First Direct vs HSBC

pbartlett

first direct are primarily a telephone bank

yes these days they have Internet banking and an app but that does still not change the fact that the primary mode of contact is telephone. 

Once you realise that you will understand them

WillPS

pbartlett said:

first direct are primarily a telephone bank

yes these days they have Internet banking and an app but that does still not change the fact that the primary mode of contact is telephone. 

Once you realise that you will understand them

FWIW, I was never that impressed by their telephone offering either.

Yes, you get straight through to a human. That human puts you through security then asks how they can help, before connecting you to the right team. This is the same as any other telephone banking arrangement - except they have a human pressing the buttons on the computer rather than allowing the customer to interact with it themselves.

If you get particularly flustered by phone menus, I guess that's an advantage.

Other than that, they're as good or bad as any other UK call centre.

funkycredit

Once you're an existing customer you can open the saver via the app - it's all there. 

See the apply option - top right corner. 

Frontera2

Thanks, but it’s not the regular saver product I’m trying to open. Don’t think I’ll be using FD until their digital offering improves 

TheEffect

Frontera2 said:

Thanks, but it’s not the regular saver product I’m trying to open. Don’t think I’ll be using FD until their digital offering improves 

To be honest, they're never going to be the bank that has an amazing app and internet banking. They only selling point is their customer service on the phone, which is primarily for those who want phone based customer service. 
If you want a bank where you can do nearly everything online, go with Barclays, who IMO have the best app/internet banking, although i'm sure most would agree their customer service isn't as good as FD, but then if you can do nearly everything yourself, calling them shouldn't be that common. 

At the moment, you can't even open an Online Bonus Saver with First Direct.... online. You can't apply for an overdraft online. You can't change your withdrawal limit. You can't see certain accounts online. 

Frontera2

You can change your withdrawal limits in the app...