santander

mrskpickles

might be a daft question, my husband has been watching the news, and wonders whether we should move the £18k we have in santander to another bank, we have about £30k dotted in different accounts in natwest, would the santander money be better in there....he's worried about something "happening" santander. thank you kirstie

t0rt0ise

http://blog.moneysavingexpert.com/2012/05/19/how-safe-is-santander-uk-what-i-really-think/

Try this for an answer.

verntern

mrskpickles wrote: »

might be a daft question, my husband has been watching the news, and wonders whether we should move the £18k we have in santander to another bank, we have about £30k dotted in different accounts in natwest, would the santander money be better in there....he's worried about something "happening" santander. thank you kirstie

You are right to be concerned. Santander UK is merely a branch of the Spanish parent company. Be wary that their more attractive interest rates probably incorporate a higher risk to your savings. With the turmoil of the Spanish economy I can forsee Santander Spain dipping into the assets of Santander UK. True, your savings are protected under the The Financial Services Compensation Scheme. If Santander went bust then what would be the hassle of you and thousands of others going through an untested compensation scheme? Personally, I have transferred all my savings out of Santander. Your money is with a Spanish bank.

YorkshireBoy

verntern wrote: »

...what would be the hassle of you and thousands of others going through an untested compensation scheme?

Wasn't the scheme tested with the Icelandic banks a few years ago?

Zekko

verntern wrote: »

With the turmoil of the Spanish economy I can forsee Santander Spain dipping into the assets of Santander UK.

I'm pretty sure Santander UK is ring fenced from its Spanish operations.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/may/18/santander-uk-funds-fsa

verntern

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

Wasn't the scheme tested with the Icelandic banks a few years ago?

I don't believe so. Icesave did not come under the FSCS. The compensation paid by the UK government was a sympathetic, generous one-off. When the response could have been 'hard luck'. FSCS still yet to be tested on a bigger scale if Santander collapse.

verntern

Zekko wrote: »

I'm pretty sure Santander UK is ring fenced from its Spanish operations.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/may/18/santander-uk-funds-fsa

Fair point. Reassuring comments from press articles. Nevertheless it is a Spanish bank. I have simply chosen to move savings elsewhere.

calypso_rhapsody

I am quite happy to have savings in Santander - though would not have all my savings there. They are protected by FSCS (up to the £85k each limit). The payout mechanism worked surprisingly well for Icesave - you are right that this was not strictly an FSCS payout but i am sure it used their systems and processes. I found it remarkably painless!

innovate

calypso_rhapsody wrote: »

I am quite happy to have savings in Santander - though would not have all my savings there. They are protected by FSCS (up to the £85k each limit). The payout mechanism worked surprisingly well for Icesave - you are right that this was not strictly an FSCS payout but i am sure it used their systems and processes. I found it remarkably painless!

Exactly the same here.

societys_child

Except It's not a Spanish bank. The parent company is Spanish.
SandanderUK has been acknowledged to be in a better position than many other UK banks.
But everyday the same question gets asked, and everyday someone comes back with the same scaremongering drivel, usually ending with "I've taken my money out" [rolls eyes]

verntern

But everyday the same question gets asked, and everyday someone comes back with the same scaremongering drivel, usually ending with "I've taken my money out" [rolls eyes]

and everyday someone makes their own independent decision where best to move their savings away from the deteriorating financial situation in Spain. Santander UK is a Spanish owned bank. Your bland statement 'Sandander UK has been acknowledged to be in a better position than many other UK banks'. Simplistic junk. Time to get your rolling eyes affliction seen to. By the way, I've taken my money out.