when to switch?

Hoopylass

After months and months of hell with abbey/santander i have decided to switch bank accounts. I have done my research and quite happy with the bank I have chosen however my question is ... when do I switch?

I get paid on thursday and was going to start the ball rolling then but do I need to wait until all my direct debits have been taken (they vary over the month) or is it ok to do it straight away?

Many thanks

Wednesday

Hey fellow Weegie, I've just done exactly the same thing :j

I'm in the process of moving to HSBC - they told me it can take at least a month and when you use their switching service they take responsibility for ensuring all the dds go over smoothly.

I get the impression that even if mistakes are made, HSBC will honour dds and cover any charges you might incur, so call me naive, but I'm trusting them to sort it all for me :rotfl:

exel1966

As someone who regularly opens and closes accounts I find it best to do the donkey work myself, that way you can be sure it's done. OK, it may take 30mins and a few phonecalls, but the majority of those you can get for free using SayNoTo0870. If it's a condition that you use the switching process to get some form of incentive, just ask the new bank to do a couple and do the rest yourself.

One of the main reasons people are reluctant to switch banks is because of the time it takes to switch DD's and the problems it can cause when it's not done.

Having your DD's spread throughout the month leaves it more difficult to switch so time it when you have the least going out in the couple of weeks after the switch. When it's all done think about moving some DD dates to bring them in line to a few days after your regular payday. That also makes account/money management for the month far easier.

Note, all banks do state when switching that if they make an error/cause delay in the process then they will be responsible/revoke charges, but I think it's best to keep destiny in my own hands.

Hoopylass

thanks guys, the majority of my dd's come out between the 1st and the 7th so am i better waiting till after the 7th?

scott_lithgows

If you can call every direct debit the day after it is taken,then it should be ok.
I moved from (ex B+B) abbey to Yorkshire BS last year,I put a months total d/ds in the new account and phoned the companies.I also used YBS switching team as they cancel the old direct debit.
Make sure you close abbey/satander account when you are happy everythings switched as they tried to switch them back with me.
Also worth noting when and who you talk to when you call to switch as you can use this info if there are any problems.
Who are you moving to ? YBS at Central station are really good and remember to put a few bob into Scottish Building Society on Waterloo Street and support our building society