The Top Easy Access Savings Discussion Area

Band7

I have been using the 3% CHIP account for a few days, and successfully deposited a low 5-figure sum using Open Banking (i.e. pulled into CHIP) from Santander 10 days ago. Worked like a dream, as did a small test withdrawal back to Santander.

Today, I wanted to deposit a further £20k. The first hurdle was that the max single CHIP deposit amount is £15k. No sweat, so I would just do £15k and then another £5k. I authorised the £15k transaction in my Santander app, and instantly had my entire account access blocked. There was a msg with the phone number of the Santander fraud team, who did answer the phone after 15 minutes.

That's when the real fun started. After the customary interrogation to establish that I was who I said I was, I had to explain to them what CHIP is. The operative had never heard of them but after I gave her the CHIP URL eventually was satisfied that it's a bona-fide company, and that it was actually my CHIP account I wanted to transfer my money to.

I was then told that Santander does not recommend Open Banking. Obviously a lie. The fact that I had previously made an Open Banking transfer from the same Santander account to the same CHIP account counted for nothing. She offered to stay on the phone to approve a £20k Faster Payment transfer if I did set up a new payee for my CHIP account. I couldn't do this as my CHIP account does not appear to have a sort code and account number, and CHIP are probably not able to receive Faster Payments. EDIT: CHIP have subsequently confirmed that it is not possible to make deposits with conventional payments to sort code and account number.

So she then agreed she would authorise a £20k debit card payment to CHIP. Hit the same max £15k deposit limit again, but managed to authorise it at Santander. Just it then failed at the CHIP end and the transaction never completed. By that time I had run out most of my remaining patience and asked her once again why I couldn't be allowed to make an Open Banking payment, especially if I had made one to the same account before. After she consulted with her Manager, it was suddenly possible after all, and I finally made my £15k plus £5k Open Banking deposit, some 55 minutes later than I should have been able to in the first instance.

The operative then tried to explain to me again why Santander allegedly doesn't recommend using Open Banking for shifting money between accounts. She claims the incidence of fraud is much higher with Open Banking than it is with Faster Payments, and there is allegedly also no way for Santander to check that the recipient account is in the same name as the Santander account (even though Truelayer passes the account name to Santander!). All very hard to believe, but that was her story, anyway. She also said it was not possible to authorise my Santander account for future Open Banking transfers to my CHIP account "because it is all done by a bot"......................I spare you my reaction to that nonsense.

I asked whether my Open Banking transactions would have gone through without blocking if I had done two £10k payments but she couldn't confirm or otherwise.

I have now raised a complaint with Santander so we'll see what they have to say for themselves.

Bottom line for now seems to be that my plan to use CHIP* for my instant access savings doesn't look so good. I might just move everything to Zopa instead, despite the lower interest rate.

* instead of my MonBS Premium Instant account which has been open since Nov 26 but which I still can't use because MonBS say they still haven't receive my wet signature for it.......

techno12

Interesting reading people chopping and changing current accounts.

I've been with Barclays for 35 years (they got me with the SuperSaver kids thing back in the 80s) and would never consider switching as I'm used to it - my daily financials run through it, I'm used to the app and sort code numbers etc can't bother to change. Inertia...

Liking their current chart topping 5%+ on £5k Rainy Day Saver.

The people who have multiple concurrent "current accounts" are just playing the system and taking the !!!!!!. You should only have one "current account" really IMHO - would be too much faff for me to keep track of it all to gain a few quid sign up!

happybagger

If people want a load of current accounts to avail of the offers, why not? If the banks don't want people to open them, then they can always make the offers available without needing a current account!

For the same reason people will open several easy access accounts, and several fixed rates.

Fine, if you're keen on 'inertia', that's your choice.

But for the rest, as for "playing the system", the banks create the system, so let them play it.

castle96

I've had my (first ever) Barlays a/c for 60 yrs. Has had £1 in it for years. They have/had nothing special to entice me. Have got dozens of a/c. All for various reasons/rate. Assure you I am not taking the  !!!!!!   

ColdIron

techno12 said:

You should only have one "current account" really IMHO -

Would you also contend that people should only shop in one supermarket and not avail themselves of cheap bananas on offer down the road?

would be too much faff for me to keep track of it all to gain a few quid sign up!

Different strokes for different folks

flaneurs_lobster

techno12 said:

The people who have multiple concurrent "current accounts" are just playing the system and taking the !!!!!!. You should only have one "current account" really IMHO - would be too much faff for me to keep track of it all to gain a few quid sign up!

I guess it depends on whether you consider £700 "a few quid", that's the amount I've made in the last 8 weeks by "just playing the system and taking the p1ss". I too have a current account I've had for 28 years that gets used for my "proper banking", and in the last two months I've opened 8 more and closed 4 of them.

Having spent the majority of my working life in Financial Services I am only too pleased to be relieving some of my previous employers of some not hard-earned.

Off topic, this has nothing to do with Top Easy Access Accounts but I have opened 5 of those in the last 3 months as well.

Section62

techno12 said:

The people who have multiple concurrent "current accounts" are just playing the system and taking the !!!!!!. You should only have one "current account" really IMHO - would be too much faff for me to keep track of it all to gain a few quid sign up!

Your opinion would be bad advice.

Having only one current account makes someone more vulnerable to problems if that bank's (or banking group's) IT system has a problem, or if the account is suspended for some reason.

A second (or more) current account with a different banking group give people financial flexibility, so if one account is affected, they have another to enable them to continue transacting.

Your opinion is also contrary to the policy various banks adopt of allowing multiple current accounts to be held by one customer - e.g. BoS are quite happy for customers to have three Vantage accounts each, Nationwide allow members to be named on a maximum of four current accounts.  These aren't secret numbers that forum members have discovered by "playing the system", the banks themselves openly publish them.

Nick_C

I do wish MSE had not closed down the Moneysavers Arms.  Idle chit chat has taken over what should be useful and informative threads, which are regularly taken off topic and lose their usefulness.

Is a little self restraint too much to ask for?

There is always mumsnet if you want a blether.

baldeagle09

Soulsavers 'Top Easy Access Accounts Ranked - No Chat' is brief, excellent and informative.

This thread is the opposite and will be avoided at all costs.

andyhicks88

techno12 said:

Interesting reading people chopping and changing current accounts.

I've been with Barclays for 35 years (they got me with the SuperSaver kids thing back in the 80s) and would never consider switching as I'm used to it - my daily financials run through it, I'm used to the app and sort code numbers etc can't bother to change. Inertia...

Liking their current chart topping 5%+ on £5k Rainy Day Saver.

The people who have multiple concurrent "current accounts" are just playing the system and taking the !!!!!!. You should only have one "current account" really IMHO - would be too much faff for me to keep track of it all to gain a few quid sign up!

You very much shouldn't have one current account. What if there is problem with that bank? The app or online banking is down?  Card payments are down for some reason?  It's very much advised that you have at least 1 back up current account with some money in in case these issues arise and you need some money.