Completely random idea....

oscar52

..... everyone (or most people) are a little annoyed at the recent announcements.

Most people would also agree that all banks are essentially the same.

- Can't some one set up a bank that puts the consumer rather than the shareholder first?

natweststaffmember

oscar52 wrote: »

..... everyone (or most people) are a little annoyed at the recent announcements.

Most people would also agree that all banks are essentially the same.

- Can't some one set up a bank that puts the consumer rather than the shareholder first?

It takes money, it takes organisation and it takes a lot of things which is why it has taken Tesco this long to get towards almost being able to go into the banking personal current account market.

garthdp

Everyone who can should just change their accounts as often as possible.We maybe cant beat them but we can make their profits tumble

oscar52

natweststaffmember wrote: »

It takes money, it takes organisation and it takes a lot of things which is why it has taken Tesco this long to get towards almost being able to go into the banking personal current account market.

Appreciate its not an easy process Nattie, and that it isnt as simplistic as my first post implies - was just an alternative suggestion.

Maybe Tesco wont charge extortionate fees and maybe they will help rather than hinder customers (afterall, every little helps!)

oscar52

garthdp wrote: »

Everyone who can should just change their accounts as often as possible.We maybe cant beat them but we can make their profits tumble

Very difficult for those with DDs leaving their accoutn each month - Mortgage, Water rates, gas, electric etc.

And profits wouldnt tumble, all that would happen is one bank would see a sharp rise while another saw a fall and would just go round in a circle until people had been to each bank.

orc_2

I am an advocate of credit unions, so I will throw that suggestion into the melting pot. I think they can be a better alternative than mainstream banks, although they do not currently offer all of the services that a bank does, which could be seen as a downside- depends what you want.

One main problem is the lack of credit unions near to people. However, with will and an interst from the public, that could slowly change over time. They are relatively easy to set up as well, which is an advantage.

Its not really like a bank though, but is owned by its members who can elect the board or directors. It is regulated as well. A further advantage is that it promotes saving, even at low levels.

Some credit unions have grown, so that they are able to offer mortgages.

From what I remember, only 1% of English folk are members of a credit union but it rises to 4/5% in Scotland. In Ireland, the figure is considerably higher, as it is in Canada.