Student Bank Accounts

Boyler8008

My daughter has just gone off to University and is trying (without success) to obtain a Student Bank Account. She has tried HSBC and NatWest but both have said that she is ineligible due to not having a credit score. We have tried an Experian check too and that wasn't any help because she only recently turned 18 and has not built up any history yet.  Trouble is, she can't build up the history without the Student Accounts or Credit Cards but can't seem to get access.  Chicken and Egg.  Wondered if anyone else had come across this and what was done to remedy please?

eskbanker

Boyler8008 said:

My daughter has just gone off to University and is trying (without success) to obtain a Student Bank Account. She has tried HSBC and NatWest but both have said that she is ineligible due to not having a credit score.

It would surprise me if that's exactly what they said - apart from the fact that banks rarely disclose specific reasons for rejecting applications, the vast majority of student account applications will be from 17/18 year olds with little or no credit history!  They may have said or meant that your daughter didn't pass their own proprietary credit scoring processes (they don't use numbers made up and sold by the likes of Experian), but that would be unusual for teenagers - has she had any issues with previous accounts being closed perhaps?

Shakin_Steve

My lad is in his fourth year at uni and has a Barclays student account. £500 fee free overdraft. He's been very happy with it.

sheramber

has she lived in UK for at least 3 years?

Daliah

Does she have a CIFAS marker? https://www.cifas.org.uk/dsar

MalMonroe

Boyler8008 said:

My daughter has just gone off to University and is trying (without success) to obtain a Student Bank Account. She has tried HSBC and NatWest but both have said that she is ineligible due to not having a credit score. We have tried an Experian check too and that wasn't any help because she only recently turned 18 and has not built up any history yet.  Trouble is, she can't build up the history without the Student Accounts or Credit Cards but can't seem to get access.  Chicken and Egg.  Wondered if anyone else had come across this and what was done to remedy please?

Well, hundreds of thousands of students in this country go to uni every year - the majority of them go straight from sixth form and are the same age as your daughter so don't have credit histories either. (How can they?) Most of them manage to get student accounts. I went to full time uni as an undergrad for the first time at the age of 48 and HSBC wouldn't give me a student account - even though my credit history was squeaky clean - but Barclays had no problem accepting me and I had a Barclays account for a few years after graduation too. My daughter started uni at the age of 18 at the same time as me and was given an HSBC account without any problem at all. She's still with them. 

Could your daughter try somewhere like Barclays, Co-op or Nationwide?   

Jami74

Boyler8008 said:

My daughter has just gone off to University and is trying (without success) to obtain a Student Bank Account. 

Is she applying using her home address or her uni address? My daughter applied before she went so used her home address.

[Deleted User]

Use the home address and get everything setup online - it gives her stability of residence. 
Does she have any child/ youth accounts that she could upgrade?