HSBC Advance Save Together

masonic

KTF wrote: »

Phone them and complain. I thinking the welcome pack they sent me there was a leaflet that said they would pay something if you didn't have the account number and sort code in 7 days or similar.

Thanks, found it in the 'Welcome Brochure': "Your new HSBC Advance Debit Card plus any cheque book requested will be delivered to your home address within five working days and PIN within seven working days. In fact, we're so sure of this, we'll give you £10 if they're delayed."

Tabatha_Kitten

I am an existing Advance account holder with an existing Loyalty Cash isa and have deposited the required £300 in March.
I haven't received any confirmation that i have activated the "save together" offer as per the faq's on the website.

masonic

colsten wrote: »

There's a huge misconception out there regarding the possible speed of current account switching. Banks and journalists are equally guilty for not doing anything to address that misconception.

<snip>

Think about it - why would you agree to a switch date before you don't have your debit card, your PIN, your online access to your new bank account? No amount of switch guarantee will help you if you are stranded without access to your cash - and you will notice there isn't actually anything in the guarantee that says you will have uninterrupted access to your cash.

The CASS assumes you have a working current account you are switching to. Logic says this is obvious, considering that things like sending our debit cards, PIN numbers and online access credentials involve 3rd parties that are not under the control of any bank or any account holder.

That may be the case, but in the past I have filled out a switching application immediately after an online decision for a new current account and picked a switch date (it seemed I was offered the same by HSBC when I opened this account, but didn't want to switch). I was only moving a sleeper account on that former occasion, so I didn't care whether it completed on time, but it did.

While banks offer to start the switch immediately after accepting a customer, then they need to be able to deliver on the promises of that service. Some are very quick to get a new account up and running (for example, my most recent (Nationwide), managed to get a debit card + card reader + PIN + online access details to me within about 5 working days).

masonic

Tabatha_Kitten wrote: »

I am an existing Advance account holder with an existing Loyalty Cash isa and have deposited the required £300 in March.
I haven't received any confirmation that i have activated the "save together" offer as per the faq's on the website.

I don't think anyone has, hence others are waiting to see if they get their first payment in the next couple of weeks.

Lu_Lu

Tabatha_Kitten wrote: »

I am an existing Advance account holder with an existing Loyalty Cash isa and have deposited the required £300 in March.
I haven't received any confirmation that i have activated the "save together" offer as per the faq's on the website.

Same here so I sent them a secure message on Tuesday but still waiting for a response!

colsten

masonic wrote: »

While banks offer to start the switch immediately after accepting a customer, then they need to be able to deliver on the promises of that service. Some are very quick to get a new account up and running (for example, my most recent (Nationwide), managed to get a debit card + card reader + PIN + online access details to me within about 5 working days).

I don't doubt that some banks (with some following wind from the postal service) manage to get everything to a new account holder within 7 working days.

There is no guarantee for that, though, for very good reason. If it was reliably possible, don't you think one or more of the banks would by now trade on "we guarantee to open a new current account for you within 7 days". Or better still, "we guarantee to open a new current account for you within 7 days and we will also guarantee to have switched your old current account to this new account, no sweat".

Chances of that? Nil, I think. As it is just unrealistic to guarantee this, and nobody would benefit from unrealistic promises, or unrealistic expectations.

masonic

colsten wrote: »

There is no guarantee for that, though, for very good reason. If it was reliably possible, don't you think one or more of the banks would by now trade on "we guarantee to open a new current account for you within 7 days". Or better still, "we guarantee to open a new current account for you within 7 days and we will also guarantee to have switched your old current account to this new account, no sweat".

Chances of that? Nil, I think. As it is just unrealistic to guarantee this, and nobody would benefit from unrealistic promises, or unrealistic expectations.

Well clearly there is a guarantee with HSBC. I quoted it in post #192. Debit card, PIN, and (optional) cheque book within 7 working days is hard to describe as anything else. Apparently debit card activation allows access to telephone banking, so the only piece missing is internet banking, but the account would be essentially 'up and running'. Furthermore, I was offered the opportunity to set up a switch on the date I applied, so had I taken them up on that, they would have had to guarantee the switch in addition to opening the account in accordance with their explicit guarantee.

So, I am at a loss as to which part of the guarantee I am misunderstanding.

colsten

masonic wrote: »

So, I am at a loss as to which part of the guarantee I am misunderstanding.

The guarantee is for a switch to a current account [which, by definition of being a current account, must exist], not for opening a new account and switch to it.

There is not one single word in the current account switch guarantee that guarantees that you will have received everything you need to operate your new current account within 7, or within any number of days.

Short of everything getting totally "electronisised", I can't see why anyone would even want to ask for guaranteed 7-day current account opening. Emphasis on guaranteed.

masonic

colsten wrote: »

The guarantee is for a switch to a current account [which, by definition of being a current account, must exist], not for opening a new account and switch to it.

There is not one single word in the current account switch guarantee that guarantees that you will have received everything you need to operate your new current account within 7, or within any number of days.

Short of everything getting totally "electronisised", I can't see why anyone would even want to ask for guaranteed 7-day current account opening. Emphasis on guaranteed.

I'm referring to HSBC's own guarantee:

Your new HSBC Advance Debit Card plus any cheque book requested will be delivered to your home address within five working days and PIN within seven working days. In fact, we're so sure of this, we'll give you £10 if they're delayed.

They would also have to keep to the switching guarantee, should a customer opt to set up a switch on the day their account is opened, and they are offering to do so.

I'm really surprised on your stance regarding this. Why wouldn't people want their accounts to be opened quickly? There are the likes of Metrobank who use the fact you can walk into one of their branches and walk out with a fully opened account, debit card in hand, as a key selling point.

masonic

KTF wrote: »

Phone them and complain. I think in the welcome pack they sent me there was a leaflet that said they would pay something if you didn't have the account number and sort code in 7 days or similar.

By way of an update, it turns out that when I applied for this by phone over 2 weeks ago, my application was not completed properly and had been sitting in limbo ever since (despite me receiving a welcome pack suggesting everything was fine). After a fair bit of time on hold, this was sorted out and I've been assured the documentation will be in the post ASAP.

So, thanks again KTF for pointing out the account opening guarantee. If it wasn't for that I don't know how long I'd have been sitting here like a lemon waiting for paperwork that was never going to arrive.