Switching bank ... will old bank credit cards remain valid?

nicolatesla47

This is probably a stupid question, but if I close my TSB current account by switching to Santander, will my TSB issued Visa and Mastercard credit cards remain valid or will I need to apply for new cards?   I phoned Santander and they were adamant that the old TSB cards could no longer be used, however at Moneysupermarket.com under their info on bank switching they say that old cards should remain valid, (along with any saving or ISA accounts).  Can anyone clarify this through their own personal experience of switching?

Brie

if it's like Barclays then Barclaycard is a separate account to whatever the current account is so closing one has nothing to do with the other.  I doubt anyone at Santander could tell you for sure but certainly TSB themselves will know.  Might even be an FAQ on their website.

bengal-stripe

Credit Cards are a separate contract and have no connection to your current account. They will continue to the same conditions as now.

Debit Cards are linked to a particular current account, they will stop working if that account gets closed. 

PRAISETHESUN

The clue is in the name - Current Account Switch Service. Only current accounts are affected. Credit cards and savings do not get switched. Debit cards linked to your current account will no longer work as the current account no longer exists. Some banks require you to hold a current account in order to get preferential rates on certain savings/CCs, but you should know about that if you held any of those products but outside of that should be able to be used without issue.

NoodleDoodleMan

I "phoned Santander and they were adamant that the old TSB cards could no longer be used,"

Since when could one bank invalidate an account issued by another ?

[Deleted User]

If the company has some sort of weird link between the account and the card, they might, but otherwise no, they are separate and indeed, they want you to keep the card and keep using it for their fees from shops. I suspect Santander thought you meant the debit card not a credit card

nicolatesla47

NoodleDoodleMan said:

I "phoned Santander and they were adamant that the old TSB cards could no longer be used,"

Since when could one bank invalidate an account issued by another ?

No, of course they can't ... what Santander said was that TSB would automatically invalidate my TSB issued credit cards if I closed my TSB current account.  I assumed that this referred to a common banking practise.

Brie

Now that I think about it Virginone (RBS) did have Visa cards attached to their flexi mortgage account - basically a current account with a massive overdraft the size of your outstanding mortgage.  If you closed the mortgage account then the Visa card would go too.  But they weren't normal Visa cards in any case as there was only a 7 day delay between purchase and payment which was when the card balance would be added to the mortgage.  It was a weird thing and even the chap I talked to decades back when we took out the mortgage said he thought it was a dumb thing and didn't understand why anyone would use the card.  It's only taken V1 about 20 years to get rid of it!   Maybe Santander was thinking it was something similar?

born_again

I think maybe someone did not ask the right question, or as soon as switching service was mentioned the rep only thought of what it covered.
No bank has no control over any other banks cards. Even within the same groups.

nicolatesla47

Brie said:

Now that I think about it Virginone (RBS) did have Visa cards attached to their flexi mortgage account - basically a current account with a massive overdraft the size of your outstanding mortgage.  If you closed the mortgage account then the Visa card would go too.  But they weren't normal Visa cards in any case as there was only a 7 day delay between purchase and payment which was when the card balance would be added to the mortgage.  It was a weird thing and even the chap I talked to decades back when we took out the mortgage said he thought it was a dumb thing and didn't understand why anyone would use the card.  It's only taken V1 about 20 years to get rid of it!   Maybe Santander was thinking it was something similar?

No, my TSB cards are standard issue as far as I am aware, and certainly not linked to a mortgage.  To tell the truth I only use them for section 75 protection when making a more expensive purchase, and pay off the balance immediately   But I have  had them for decades and so would be loath to lose the good credit record associated with them.

nicolatesla47

born_again said:

I think maybe someone did not ask the right question, or as soon as switching service was mentioned the rep only thought of what it covered.
No bank has no control over any other banks cards. Even within the same groups.

Well I simply asked if my TSB issued credit cards would remain valid if I switched my TSB current account to Santander.  I don't see why he should have had any difficulty  understanding that question unless he was having a very bad day.