First Direct £1000 rule

passinghamt

I have been pondering changing to First direct. When I called to ask a few questions I was told that there were several exemptions to the £1000 pcm deposit rule. Rather than have a phone conversation about it I went to the website and read up in "rates-and-charges.pdf" from "xxx1.firstdirect.com/1/2/banking/current-account" (for 'xxx' read 'www' - I don't post often enough!).

After ploughing through a few pages I found that holding an average balance of £1000 is sufficient to avoid the monthly £10 charge, and there are other conditions as well. As I am retired this is somewhat less daunting than having to guarantee paying in £1000 a month. Locking up a grand to save £120 pa is not ideal, but not impossible.

I think the MSE 'full details' section on this account needs updating.

gt94sss2

passinghamt wrote: »

As I am retired this is somewhat less daunting than having to guarantee paying in £1000 a month. Locking up a grand to save £120 pa is not ideal, but not impossible.

You can also open a savings account and keep £1 in it to be exempt from the charge.

Regards
Sunil

Aquamania

passinghamt wrote: »

I have been pondering changing to First direct. When I called to ask a few questions I was told that there were several exemptions to the £1000 pcm deposit rule. Rather than have a phone conversation about it I went to the website and read up in "rates-and-charges.pdf" from "xxx1.firstdirect.com/1/2/banking/current-account" (for 'xxx' read 'www' - I don't post often enough!).

After ploughing through a few pages I found that holding an average balance of £1000 is sufficient to avoid the monthly £10 charge, and there are other conditions as well. As I am retired this is somewhat less daunting than having to guarantee paying in £1000 a month. Locking up a grand to save £120 pa is not ideal, but not impossible.

I think the MSE 'full details' section on this account needs updating.

I'm not sure which particular MSE article you refer to, but the one I read already says:

You'll be charged £10/mth unless....

The easiest way is to pay in £1,000 a month but if you have savings, insurance, a mortgage or credit card with First Direct, the fee will be waived.

...

... but if you don't pay in the monthly minimum, you may not get the £100 bonus.[for switching to them as a new customer]

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/compare-best-bank-accounts#firstdirect

If you have £1000 to spare, but cannot afford to pay in £1000 a month, that would suggest you should read the best places to invest that £1000, rather than letting it sit around in an account not earning any interest at all.

You could switch to HSBC (who own FD) and they only need £500 a month deposited, and even if you don't do that, they say they have another current account they can offer you. Neither of these accounts have any monthly maintenance fee.

Or see the rest of the above article for other options:)

YorkshireBoy

passinghamt wrote: »

I think the MSE 'full details' section on this account needs updating.

Would this be the same "full details section" that clearly states...

MSE_full_details_section wrote:

So if your salary reduces, and you can no longer pay in £1,000 per month, consider opening a First Direct savings account that requires a low minimum deposit, such as their Everyday e-Saver Account (min £1).

What kind of update would you suggest is required?

mgdavid

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

Would this be the same "full details section" that clearly states...What kind of update would you suggest is required?

according to the OP, one that says another option is to leave £1000 permanently in the account.

passinghamt

mgdavid wrote: »

according to the OP, one that says another option is to leave £1000 permanently in the account.

Yes, that's the one.

innovate

That would be a really bad suggestion. Nobody should be encouraged to leave £1,000 losing value in a non-interest paying current account.

olgadapolga

gt94sss2 wrote: »

You can also open a savings account and keep £1 in it to be exempt from the charge.

Regards
Sunil

This is what I did to avoid charges after I'd paid my mortgage off.

passinghamt

innovate wrote: »

That would be a really bad suggestion. Nobody should be encouraged to leave £1,000 losing value in a non-interest paying current account.

Nobody is encouraging anyone to do anything. It's just that when some facts about an account are stated it helps if they are complete and correct, that's all.

innovate

passinghamt wrote: »

Nobody is encouraging anyone to do anything. It's just that when some facts about an account are stated it helps if they are complete and correct, that's all.

MSE isn't there to regurgitate the complete T&Cs of an offering. If you want those, you go to the provider's website. MSE is there to point out how you can make the best of an offering. Leaving £1,000 lie in an account that pays zero interest when you can get 5% elsewhere is just not even worth mentioning as an option for how to avoid account fees. Particularly if all you need is £1 in a savings account to achieve fee-free use of the FD current account.

Nothing in the MSE write up about the FD current account is incorrect, and the best possible options are listed.

passinghamt

Ah well, never mind. All I wanted was completeness when trying to compare different offerings.

Here endeth my request.