Keeping or closing accounts

B0bbyEwing

Do you get rid once they've served their purpose or do you keep them for any reason?

I've 3 Halifax accounts which will be pretty pointless soon. I already have a Club Lloyd's account.

I did/do keep accounts for when these switching offers came by but that's also getting pretty useless now.

Why? Because I've done a few & switches these days tend to have stipulations with the last time you switched (I didn't note it down & can't remember) and other criteria making it harder than it used to be.

I have a Barclays from when they had a decent saver. This is now just left with £1 to keep it active. It was a bother to open it in the first place as I had to go in branch to do that & our branch has since closed so if I shut it down & needed to re-open in future I probably would t be able to.

I've quite a few with just £1 in but don't actually use. The only use I can see them having is switching but I've just mentioned that situation.

UpDownLeftRight

I would keep the accounts open. It doesn’t affect your credit report. It will help you get credit products in the future with the bank.

I believe some banks such as Chase Bank don’t allow customers to open accounts after closing. Some banks require you to have a bank account to open a credit card.

It’s easier to leave open.

flaneurs_lobster

I keep them open, usually with a tenner balance.

Just make sure to make them paperless if you can, no point generating 'null' paper statements every month.

Rob5342

I've got a few I keep open and don't use very much. One is with Starling which I keep in case I want to use them in the future as they are a very good bank and I don't want to risk them not letting me open another account if I close it. I've also got a Halifax account with an overdraft which I carry the card for as a spare in case my main Monzo account doesn't work, and a Santander one left over from a switch bonus that I'm keeping in case another switch offer comes along, but I think I've done them all now. I wouldn't keep any more than that open.

friolento

It's a personal decision, not a general rule. If you are certain that your Halifax accounts are no longer of use to you, you might just close them. Or keep them, as you don't know whether there will be any benefit in having them. Mind you, I believe they will eventually, in a year or two, ask you whether they can close the accounts if you no longer use them.

I have downgraded my Halifax Reward accounts but kept them as they still help me with my YouGov points. As and if they no longer do this, I might just close them.

EssexExile

I tidied up recently and closed all the accounts I don't use. It just makes life simpler, for me and for whoever has to make sense of it all after I've gone.

B0bbyEwing

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82097862#Comment_82097862

Never looked at it like that.

I'm actually with Chase for my day to day spends as I like how they time stamp all transactions including weekends whereas some banks don't process weekend spends on weekends.

I'll certainly chop 3 Halifax down to 1 at least anyway. Although that's probably pointless if they're now rebranding as Lloyd's.

Barclays I'll possibly keep due to the faff of opening it in the first place.

mta999

yes it certainly depends on your age and how long you think you 'have left'.

at some point, simplifying and tidying up becomes something you think about

Another thing (and I have never been an executor) is perhaps when you pass away your executors are supposed to get seven years of statements from every open account (* and from every account closed in the last 7 years?) to see if you have made any gifts for inheritance tax purposes

The more accounts you have open in the last seven years the more work for them

Shedman

I keep at least one account (current or savings) open with a couple of quid in with any bank/ BS that I've opened one with (even if now redundant) and, if I do a current account switch for an incentive - although almost impossible now like you say - I open an Easy Access Saver or similar with that institution first so I still have access, so if any of them then introduce any good Savings accounts, etc, it's no hassle to open one. However, with the ones that seem to have the tendency to debank people such as Lloyds, Barclays, Santander I try and cycle a few quid in and out once in a while to show some activity.

Although, like @mta999 says, now I'm getting older I keep thinking I should cull a few, and also stop opening new accounts, to save the admin, but I can't resist an offer 😅

B0bbyEwing

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82098975#Comment_82098975

Is that correct?

I don't remember us having to do that for my dad that's all.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82099016#Comment_82099016

Your end line is the problem I have!

mta999

Is that correct? well the executor has to know whether any gifts have been made during the last 7 years of the deceased to see if inheritance tax is payable