Why do First Direct send so much by post?!

Johntea

I recently opened a First Direct account to receive the £125 incentive for switching

I've opened other bank accounts with TSB, Natwest etc. and they were all simple online processes followed by receiving a debit card and PIN number in the post

But First Direct sent about a tree worth of paperwork in the post! Most of it just repeating what I already knew from the initial online process, terms and conditions, rates and so on

Then I even had to phone them to 'activate' my account

I appreciate security but it all seems a bit...1990s...compared to the application process of other banks!

Chino

In response to your thread title "Why do First Direct send so much by post?!", why don't you telephone First Direct and ask?

What is the point of your post? Perhaps you should ask for it to be moved to the Praise, Vent & Warnings Board.

[Deleted User]

Johntea wrote: »

I recently opened a First Direct account to receive the £125 incentive for switching

I've opened other bank accounts with TSB, Natwest etc. and they were all simple online processes followed by receiving a debit card and PIN number in the post

But First Direct sent about a tree worth of paperwork in the post! Most of it just repeating what I already knew from the initial online process, terms and conditions, rates and so on

Then I even had to phone them to 'activate' my account

I appreciate security but it all seems a bit...1990s...compared to the application process of other banks!

Because companies send out paperwork still - there's no law against it, despite what these new-age eco tree hugging warriors seem to think.

EarthBoy

Yes, it is old fashioned, but that's just the way that First Direct work. They are no longer the futuristic forward thinking bank that they liked to promote themselves as when they first opened for business. On the contrary, they are still stuck in the 1990s and most of the other banks have left them far behind.

18cc

I also opened one last year and I agree the postman positively staggered up the garden path each morning for a couple of weeks afterwards with all their paperwork

colsten

You get about a pound of paper for opening their Regular Saver. Same procedure for the last 10 years, at least, as I am now on my 10th RS with them. All bar the cover page, which gets shredded, goes straight into the recycling bin.

Imagine the amount of interest they could pay us if they operated efficiently.

glider3560

I applied for a mortgage with them. I was sent four letters on the same day in separate envelopes, including a fees list for all their products (bank account, savings account, loans, home insurance). One envelope had a single sheet of paper in a A4 sized envelope.

Then I applied for the current account and was sent the same fees list again (all printed on single sided A4 paper) among other letters and booklets.

And then applied for the regular saver. Guess what? The fees list again (it's about 15 pages long). The opening confirmation letter arrived twice in separate envelopes on the same day. Plus a duplication of a letter asking me to tell them if I'm not a UK resident that they sent when I opened the current account.

Overall, I've had at least 70 sheets of paper across 20 envelopes plus copious booklets just for opening three accounts. Most of the contents have been totally unrelated to the product I have applied for (and it's not even been advertising).