Upgrading a Nationwide FlexBasic Account

lynxptc

Well my credit rating is still bad - there are defaults from a few years ago but they stay on your record for 6 years. I was hoping that by staying with nationwide and running the account perfectly they would base that on their decision

Archi_Bald

Oh I see. 

You could still try your luck at Starling or Monzo, or with a Credit Union? What is it you want / need to do that the basic account doesn't allow you to?

DebtHurricane

I had a flexbasic in 2016, closed it in 2017 cos they didn’t upgrade it. Then waited 6 months and successfully applied for a flex account directly as a new customer. Then upgraded in online banking to the flex plus for the insurance benefits. Had the account ever since 

lynxptc

Archi_Bald I’d like to upgrade to the FlexDirect account for the interest you get and because you get a cheque book (I know not many people use them now but it’s always handy to have). and because it gives you access to the high interest regular saver. I don’t need an overdraft or any borrowing facilities but I guess they are always handy to have

eskbanker

lynxptc said:

Archi_Bald I’d like to upgrade to the FlexDirect account for the interest you get and because you get a cheque book (I know not many people use them now but it’s always handy to have). and because it gives you access to the high interest regular saver.

Nationwide stopped opening new regular saver accounts over a year ago now, and the interest on the FlexDirect is 2% on up to £1,500 for a year, so a maximum interest payment of £30, versus £125 in the recent past....

lynxptc

Sorry my mistake. I remember there were “flexclusive” accounts only available to people with flexplus, flexdirect or flexaccount that pay in over £750

Archi_Bald

lynxptc said:

Archi_Bald I’d like to upgrade to the FlexDirect account for the interest you get and because you get a cheque book (I know not many people use them now but it’s always handy to have). and because it gives you access to the high interest regular saver. I don’t need an overdraft or any borrowing facilities but I guess they are always handy to have

In which case, ignore my suggestions above as they would not be much use to you. But neither is Nationwide, really, as the good times with them are mainly over. If you want to know what Regular Savers are available, look no further than here: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6106986/regular-savings-accounts-the-best-currently-available-list

Can't help you regarding the cheque book, other than to suggest you apply somewhere else that still does cheque books - Lloyds, Halifax, TSB, Santander, for instance. The worst that can happen is that they decline your application. 

lynxptc

I’ve just been looking at switching to Starling. They look a really good bank and the app looks really good. Problem is they do a credit check - I’m not sure if I would be accepted?

Archi_Bald

Starling won’t give you a cheque book or a decent interest rate. There is only one way to find out whether they will accept you. You get a decision in minutes.

Fighter1986

I'll it 18 months and then enquire about an upgrade. There's no features of a full FlexAccount which I actually need although interest from a FlexDirect account would be nice I'm not sure if I'd be happy to sacrifice branch banking privileges to have them.

It's just a symbolic representation of your finances now heading in the right direction I suppose isn't it? 

When it comes time I'll post back. 

Good luck to everyone else, especially @lynxptc