Halifax Reward

Descrabled

Reviewing my current accounts and arrived at Lloyds banking group.

I have joint accounts with both Club Lloyds and with Halifax Reward. I also have sole accounts with both Club Lloyds and Halifax Reward. To obtain the rewards on the Club Lloyds I have 2 off DD, pay in more than £2k each month, have a £100 free overdraft, and pay no fee.

The Halifax accounts have no DD but I arrange for them to receive more than £1k each month. If I stop the payments into these Halifax accounts but maintain the "Reward" account label then I suggest that:

1. I can have a permanent £100 free overdraft
2. There is no fee to pay.

Am I correct?

figgyc

No. The payment (of £1500 actually) is required to avoid the fee still per the T&Cs. (pg 37)

The Reward Current Account has a monthly account fee of £3 that we take from your account on the first working day of the month. The fee won’t be charged for any month that at least £1,500 is paid into the account.

Direct Debits have nothing to do with most Club Lloyds benefits, only the (meagre) payment of credit interest on the first £5000 of the balance. The same term applies to the Halifax Reward (pg 39) but as you have seen it is optional.

With the Halifax/Lloyds "brand change" it remains to be seen what will happen to the Reward accounts in time, the overdraft is the only real compelling benefit since the freebies were cancelled late last year and no FX fees is readily available elsewhere, and it wouldn't surprise me if Lloyds discontinue the fee at some point to simplify the admin.

(Or perhaps roll the accounts into Club Lloyds - I've kept mine going to date on the hope this might happen and I'd get a quadruple bounty of free cinema tickets, although if you try to manually change your Halifax accounts to Club Lloyds they do enforce the one account limit. Also I know Lloyds stated to MSE that the initial plan was to keep account terms "like for like" rather than automatically changing account types. So I'm not holding my breath!)

Descrabled

I was confused (easily done at my age) because with Halifax Reward the account fee of £3 is not taken and then credited, cf Lloyds Club. I had deleted all my SO in the mistaken belief that the minimum pay in was no longer relevant.

I have now set-up a new set of SO to ensure £375 each week is paid into the account. As usual Ms D made no such error.

I will wait 'till next year before deciding if the reward account is worth the bother.