Halifax Reward Account changing to £3 charge with “lifestyle rewards”

colsten

I wouldn't touch the PO with a barge pole ever again. 

soulsaver

YorkshireBoy said:

soulsaver said:

How much did you try the DC payment to PO for? It works for a few quid for me, but 'experiences technical difficulties' with £500 with the same card that worked for the small £££s.

I plan to use YBS, but just in case I have to resort to PO Savings are you making the larger payment straight after the smaller one or, say, a few days later?

Different days, different cards, different browser... Fortunately I too have other options. 
I posted my experience for the poster that may think a small test means it will work, when it appears it may not work consistently with a larger sum. I realise it may do for them but it doesn't for me, but has in the past. 
That's the issue with PO,  you for sure can't rely on the service

Still, its sole raison dd'etre for me is quickly diminishing…  

Elderone

Hi. So just to check with all you clever folk without trawling through everything please. If I keep 5K in my account and ping in and out 1.5K from one of my other accounts is that ok and would halifax be happy with that because I don't earn quite enough from my wages to cover the £1500 every month. Thanks in advance.

where_are_we

Elderone said:

Hi. So just to check with all you clever folk without trawling through everything please. If I keep 5K in my account and ping in and out 1.5K from one of my other accounts is that ok and would halifax be happy with that because I don't earn quite enough from my wages to cover the £1500 every month. Thanks in advance.

Yes - call fully automated line before 15th May - agree to change to rewards extra current account - choose option of £5 reward - choose option of keeping £5000 in account to earn the £5 monthly reward. Deposit £5000 in account on June 1st ( this will cancel your £3 fee for June),  set up £1500 monthly standing order in and £1505 (to remove your £5 reward) out on same day from your external current account starting 2nd July ( reward will go in at beginning of month) Do this for 11 months and review the account then. Cancell your DD`s and £750 in/out standing orders that you had for the old reward at end of May.

Elderone

where_are_we said:

Elderone said:

Hi. So just to check with all you clever folk without trawling through everything please. If I keep 5K in my account and ping in and out 1.5K from one of my other accounts is that ok and would halifax be happy with that because I don't earn quite enough from my wages to cover the £1500 every month. Thanks in advance.

Yes - call fully automated line before 15th May - agree to change to rewards extra current account - choose option of £5 reward - choose option of keeping £5000 in account to earn the £5 monthly reward. Deposit £5000 in account on June 1st ( this will cancel your £3 fee for June),  set up £1500 monthly standing order in and £1505 (to remove your £5 reward) out on same day from your external current account starting 2nd July ( reward will go in at beginning of month) Do this for 11 months and review the account then. Cancell your DD`s and £750 in/out standing orders that you had for the old reward at end of May.

Hi. Thanks for that very clear answer. Just one thing I forgot. My other account is an easy access savings account which I don't think I can setup standing orders from. To make it easier (using standing orders) can you suggest a few accounts I could use for the £1500. I suppose it wouldn't be the end of the world to do a transfer from my savings account and back manually every month.

keiran

I tried only a £5 debit card payment...so yet to see how a £500 will work, but there really shouldn't be any issues..?
I see that my old National Counties acc accepts debit card payments, too ( I've tested this as well) and so will be better than PO (though as contrasted with others' experiences, I've never had a problem with the PO accounts)

General_Grant

Elderone said:

Hi. So just to check with all you clever folk without trawling through everything please. If I keep 5K in my account and ping in and out 1.5K from one of my other accounts is that ok and would halifax be happy with that because I don't earn quite enough from my wages to cover the £1500 every month. Thanks in advance.

As the £5K needs to be there for the whole month and 1 June is a Monday, I would play safe and bring my balance to £5K on Friday, 29 May. 
If your wages currently go into the account, work out the safe additional amount to pay in each month, and make arrangements by SO or do it manually.  (By "safe" I mean the absolute minimum amount which would bring your net salary payment up to the £1.5K.)
No need to cancel DDs but you could any time after the May DDs have been taken.

badger09

colsten said:

I wouldn't touch the PO with a barge pole ever again. 

I'm still using a PO account, weekly, to qualify for Co-op rewards, but I would not risk £500 pm. I'd need a gold plated barge pole at  that level.

JustAnotherSaver

If this works out as 1.2% for £5k

And Marcus is offering above that, with no limit for the average person.

Is there any reason to put £5k in a Halifax account, never mind 3 of them?

I've been weighing up whether to do it or not but for me at least it keeps boiling down to the fact that £5k will get me 1.2% and i have to jump through (easy) hoops to get that 1.2%. With Marcus i'm getting 1.35%-1.45% (can't remember which now) and i just chuck money in there and leave it.

General_Grant

JustAnotherSaver said:

If this works out as 1.2% for £5k

And Marcus is offering above that, with no limit for the average person.

Is there any reason to put £5k in a Halifax account, never mind 3 of them?

I've been weighing up whether to do it or not but for me at least it keeps boiling down to the fact that £5k will get me 1.2% and i have to jump through (easy) hoops to get that 1.2%. With Marcus i'm getting 1.35%-1.45% (can't remember which now) and i just chuck money in there and leave it.

The effective interest rate rather depends on your tax status, I think.
Because I receive more than £1K in interest in a year, I look on the £5/month as equating to 1.5%.  (The £5 isn't interest but income but for me the principle is the same.)