Santander bank student account 2012/2013: We want your feedback

inkie

My DD opened a student account no problem. She transferred from Natwest (santander offer interest on the student account, Natwest didn't). She already had a 12 month railcard - but she decided that having the 3 year rail card was more beneficial, and so applied for the free one straight away, rather than messing around waiting for the current one that she had to expire. So far, so good. I hae a 123 account with them and have nothing but a good experience with them, and so thought that she would be OK.

KaiBeale

Well it seems like I must be 1 in a million but I've had a fantastic experience with Santander. I went into my local branch (Ringwood) and applied for an account which was opened immediately. 2 weeks later and all of the paperwork had been sent to me (in separate envelopes, now industry standard fraud prevention). I then used the codes sent to me to unlock online banking, which in turn gave me my unique railcard code.

Now, judging by other reviews, here is where I seem to be quite unique... I read the message containing the railcard code and it quite clearly stated that the code was valid for 60 days. So what did I do? I applied for the railcard within 60 days. After uploading a satisfactory selfie and waiting 2 weeks I received the railcard.

With reference to the 'up to 1500' overdraft, after 3 weeks of weekly wages entering my squeaky new student account, Santander automatically increased my arranged overdraft to the max £1500. Didn't have to call them or anything, nifty, right?

Jesuismoi

I've had a fairly good experience with santander. I chose them mostly because I study Spanish and knew I would do a placement in Spain where cash withdrawals are free from santander ATMs, but the free gadget, phone and laptop insurance came very handy when my iPhone 3GS died and they paid for me to get an iPhone 4 replacement. I was pretty annoyed when they withdrew the insurance as I think this is worth more than the railcard, but I do use the railcard a lot so can't complain too much. It's nice to have a pn overdraft but I have never needed all of it and never for very long, only to keep me going between loan payments. Staff have always been helpful, both in store and on the phone so pretty happy with them.

jimjob

Right now, diggers are obliterating Indonesia’s rainforests, pushing orangutans, tigers and sun bears to the edge of extinction.

Santander has ploughed tens of millions of pounds into Indonesia’s number one rainforest destroyer.

Tell Santander to stop financing extinction.

Over the last few years, Santander has loaned millions to a pulp and paper company called APRIL that is chopping down Indonesia’s rainforests at an alarming rate.

If Santander want to be a responsible company, it needs to end these loans now. Ending these loans hits APRIL where it hurts most - in the pocket.

Students need to know this before making their decision - please include this point on their ethics in your summary of Santander.

DIZZYBELL

hi, just giving a slight warning do not apply for Santander until you have your AS12 from USAS they will not except AS9 .We have been advised to reapply after our daughter starts uni because that is when you will get your AS12 issued

YellowArmadillo

I have had an awful time with Santander. I am a 5th year student, and wanted to switch over to Santander as my current student account is not really giving me any benefits. I have spent the last few years making sure to build up my credit rating as I want to get a mortgage sometime soon, so I wasn't worried by applying. What a mistake!

I was rejected from the account for failing their credit check, and so as instructed by the woman in Santander I went on Experian to check if there was something wrong. Nope, by Experian's standards I was fine and slightly above average. The woman said she would appeal the decision, but it came back as me having a 'low credit score' and was still rejected.

What on earth are Santander playing at?! I applied for a student account, and definitely have a higher than average credit rating for a student, yet was rejected for a low score. What do they expect students to have to qualify? It's ridiculous, and I wouldn't recommend the bank to anyone.

JenJenJen777

I applied for a student account. I'm 29, with an Unconditional offer to start uni in September. I was declined immediately with no reason. I called the call centre, and they said that I would receive a letter giving me a reason. It arrived today stating:

"In determining your eligibility we consulted Experian. Please be aware that the information provided by the credit reference agency is only one part of the decision making process. Sometimes, there may be no detrimental information held about you at the agency but we may not be able to accept an application simply because it does not meet our criteria."

I'm a student, applying for a student account! What other criteria could there be, unless they think at 29 I'm too old/unlikely to fall for overdraft fees etc. I checked on experian and my credit rating was "good", at 897 so it couldn't have been that. Thanks to them declining me though and doing a search, my rating has dropped by 75 points and is now "fair", meaning I'm unlikely to get accepted anywhere else. Furious doesn't cover it.

Ed-1

JenJenJen777 wrote: »

I applied for a student account. I'm 29, with an Unconditional offer to start uni in September. I was declined immediately with no reason. I called the call centre, and they said that I would receive a letter giving me a reason. It arrived today stating:

"In determining your eligibility we consulted Experian. Please be aware that the information provided by the credit reference agency is only one part of the decision making process. Sometimes, there may be no detrimental information held about you at the agency but we may not be able to accept an application simply because it does not meet our criteria."

I'm a student, applying for a student account! What other criteria could there be, unless they think at 29 I'm too old/unlikely to fall for overdraft fees etc. I checked on experian and my credit rating was "good", at 897 so it couldn't have been that. Thanks to them declining me though and doing a search, my rating has dropped by 75 points and is now "fair", meaning I'm unlikely to get accepted anywhere else. Furious doesn't cover it.

The 'score' that shows on Experian is meaningless in the sense that lenders don't see it - lenders score you based on the data on your credit file(s), not the score the credit reference agency tries to sell you.

All lenders have differing criteria so this will have a very negligible impact. The only very small impact it might have is that it is a recent credit search (although the outcome of it - i.e. decline - doesn't show up). Credit searches less than 6 months old are taken into account when lenders credit score you.

I'd advise you to try elsewhere. You'll be surprised that you get accepted.

Experian_company_representative

It's wise to investigate any credit refusal before trying elsewhere. I would go back to the bank and press them for a fuller explanation, which they should be able to give under industry guidelines. You may be able to get them to review your application and change their mind. But even if they don't, the process might give you a little insight on how you might be able to improve your chances of getting a yes next time.


James Jones

fiscalfreckles

DIZZYBELL wrote: »

hi, just giving a slight warning do not apply for Santander until you have your AS12 from USAS they will not except AS9 .We have been advised to reapply after our daughter starts uni because that is when you will get your AS12 issued

Isn't that too late to give Student Finance your bank details?