Halifax sales spinning

A_Flock_Of_Sheep

A few weeks ago I switched to halifax to bag the £100 gift. I recently went into branch to pay in a cheque.

Not content with taking the cheque the bank teller noticed I was new and had opened everything on line and it was their policy to conduct a face to face review. A review of what? I have only been there 2 weeks.

It seems though when I asked it is so they can give me a quote for house insurance and showcase their savings accounts with paltry interest rates. Also to see if I'd like a credit card.

Now I thought after the banking crisis and various mis sellings banks were not conducting sales interviews.

opinions4u

Now I thought after the banking crisis and various mis sellings banks were not conducting sales interviews.

You thought wrong.

They still have products to sell. They will always have products to sell. They will always have customers who complain about not being made aware of the products that they have to sell.

Done properly, this isn't evil.

LeeSouthEast

On the contrary, it'll only get worse from here because banks need money, and they don't get that just by operating non-featured-up current accounts.

typistretired

It is not just Halifax I received a telephone call from Norwich & Peterborough on the pretext of checking I was happy with my account. Then they asked about my house insurance renewal and if I would like a quote.

BMN

A_Flock_Of_Sheep wrote: »

A few weeks ago I switched to halifax to bag the £100 gift. I recently went into branch to pay in a cheque.

Not content with taking the cheque the bank teller noticed I was new and had opened everything on line and it was their policy to conduct a face to face review. A review of what? I have only been there 2 weeks.

It seems though when I asked it is so they can give me a quote for house insurance and showcase their savings accounts with paltry interest rates. Also to see if I'd like a credit card.

Now I thought after the banking crisis and various mis sellings banks were not conducting sales interviews.

If they can give you a quote which is cheaper and/or offers more cover than your existing home insurance policy then that's great. If not, say no. Nobody is forcing you to take up their offer.

It doesn't hurt to keep even a small amount in a savings account with the same bank as your current account even if the interest rates aren't great. At least you can transfer money across to your current account immediately in case of an emergency (faster payments aren't always instantaneous).

Halifax have some useful deals on credit cards at the moment (balance transfers & the clarity card which people here always talk about). It can be quicker and easier to manage your bank accounts and credit cards in one place. A credit card would also help build a credit rating with Halifax (not your credit report with Experian and the likes but the internal credit scoring system that Halifax uses) which is important if you ever needed any other credit facilities from them (mortgage, loan etc.).

I would be more offended if banks didn't want to fight over me and do business with me as that'd mean I was a pretty rubbish customer.

JuicyJesus

I consider being cross-sold to to be the price of free banking. As opinions4u says, so long as it isn't done in a pushy way and is done honestly within the bank staff's remit as a representative of that bank, allowed only to discuss that bank's products, I see no issue with it.

That said, saying reviews are mandatory is borderline.