How many bank accounts do we have?

rainbowskies

I voted 2

Lloyd’s for everyday spending
Monzo for spending/withdrawing cash abroad

I would love to scrap the Lloyds and just have the Monzo for both UK and abroad spending but I’m paranoid about my bank card being swallowed by a machine. I have a credit card but I don’t want to use that to withdraw cash.

Don80

I have 3:
Bank of Scotland Classic Vantage which is my main account, plus the linked monthly saver
TSB which I use for paying some bills
Halifax which I use for paying other bills

RG2015

If savings accounts has better rates I doubt that many people would feel the need to have more than two current accounts.

RG2015

masonic wrote: »

6 of my current accounts pay zero interest on credit balances and only have a large enough credit balance to cover any payments going out of them that month. Banks ration the amount of money that can be put into the best savings accounts and require customers to hold a current account to qualify.

So if savings accounts had better rates and banks did not limit the amount of money that can be put in the best savings accounts and banks did not make it a requirement to open another account to qualify for those savings accounts, then I would agree with you.

Are you just talking about regular savers or are there any other savings accounts that are rationed and/or require current accounts to qualify?

PS: I am not including accounts like Marcus that are limited to very large upper limits, £250k in the case of Marcus.

RG2015

Thanks Masonic,

I also remember open to all notice accounts offering higher rates. I had a 90 day account with Abbey National many years ago. There are a few of these around now but none currently entice me.

I wonder if the removal of funding for lending and other similar schemes will eventually result in much better savings rates and hence the decline of multiple current account holders.

RG2015

RG2015 wrote: »

If savings accounts has better rates I doubt that many people would feel the need to have more than two current accounts.

masonic wrote: »

So if savings accounts had better rates and banks did not limit the amount of money that can be put in the best savings accounts and banks did not make it a requirement to open another account to qualify for those savings accounts, then I would agree with you.

masonic wrote: »

The unwinding of the free money banks have enjoyed over the past years will certainly put an upward pressure on rates, we're already seeing the first effects of this. However, I don't think this increase in rates will have much effect on multiple current account holders for the following reasons:

1) People who go to the trouble of rotating money through multiple current accounts are a small minority of very dedicated savers, even though they make up a much larger proportion of users of this forum
2) Back in the early 2000s when the base rate was around 5-6%, regular savers requiring current accounts, and high interest current accounts still offered the best rates
3) Once people become adept at securing the best deals for themselves through these tactics, it becomes easy for them to continue doing so.

Therefore, if the three conditions from your first post are fulfilled then it is likely that there will be fewer multiple account holders.

I am sure that many would welcome savings accounts paying rates high enough for them to avoid having to maintain multiple current accounts.

londoninvestor

In the early days of ISAs, they tended to have market-leading rates. (I did a quick Google and found Smile's cash ISA was paying 7.25% in 2000 - I'd forgotten that, and I actually had that account! Of course, savings rates in general were higher then.)

But that was when the cash ISA allowance was £3k a year so banks could offer tempting cash ISA rates as loss leaders, safe in the knowledge that no one could get a large amount in there.

Not any more, because many people have hundreds of thousands of accumulated ISA money - and even if you don't accept transfers in, you still have to expect savers to deposit £20k, which is a different matter from £3k.

Anthorn

I absolutely hate these threads such as this one and how many credit cards we each have because the responses by their nature are unqualified. The only way such claims can be qualified is by posting bank and credit card details.

Oh ok I'll respond: I have 173 accounts, all of them U.K. accounts.

ROFL

Herbalus

Anthorn wrote: »

I absolutely hate these threads such as this one and how many credit cards we each have because the responses by their nature are unqualified. The only way such claims can be qualified is by posting bank and credit card details.

Oh ok I'll respond: I have 173 accounts, all of them U.K. accounts.

Oh come on, we wouldn't all be sat at home on the internet in our pants just to lie about how many current accounts we have! :rotfl:

badger09

Herbalus wrote: »

Oh come on, we wouldn't all be sat at home on the internet in our pants just to lie about how many current accounts we have! :rotfl:

I've just almost spluttered/sprayed hot coffee all over myself & my laptop at this.

Good job I'm wearing more than my pants:D