NS&I - how long until I can start using the account?

VincentVega

Yesterday I opened an NS&I Direct Saver account, with the aim of using that to transfer money from my main bank account (Lloyds) and then using the Direct Saver to open one of the Guaranteed Bonds (Lloyds doesn't let you transfer more than £25K in one go).

My account has been opened and I can access it from the site.  All the buttons that you'd expect to see - pay in, pay out, etc are there.  However, when opening the account it said the following:

"We’ll process your application and aim to open your account in 7-10 working days"

Is my account fully open already, or do I still need to wait 7-10 working days?

DavidAC

You could try a small test transaction in then out. Why not buy more than one bond with up to £25K in each. Been covered in another thread.

boingy

Send £1 to it. If it arrives then the account is open. It can take a few hours for deposits to show - they email me when deposits are complete.

soulsaver

It's you debit card limit that is the issue with directly buying NSI GGBs, but as someone said you can buy several with little inconvenience. My Santander DC limit was £25k  per transaction but check in the app to see if you can set it higher ans/or ensure it hasn't been set lower.