NatWest nightmare!

maybeshewasbornwithitmaybeitsquarantine

I've had a lovely time switching and getting free money from bank accounts, however I just wanted to warn people NatWest are a living, breathing nightmare, so take the money and run. 

Two things though - if you are going to switch to NatWest, or their sister bank RBS, or any bank and you need credit, get a credit card first. The hard checks do reduce your credit worthiness.

Be VERY CAREFUL about your credit cards, as the NatWest switching service didn't even try to switch mine. I had to do it manually and I found it hugely stressful. 

Supposedly unrelated, I complained about this, got a phone call last night whilst I was at work fobbing me off with a load of rubbish, and now I've been locked out of my account altogether.

Fortunately you won't have to wait to get the extra £50 by staying with them. I'm going to unlock my bank account and ditch them immediately. They are TRULY AWFUL!

eskbanker

maybeshewasbornwithitmaybeitsquarantine said:

Be VERY CAREFUL about your credit cards, as the NatWest switching service didn't even try to switch mine. I had to do it manually and I found it hugely stressful. 

Supposedly unrelated....

Credit cards are definitely unrelated to the Current Account Switching Service!

Or do you perhaps mean that monthly direct debits to repay your credit cards weren't switched?

P.S. Like the username!

WillPS

Every high street bank credit checks new customers opening accounts (possibly excluding Metro).

Zanderman

maybeshewasbornwithitmaybeitsquarantine said:

I've had a lovely time switching and getting free money from bank accounts, however I just wanted to warn people NatWest are a living, breathing nightmare, so take the money and run. 

Two things though - if you are going to switch to NatWest, or their sister bank RBS, or any bank and you need credit, get a credit card first. The hard checks do reduce your credit worthiness.

Be VERY CAREFUL about your credit cards, as the NatWest switching service didn't even try to switch mine. I had to do it manually and I found it hugely stressful. 

Supposedly unrelated, I complained about this, got a phone call last night whilst I was at work fobbing me off with a load of rubbish, and now I've been locked out of my account altogether.

Fortunately you won't have to wait to get the extra £50 by staying with them. I'm going to unlock my bank account and ditch them immediately. They are TRULY AWFUL!

Not quite sure what the problem is here?

Any current account opening is likely (with a few exceptions) to include a credit check - NatWest and RBS are not unusual in doing this, it's normal.  And the issue is regularly discussed in forum threads about switching, so not news. There are often suggestions that these checks might adversely affect any loan etc application made afterwards.

Not sure what the credit card point is about at all. Switching switches current accounts, not credit cards, savings accounts or anything else.  Just current accounts.  If the lack of a credit card switch is what you were complaining about I'm not surprised you got nowhere.  

None of that would make NatWest a nightmare.

Being locked out of your account is, obviously, a problem.  None of the above issues would trigger that though (unless that phone discussion got really out of hand!).  

Thumbs_Up

At least you got past the switching service! I failed on the last criteria, taking a snapshot of my driving licence, it wouldn’t work. The selfie photo was ok.  So I trot down to my local branch and asked for help, just got a blank look and a shrugged of the shoulder then given a phone number to call. So I cancelled the application. Hmm, I wonder why there wasn’t any elderly folk in the branch.  

 

 

born_again

maybeshewasbornwithitmaybeitsquarantine said:

I've had a lovely time switching and getting free money from bank accounts, however I just wanted to warn people NatWest are a living, breathing nightmare, so take the money and run. 

Two things though - if you are going to switch to NatWest, or their sister bank RBS, or any bank and you need credit, get a credit card first. The hard checks do reduce your credit worthiness.

Be VERY CAREFUL about your credit cards, as the NatWest switching service didn't even try to switch mine. I had to do it manually and I found it hugely stressful. 

Supposedly unrelated, I complained about this, got a phone call last night whilst I was at work fobbing me off with a load of rubbish, and now I've been locked out of my account altogether.

Fortunately you won't have to wait to get the extra £50 by staying with them. I'm going to unlock my bank account and ditch them immediately. They are TRULY AWFUL!

Perhaps you need to brush up on just what the switching service covers...

It is ONLY your current account.
NOT Credit Cards, NOT savings accounts, NOT ISA, NOT mortgage.

Of course you will get credit checked. That is part & parcel of the process.

https://www.currentaccountswitch.co.uk/help-support/

Daliah

Over the last 18 months, I switched current accounts to new accounts at Natwest, RBS and Ulster, all in the same banking group. I got the switch bonus for all three, and I still run the Natwest and RBS account for the monthly rewards. The Ulster account doesn't have a reward scheme, so I switched that away to another bank. 

Hard credit checks were obviously carried out as part of the applications for the accounts. Applications are separate processes from switching accounts, and there is no further credit check for switching.

maybeshewasbornwithitmaybeitsquarantine said:

Be VERY CAREFUL about your credit cards, as the NatWest switching service didn't even try to switch mine. I had to do it manually and I found it hugely stressful. 

Supposedly unrelated, I complained about this, got a phone call last night whilst I was at work fobbing me off with a load of rubbish, and now I've been locked out of my account altogether.

I am afraid, you misunderstand what the current account switch service is. As the name implies, it's for current accounts only, not credit cards or anything else. So Natwest didn't fob you off.

You don't need to have your credit card and your current account at the same bank - - in fact, it's a much better idea to have them at separate companies, in case something goes wrong, technically or administratively.

Which one(s) of your accounts got locked - your current account, your credit card, both of them, online access? It's very strange that they should lock anything unless there are dodgy transactions, or if you have been abusive to their staff.

bevmk127

Has everyone who switched had there switch money, was due by today   11th Feb not had mine yet

eskbanker

bevmk127 said:

Has everyone who switched had there switch money, was due by today   11th Feb not had mine yet

Probably a question for the main NatWest switch offer thread, rather than this one about a very specific issue....

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6304548/natwest-150-switch-stay-offer

veryintrigued

Zanderman said:

Not quite sure what the problem is here?

I understand it was an issue with NatWest not having a credit card large enough to fit the OPs name on

maybeshewasbornwithitmaybeitsquarantine

Sorry, I didn't make that clear.

They did NOT switch the direct debit to pay the card.