RBS Royal Bank of Scotland help

RG2015

Daliah said:

If RBS is your only bank account, consider getting at least one other current account at a different bank (i.e. not Natwest). It is prudent to have backup banking facilities in case of issues, such as the near 4-week outage RBS/Natwest experienced a few years back.

NatWest is my main bank account and I never had any problems during their outage(s). I have numerous standing orders, direct debits, pension and other credits and nothing was affected.

Even if my transactions had been disrupted, I am intrigued to know how an alternative current account would have helped.

It would have to be permanently funded and would not have helped with DDs, SOS, my pension or other income streams.

The only area where a funded backup current would help is for daily expenditure and in my case that is all on my NatWest credit card. This has never had any outages but I will concede that an alternative credit card is essential for me.

Daliah

RG2015 said:

Daliah said:

If RBS is your only bank account, consider getting at least one other current account at a different bank (i.e. not Natwest). It is prudent to have backup banking facilities in case of issues, such as the near 4-week outage RBS/Natwest experienced a few years back.

NatWest is my main bank account and I never had any problems during their outage(s). I have numerous standing orders, direct debits, pension and other credits and nothing was affected.

Even if my transactions had been disrupted, I am intrigued to know how an alternative current account would have helped.

It would have to be permanently funded and would not have helped with DDs, SOS, my pension or other income streams.

The only area where a funded backup current would help is for daily expenditure and in my case that is all on my NatWest credit card. This has never had any outages but I will concede that an alternative credit card is essential for me.

You clearly were very lucky if the Natwest outage did not affect you. A few million other Natwest/RBS/Ulster customers weren't quite so fortunate.

Obviously you might not be able, or you might not want to, move your SOs and DDs to another bank in the event of an outage. But there are plenty of other things you can do with a backup account - receiving payments, making payments, popping into the Branch [particularly relevant for the OP], paying in a cheque in person over the counter or at a machine etc etc.

RG2015

Daliah said:

RG2015 said:

Daliah said:

If RBS is your only bank account, consider getting at least one other current account at a different bank (i.e. not Natwest). It is prudent to have backup banking facilities in case of issues, such as the near 4-week outage RBS/Natwest experienced a few years back.

NatWest is my main bank account and I never had any problems during their outage(s). I have numerous standing orders, direct debits, pension and other credits and nothing was affected.

Even if my transactions had been disrupted, I am intrigued to know how an alternative current account would have helped.

It would have to be permanently funded and would not have helped with DDs, SOS, my pension or other income streams.

The only area where a funded backup current would help is for daily expenditure and in my case that is all on my NatWest credit card. This has never had any outages but I will concede that an alternative credit card is essential for me.

You clearly were very lucky if the Natwest outage did not affect you. A few million other Natwest/RBS/Ulster customers weren't quite so fortunate.

Obviously you might not be able, or you might not want to, move your SOs and DDs to another bank in the event of an outage. But there are plenty of other things you can do with a backup account - receiving payments, making payments, popping into the Branch [particularly relevant for the OP], paying in a cheque in person over the counter or at a machine etc etc.

Okay, thanks. I think it is down to the way I manage my finances. I rarely do any of the things you mention.

Regarding being lucky, you are right!

Upon checking my records, I see that I had a sizeable receipt on 15th June 2012 which I transferred to a savings account on 18th June 2012.

The NatWest outage started on 19th June 2012. I do recall the outage, but have no recollection my large transactions being just before this.

[Deleted User]

sausage_time said:

You can use Post Offices to pay in and withdraw too.
https://www.postoffice.co.uk/the-royal-bank-of-scotland
Paying in cheques needs a completed slip from a book that RBS can post to you, but cash in and out is debit card+PIN.

A NatWest branch will provide a like for like service as a Royal Bank branch would. 

The Post Office will be limited to OPs ATM limit which could be as low as £300 per day. 

bery_451

sausage_time said:

You can use Post Offices to pay in and withdraw too.
https://www.postoffice.co.uk/the-royal-bank-of-scotland
Paying in cheques needs a completed slip from a book that RBS can post to you, but cash in and out is debit card+PIN.

Okay what are the max deposit & withdrawal cash limits I can do within a post office a day? As long you get a post office receipt of transactions, the transactions are cleared & settled instantly in a post office?

bery_451

Penguin_ said:

sausage_time said:

You can use Post Offices to pay in and withdraw too.
https://www.postoffice.co.uk/the-royal-bank-of-scotland
Paying in cheques needs a completed slip from a book that RBS can post to you, but cash in and out is debit card+PIN.

Also can be done via the RBS app.

Sorry how do I use the RBS app to deposit and withdraw physical cash?

bery_451

Daliah said:

If RBS is your only bank account, consider getting at least one other current account at a different bank (i.e. not Natwest). It is prudent to have backup banking facilities in case of issues, such as the near 4-week outage RBS/Natwest experienced a few years back. If you need a Branch facility, your choice is obviously limited by all the Branch closures we are seeing at the likes of Barclays, Lloyds and Natwest. May be try Nationwide - though longer term, you should try and get by without the need for a Branch. 

Okay Nationwide has good reviews on trustpilot site? Or you know any high street banks with good reviews? Starling & Monzo have good reviews but they have no branches, lets say for example I want to buy a car for £10k and the seller on autotrader wants cash so how does someone withdraw £10k from Starling or Monzo?

sausage_time

bery_451 said:

sausage_time said:

You can use Post Offices to pay in and withdraw too.
https://www.postoffice.co.uk/the-royal-bank-of-scotland
Paying in cheques needs a completed slip from a book that RBS can post to you, but cash in and out is debit card+PIN.

Okay what are the max deposit & withdrawal cash limits I can do within a post office a day? As long you get a post office receipt of transactions, the transactions are cleared & settled instantly in a post office?

Penguin_ said:

sausage_time said:

You can use Post Offices to pay in and withdraw too.
https://www.postoffice.co.uk/the-royal-bank-of-scotland
Paying in cheques needs a completed slip from a book that RBS can post to you, but cash in and out is debit card+PIN.

Also can be done via the RBS app.

Google gave me the above link first and the link below second.
https://www.rbs.co.uk/business/ways-to-bank/post-office.html
You need to scroll down and expand the sections to see the limits.   Spoiler: Deposit £20k/week for notes, less for coins.   Withdrawal: your card limit

bery_451

sausage_time said:

bery_451 said:

sausage_time said:

You can use Post Offices to pay in and withdraw too.
https://www.postoffice.co.uk/the-royal-bank-of-scotland
Paying in cheques needs a completed slip from a book that RBS can post to you, but cash in and out is debit card+PIN.

Okay what are the max deposit & withdrawal cash limits I can do within a post office a day? As long you get a post office receipt of transactions, the transactions are cleared & settled instantly in a post office?

Penguin_ said:

sausage_time said:

You can use Post Offices to pay in and withdraw too.
https://www.postoffice.co.uk/the-royal-bank-of-scotland
Paying in cheques needs a completed slip from a book that RBS can post to you, but cash in and out is debit card+PIN.

Also can be done via the RBS app.

Google gave me the above link first and the link below second.
https://www.rbs.co.uk/business/ways-to-bank/post-office.html
You need to scroll down and expand the sections to see the limits.   Spoiler: Deposit £20k/week for notes, less for coins.   Withdrawal: your card limit

Oh great I can deposit £20,000 but only can withdraw £300 at a post office. Sounds like a 'Run on a Bank' where banks going bankrupt, everybody panicking rushing to their banks so the Government steps in and puts caps on withdrawals to try to stabilise the banking sector giving the banks time to breathe and run to the exits.

Daliah

bery_451 said:

Daliah said:

If RBS is your only bank account, consider getting at least one other current account at a different bank (i.e. not Natwest). It is prudent to have backup banking facilities in case of issues, such as the near 4-week outage RBS/Natwest experienced a few years back. If you need a Branch facility, your choice is obviously limited by all the Branch closures we are seeing at the likes of Barclays, Lloyds and Natwest. May be try Nationwide - though longer term, you should try and get by without the need for a Branch. 

Okay Nationwide has good reviews on trustpilot site? Or you know any high street banks with good reviews? Starling & Monzo have good reviews but they have no branches, lets say for example I want to buy a car for £10k and the seller on autotrader wants cash so how does someone withdraw £10k from Starling or Monzo?

As I and others have commented on this forum before, being guided by Trustpilot, or similar website, when choosing a financial product is quite meaningless. To start with, you have no idea who the respondents are, and more importantly, it's no secret that unhappy customers are the main contributors to them.

I would never pay £10k cash for a car or for anything else, so I have not had a need to investigate how I could withdraw that much in cash, and what security measures I would have to take when wandering out of a bank Branch with this much cash.