Santander 123 account fee increasing to £5 from January

Nick_C

MaccaHallam wrote: »

I've just paid the Yearly Fee on my 123 CC. Does that cover me until next year now? If I left before my fee was due would Santander add up the months I'd still have the card and charge me an appropriate fee?

See http://www.santander.co.uk/uk/123changes/123-credit-card

"The £24 annual fee is changing to a £3 monthly fee (equivalent to £36 a year). So the next time your £24 annual fee is due to be taken, this will change to a £3 monthly fee. We’ll get in touch at least one month before this happens to remind you."

Although I'm still very happy with Santander, I do think they've fouled up by releasing this to the press before writing to their customers. We shouldn't be having to learn about these changes from the papers and hunting around on their website.

Beancounter

Nick_C wrote: »

Inevitable that they couldn't offer this loss leader for ever. I'm currently borrowing money from Santander at 2.5% (lifetime tracker mortgage) and lending it back to them at 3% (123 current account). Clearly not profitable for them.
.

Similar to me, moved a while back, I had the cash to go mortgage free but as the rate I was offered was 1.25% it was a no brainer to take out the mortgage and keep the 20K in my 123 account. Still very profitable despite the fee hike.

[Deleted User]

For me the 123 credit card was only ever going to last a year. It was just a bonus on top the the 123 current account to get 3% on fuel. Nothing else to use it for. But looking at how much it earns, ~£4.33pm tis definitely not worth keeping post 1st anniversary Will just revert to using my Barclays Amex for CB.

It's touch and go with the 123 current account. I barely cover the £2pm fee with DDs which is only going to get worse when I cease paying BT shortly as joining a rural broadband scheme and remove the old legacy LPG tank (the quartely tank rental ~£15pm generates CB - not bought gas in years). So my annual CB will only total £28...

Not only the above but Nationwide have just informed me one of the 5% accounts is nearing it's anniversary so reverting to 1%.

Lot's of shuffling to do...

GingerFurball_2

gingercordial wrote: »

Slightly annoyed as I went and opened a 123 account on Saturday morning. I assume the chap who opened it for me didn't know...

He will have known about it but the information would have been embargoed.

Krash420

It's not even been a month since I've opened my account, so I don't even know what the cashback I'll earn will look like. But the thing I'm glad about is that Santander is not my main bank. That would be HSBC, where I'm receiving £10 Interest on ISA thanks to advanced account, and second would be Halifax where I'm receiving £5 Interest for being on credit.

The main reason I've opted for Santander was the 3% cashback rate, I'm not a home owner yet, though do plan to be, so my only real direct debits are my phone bill, which is £15 a month giving me £5 a year (yay I have one month of the new fees covered).

Now doing a quick (and rough) calculation, my ISA gives me 1.4%, santander gives me 3% but now takes £60 in fees. This means to break even with my ISA rate, I would need to hold an average balance of £6250 over the year. Also saving for a wedding, so not sure how likely that will be, I'm sure it'll be up and down. HOWEVER, after April we'll also be receiving the interest tax free (well the first £1k for basic rate and £500 for higher rates), meaning to beat a 1.4% ISA rate we'd need roughly £3821 in the account over the average year, to beat the rate.

I think that is doable - and if we have even more, we'll beat that rate. Sure we can move to Tesco's who'll pay 3% without the charge, but given the number of accounts I already hold, I'm a bit reluctant to open even more unless I really need to or if they increased the limit from 3k to say 10k.

I've also got a credit card, but thankfully will get the first months charges paid back to me, so hopefully shouldn't affect me for the first year. Will see how much I get back, and then decide next year if I should keep it or cancel it. I'll most likely cancel it though, as most of my purchasing is in non-cashback paying stores.

Thrugelmir

Nick_C wrote: »

I do think they've fouled up by releasing this to the press before writing to their customers. We shouldn't be having to learn about these changes from the papers and hunting around on their website.

Major announcements are made by press advertisements. Letters will not all be dispatched or indeed arrive at the same time. Not that the change is immediate.

Nick_C

Thrugelmir wrote: »

Major announcements are made by press advertisements. Letters will not all be dispatched or indeed arrive at the same time. Not that the change is immediate.

A press advert is not the same as a news story based on a press release.

Santander will have email addresses for most of its customers, who could all have found out about these changes from a personally addressed email.

I would have felt more valued as a customer if I had learned about these changes first hand. I therefore stand by my opinion that they have fouled up.

northwest1965

Nick_C wrote: »

I would have felt more valued as a customer if I had learned about these changes first hand. I therefore stand by my opinion that they have fouled up.

That's exactly what I emailed them earlier this week. the date for new payment is 11th January

colsten

northwest1965 wrote: »

the date for new payment is 11th January

That will be your date. It may or may not be the payment date for anyone else as people have different statement dates.

joe134

Nick_C wrote: »

A press advert is not the same as a news story based on a press release.

Santander will have email addresses for most of its customers, who could all have found out about these changes from a personally addressed email.

I would have felt more valued as a customer if I had learned about these changes first hand. I therefore stand by my opinion that they have fouled up.

By putting it in the press so early, it could prevent people taking out new A/c's just before the rise.
They may send e-mails out to us A/c holders, they aren't obliged to, so far in advance.It's a blow, but it couldn't last . I shall still use mine,only because it's maxed out, so still pays a decent return, on £20k, or in my case x 3.
Loyalty;Anathema to banks.
We use them, they use us.