Bank error in my favor? What to do?

System

And no sense of humour!

Robisere

I must live in 1950. At my bank branch (TSB) I know all the staff by name, including the branch manager. I have sat down at appointments with 3 of them, again including the manager.

What's it like in the 21st. century? ...... Oh, right, just a number. In that case I'll stay here.

takman

Robisere wrote: »

I must live in 1950. At my bank branch (TSB) I know all the staff by name, including the branch manager. I have sat down at appointments with 3 of them, again including the manager.

What's it like in the 21st. century? ...... Oh, right, just a number. In that case I'll stay here.

But just think of all the hours and hours of your life you have wasted by going to the bank and the thousands of pounds you have "lost" by staying with one bank!.

RG2015

takman wrote: »

But just think of all the hours and hours of your life you have wasted by going to the bank and the thousands of pounds you have "lost" by staying with one bank!.

Not everyone staying with one bank loses money. I have had my main account with NatWest for 44 years and do not believe that I have lost anything.

Yes NatWest now has derisory interest rates on most of their savings accounts although they had a market leading e-saver a few years back. I now choose banks for the best deals and have several accounts for different requirements. But I still prefer NatWest for basic transaction banking and I know all of their processes and idiosyncrasies inside out.

Shakin_Steve

RG2015 wrote: »

Not everyone staying with one bank loses money. I have had my main account with NatWest for 44 years and do not believe that I have lost anything.

Yes NatWest now has derisory interest rates on most of their savings accounts although they had a market leading e-saver a few years back. I now choose banks for the best deals and have several accounts for different requirements. But I still prefer NatWest for basic transaction banking and I know all of their processes and idiosyncrasies inside out.

Ditto for us with Barclays, although our account is only ‘recently opened’ compared to yours. 29 years.:)

EachPenny

takman wrote: »

But just think of all the hours and hours of your life you have wasted by going to the bank and the thousands of pounds you have "lost" by staying with one bank!.

RG2015 wrote: »

Not everyone staying with one bank loses money. I have had my main account with NatWest for 44 years and do not believe that I have lost anything.

I too have been with the same bank since age 15 (possibly 16). I've lost nothing because I also have accounts with many other banks and building societies whilst maintaining the original relationship.

Some accounts require you to go to a branch to open and manage. I don't consider those hours 'wasted' because it is a necessary part of achieving better interest rates.

With one bank and one building society I'd never used before the start of this year I am now on first name terms with all of the customer facing staff in my local branchs. Building up and maintaining a face to face relationship with them pays dividends... account opening is quicker, they pass on 'gossip' about new accounts in the pipeline, and unlike phone/online banking you get offered tea or coffee

Going back to ampersand's comment which has started this debate, I think there was a lot of sense in saying "Deal only with someone you recognise". It might be the case that the OP doesn't recognise any of the bank staff personally, but it is a good caution to make sure the person you speak to genuinely works for the bank.

For example, I find the Barclays approach of staff wandering around with iPads rather unnerving. Yes, they wear a uniform of sorts and have a name badge, but it wouldn't be too difficult for a fraudster to walk into a busy branch wearing similar clothes and armed with an iPad and convince a customer to hand over personal details. The fact Barclays staff use PINsentry devices to get customers to identify themselves gives an opportunity to obtain PIN numbers, perhaps to retain the card due to a 'fault' and ask the customer to come back later.

So yes, ampersand's suggestion makes some sense, even if the probability of most people being able to talk to a staff member they recognise is probably slim.

EssexExile

My father-in-law knew all the branch staff by name. If he had any problems he went to the bank & they'd help him out. He considered them friends. It didn't stop them selling him a second current account which cost £15 a month with lots of perks that were useless to him.

takman

RG2015 wrote: »

Not everyone staying with one bank loses money. I have had my main account with NatWest for 44 years and do not believe that I have lost anything.

Yes they do and that's a fact. If you simply stay with one bank and never open second accounts with other banks to get switching bonuses and higher interest you will effectively loose money.

RG2015 wrote: »

Yes NatWest now has derisory interest rates on most of their savings accounts although they had a market leading e-saver a few years back. I now choose banks for the best deals and have several accounts for different requirements. But I still prefer NatWest for basic transaction banking and I know all of their processes and idiosyncrasies inside out.

EachPenny wrote: »

I too have been with the same bank since age 15 (possibly 16). I've lost nothing because I also have accounts with many other banks and building societies whilst maintaining the original relationship.

That's why i said "by staying with one bank" you will loose money. Both of you have opened accounts with other banks because you have realised that is what you need to do to get the best interest rates/rewards.

EachPenny wrote: »

Some accounts require you to go to a branch to open and manage. I don't consider those hours 'wasted' because it is a necessary part of achieving better interest rates.

I don't know of any accounts which provide a good rate of interest and also require you to manage them in branch?. I also have many different accounts with different banks and building societies in the UK and all of them i have been able to open online or by post.

EachPenny wrote: »

With one bank and one building society I'd never used before the start of this year I am now on first name terms with all of the customer facing staff in my local branchs. Building up and maintaining a face to face relationship with them pays dividends... account opening is quicker, they pass on 'gossip' about new accounts in the pipeline, and unlike phone/online banking you get offered tea or coffee

I disagree, it is a big waste of time going in branch to open and manage accounts which can be done online, by post or telephone. Any account you can only open in branch will not pay any decent rate of interest or have any benefits. Any new accounts can be seen online as soon as they are released and i can have tea/coffee at home!.

This isn't aimed at you but i know some people enjoy the social interaction when going into places like the bank branch and post office to carry out banking and paying bills etc as they have little social interaction elsewhere. But personally i would much rather manage all my fiances online when it's convenient for me and spend my time talking to real friends and family rather than some people who i don't know that work in the bank.

RG2015

@takman,

Okay, it is just a question of interpretation. When you say staying with one bank you mean staying with one bank only.

I have stayed with one bank, NatWest but also opened other accounts as well to get the best interest rates. I treat the other accounts as savings accounts not current accounts.

Therefore, I have stayed with NatWest and I have not lost any money.

EachPenny

takman wrote: »

I don't know of any accounts which provide a good rate of interest and also require you to manage them in branch?. I also have many different accounts with different banks and building societies in the UK and all of them i have been able to open online or by post.
...
I disagree, it is a big waste of time going in branch to open and manage accounts which can be done online, by post or telephone. Any account you can only open in branch will not pay any decent rate of interest or have any benefits. Any new accounts can be seen online as soon as they are released and i can have tea/coffee at home!

Saffron Building Society Regular Saver @3.5% - can only be opened in branch unless you've been a customer for 6 months, then postal applications accepted, but not online.

Nottingham Building Society Special Regular Saver Issue 6 @2.5% - can only be operated in branch

Kent Reliance Regular savings account issue 3 @3% - can only be operated in branch

Just three examples from the current best-buy range.

With postal accounts, unless you get a freepost address/envelope then you have to factor in the cost of postage. Obviously this might be a lot cheaper than the cost of petrol and parking to go to a branch, but if you are going to the town/city where the branch is then the travel cost is already covered.

Most banks and building societies do put details of new accounts online on the day of launch, but quite often forum members have posted that "they were in branch and heard...." It isn't relevant to everybody, but for some of us it is helpful to have advance notice of new accounts because it allows time to withdraw funds from other places ready to deposit in the new account when it is launched.

Other forum members have reported that some bank branches (no names mentioned) will skip a lot of the formalities if they know the customer, whereas opening accounts by phone involves listening to the whole script. I have personal experience in one case of opening an account in branch in less time than I'd probably have been on hold waiting to speak to someone on the phone.

I agree it makes sense to do things online and by phone where it is quicker and cheaper, but visiting a branch isn't always a waste of time and there are some good accounts you cannot get otherwise.