First Direct Query

renegade

Welcome to the best banking system in the UK, won awards don't you know. NO, i do not work for them but have banked with them for years, very easy to contact, nice people when you phone, very helpful over any concerns you may have..I love them.

PhenoM

jen245 wrote: »

Really? Why do you need to do that? Sounds a bit odd to me, Ive never had to do that with any account Ive ever applied for

I have absolutely no idea Jen.

I have been in the UK for just over a year now. On the electoral roll and have two credit cards from Cap1 and Aqua which I pay off in full every month. Only had two recorded credit searches last year (Vodafone and Lloyds) and two this year, one from Cap1 and the other one two days back from First Direct. Halifax deleted all their searches when they mistakenly searched my credit report over 4 times in a span of two days.

I'm guessing it's because I have been in the UK for only a year or maybe they need both home and work info before giving the go ahead. Your guess is as good as mine

Will be downgrading from Lloyds Silver to Classic once FD is up and running, though I don't think I'll be closing the account since it has all my transaction history and it's the only other bank account I have.

PhenoM

Called from my work today, and it took two minutes to confirm everything.

Called a couple of hours later, and was told she could see my account had been activated.

Just went through the security setup.... and yipee... a brand new First Direct account.

Nothing seems to be setup yet. But the advisor gave me the sort code and account number, and warned I'd be getting a lot of mails in the next few days.

Just applied for the default choice - 1st direct account with 500 GBP overdraft + e-saver account.

Any advise folks, should I apply for a FD credit card or should I wait. The advisor said I could apply right away if I wanted to.

samwsmith1

It depends if you want a credit card, if you do I would apply now as they gave me one straight away - it seems to be part of the standard procedure when opening an account with them to open a credit card as well.
They were right to advise you about the number of mailings you'll get over the next few days, they'll be a fair few!

PhenoM

I would love to apply and get rid of my Cap1 and Aqua card.

Could you tell me what sort of questions do they tend to ask and how they actually assess the application.

Also, is the decision immediate, or do I need to wait for it ?

Edit - I have a year of credit history, no red marks, all green. Five credit accounts - Vodafone, British Gas, Cap1, Aqua and Lloyds. All paid in full every month. And I'm on the electoral roll too.

Gromitt

Sounds like you'll be accepted, but for how much is hard to say. They'll be in touch and if the amount isn't as much as you like just leave it for 6 months and then apply for an increase (but put something on the card each month and pay it off)

May I also suggest you obfuscate the URL in your screenshot and perhaps further obfuscate your email. Or even better, just remove the screenshot. This forum is viewable by anyone, and your giving away far too much info at the moment in my opinion.

samwsmith1

I just signed the credit agreement that came with the 1st account application, I don't know about the decision, but seen as they've asked you, you can always try.
Give them a call - 08 456 100 100 or 0113 234 5678 (if calling from a mobile or you don't have inclusive 0845 calls), you've already found out how helpful they are.

PhenoM

Thanks for the advise Gromitt, I've now removed the screenshot

@samwsmith, I'll give them a call when I can see both my accounts and see what they say. And yes, they definitely have been very helpful. I'll take me a few days to get over a human being answering my call within 3-4 rings

samwsmith1

It does take a little getting used to, doesn't it!
It's also strange been able to call them 24/7 and them being pleasant whenever you call, finding out the answer to something if they don't know, and don't fob you off.

PhenoM

Yeah lol. The advisor couldn't see my account fully set up, so put me on hold for 30 seconds, came back on and gave me the account number and sort code.

Also asked why I decided to join First Direct. I told him it's because of all the positive reviews I've read about them here. He then said he'd be sending me packs I could hand over to friends and others once I had experienced and was satisfied with their service, and I'd get 50 GBP if they opened a bank account with FD.

To be honest, I wasn't sure I'd be accepted with everyone saying how picky they are and with me having only a year's worth of credit history. But only having one recorded search the whole year, thought I'd give it a shot.

Hopefully, they will continue to be just as helpful, in which case, I'll never have the need for any other bank account