Farewell, Nationwide.

dzug1

adindas wrote: »

There are few Banks/BS outthere is ready to take their share.
ADINDAS

Yes but one wonders for how long - will they do it for as long as it takes to gain their desired number of current accounts and then do a Nationwide and introduce charges?

After all they are going to run into the same problem as Nationwide - freebooters along for the ride who incur them costs and don't use any other facilities to allow them to recoup those costs.

One can argue that Nationwide have approached the problem in a hamfisted and counterproductive way - but you cannot deny there was a problem.

jinkster

dzug1 - thanks for that info!

I'm wondering who else to choose. My monthly income to Nationwide varies between £2600 and £3100 a month. Money talks, everything else walks!

adindas

I think NW could address the problem better for instance requirement for people to take other products. Minimum monthly funding requirement, etc.

If they just want to kick out the customer who are just using it for overseas spending & withdrawal, it is absolutely fine as their business is to make money.

But now they have also penalized the wrong people as there are a lot of brits pensioners out there who are living abroad or frequent overseas travelers who have flexi a/c with NW. Many of these people pay their pension into their flex a/c in the UK.



ADINDAS

dzug1 wrote: »

Yes but one wonders for how long - will they do it for as long as it takes to gain their desired number of current accounts and then do a Nationwide and introduce charges?

After all they are going to run into the same problem as Nationwide - freebooters along for the ride who incur them costs and don't use any other facilities to allow them to recoup those costs.

One can argue that Nationwide have approached the problem in a hamfisted and counterproductive way - but you cannot deny there was a problem.

System

Nationwide didn't want people that live most or all of their time outside the UK.

Each time a cardholder used their card in an overseas ATM, there was a cost to Nationwide when this was a free service. So accounts with cardholders using overseas machines all or most of the time would have operated at a loss.

So 'Costa' pensioners etc would have been one groups that Nationwide would want rid of the most.

adindas wrote: »

I think NW could address the problem better for instance requirement for people to take other products. Minimum monthly funding requirement, etc.

If they just want to kick out the customer who are just using it for overseas spending & withdrawal, it is absolutely fine as their business is to make money.

But now they have also penalized the wrong people as there are a lot of brits pensioners out there who are living abroad or frequent overseas travelers who have flexi a/c with NW. Many of these people pay their pension into their flex a/c in the UK.



ADINDAS

ManAtHome

Heng_Leng wrote: »

Nationwide didn't want people that live most or all of their time outside the UK.

But they did want the mortgagees who are costing them £400 million a year (mainly because NW were 'being nice' by not enforcing their collar on BoE+ mortgages)?

I've more than covered currency charges by taking a Halifax Clarity card (max 1% charge) and moving my savings from NW - hopefully the people who live mostly outside the UK have done the same.

System

It's not being nice - the FSA/ OFT said banks/building societies that didn't put the collar in their 'key facts' would be unlikely to be able to enforce it.

That's why Nationwide doesn't - it's not that they don't want to...

ManAtHome wrote: »

But they did want the mortgagees who are costing them £400 million a year (mainly because NW were 'being nice' by not enforcing their collar on BoE+ mortgages)?

I've more than covered currency charges by taking a Halifax Clarity card (max 1% charge) and moving my savings from NW - hopefully the people who live mostly outside the UK have done the same.

dzug1

ManAtHome wrote: »

But they did want the mortgagees who are costing them £400 million a year (mainly because NW were 'being nice' by not enforcing their collar on BoE+ mortgages)?

I'm sure they don't want them - they just have no way of changing the situation.

ManAtHome

Heng_Leng wrote: »

It's not being nice - the FSA/ OFT said banks/building societies that didn't put the collar in their 'key facts' would be unlikely to be able to enforce it.

That's why Nationwide doesn't - it's not that they don't want to...

Not what they said at the time...

A Spokesperson for Nationwide Building Society said due to the Collar (floor) being clearly outlined in the Key Fact Illustration (KFI) as well as in the societies terms and Conditions they are completely justified in enforcing the clause.

Link - http://www.100mortgages.org/20081204/nationwide-tracker-collar-clause-is-justified-said-spokesperson/


And the 'being nice' (to some of the members) bit...

[Graham Beale, Nationwide’s chief executive, said]... “As a mutual organisation, we are able to support our tracker borrowers in times of difficulty. While we were completely confident that the tracker floor was an enforceable condition, we have decided not to enforce it."

Link - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/borrowing/mortgages/3551904/Interest-rates-cut-Nationwide-waives-collar-for-all-tracker-mortgage-customers.html

hartsdown

For several weeks now I've been trying to get from Nationwide a clear answer to a question about using a FlexAccount card to withdraw sterling from an ATM machine abroad. I won't bore you with a complete list of messages but will just show you the last exchange:

"this is not a dispute this is just an enquiry which will probably need a Nationwide expert to answer rather than just a standard helpdesk operative. It involves complex maths and the need to look up recent changes. Here is the question and (because I've asked 4 times without getting a clear answer) a set of multiple choice answers:

HOW MUCH WILL I BE CHARGED BY NATIONWIDE IF I WITHDRAW £100 IN £20 NOTES FROM A NORTH CYPRUS BANK ATM USING A FLEXACCOUNT CARD?

a) nothing
b) £1
c) £1 + 2% of £100
d) can't say because it varies
e) don't know because the rules confuse me
f) won't say because I might be wrong and you might quote me
g) see irrelevant information included below/above"

Well the answer this time was, as it has been every time, (g):

"Thank you for your message.

Nationwide’s FlexAccount remains one of the most competitive current accounts to use abroad. Its new commission charge of 2% and £1 cash withdrawal fee are lower than those charged by other standard or free current accounts in the market. Nationwide’s credit card continues to offer free use abroad within Europe and charge 1% worldwide.

Regards
Ben Albone
Visa Disputes
01793 656 611"

hartsdown

yes, you can definitely get sterling out of a few ATMs in NORTH Cyprus. The currency there is Turkish Lira, BTW. I won't spoil the fun in discovering how confusing Nationwide's rules are but I would be interested in knowing how the new rules back up posters' answers.