Best bank account for a 16year old

starnac

Hi all,

My daughter will be 16 in October and has shown interest in getting a little part time job. I was wondering if there was a best bank account for a 16 year old? 

She wants a debit card to be able to use when shopping or out with friends but would also like to save some money towards university. 

She will still be in school so will only be looking at a part time job (which obviously comes with part time wages) so minimum payments needed into the account isn't suitable. 

This will mainly be a fun money account for her and an introduction into "proper" bank accounts. 

I would be very grateful for any advice from other parents of teens (or anyone else)

Thank you in advance

Lumiona

DD has had Halifax account with app and debit card since 11yrs but I've just set up Nationwide as there is a 2% monthly interest on the account. Always useful having a 2nd account as she lost her card a few weeks back, it was safe as she was able to freeze the card right away but took over a week to replace the card.

daveyjp

Any of the main banks will offer basic bank accounts with a debit card.

You just need to see which one offers what she needs.

Having an account with the same bank as yourself may be preferable, but not essential.

Daughter has a Santander account, with debit card, but she uses Applepay on the very rare occasion she decides to part with some of her hard earned cash.  It pays 3% a year on balances up to £2,000.

I suspect the Nationwide account above is 2% a year and not 2% a month which would be an AER of over 25%.

Rob5342

When she is 16 I'd recommend Starling as it's a nice modern bank with a very good app which is one of the most important things these days, particularly for a teenager. Under 16s cant get a full account though.

I wouldn't recommend Nationwide as they are.hopelessly old fashioned and still require you to use a card reader!

starnac

Thank you all. Definitely things for me to look into there. Appreciate it thank you

pridehappy

As someone who has multiple bank accounts for their kids to use, we’ve had a wide range of experiences.

First, I’d recommend staying away from Lloyds Bank Under 19’s and SmartStart. It feels they only offer child accounts as they have to, half the functions are unavailable and everything seems “please come in-branch”, where they still don’t know. We’ve also used Halifax ExpressCash, which for us was a similar situation as Lloyds Bank, although marginally better. Their products also aren’t great, as is TSB Under 19’s.

Santander 1 | 2 | 3 does work and provides a decent amount of interest, our longest standing account. Near complete freedom, customer service is mediocre with long hold times if you need to call them and app can sometimes be a little temperamental. Not terrible though.

Virgin Money M Plus is a great option if you’re looking for a consistent bank account as it has an outstanding product which follows through as an adult. The linked savings account has high interest and is a great way to keep them saving. Customer service has been good in-store and by phone, and complete freedom as a 16+ account which most other banks don’t offer, like cheques etc.

HSBC MyMoney and MySavings has a temptingly high interest rate, although service leaves a lot to be desired and over 18’s banking isn’t special. Account does give complete freedom (for HSBC) although HSBC is quite limited anyway.

Starling Bank is alright although their product is quite poor and very limited branch service means that when they turn 18, it’s more like a secondary account. Limited instant access savings and never tested telephone banking. App is okay though.

By far, the best account we’ve had so far is Nationwide FlexOne. A very impressive interest rate, and exceptional service, nothing is too much for them. Debit cards are most reliable and great savings too. Plus, if she meets the criteria with her job, she could be eligible for the £100 a year introduced as a ‘Fairer Share’ payment as a building society. Their app is a little more limited in functionality, although still has all the functions you’d expect plus more, and if needed, a completely free overdraft when they turn 18 until 23. Make payments, freeze card, see transactions/balance, direct debits/standing orders, authorise payments, set-up savings accounts with goals, impulse saver has instant transfers to savings etc.

Rob5342

pridehappy said:

Starling Bank is alright although their product is quite poor and very limited branch service means that when they turn 18, it’s more like a secondary account. Limited instant access savings and never tested telephone banking. App is okay though.

I have a Starling account and I'd say the app is one of the best out there, alongside Monzo. If I wasn't with Monzo then I'd use Starling as my main account. Most people never use branches and a 16 year old will probably never use one in their entire life.

starnac

Thank you @pridehappy that is very comprehensive. 

We will be looking at all those together thank you

Marchitiello

I wanted to start my kids early in understanding Banking as a way to save money and control spending and open for all of them the RBS First Saver as soon as they turned 7. At 11, for my first born so far, I have opened with him a Child current Account with RBS, Barclays, HSBC and Santander.  He has the apps for all of them and use them as different pots, transferring money between the accounts when needed (they do not all allow direct Bank Transfer out but for example RBS allow him to send a Payment request via a link to anyone and clicking through the link you can use a card to make a payment). They all come with Debit Card and HSBC is also linked to my own Premier Status so he gets a special emergency support worldwide (eg. School trips etc). 

I would encourage to open a first account with a traditional bank though, as a way to also  build a relationship/customer history with an institution that can offer them additional products as they grow up (Student Account with benefits if going for further studies, credit Cards, mortgages etc). I opened my first current account with Barclays as a 17yo,  transforming it to a Student, then Graduate account as I went through my studies,  got my first CC at 19 from them as a student with a part time job, got my first mortgage etc.