Almost 200,000 current accounts switched during first three months of the year

Former_MSE_James_F

Almost 200,000 current accounts were switched during the first three months of the year, up two-fifths on the same period in 2021. In total, eight million current account switches have taken place since the free Current Account Switch Service was launched in 2013. 

Read the full story here:
'Almost 200,000 current accounts switched during first three months of the year - here are the best deals, including up to £175 from HSBC'

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born_again

Wonder what the % are of the switchers between.
The real reason to switch. Poor service & not happy with your bank.
or
Go on then I'll take the bribe 🤣

Katiehound

or round here it could be the closure of Barclays (happened in January)  & TSB (imminent)

or yes-  a welcome handshake!
I'm guilty of the latter.......

Zanderman

The big question, that the stats don't tell us, is how many of those switches are of 'main' accounts i.e .how many are people actively leaving their old main bank and trying out a new one.  

That seems to me the key need - especially for the banks themselves - to know.

The switching incentives must distort the figures, perhaps significantly, as they encourage switching of any account, with easily-passed conditions so that, with thought, any old dormant or even brand-new account will work. 

With that caveat in mind it seems to me that the stats are probably meaningless really.

Thrugelmir

What a huge waste of productive time and resources.. 

eskbanker

Thrugelmir said:

What a huge waste of productive time and resources.. 

What are you asserting is a huge waste of productive time and resources?

The existence of CASS?
The regular reporting of stats by Pay UK?
The MSE pieces?
Forum discussion about it?
All of the above?

Olinda99

I agree with @Zanderman

It's one thing to switch a spare or donor account (as I have done many many times) and quite another to switch your 'main' account (however you define that) - which I have not done for 20 yrs.

trickydicky14

Katiehound said:

or round here it could be the closure of Barclays (happened in January)  & TSB (imminent)

or yes-  a welcome handshake!
I'm guilty of the latter.......

My town in Shropshire has no banks at all now and post office open two and a half days a week due to no staff.
And yes I take the handshake every time.

grandadgolfer

orn_again said:

Wonder what the % are of the switchers between.
The real reason to switch. Poor service & not happy with your bank.
or
Go on then I'll take the bribe 🤣

Took the bribes but still haven't changed my main account 

Opened monzo and starling accounts plus a few DD (plum/moneybox etc) for me and wife last September for the purpose of switching and so far total is £1425 plus 2 x £60 vouchers for ethical superstore and 40000 virgin red points. As soon as the money hits the accounts I/we were off to the next one, still a bit more to come in as couple of banks could be done as 2 single accounts plus a joint 

The banks were bailed out for Billions of taxpayers money.....I'm just taking my share back

oldagetraveller1

"Took the bribes but still haven't changed my main account "

Same here. Switched three times in the first three months of 2022.

A waste of time and resources?

I don't care if it is. I'm about £400 the richer with a further £50 later this year.

scott_lithgows

That will be me then.
My reason, Yorkshire BS removing the direct debit/standing order facility on the cash transactor account.
Now with Nationwide and running down the cash in YBS accounts