Opening an account

Hijules67

Hi
Please can I ask for advice on a Bank Account. My benefits are paid in a post office account, but the department of health and social security are not using them any more. I just want an account to for my money to be paid into.
Thank You

kuratowski

Do you have any high street bank branches near to where you live?
With most of the big banks, you can continue to use the post office counter for withdrawing or paying in.
You could start by applying for a regular current account with no fees (e.g. Barclays Current Account, Lloyds Classic Account, etc).
In case you get a refusal, then you can ask to apply for a basic bank account, which all the main banks offer.

colsten

There is a list of the banking services available at the Post Office: https://www.postoffice.co.uk/everydaybanking

You can apply online for current accounts. TSB will pay you £20 if you open an account via TopCashback and you can make the eligibility transactions.

Another option could be the Tesco Clubcard Pay+ account. You can't use that one at the Post Office and it doesn't support Direct Debits but it is otherwise a full-function contactless VISA debit card, which is great for earning Clubcard points in Tesco and in other shops. It has a sort code and account number like any bank account, so DWP (or anyone) can send money to it.

Hijules67

kuratowski said:

Do you have any high street bank branches near to where you live?
With most of the big banks, you can continue to use the post office counter for withdrawing or paying in.
You could start by applying for a regular current account with no fees (e.g. Barclays Current Account, Lloyds Classic Account, etc).
In case you get a refusal, then you can ask to apply for a basic bank account, which all the main banks offer.

Hi thank you, I know I'm probably behind the times, but what is the difference between Current and basic account please

kuratowski

A basic bank account is a fallback, in case you are rejected for an ordinary current account.  It's an account that doesn't allow you to go overdrawn.

MSE guide on basic bank accounts:
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/basic-bank-accounts/

Hijules67

Thank you ever so much for your 

SebH

colsten said:

There is a list of the banking services available at the Post Office: https://www.postoffice.co.uk/everydaybanking

You can apply online for current accounts. TSB will pay you £20 if you open an account via TopCashback and you can make the eligibility transactions.

Another option could be the Tesco Clubcard Pay+ account. You can't use that one at the Post Office and it doesn't support Direct Debits but it is otherwise a full-function contactless VISA debit card, which is great for earning Clubcard points in Tesco and in other shops. It has a sort code and account number like any bank account, so DWP (or anyone) can send money to it.

Just to add to this: I don’t believe that Tesco’s Clubcard Pay+ account would work for DWP payments as it only accepts Faster Payments in to it’s sort code, and has no BACS Direct Credit (or Direct Debit) support.

Since most government payments are credited by BACS, this may mean you couldn’t receive them.

I would start by attempting to apply for a “full” normal current account, and if declined a basic bank account. Perhaps you could try the Tesco account at a later date if you wanted to earn the Clubcard points, but I would recommend starting simple if you have never used a bank account before.

Basic bank accounts do have some restrictions, like not offering a chequebook or sometimes not working in certain situations (like pay at pump petrol stations or in-flight purchases), so if you can it’s best to get a “full” current account - but the basic account would probably still suit your needs.

Daliah

The Clubcard Pay+ T&Cs state that this account should not be used for wages, benefits etc