First Direct and their poor Internet Banking. Are there alternatives?

SpacemanSpiff

First Direct win a lot of praise and I think most of this is fair. There are the easiest bank to deal with over the phone. However how come there is so little mention of how appauling their Internet Banking service is? Functionality is limited, design is horrible (especially compared to their nice main site design) and even their Internet Banking Plus service requires you to use Internet Explorer! It this still 2001? How have they not changed this at all? There are meant to be the best online and phone bank but they are woeful.

Anyway I am setting to get fed up. I bank entirely online and only ever phone if there is a urgent enquiry or I need a new card.

Which bank has the best Internet Banking service in terms of functionality and design? I've heard Lloyds TSB is good but I am not sure about their day to day service.

grumbler

SpacemanSpiff wrote: »

...Functionality is limited, design is horrible (especially compared to their nice main site design) and even their Internet Banking Plus service requires you to use Internet Explorer! It this still 2001? ...

Which bank has the best Internet Banking service in terms of functionality and design?...

Do you not think that at least you should have said what exactly functionality you were missing?!

'Horrible design' is a matter of personal taste. Personally, I don't find it 'horrible', but I would never switch my bank for the sake of design only.

Re the Internet Banking Plus, I don't use it, but very few banks (if any?) offer accounts aggregation service. In fact I don't know any except FD.

P.S. And no, FD is not my only bank. I have accounts and use online banking with Barclays, Nationwide, Santander, Natwest, Lloyds, Cahoot, Smile.

innovate

The FD internet presentation is ancient but it allows you to do most things. Only missing functionality I have found is that you can't modify/delete payees.

There are far larger reasons why I wouldn't keep much money in an FD current account, such as getting zilch interest. I would never in a million years chose a bank account based on whether I like their online interface.

Internet Banking Plus is actually a badged implementation of AccountUnity. I am not using the FD implementation, but I do use Account Unity, and even though it forces me to use a browser I don't use for anything else, it provides me with more than enough value, so I just ignore the inconvenience.

alanq

Nationwide and NatWest both have excellent online banking interfaces in my opinion. They both require use of a card + reader for certain transactions which I consider valuable added security though others may regard this as an inconvenience.

HSBC requires use of a different kind of security device for every session which has been widely complained about but is supposedly even more secure.

System

I like the LBG (Bank of Scotland / Halifax / Lloyds / TSB) interface; clean and easy to use with no card readers. Good FP limit (25K)

The RBS/ Natwest & Nationwide interfaces are good; they both have slightly better smart phone apps than LBG but both use card readers.

I agree First Direct's interface was dire; part of reason that I dumped them as I didn't want to phone them as they suggested as an alternative.

Gromitt

The only problem I have with FD is their security is a bit lacking. I asked if I could change my first password (the enter letters 1,2,3 from your password one) and was told No, you can only request to change everything and you can't have anything to same as last time.

I would also prefer to have to use a tool such as a SecureKey, PIN Sentry, or telephone authentication for setting up new payees. It seems to be commonly requested on their "Let us know what you want" page.

But otherwise, I find the site easy to use. I prefer banking in black and white than plastered with crap I don't want or need like some other banks.

Still, I only use them for my salary now, then that funds the Regular saver and pays of my CCs, then is transferred to TSB -> Halifax -> BoS -> Nationwide.

HeadAboveWater

I have absolutely no problems with First Directs online banking. It does everything I need it to do.

PS. I use chrome

JSR

As a recent new customer to First Direct I was also disappointed with their online banking. I expected better given the quality of their main website! It is servicable but is very dated, not user friendly and many of the options end at 'call us'. There is no 'available balance' on the account summary screen so you can't see the effect of pending transactions. Standing orders can't be managed instantly online. The bill payments section is extremely confusing and can be outright obstructive:

For example I wanted to set-up a payment to my Lloyds Credit Card but there are about 10 different Lloyds Credit Card options to choose from. I picked the mostly likely option hoping to see confirmation of the destination sort-code and account number. No such luck. I decided instead to do the safe thing and enter the sort-code/account number manually. Blocked and told to use bill payments - it didn't tell me what item to select from the drop down though! I decided to risk the most likely option with a nominal £1 test transaction. Nope! The transaction could not be processed immediately and did I want to send it tomorrow?! In the end I routed the payment through my old bank account and to my CC from there!

The redeeming feature of the online service is the ability to send 'secure messages'. I didn't have this at my previous banks (NatWest and Lloyds) and it does save you having to call in for the simple enquiries that should be, but aren't, available online.

BugsyBrowne

I would rather have a decent online banking system then a decent customer service, because let's face it most people are in contact with their online banking sometimes daily and TBH not many people contact customer services on a regular basis unless of course the banks messed up something.

First Direct customer service GOOD online banking SHOCKINGLY TERRIBLE
Nationwide customer service GOOD online banking EXECELLENT
Lloyds customer service GOOD online banking EXCELLENT
Barclays customer service BAD online banking VERY GOOD

RupertTheCat

Lloyds online banking might look good, but it is extremely flaky. Mine randomly logs me out. I do like the way it telephones you rather than asking for a card reader, as those dratted card readers are temperamental to say the least.

pmduk

I'm surprised you find card readers unreliable, I've never had a moment's problem, other than Barclays originally wanting you to use one for everything. They've come to their senses and you can do most things without one now.