TSB 5% -v- FD 8% > application hassle

Nine_Lives

Is there any ruling on amounts etc? Would this have to include your wages?

Reason I ask is my main account is now Halifax. My D/Ds & SOs are with them & I'd only be using FD for the 8% account really.

COULD I...set up a SO to pay my Halifax account, say £1 a week, FROM my Nationwide account & then use FDs switching service (this method worked for Nationwides offer of £75 earlier in the year). Or would this not meet the criteria?

I'm on my phone at the mo so it's time consuming looking things up & I'm on my break at the mo.

Cash-Strapped.T32

Sorry to jump in with a bunch o' questions, I have had a look in the other thread, but like KP above me some of the definitions in the FD discussions seem a bit fuzzy to me, I need specifics dammit! :rotfl:

cautiousjon wrote: »

I recently set up a First Direct current account. The rule is that you have to use their 'Easyswitch' service to move your DDs and SOs over and pay in £1500 just once within the three month period. Once you do that, you get the £100 about 2 weeks after the money went in.

* Does anyone happen to know if "Easy Switch" transfers your salary over too?
Basically, like KP said, is moving your salary a requirement for the incentive, or does the Easy-Switch service limit itself to S/Os & D-Debits?


* After everything has gone across & you're now officially an FD customer, does the Easy-Switch service close your previous current-account?
In addition, what happens to your balance, previous overdraft facility, etc..?
Does everything move over to the new FD account, or does FD leave you to transfer your own balance from the old Current-Account to the new one?


I only have one monthly D-Debit, so I can mess about with that as much as I like, and at only a tenner anyway I can pay it from any old account when the times comes - So that's no hassle no matter what happens.

However, I wouldn't want to move my salary payments over unless I really had to - it would involve timing it just right within the monthly pay-cycle.
Any definite answers?

Or, should I presume that transferring your salary over is an integral part of the Easy-Switch service & thus you have no choice but to transfer it?



I'm interested because I'd be mad to pass up £100, I'm in the position now where I'm just coming out of debt, & desperately need to start saving up some funds as fast as possible to form a cushion or buffer - I'm also willing to take a punt on a new bank, as long as I know I'm not permanently burning any bridges if I took FD's incentive.

The poster above had it right - I'm fairly impressed with FD so I might even keep my current-acc with them after the incentive is paid-out. :j
Thanks for any advice.

cautiousjon

K_P83 wrote: »

Is there any ruling on amounts etc? Would this have to include your wages?

...

In order to qualify for the 8% Regular Saver (RS), you have to pay the money in from a FD Current Account. Usually you have to pay £1500 /month (salary) to not be charged £10 /mo. for the FD Current Account. However, if you set up an Easy Saver account (regular savings account) and deposit, say £1 in it, then set up the Current Account, you shouldn't be charged the £10 /mo. You can then pay into the RS from the Current Account. If you have any questions, I would encourage you to call someone from FD. All the reps I have spoken with in the past have been incredibly helpful and friendly. They have a geographic phone number (01132 345678) and someone is available 24/7.

---

Cash-Strapped.T32 wrote: »

...

* Does anyone happen to know if "Easy Switch" transfers your salary over too?

* After everything has gone across & you're now officially an FD customer, does the Easy-Switch service close your previous current-account?
In addition, what happens to your balance, previous overdraft facility, etc..?
Does everything move over to the new FD account, or does FD leave you to transfer your own balance from the old Current-Account to the new one?

...

I have just gone through this process and can hopefully answer your questions.

Q) Does anyone happen to know if "Easy Switch" transfers your salary over too?
A) No. You have to inform your employer of your new bank details.

Q) After everything has gone across & you're now officially an FD customer, does the Easy-Switch service close your previous current-account?
A) Easy Switch team will not close your previous account.

Q) In addition, what happens to your balance, previous overdraft facility, etc..?
A) You are responsible for moving your previous balance, closing your old account, settling overdraft, etc. FD generally gives you a £250 interest free overdraft and an additional £250 but I don't know what the interest rate is for that.

Q) Does everything move over to the new FD account, or does FD leave you to transfer your own balance from the old Current-Account to the new one?
A) I think this question has been answered.

Cash-Strapped.T32

Thanks!

Right then, bearing in mind what you've said (and I'm very grateful for the clarity), I can try this out with very little hassle.

Here's the plan (forgive me writing it all out, but I find it helps to put it in writing)


* When I ring up to open the Reg-Saver, I can ask to use the easy-switch service to swap my Debits & S/O's over to the FD 1st Account.

* Since I only have a single, £10 monthly D-Debit this is not a large task.

* Once this is done I get paid for the month into my HSBC current account as usual, I then pay this money straight into my 1st Account to the value of at least £1500.
(in this case it'll be my salary plus current balance to get over £1500, I may even transfer-in a small bit of savings to get me over, it would only lose me pence of interest anyway, far better to put it to use here).

* At this point in the game, I have met all the requirements, and I await the incentive bonus like a happy-wee bunny.

* Now, with £1500 in my 1st account, I'll have the chance to see if it's a worthwhile account keeping as my "main" account, and the fact I've transferred over a single tenner-debit is no hassle to put back if I choose to.

Nearly all my financial commitments are dealt with through internet banking, or cash from an ATM, so if I decide I don't like the way this experiment went, it's easy to go back to my old account, and if I do stay, well I handle all our payroll anyway so I can move my own salary over to FD if I wish.

I'm liking this plan.
Final thing, thanks once again Jon, much appreciated you've really helped me out understanding all this. :A

cautiousjon

Hi,

I just called First Direct to check some things. I don't think they will set up a RS account until you have a running current account. I would ask to create the CA and an everyday savings account and create the RS a bit later.

Jon

Cash-Strapped.T32

I created the current account about 3 days ago - I'm still waiting for the confirmation letter to come through, although I've already recieved the chequebook/IB details.

Nine_Lives

cautiousjon wrote: »

In order to qualify for the 8% Regular Saver (RS), you have to pay the money in from a FD Current Account. Usually you have to pay £1500 /month (salary) to not be charged £10 /mo. for the FD Current Account. However, if you set up an Easy Saver account (regular savings account) and deposit, say £1 in it, then set up the Current Account, you shouldn't be charged the £10 /mo. You can then pay into the RS from the Current Account. If you have any questions, I would encourage you to call someone from FD. All the reps I have spoken with in the past have been incredibly helpful and friendly. They have a geographic phone number (01132 345678) and someone is available 24/7.
.

I know this much (depositing £1 to avoid £10 fee & paying into the RS from the current account)

I was asking about bagging the £100 fee.

When you said you have to use the EasySwitch service to transfer your DDs and SOs (& then deposit £1500 once in 3 months)

I said i didn't really want to transfer a load of DDs and SOs from Halifax, as i wanted to leave them there.

What i was asking was whether i could set up a "bogus" SO on my Nationwide account, which would (for example) pay my Halifax account £1 per week.
THEN use the EasySwitch service to transfer this SO from Nationwide to FD (so FD would THEN be paying my Halifax £1 per week).


This method worked for gaining the £75 offer from Nationwide earlier in the year.

Would this enable me to bag the £100 FD are offering? Or would they have to be "legit" DDs and SOs (i.e. my mobile DDs, broadband DD etc - would they consider £1 a week SO gaining you the £100 fee as "taking the piddle" (i.e. not pay you the £100))?


Hope that clears up what i was asking. Sorry.

Cash-Strapped.T32

Tbh I think that might just be a little bit of an insider thing for CautiousJon to know..


But that's an ingenious plan I'll admit (I kinda feel like I should have thought of it ), but I think it's possible they might cop the hump if they take a look at the content of that S/O & decide it's a fiddle..

Not that I have any reason to know either way, but I just think it must be something they've thought of, no? Possibly not I dunno, as you say, if it worked for Nationwide then maybe..?

Nine_Lives

Cash-Strapped.T32 wrote: »

Tbh I think that might just be a little bit of an insider thing for CautiousJon to know..


But that's an ingenious plan I'll admit (I kinda feel like I should have thought of it ), but I think it's possible they might cop the hump if they take a look at the content of that S/O & decide it's a fiddle..

Not that I have any reason to know either way, but I just think it must be something they've thought of, no? Possibly not I dunno, as you say, if it worked for Nationwide then maybe..?

"insider" thing? Hmm.

I only thought of it as people were suggesting it earlier in the year if you switched your DDs & SOs to Nationwide.

All i did in that case was set up a SO to pay my TSB from my Halifax & then Nationwide took over the paying of TSB.
Sure enough, i bagged my £75.

I couldn't find anything saying that this can't be done with FD, but i thought i'd best ask those in the know.

BigDonut

thanks for that.
I'll setup a reminder so i don't forget to do it every month