Club Lloyds Current Account

connors07

Hi all,

I've been checking out the 'Club Lloyds Current Account' - Link below.

http://www.lloydsbank.com/current-accounts/club-lloyds.asp?WT.mc_id=108603145|281858210|0

I appreciate to qualify for the full benefits of this account I need to pay in £1,500 and have two direct debits set up.

With regards to paying in £1,500 - does this need to be in the form of wages or can it be me simply transferring £1,500 from another account of mine (which would be non-Club Lloyds) to qualify?

I understand to get the best use of this account there should be between £4,000 and £5,000 to get the 4% rate - in the event of hitting the maximum would there be anything to stop me transferring £1,500 to qualify as above and then transferring the money back out again to leave exactly £5,000 in the account?

Sorry for the newb questions - thanks for any advice offered.

jimjames

How does the bank know the source of money coming in? Is there a flag that says something is wages? Maybe worth checking their terms and conditions will confirm.

If not then you can pay anything in from an external account. It works for the bank accounts I have but these are not Lloyds.

Eco_Miser

connors07 wrote: »

With regards to paying in £1,500 - ... can it be me simply transferring £1,500 from another account of mine (which would be non-Club Lloyds) to qualify?

I understand to get the best use of this account there should be between £4,000 and £5,000 to get the 4% rate - in the event of hitting the maximum would there be anything to stop me transferring £1,500 to qualify as above and then transferring the money back out again to leave exactly £5,000 in the account?

That's exactly what I do, except that £400 of the excess goes by standing order to a Club Lloyds Monthly Saver, where it also earns 4% AER.

bowlhead99

Basically the features of the account (ability to earn interest if you have direct debits set up, ability to get preferential rates on savings or mortgages or home insurance, the 'lifestyle benefits' like cinema tickets etc) cost a £5 Club Lloyds fee each month.

This fee is waived if you pay in £1500 a month. If you don't pay in the £1500 a month to get the fee waiver, the fee will really eat into your interest income (though if you had £5000 in there at all times you would still be earning enough to cover it).

But the T&C for the fee waiver is simply

If you pay £1,500 or more into the account in any calendar month the Club Lloyds fee for that month will be waived

They don't care if it comes from you or your employer or your granny.

You are right, they only pay the top rate when your balance is in a reasonably narrow range so when your £1500 credit (net of the direct debits going out) looks like it will push your balance over the limit, you should transfer the spare cash out again. This can be done by standing order, just like the standing order inwards can be done by standing order, so doesn't require much attention over the year.

That 4% regular saver account being fed by standing order with up to £400 is a sensible thing to do with part of the surplus money because after a year that will have built up to a separate pot of £4800, meaning Lloyds will be potentially paying 4% on nearly £10k of total cash until the regular saver converts into a lower rate account after the year is up.

connors07

Thanks for the responses everyone - really helpful! I will apply for an account as it seems ideal for what I'm looking for.

5erge

I upgraded to CL approx 11 months ago and in my opinion it is the best in terms of offers.

Where else can you get the potential to earn 4% on;

• Current account £5000
• Monthly Saver £4800 (you can open a new one once it matures)
• Lifestyle benefits - 6 VUE cinema tickets a year, or an annual magazine subscription, or gourmet society membership
• Access to money savings offers eg 10% off Waitrose, money off at restaurants etc... these vary each month.

Des