Which bank would you recommend?

BlushingRose

HI,
We've been advised by folks in the Debt Wannabe forum that changing banks would be a good idea, and soon. My OH currently banks with the Yorkshire bank and we have three credit cards Captial One, MBNA and Barclaycard, so we want to avoid banks who are involved with these.
Has anyone got any advice?
We weren't thinking of getting a basic account, just changing a full account to a full account.

izools

HSBC for sure. They don't have as many subsidiaries / brands as other high street banks and are very stable with good customer service

pinkdalek

If you are not using the overdraft then Halifax Reward account gives you a £5 each month if you fund with >£1000.

If you go to branch most will offer a cash incentive of around £50 for switching too.

They are not linked with any of the other three banks/financial companies you mentioned and there is generally a main branch in your nearest town.

Gromitt

pinkdalek wrote: »

If you go to branch most will offer a cash incentive of around £50 for switching too.

I went to a branch as there is a few local to me. I got told "Do you have access to the internet?". "Yes" I replied and got the answer "That would be the best way to apply."

In all fairness, they are probably right, as apparently to open an account in branch I would have needed several pieces of ID, Payslips, a cheque with my starting balance and upto 3 weeks for an appointment. So I applied online and had it all done in 10 minutes and my debit card a week later.

vintagegirl

Gromitt wrote: »

I went to a branch as there is a few local to me. I got told "Do you have access to the internet?". "Yes" I replied and got the answer "That would be the best way to apply."

In all fairness, they are probably right, as apparently to open an account in branch I would have needed several pieces of ID, Payslips, a cheque with my starting balance and upto 3 weeks for an appointment. So I applied online and had it all done in 10 minutes and my debit card a week later.

who was that with?

money_grows

BlushingRose wrote: »

HI,
We've been advised by folks in the Debt Wannabe forum that changing banks would be a good idea, and soon. My OH currently banks with the Yorkshire bank and we have three credit cards Captial One, MBNA and Barclaycard, so we want to avoid banks who are involved with these.
Has anyone got any advice?
We weren't thinking of getting a basic account, just changing a full account to a full account.

I would recommend Natwest.
Good helpful customer service, Uk call centres, Great online banking,
Decent bank in my eyes:)

BlushingRose

We've been thinking of the Co-op?

samjef11_2

BlushingRose wrote: »

We've been thinking of the Co-op?

Yes i have 2 accounts with them the automated system is bit annoying but keep press #### and you get put through to an advisor.

JacksterD

BlushingRose wrote: »

We've been thinking of the Co-op?

The Co-Op's really good, no problems with them here.

hammersfan1

Stay away from Santander!

smcqis

Santander are great, their customer service is second to none and their transfers are so easy and fast. Their fees are reasonable too :whistle: