Halifax - Why is it soooo difficult to open an account!

snowcat53

My experience of the Halifax very similarly negative. A shame as once they had a great name and reputation

However big thumbs up to Northern Rock and their Little Rock children's account - at 3% the interest is better too (regular savngs account aside - but is it worth the hassle?)

GeorgeHowell

Gromitt wrote: »

The electronic checks must not have worked for you, perhaps something on your credit report.

I don't think so, because we had accounts with them in the recent past, and we have no credit report issues. They are just administratively awful. I think the only way they survive is by offering competitive interest rates, and living off customer loyalty harping back to the days when they were a large and well-respected building society.

Pagan98

Same hassles here. Went in to branch because Children's Regular Saver bad expired. Told I needed an appointment to open a Kid's Regular Saver. After some pressing, with the manager trying to tell me the Young Saver was a better account, they could miraculously do it there and then. However I was then told that in future I would need to bring my children with me anytime i want to undertake any transaction. Way too much hassle. Regular savings can feed directly into their Shares CTF and their accounts will be transferred to Northern Rock as soon as possible. Clearly Halifax don't really want the custom.

markmas

It is not just opening an account which is difficult at Halifax. I have had a children’s regular savings account for my son since April. Suddenly in December the regular payment into the account was rejected by Halifax.

Halifax then refused to talk to me on the phone about it (since I am only a trustee, they can only talk to the account holder - a 22 month old). They said this was a recent change, since i did plenty of talking to them on the phone after the account was opened when they messed up soo many things.

I then spend 45 minutes in the branch whilst they tried to work out the problem, as posters have said above it was because they 'lost' the ID check in their computer transfer.

So I returned with ID and spent another 30 minutes in branch whilst they processed all my ID (this is the 3rd time I have gone in with ID now).

Really appalling customer service for something which should be so easy.