Bank of Baroda higher fixed term savings rate

DocProc

Face to face with a customer they will say:

"Yes. You can actually have or get back your money at any time. We do not have a liquidity problem and so there will be no problem should you ever want (all/some) of your money back after taking out the savings bond with us."

What they don't clearly tell you and what you may not clearly get the grasp of is

"The sacrificial loss of interest when you do remove money from the savings bond is extremely penal."

This point is just 'skipped over' in the 'in branch' conversation.

Also

They don't give you any 'Terms and Conditions or other paperwork for anything you set up inside the branch - unless you ask for it. Could you be sure to remember what sort of things you need to ask for?

eg,

A copy of your new account application form for your records?
A copy of the terms and conditions for the account you've just opened?

The branch manager/senior branch staff member will tell you all sorts of stuff but you are not given anything in writing to confirm it.

Other than checking a balance, no banking can be done online.

And

There are only about 5 or 6 staff members per branch.

I'm not saying these guys are dishonest. Far from it. However, these guys are very much like 'banking Luddites' in today's modern day internet banking world.

I think you have to ask yourself, "Is that what I want?"

My answer to myself was, "Not really."

Absurdity_2

Well before I could open the account I had to sign saying I had read the terms and conditions which were available both online and in branch.

The terms and conditions clearly stated what would happen if I removed my money before the term of the bond ended. And besides wherever you open a fixed term bond there are always high penalties for withdrawing early. Every fixed term account I have come across so far has a penalty clause in the T&C. If you need to withdraw money then clearly a fixed term deposit/bond isn't the correct product for you.

I have to say I didn't choose to have online banking, so I can't comment on it, but as I can't make any deposits into a fixed term and as I'm not going to make a withdrawal, I see no need to have this feature.

I only chose them because they offer the highest interest rate of any FSCS institution I could find, over the same period of time.

I wouldn't use Bank of Baroda for my current account as they are too small but just for a fixed deposit they seem fine.

As long as you read the Terms and Conditions before you sign the bit saying that you have read them, everything is as you would expect it.

Lokolo_2

This may sound like a silly question so forgive me

How do you apply for one of their fixed rate savings? As I can't find any such link on their site! Does this mean I need to go into branch?

Thanks

Absurdity_2

aaronmanz wrote: »

This may sound like a silly question so forgive me

How do you apply for one of their fixed rate savings? As I can't find any such link on their site! Does this mean I need to go into branch?

Thanks

Don't apologise, it is a very good question as I could find no info on their site on how to apply. I was lucky in that they have a branch in my city so I could just pop in, pick up an application form and do it through the branch.

If you have a branch near you, I would recommend to go there, otherwise you could try contacting them to find out if you can apply by post maybe.

I doubt they would be able to open accounts online as their internet banking is very limited, you can only view balances, transactions and print statements.

agsnu

aaronmanz wrote: »

This may sound like a silly question so forgive me

How do you apply for one of their fixed rate savings? As I can't find any such link on their site! Does this mean I need to go into branch?

Thanks

They're exclusive to moneysupermarket.com. You can find the application links from here.

atypical

aaronmanz wrote: »

How do you apply for one of their fixed rate savings? As I can't find any such link on their site! Does this mean I need to go into branch?

You can apply online on their website (at least a part of their website not linked to from their main website, probably because of the exclusivity thing with moneysupermarket) which is here:

https://www.bankofbarodauk.com/bmxacopn/acopn/bobmaxcmpn.aspx

Lokolo_2

Thank you for your answers all of you :j :T

DocProc

If you pop into the branch you might well find the manager will tell you that you CAN make an early withdrawal from a Fixed Rate/Period Bond. His rate will be very slightly less than the Moneysupermarket.com rate, which is an exclusive rate especially for them. However, he will explain that if you were to make a withdrawal, the rate will drop down to a lower level. When he explained all this to me, he pushed that the bank's liquidity was so good that withdrawals would not ever really be any kind of a problem.

However, I felt the interest rate drops in the event of you needing a withdrawal, were really quite penal.

If you want to lock your money up, then I think you will find that this bank is one of the top payers of interest on that money.

DaveG247

Just wanted to ask I'm think of putting some of my savings into a Bank of Baroda 3 Year Fixed Rate Bond. Is it possible to transfere £500 (think this is the minimum) just to make sure everthing is ok and then transfere the rest of my savings or will I have to put in the whole amount first off?
Thanks

[Deleted User]

Regarding FS Compensation Scheme. Martin's site, Moneysupermarket.com, and Bank of Baroda's own site all say they are covered by the UK scheme but I have checked the FSA listing and they are on the 'non EEA' list which means they are only covered by the scheme in their own country i.e INDIA. Am I correct or am I missing something ?