Avoid First Direct - They are gonna charge all customers £10!

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  • MPH80
    MPH80 Posts: 973 Forumite
    Not a flat out denial then. Interesting. There response doesn't contradict anything the OP told us (e.g. starting next year, announced in September - sounds like 'good time' to me).

    If they had no plans - I'd have expected a 'we have no plans' email back. Just have to wait and see I guess.

    M.
  • heatherw_01
    heatherw_01 Posts: 6,545
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    Yep, I think that documents may have gone round but they have not yet confirmed the plan to introduce the fee.
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  • yummum_3
    yummum_3 Posts: 71 Forumite
    Im still thinking about oppening the account through quidco, bagging £50 from FD. then £45 from quidco and then closing it. Am I missing something?
  • MPH80
    MPH80 Posts: 973 Forumite
    Al_Mac wrote:
    Staff know now, for next year, doubt it very much. You don't tell staff until the last minute, they blab:eek:

    Absolutely.

    But think about it this way - if they are going to announce this in September - they are going to have a HELL of a lot of training to do with their call centre staff. They are going to get a lot of questions/complaints/problems/account removals and each one is probably going to be different.

    It wouldn't surprise me if they start that procedure 2 months ahead of time to ensure they bring each of those shifts (remember they offer a 24 hour call centre) up to speed - and those calls are going to come in on the very day they announce it.

    I agree there's an awful lot about this announcement that makes no sense whatsoever. The primary one being that FD has always prided itself on being a 'good' bank - good customer service - ensuring their customers have the best ... why is it being the first to break ranks??

    BUT - then there's a lot that does fit. There have been a lot of people pointing out that the only way (and the most profitable) to claw back the losses through the lowered penalty fees, the pressure on mortgage fees, the loss of 3 days interest next year and all the other areas banks are being squeezed on right now is to introduce some form of fees for the accounts - whether it's fees for specific day-to-day services (e.g. cheques?) or a general account fee.

    So the fact they are talking about it doesn't surprise me. As I've said before - the bulk of the UK public will react with inertia and if one bank goes down this route - most will follow. It's just a question of which one will be brave enough to go first. In fact - I'd have been surprised if it hadn't been discussed and analysed inside each one of the banks.

    So what fits about this announcement? Well - telling CS ahead of time does make sense to me. As does announcing in Sept for introducting in Jan. The 'loyalty' element also makes a lot of sense to me. One of the things this site has been keen to point out is that there's little reward for loyalty - now there might be.

    But - all in all - without confirmation or denial from FD - we have to wait until the announcement to find out.

    M.
  • CopperPlate_2
    CopperPlate_2 Posts: 1,508 Forumite
    Saw this today on the Daily Mail financial site -

    "Lenders have also been criticised for hitting customers with higher interest rates to cover the drop in income. Barclaycard, for example, has increased its APRs by between 2% and 5% for a proportion of its customer base, while First Direct has introduced a £5 fee for unpaid direct debits and cheques."

    Is this a new thing introduced by FD? I'm surprised they didn't charge before as most banks would charge for 'bounced' cheques, etc.
  • ffacoffipawb
    ffacoffipawb Posts: 3,593
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    MPH80 wrote:
    As I've said before - the bulk of the UK public will react with inertia and if one bank goes down this route - most will follow.

    No inertia if you have several accounts and they all start levying monthly account fees - you would close all bar one (or two at most).
  • MPH80
    MPH80 Posts: 973 Forumite
    No inertia if you have several accounts and they all start levying monthly account fees - you would close all bar one (or two at most).

    But the BULK of the UK population don't - most only have accounts at one bank and most stick with that bank for all their needs.

    M.
  • pinkfluffybabe
    pinkfluffybabe Posts: 2,983
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    I have five current accounts, including the FD one. I would need to reduce this to one if the above went ahead. I did this due to Martins Piggybanking idea in his book about having different accounts for different expenditures.

    I like FD, have never had any problems with them.
    Not buying unnecessary toiletries 2024 9/53 UU, 3 IN
  • Just moved my account to First Direct a couple of months ago, upon recommendation from a friend who works in the call centre there and she apologised to me today and told me that they are going to charge all their customers £10 a month from next year unless you have lots and lots of products with them so guess I have to know look elsewhere for a bank account but at least I got £50 from them when I opened the account

    The £10 fee is probably paying for FD's UK based call centres...:rolleyes:
  • superjames4
    superjames4 Posts: 31 Forumite
    just called First Direct:
    me "I've heard First Direct are going to charge £10pm - is that true?"
    FD "something is coming in but it's too soon to tell"
    me "but is it likely to be the case?"
    FD "yes, but wait until you hear an official announcement, we will write to you in any case"
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