Ulster Bank BEWARE

Middle_of_the_Road

friolento said:

Tommaso46 said:

Dewpoint said:

Tommaso46 said:

Seduced by the promise of a good interest rate, and in the absence of any **warnings** on the comparison websites, I opened an Ulster Bank savings account although the process was far more labyrinthine than it usually is when opening an account. I paid quite a lot of money into it. The paying-in process was very easy. TOO EASY as I then discovered when I decided to try taking some money out. YOU CAN'T! So I then decided to just close the whole account. BUT YOU CAN'T! The guy on the phone was flummoxed and had to go away for a long time, and ask his line manager. When he came back he told me the only way you can  get your money out of an Ulster Bank savings account is to have an Ulster Bank current account. OR (he suggested) go to a Natwest branch and ask them to do it. So I went to my local Natwest branch in London where the (very helpful) lady said there was nothing she could do. She did, however, manage to download a "close account" form which, however, she couldn't sign because she doesn't work for Ulster Bank. She suggested I write a letter to Ulster Bank in Belfast, giving all my details and enclosing the form the lady couldn't sign. Then she VERY KINDLY put the form and my letter in a NatWest envelope and posted it off for me. As of today 27 December I am waiting to see if they close my accoun as requested. so BE WARNED: UNLESS YOU LIVE IN NORTHERN IRELAND do NOT open any accounts with Ulster Bank.

Same problem. Ulster Bank have limited my Limited Edition saver to £750/day withdrawals. Totally useless bank. 

Tommaso46! Did you manage to get your money out and how did you manage to do it? 

Never again with UB!

Thks

Yes Dewpoint, i got my money back but this was only thanks to a kind lady called Bernice in the Finchley Road (London) branch of NatWest, which is part of the same group. Even though there is no direct or formal connection between NatWest and Ulster Bank, Bernice took the time to write a letter on NatWest paper, to the Ulster Bank, setting out all the information I had given. Some time went by and  eventually the money was paid into my First Direct account. But I was lucky. In my opinion the whole Royal Bank of Scotland group is to be avoided.

there is a very formal connection between Ulster Bank and Natwest. Natwest Group own Ulster Bank. Ulster is just one of their trading names.

There has been no Royal Bank of Scotland group for a while now. It's all Natwest Group now.

RBS bought NatWest then later rebranded themselves as NatWest Group.
Bank A buys bank B and later takes B's Name.
Therefore NatWest Group are in effect RBS with a new name.

Middle_of_the_Road

Tommaso46 said:

Dewpoint said:

Tommaso46 said:

Seduced by the promise of a good interest rate, and in the absence of any **warnings** on the comparison websites, I opened an Ulster Bank savings account although the process was far more labyrinthine than it usually is when opening an account. I paid quite a lot of money into it. The paying-in process was very easy. TOO EASY as I then discovered when I decided to try taking some money out. YOU CAN'T! So I then decided to just close the whole account. BUT YOU CAN'T! The guy on the phone was flummoxed and had to go away for a long time, and ask his line manager. When he came back he told me the only way you can  get your money out of an Ulster Bank savings account is to have an Ulster Bank current account. OR (he suggested) go to a Natwest branch and ask them to do it. So I went to my local Natwest branch in London where the (very helpful) lady said there was nothing she could do. She did, however, manage to download a "close account" form which, however, she couldn't sign because she doesn't work for Ulster Bank. She suggested I write a letter to Ulster Bank in Belfast, giving all my details and enclosing the form the lady couldn't sign. Then she VERY KINDLY put the form and my letter in a NatWest envelope and posted it off for me. As of today 27 December I am waiting to see if they close my accoun as requested. so BE WARNED: UNLESS YOU LIVE IN NORTHERN IRELAND do NOT open any accounts with Ulster Bank.

Same problem. Ulster Bank have limited my Limited Edition saver to £750/day withdrawals. Totally useless bank. 

Tommaso46! Did you manage to get your money out and how did you manage to do it? 

Never again with UB!

Thks

Yes Dewpoint, i got my money back but this was only thanks to a kind lady called ____in the Finchley Road (London) branch of NatWest, which is part of the same group. Even though there is no direct or formal connection between NatWest and Ulster Bank, ------- took the time to write a letter on NatWest paper, to the Ulster Bank, setting out all the information I had given. Some time went by and  eventually the money was paid into my First Direct account. But I was lucky. In my opinion the whole Royal Bank of Scotland group is to be avoided.

FYI
Moderators have previously edited names of bank staff from similar posts, even when the comments have been positive.

friolento

Middle_of_the_Road said:

friolento said:

Tommaso46 said:

Dewpoint said:

Tommaso46 said:

Seduced by the promise of a good interest rate, and in the absence of any **warnings** on the comparison websites, I opened an Ulster Bank savings account although the process was far more labyrinthine than it usually is when opening an account. I paid quite a lot of money into it. The paying-in process was very easy. TOO EASY as I then discovered when I decided to try taking some money out. YOU CAN'T! So I then decided to just close the whole account. BUT YOU CAN'T! The guy on the phone was flummoxed and had to go away for a long time, and ask his line manager. When he came back he told me the only way you can  get your money out of an Ulster Bank savings account is to have an Ulster Bank current account. OR (he suggested) go to a Natwest branch and ask them to do it. So I went to my local Natwest branch in London where the (very helpful) lady said there was nothing she could do. She did, however, manage to download a "close account" form which, however, she couldn't sign because she doesn't work for Ulster Bank. She suggested I write a letter to Ulster Bank in Belfast, giving all my details and enclosing the form the lady couldn't sign. Then she VERY KINDLY put the form and my letter in a NatWest envelope and posted it off for me. As of today 27 December I am waiting to see if they close my accoun as requested. so BE WARNED: UNLESS YOU LIVE IN NORTHERN IRELAND do NOT open any accounts with Ulster Bank.

Same problem. Ulster Bank have limited my Limited Edition saver to £750/day withdrawals. Totally useless bank. 

Tommaso46! Did you manage to get your money out and how did you manage to do it? 

Never again with UB!

Thks

Yes Dewpoint, i got my money back but this was only thanks to a kind lady called Bernice in the Finchley Road (London) branch of NatWest, which is part of the same group. Even though there is no direct or formal connection between NatWest and Ulster Bank, Bernice took the time to write a letter on NatWest paper, to the Ulster Bank, setting out all the information I had given. Some time went by and  eventually the money was paid into my First Direct account. But I was lucky. In my opinion the whole Royal Bank of Scotland group is to be avoided.

there is a very formal connection between Ulster Bank and Natwest. Natwest Group own Ulster Bank. Ulster is just one of their trading names.

There has been no Royal Bank of Scotland group for a while now. It's all Natwest Group now.

RBS bought NatWest then later rebranded themselves as NatWest Group.
Bank A buys bank B and later takes B's Name.
Therefore NatWest Group are in effect RBS with a new name.

Thanks for adding some history as to why there is a formal connection between Ulster and Natwest.

Middle_of_the_Road

friolento said:

Middle_of_the_Road said:

friolento said:

Tommaso46 said:

Dewpoint said:

Tommaso46 said:

Seduced by the promise of a good interest rate, and in the absence of any **warnings** on the comparison websites, I opened an Ulster Bank savings account although the process was far more labyrinthine than it usually is when opening an account. I paid quite a lot of money into it. The paying-in process was very easy. TOO EASY as I then discovered when I decided to try taking some money out. YOU CAN'T! So I then decided to just close the whole account. BUT YOU CAN'T! The guy on the phone was flummoxed and had to go away for a long time, and ask his line manager. When he came back he told me the only way you can  get your money out of an Ulster Bank savings account is to have an Ulster Bank current account. OR (he suggested) go to a Natwest branch and ask them to do it. So I went to my local Natwest branch in London where the (very helpful) lady said there was nothing she could do. She did, however, manage to download a "close account" form which, however, she couldn't sign because she doesn't work for Ulster Bank. She suggested I write a letter to Ulster Bank in Belfast, giving all my details and enclosing the form the lady couldn't sign. Then she VERY KINDLY put the form and my letter in a NatWest envelope and posted it off for me. As of today 27 December I am waiting to see if they close my accoun as requested. so BE WARNED: UNLESS YOU LIVE IN NORTHERN IRELAND do NOT open any accounts with Ulster Bank.

Same problem. Ulster Bank have limited my Limited Edition saver to £750/day withdrawals. Totally useless bank. 

Tommaso46! Did you manage to get your money out and how did you manage to do it? 

Never again with UB!

Thks

Yes Dewpoint, i got my money back but this was only thanks to a kind lady called ———in the Finchley Road (London) branch of NatWest, which is part of the same group. Even though there is no direct or formal connection between NatWest and Ulster Bank, ——-took the time to write a letter on NatWest paper, to the Ulster Bank, setting out all the information I had given. Some time went by and  eventually the money was paid into my First Direct account. But I was lucky. In my opinion the whole Royal Bank of Scotland group is to be avoided.

there is a very formal connection between Ulster Bank and Natwest. Natwest Group own Ulster Bank. Ulster is just one of their trading names.

There has been no Royal Bank of Scotland group for a while now. It's all Natwest Group now.

RBS bought NatWest then later rebranded themselves as NatWest Group.
Bank A buys bank B and later takes B's Name.
Therefore NatWest Group are in effect RBS with a new name.

Thanks for adding some history as to why there is a formal connection between Ulster and NatWest.

I probably should have included the role the Westminster Bank had in relation to the acquisition of Ulster Bank, rather than RBS buying NatWest 

• 1917: Westminster Bank (which later became NatWest) first acquired Ulster Bank.
• 2000: The Royal Bank of Scotland Group acquired NatWest, making it the parent company of Ulster Bank. The group rebranded to NatWest Group in 2020.
• May 3, 2021: NatWest Group formally transferred the Northern Ireland operations of Ulster Bank to National Westminster Bank Plc under a court-approved scheme. The Ulster Bank brand continued to be used for the time being.
• April 2023: The Republic of Ireland operations of Ulster Bank were officially shut down. 

sausage_time

I've had no problem in removing the £750 limit and transferring considerably more than this to an external (non-Ulster) account.  All done in the (Android) app.

Only oddity I have seen is that if over the weekend I set a transfer for the following Monday the transfer proceeds immediately.  This seems different from other NatWest Group brands.

Dewpoint

sausage_time said:

I've had no problem in removing the £750 limit and transferring considerably more than this to an external (non-Ulster) account.  All done in the (Android) app.

Only oddity I have seen is that if over the weekend I set a transfer for the following Monday the transfer proceeds immediately.  This seems different from other NatWest Group brands.

The only way I could change the £750 limit was to open a current account, register face and voice biometrics and then it allowed me to increase the daily limit to £20k for my Limited Edition savings account. 

Even then, it refused to xfr anything on Sunday or until after 6:30pm on Monday 🤔!

Then I closed my savings account; waited for the residual interest to be transferred to my current account; transferred that to my nationwide account and finally closed the current account. What a palava! 

I'm always reluctant to complain about banks but the suffocating security is frustrating to say the least and the strange demands they make for managing my money had me pulling my hair out!

Ulster bank should check out Zopa or Monument Apps, both of which are a comparative cinch to use. 

Anyway, all done now! 😊

Freedommm

Natwest and anything they own or run just reject my applications for any current or savings accounts. I don't have anything bad in my CR file. They won't provide any explanation without an SAR request. I read this bank tops the record for debanking and rejections!

Nasqueron

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81725027#Comment_81725027

Convenience is fine, I prefer web to app for some really complex things but the app is vastly more secure than your web browser, at the very least with Apple and Google giving verified status + 2 independent biometric checks to get into the phone and then the app.

Vs a password on a browser that could be captured in a keylogger or other malware

Nasqueron

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82123270#Comment_82123270

SAR won't tell you why they don't want your business, perhaps a previous experience, mismatch with another name or any other reason, provided it's not a protected characteristic

Tommaso46

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82124179#Comment_82124179

There's nothing more insecure than a mobile phone- especially if you are on a WiFi connection and/or the phone gets stolen….