More than one current account

burgoyne93

Hi, I currently have a club lloyds account with lloyds as my main current account, but I've also had a cash ISA with HSBC for the past 4 years. I recently closed my current account with HSBC and got the lloyds one but left my ISA there as it had the best interest rate. I've recently gone to renew it to get the best current rate but got a letter in the post saying I'm not eligible to renew/have an ISA with HSBC as I don't have a current account with them anymore.

My question is am I allowed to have more than one current account? So I could just make an empty one with HSBC so I'm able to use their ISA facility (Much better than lloyds) or am I only allowed the one current account? Cheers.

YorkshireBoy

burgoyne93 wrote: »

My question is am I allowed to have more than one current account?

Hope so...I currently have around 25 of them.


How much is in the ISA?...and are these long term savings or short term, ie a house deposit next year/the year after? Reason I ask is that the ISA may not be the best place for your cash.

burgoyne93

25?! Wow, should be okay to have 2 then! I can't say I really put much effort into sorting my cash! I try and keep 4-5k in my lloyds one so I'm able to maintain the 4% interest which is much better than the ISA. Not particularly saving for anything but don't want to be tied down long term so that's why I've been sticking to variable rate ISA's, just to store money in really as opposed to the current account and get a little interest whilst I'm not using it. The HSBC one is 1.4% AER I think.

YorkshireBoy

Club Lloyds is not the only current account paying interest...hence why I have so many.


You could make a lot more on the ISA amount in current accounts, assuming your 'pot' isn't larger than £50K.

grumbler

Do you realise that

1. ISA rates are pathetically low now compared to the net interest rates of some current accounts?
2. With £15K yearly allowance you have much more freedom with moving money in/from ISA than you used to have?

burgoyne93

I have very poor knowledge of banking! I have all my salary going to lloyds which covers their monthly fee which is fine. The downside to the interest earning current accounts is most require a monthly payment to get the interest (santanders one for example), I don't want my earnings spread over multiple accounts really. I want savings in one account and then spending coming from the other (lloyds). So if I were to go to Santander for example I'd have to put £500 a month in there which I definitely don't want to be doing.

colsten

You don't need to leave the monthly minimum deposits in any of these current accounts for longer than a second. Might be worth you reading up about the various accounts to appreciate their advantages, incl. their advantages over and above cash ISAs.

YorkshireBoy

burgoyne93 wrote: »

I have very poor knowledge of banking!

Are you looking to address this? Or are you happy to chase 1.4% AER, which is less than 1/2 what you could get elsewhere?

I have all my salary going to lloyds which covers their monthly fee which is fine.

I don't have my salary going into Club Lloyds, but still enjoy 4% on £5K.

The downside to the interest earning current accounts is most require a monthly payment to get the interest (santanders one for example)

Not "most"...all do.

I don't want my earnings spread over multiple accounts really.

The cost of this may be significant, depending on how much savings you have.

I want savings in one account and then spending coming from the other (lloyds).

Each to their own, but inflation is eroding the value of these savings.

So if I were to go to Santander for example I'd have to put £500 a month in there which I definitely don't want to be doing.

Not even if you could take it straight back out again?

CLAPTON

burgoyne93 wrote: »

25?! Wow, should be okay to have 2 then! I can't say I really put much effort into sorting my cash! I try and keep 4-5k in my lloyds one so I'm able to maintain the 4% interest which is much better than the ISA. Not particularly saving for anything but don't want to be tied down long term so that's why I've been sticking to variable rate ISA's, just to store money in really as opposed to the current account and get a little interest whilst I'm not using it. The HSBC one is 1.4% AER I think.

are you SURE that HSBC isa is paying 1.4%?

planteria

1.6%G for Premier...

and i like the 'around' YB:)... one of my pals forgets how many houses he's got:)

i will have 13 current accounts shortly, burgoyne, so yes, certainly 'more than one' is not a problem.

i'm not sure opening an HSBC current account just to be able to have their Cash ISA is worthwhile..i would be looking to use my ISA allowance for S&S Investment rather than Cash Savings, but you can almost certainly open one if you want to.

Kim_13

I'm in the process of opening my third.

The oldest one I don't use much any more due to a bank #### up, but I don't want to close it as it's the oldest thing on my credit file by quite a margin. I have one payment into it per month which I then take out and put in my second (main) account. I leave 1p in there just to make sure the bank can't close it.

Opening a TSB for savings and will definitely open a few more current accounts in the future should I have use for them.

I only take out the card for my main account. The others will stay at home unless I know I'll need them, especially if the account has a large balance in it.