Santander - worth the hassle?

Petard

This is not so much a money-saving tip as a time- and frustration-saving tip. It is: don't bank with Santander!

We have had various problems with them in the past. The current one is a credit card that has stopped working. It is in front of me as I write, yet Santander tell me they think it has been returned to them, so they have cancelled it.

Trying to use this card has blocked our Internet banking. I've rung up to try to sort this out, by turns been put on hold and told what they cannot do. They refuse outright to take ownership of the problem they have caused, instead want me to take the trouble to sort it out - to stay on hold, ring another number, ring again later....

Think we might be changing banks soon!

Midzone

Yes they are worth the hassle - for the many thousands who have joined this year for their 1-2-3 Accounts.

I have both the current account and credit card and had no problems whatsoever. They are no better or worse than any other bank I've used over the years.

pmduk

Once they've ballsed something up, it's almost impossible to get them to rectify the situation. Any company can make mistakes, but good companies sort them out quickly, unlike Santander.

Midzone

pmduk wrote: »

Once they've ballsed something up, it's almost impossible to get them to rectify the situation. Any company can make mistakes, but good companies sort them out quickly, unlike Santander.

Sigh......

innovate

Midzone wrote: »

Sigh......

Sigh indeed. At least pmduk is consistent and always anti-Santander.

My experience is very similar to yours, Midzone. I have several active accounts with Santander, as well as with just about any of the other high street names. In my experience, they are all much of a muchness - they all get things wrong at times, they all get it eventually right when they got it wrong.

The Santander 123 current account is brilliant for me, and for anyone who can get more in monthly cashback and/or interest than the monthly £2 charge.

Also, with interest rates toppling all over the place, the 123 current account at 3% AER stands out for anyone who wants to find a home for savings between £3K and £20K.

If you use a lot of petrol, the Santander 123 credit card is almost a no-brainer. I don't drive much, so the credit card offers me less value than others, and therefore I don't have one.

I can't speak for people with overdrafts (got one on the 123 but never use it), loans or mortgages because I don't have practical experience with them myself.

Midzone

Well last month just under £10 interest on my 1-2-3 Current Account, £8.27 cash back on Direct Debit Payments and £7.71 cash back on 1-2-3 Credit Card total £25.98 - not bad for £2 a month.

I'm delighted with the account and service.

ManAtHome

I've had savings and ISAs with them (on and off) for a few years. Only had one problem - call centre wasn't a lot of help, but local branch sorted it out quickly.

Currently 'test driving' the 123 account - so far so good...

sophiasmum

in the middle of a 'fraud' case with Santander - and honestly cannot fault the customer service to date Will def stay with them - if only because they have been true to their word. Monies back in account, mail received by next day, personal contact from a customer services contact.

innovate

Midzone wrote: »

Well last month just under £10 interest on my 1-2-3 Current Account, £8.27 cash back on Direct Debit Payments and £7.71 cash back on 1-2-3 Credit Card total £25.98 - not bad for £2 a month.

I'm delighted with the account and service.

Just saw the latest cashback & interest has been added to mine today (despite it not being "a banking day" today) - I have been averaging just over £20 net a month. I am not expecting much change in my payments and balances, so as long as Santander play nicely, I am looking at about £240 a year. Pays for a return flight to somewhere nice and warm .

Petard

If others have had a good experience with Santander, then I hope it continues. I wish we had had your good fortune.

On this occasion, Santander blocked the card for no reason. My wife had it refused three times in a row at Sainsbury's - embarrassing in front of a Saturday afternoon queue, and thoroughly inconvenient.

Since they say they cannot reactivate it and must send out a new one, I am just grateful we weren't abroad at the time and relying on it there.

In 40 years of banking, I have had accounts with Abbey-National-Santander, Barclaycard, HBoS, Midland-HSBC, MBNA, National & Provincial, and Nationwide. Of these, HSBC and HBoS have made one mistake each that I can recall; Santander has made a whole series. They have paid our money in to someone else's account, for instance. On another occasion, when we asked to be issued debit cards, they refused, even though we had been customers for years and had Persil-white banking and credit records - only to issue them out of the blue and of their own volition a year or two later. When we complained about this, they didn't trouble to reply. They made other mistakes, too, serious ones. It became so bad that for years we had a policy of running down our accounts with Santander and placing no new business with them.

Money-saving people often ring banks on the 01xx number they provide for overseas enquiries, instead of paying more to call the usual 0845 numbers. If you want an indication of how Santander treats its customers, try ringing them on 01908-237963. If you do so from a landline, you will find that their automatic system is programmed to refuse the call. Santander is the only company I have ever come across that does this.

I have had accounts with Santander and its predecessors for four decades. In my experience, they are simply not very good at running a bank, and 'service' is a word they do not understand.

innovate

Petard wrote: »

It became so bad that for years we had a policy of running down our accounts with Santander and placing no new business with them..

What took you years to stop using the credit card of an outfit that you found so incompetent?