Switching from HSBC to First Direct

jamestay1

2 questions

1. I know HSBC own’s First Direct so will it be easy to switch ?

2. I’ve just left my job of 23 years which I paid weekly, I start my new job in 2 weeks time which I’ll be paid monthly. Should I switch now or when I start the new job ?
Thanks

N1ckS

It will be very easy to switch as First Direct are signed up to CASS:
https://www.currentaccountswitch.co.uk/banksandbuildingsocieties/Pages/banks.aspx

It takes 7 days to switch and any payments made in error to your closed account will be forwarded on to your new account.

So in principle there should be no issue at all other than an unlikely delay in receiving the letters that allow you online access to the account.

eskbanker

jamestay1 wrote: »

2. I’ve just left my job of 23 years which I paid weekly, I start my new job in 2 weeks time which I’ll be paid monthly. Should I switch now or when I start the new job ?

N1ckS wrote: »

So in principle there should be no issue at all other than an unlikely delay in receiving the letters that allow you online access to the account.

Bear in mind that switching is a different process from opening the account in the first place, even though many banks try to wrap it all up as if it's one, for simplicity. The usual advice on here applies - if this is your main/only account where immediate access to the money is important to you, then you should get the account open and fully operational (debit card received/activated/tested, online banking in use, test transactions in and out completed, etc) before initiating the switch.

FD also have form for providing earliest switch dates some way beyond seven days, so the whole process from start to finish (i.e. applying for the account to completing the switch) is highly likely to be significantly more than two weeks, unless you're prepared to take avoidable risks by cutting corners....

18cc

If it were me, I would do exactly that eskbanker says:

1. open new FD account, get card etc
2. give the FD account details to your new employer so salary is paid in there
3. make sure you have enough in your old HSBC account to pay DDs etc
4. manually (ie call the company) switch any super-important DDs to your new FD account eg mobile phone DD, credit card DD etc.
5. give FD account details to any other people paying money into your account eg savings interest etc
6. once all is running, switch the HSBC account into the new FD account ie the remaining DDs etc. OR don't switch just keep the HSBC account in case anything goes wrong with the FD one. Always good to have a backup account.

eskbanker

18cc wrote: »

If it were me, I would do exactly that eskbanker says:

1. open new FD account, get card etc
2. give the FD account details to your new employer so salary is paid in there
3. make sure you have enough in your old HSBC account to pay DDs etc
4. manually (ie call the company) switch any super-important DDs to your new FD account eg mobile phone DD, credit card DD etc.
5. give FD account details to any other people paying money into your account eg savings interest etc
6. once all is running, switch the HSBC account into the new FD account ie the remaining DDs etc. OR don't switch just keep the HSBC account in case anything goes wrong with the FD one. Always good to have a backup account.

That's not exactly what I was saying!

You're suggesting a bunch of manual activity rather than relying solely on CASS and even floating the idea of not going ahead with CASS at all!

I'm not saying that such suggestions don't have their merits but just flagging that they're not what I was putting forward....

Having a backup account is indeed a good idea, but it generally makes more sense to hold one with a completely different banking group, for extra resilience.

18cc

Yes sorry I was referring to getting the account fully operational bit of your post!