anyone have a think bank account? ThinkMoney

EssexHebridean

Anyone remember seeing the "Eat Well for Less" where they explained to the unwary family just precisely how much they were paying each year to have someone grate their cheese for them because they were too lazy to do it for themselves? This rather strikes me as the bank account equivalent, In the same way that (to me, at least) someone telling me that they're "too lazy" to current carrots into batons, or grate a bit of cheddar, just sounds utterly ridiculous - my answer to those who proudly say that they're "not very good at budgeting" is - LEARN to do it! An awful lot of us on here back in our former lives used to cheerfully waste money while using "Oh I'm rubbish with money!" as an excuse - trust me though, when you see the light, and realise quite how stupid you sounded to anyone with a degree more common sense, once you've stopped cringing you will curse all that lost cash.

One of the best feelings EVER for me was the moment when I realised that actually, I AM good with money - it's just about having enough respect for my own situation to learn to be that way.

sourcrates

the_pottages wrote: »

Hope I'm not to late replying ....please please please do not touch this bank I've been with them for many years and over the last 3 it's been awful I pay them to pay my bills mine is a joint account so not cheap I've had bills unpaid standing orders stopped allsorts go wrong at the min my account is frozen as I'm going though a desperation and because my ex won't speak to them I can't get a penny no way round it my rent won't be paid they won't honour existing direct debits or anything my wage goes in today and I can't get it resulting in 4 kids on school holiday with out a penny ....all I need now is to no how to claim every penny I've paid them back

Do yourself a favour try Yorkshire bank b yourself account it's very much like think but FREE

Why would you pay an organisation to pay your bills for you, I'm curious to know ?

EssexHebridean

sourcrates wrote: »

Why would you pay an organisation to pay your bills for you, I'm curious to know ?

It's addressed earlier in the thread - for people who "are no good at budgeting". My bank lets me set everything up by Direct Debit so things go out automatically so I CAN'T forget - and I deal with ensuring that there is enough money to cover them by moving spending money to a different account...it doesn't cost me a penny

StopIt

sourcrates wrote: »

Why would you pay an organisation to pay your bills for you, I'm curious to know ?

It's a question I've been pondering since I saw this thread and people actually saying that this service is actually worth it!


Paying upwards of £160 a year for a bank account is mad to begin with but this is nuts. Saying "Well it helps me with managing my money" is possibly the most ludicrous thing I have read on this forum also. It's not helping, it's literally enabling a continuation of bad financial management and charging a good chunk to do it.


If these people have enough money to pay their bills at some point but lack the self control not to spend the money before they're due, they need to learn financial restraint and money management, not to pay someone to take care of things for them. It's harder, sure, but far more empowering.


As EH said, people need to stop saying "Oh I'm just terrible with money" and actually realise that frankly, it's maths and most people aren't that bad at it if they actually try.

itsallabitmuch

The majority of HS banks have basic cash card accounts, so go with one of those.

To keep on top of things, you could use YNAB (paid) or Wally (free - and my personal preference).

These allow you to budget. No offense intended, but paying someone to do it all for you won't help you in the long-term. You need to learn to budget your own money - if you can't, why doesn't someone have PoA for you?

As I say, no offense intended. I've got Bipolar Disorder and Borderline Personality Disorder - I know how mental health can make you wild and free with your cash.

However, as I said, you either need to learn to budget yourself, or someone should have PoA if you're out of control for medical reasons and can't learn to budget.

Either way, you shouldn't be paying for something that so many places offer for free!

nkkingston

I think it can be useful if you suffer from a disability or mental illness that significantly impacts on your ability to manage money (severe dyscalcula, for example, means parsing numbers is very difficult - you might think you've got £100 in your account when you've actually got £0.10 because you're reading the digits in the wrong order). Like a lot of things relating to disability, it costs more to be disabled than it does to be able bodied / neurotypical. Your choices are either to pay for things other people can manage themselves for free, or relinquish your independence and let other people do them for you. It's like those pre-peeled oranges that got so much flack. If you're disabled, the pre-peeled orange means you actually get to eat fresh fruit without having to ask someone else to peel it for you, but that's not a big market so it's also sold to people under the guise of being a 'lazy solution'. The managed bank account can be vital if you're disabled, but it's sold as a 'lazy solution' for the able bodied / neurotypical. However, with bank accounts it's pretty predatory - they don't need to build up the market because they're already charging for the service, and you can bet that price won't come down no matter how many people sign up.

StopIt

nkkingston wrote: »

I think it can be useful if you suffer from a disability or mental illness that significantly impacts on your ability to manage money (severe dyscalcula, for example, means parsing numbers is very difficult - you might think you've got £100 in your account when you've actually got £0.10 because you're reading the digits in the wrong order). Like a lot of things relating to disability, it costs more to be disabled than it does to be able bodied / neurotypical. Your choices are either to pay for things other people can manage themselves for free, or relinquish your independence and let other people do them for you. It's like those pre-peeled oranges that got so much flack. If you're disabled, the pre-peeled orange means you actually get to eat fresh fruit without having to ask someone else to peel it for you, but that's not a big market so it's also sold to people under the guise of being a 'lazy solution'. The managed bank account can be vital if you're disabled, but it's sold as a 'lazy solution' for the able bodied / neurotypical. However, with bank accounts it's pretty predatory - they don't need to build up the market because they're already charging for the service, and you can bet that price won't come down no matter how many people sign up.

But the choices have the same outcome. You're still relinquishing control (As of course, the account manages your finances, not you), AND paying for it. For people who truly need this sort of help, they should be getting it, not having to pay for it.

GothicStirling

I have one. If you have a history of bank charges for going over your overdraft, or bounced direct debits then I recommend it. I'm quite happy to pay the admin fee, as they not only 'hold' my DD money, but because they tell me by text message whenever money is paid in, how much is available, and if there is a shortfall how much it is and when it needs to be paid in by.

As for the admin charge, I think the days of free banking nearing the end anyway.

EssexHebridean

GothicStirling wrote: »

I have one. If you have a history of bank charges for going over your overdraft, or bounced direct debits then I recommend it. I'm quite happy to pay the admin fee, as they not only 'hold' my DD money, but because they tell me by text message whenever money is paid in, how much is available, and if there is a shortfall how much it is and when it needs to be paid in by.

As for the admin charge, I think the days of free banking nearing the end anyway.

Honest, straight question. If they go under tomorrow, how will you manage your money then?

Better by far to use the expertise and help available on this forum and elsewhere to actually learn to budget and keep track of things yourself. You can do it, you just need to want to bother. Having someone tell you when money goes in, what your available balance is, and how much you need to leave aside for your essential bills is NOT money management, and paying for such a service certainly isn't!

nkkingston makes a fair point about disability, but as far as dyscalcula goes, you simply learn to check, check and check again EVERYTHING you look at. Many people had no choice as up until relatively recently it was just called "being rubbish at maths" at school, and no allowances were made - so you learned to cope, largely because you had no choice!

Generally speaking, ultimately - it's YOUR money, YOU work for it, so learn to make it start working for you too!

janessa

i have been with think money for 28 months thats £490 i then closed it down. cheeky gits have cheek to send me a cheque for 1p!!! absolutly discustings that bank!!