative.

You've always been "trapped with Bank of Scotland", the difference now is that it will cost you more. It might be worth heading over to Debt-Free Wannabe for more general advice about budgeting, etc.

yaris1

Well I have been with the Halifax for 10 years now and I did work for them a couple of years ago. (So glad I got out of that job!) I don't think it pays to be loyal to any bank. I am definitely switching. I understand that an overdraft is not my money but it is an agreement with the bank to use it. This new method of charging for me will be too costly and I don't really have time check my account daily. I think if enough people make a stand against this, then the other Banks will think twice before following suit.

jambosans

yaris1 wrote: »

I think if enough people make a stand against this, then the other Banks will think twice before following suit.

I'm happy with my £5 Reward, thanks.

missk_ensington

I went into Barclays today to make an appointment to switch because of these Halifax charges (Im one of those people who slips into their overdraft 15-20 days a month by up to £200) and they couldnt give me an appointment until Friday because they have been inundated with switchers from Halifax this week! I hope Halifax lose so much custom from this that they end up regretting the switchover

PROLIANT

missk_ensington wrote: »

I went into Barclays today to make an appointment to switch because of these Halifax charges (Im one of those people who slips into their overdraft 15-20 days a month by up to £200) and they couldnt give me an appointment until Friday because they have been inundated with switchers from Halifax this week! I hope Halifax lose so much custom from this that they end up regretting the switchover

Simply switch to the Ultimate Reward Account which gives you a free overdraft up to £300 and pays you £5 per month just for using the account, so the £12.50 pcm fee for the account with all of those benefits minus the free fiver means you will only pay £7.50 pcm.

rb10

missk_ensington wrote: »

I went into Barclays today to make an appointment to switch because of these Halifax charges (Im one of those people who slips into their overdraft 15-20 days a month by up to £200) and they couldnt give me an appointment until Friday because they have been inundated with switchers from Halifax this week! I hope Halifax lose so much custom from this that they end up regretting the switchover

I think Halifax will actually do very well from this.

I am sure that statistically, those people who use their overdrafts are more likely to go into arrears on their account than those people who remain in credit. So if you had a choice between people who use their overdrafts and those who didn't, it's fairly simple who to choose.

The fact that some of the (minority of) people who use their overdrafts are switching away from Halifax will probably be insignificant compared to the number of people who switch their accounts to Halifax. And with this, Halifax will end up with a customer base that is more stable, and less likely to default on them.

The fact that one in every 100 people switched their account to Halifax, just in the first six months of this year (and that doesn't include all those who already had accounts there), says a lot about how popular this account really is. (New accounts have been running under this charge structure since the start of the year.)

missk_ensington

PROLIANT wrote: »

Simply switch to the Ultimate Reward Account which gives you a free overdraft up to £300 and pays you £5 per month just for using the account, so the £12.50 pcm fee for the account with all of those benefits minus the free fiver means you will only pay £7.50 pcm.

Thanks but there's no way Im paying £7.50 a month/ £90 a year just to have a bank account! They tried to sell me this but I wasnt interested in any of the rewards and being extremely skint as I am where I have £0 disposable income each month, an extra £7.50 going out that needn't go out isn't very attractive. Would rather just switch accounts, got an appointment to switch to Barclays on Thursday - some people have said stay away from them but I have my business accounts with them and they've always been okay for me - Im not sure any bank are really great!

BigAndy_79

This thread makes for very interesting reading, folks.

As an HBOS employee, I experience encountering many people who are unhappy with these changes, and although they aren't good for many, thousands of others are benefiting from the ways detailed above.

I make 15 quid a month off my 3 accounts and am set to re-designate one of my accounts to URCA so to get £150 cashback for my Mortgage app., as well as getting the many other benefits.

Use the accounts the right way and those charges may not seem so bad after all....

PROLIANT

BigAndy_79 wrote: »

This thread makes for very interesting reading, folks.

As an HBOS employee, I experience encountering many people who are unhappy with these changes, and although they aren't good for many, thousands of others are benefiting from the ways detailed above.

I make 15 quid a month off my 3 accounts and am set to re-designate one of my accounts to URCA so to get £150 cashback for my Mortgage app., as well as getting the many other benefits.

Use the accounts the right way and those charges may not seem so bad after all....

The thing is Andy; you can never satisfy 100% of your client base, if they leave...let them go. The grass is always greener until the status quo changes and they don't like the new bank for some reason.

I have been a customer of Halifax since 2006, never had a problem. Never been charged etc, I even dropped a boob and transferred £200 too much to my Visa credit Card with another bank, Halifax increased my overdraft to help me out until the overpayment was returned.

I suppose everybody has different experiences with their bank be it Halifax or any other bank, I find that good money management is rewarded in the form of preferential borrowing rates and help when you need it most, the opposite for the people who choose to write rubber cheques and not have cleared funds to honor their direct debits.

neil0491

I'm just about to dump Halifax after 19 years, just paid off overdraft and I am in the process of telling them this.

Which is the best bank to switch to???