MSE News: Nationwide revives fees-free overseas use for 400,000

MiserlyMartin

KTF wrote: »

Bit late really on their part really as I moved to the Halifax Clarity card dont see any point in moving back.

Yep Nationwide have killed off a lot of their loyal customer base now and they won't be coming back for a very long time if at all. The old Nationwide that used to be such a fair mutual consumer champion has long gone.

They are a disgrace and its very sad to see the state of the society today.

Freebyman

I too had been "upgraded" to the new card with the loss of the extended warranty option, which was the only reason I kept the card. I already have a halifax clarity card for the overseas use and the new card is only for purchases at 0% abroad, not for 0% ATM use.

I initially called nationwide and was told I couldnt keep my gold card, so I emailed customer services and marked it as a complaint and got a callback the next day to say I could keep it.

So the best way to keep it I suppose is to complain by email. Hope this helps.

John_Pierpoint

Too late Nationwide, I now have a Metro account and a Clarity credit card plus a dormant Flex acount.

Fluffi

Yay - cashback! My new Select card arrived last week but I haven't started using it yet. One of the reasons I hardly use my Nationwide credit card is because I get cashback with my Amex so I only use my NW where the retailer won't take Amex.

TBH I'd forgotten I have the extra warranty on electrical goods with NW - I normally use my Amex for most purchases anyway so it was of no benefit to me. I don't go abroad enough to care whether I get charged fees abroad so I'm happy

malcolmffc

MiserlyMartin wrote: »

Yep Nationwide have killed off a lot of their loyal customer base now and they won't be coming back for a very long time if at all. The old Nationwide that used to be such a fair mutual consumer champion has long gone.

They are a disgrace and its very sad to see the state of the society today.

Most of the people who used Nationwide for the free overseas spending weren't "loyal" customers though. They just kept a few pounds in their account to keep it open, and topped it up before going on holiday. I can completely understand why Nationwide got rid of the scheme.

Roger1

malcolmffc wrote: »

Most of the people who used Nationwide for the free overseas spending weren't "loyal" customers though. They just kept a few pounds in their account to keep it open, and topped it up before going on holiday. I can completely understand why Nationwide got rid of the scheme.

Well said!

By the very nature of things, people are more likely to post complaints here than praise, so a casual observer could get the wrong impression of NW.

If many members were counting on NW's purchase protection insurance, they would presumably have some coverage under Visa regulations. Virtually all fee-free credit cards have done away with this kind of insurance (MBNA did it a while ago), and I doubt that it was a major factor in people's choice of cards.

It seems far more people are interested in balance transfers, points and cashback. For me, the 0% surcharge on foreign spending and the restitution of cashback with the Select card are important reasons to cherish my NW accounts.

I'm one of the presumed majority of members who are satisfied with their mutual organisation - though I admit to voting against the CE's pay package!

Wammer

But it's not Purchase Protection Insurance that's being lost, it's an additional 12 months warranty which is a completely different thing.

Just check how much Comet or Curry's charge for an additional year's warranty and you will see how valuable it is.

Why would I want 0.5% cashback with NW when I can get 3% cashback on petrol or diesel with the new AA card, £5 a month with the Clarity card and 1% with Capital One?

I am also a "loyal" member of over 25 years standing and didn't just use the accounts for holidays. I still use my FlexAccount as my main account with salary paid into it and DD/SO's coming out. However I moved a shedload of money to other banks when NW started messing about with their accounts as I realised that loyalty counted for nothing and I could get better returned elsewhere.

Dave_C_2

malcolmffc wrote: »

Most of the people who used Nationwide for the free overseas spending weren't "loyal" customers though. They just kept a few pounds in their account to keep it open, and topped it up before going on holiday. I can completely understand why Nationwide got rid of the scheme.

As a loyal Nationwide Customers the one that brassed us off was losing the use of the Flex card abroad without penalties using ATMs. This was using Flex as the main joint current account for many years

The "free" holiday insurance is a joke and doesn't work for us as:
a) Since redundancy, there is not enough external feed of money into the Flex account (internal transfers from savings don't count)
b) As a holiday insurance it's cr*p

This CC new measure for us is a backward step as it loses the extra cover.

Nationwide, the same as every other bank.

Dave

gt94sss2

I have a (largely dormant) Nationwide gold card and flex account but have to confess that I don't really understand the attraction of a credit card offering an extended warranty cover given the rights we all have under the Sales of Goods Acts anyway.. which can cover one for up to 6 years..

Having said that I guess I am in the fortunate position of having other 0% f/x cards and/or other cards with an extended warranty option should I wish to use either.

Regards
Sunil

Ratstjohn

Just a date correction to main story - we used the N/W debit card in Spain for 5 months, up to July 2010, without paying fees and must say we got great deals on our currency withdrawals without any charges. Thank you N/W! Shame this service was withdrawn. We did change bank accounts purely because of this advantage but have maintained it as a main account and closed the previous Halifax one.