Hi all,

Not sure if this has been done to death elsewhere here, sorry if so.

I've had an A&L online a/c for 3-4 years and have found their service ('Essential Maintenance' messages....) in the last 3-6 months to be patchy at best. I did a web search for other accounts and found them to offer a lot less interest or to be cheeky (HSBC).

Anyone got any recommendations? I would like a mixture of good service/interest but am not sure it's out there.

Comments?

Thanks

Frank

IMHO - you can't beat Nationwide's Flexaccount for online services - they were one of the first and are still one of the best.

Having said that they 'lost' a lot of details on a laptop not so long ago

Your still with A&L , there high up on the danger list .

Agree with PP i use Nationwide as my bank account , plenty of branches there rates are competitive , mutual and you still get a sense of that , freephone call centre , ok web site , debit card , set up DD's not in as much sh1t as A&L . You could always open with them and still keep your A&L one open .

I've moved my ISA out of A+L but continue to use them as a current account.
Why? Cos their ISA dropped so that pi$$ed me off!

As for all this laptop missing shite, I think this is a labour ploy to get voted out. (surely this amount of sh!t cannot be incompetence).
You'll see more of this if its a ploy!

I found the Nationwide online system impossibly difficult to use.

I did manage to open an account but could never figure out how to transfer money in or out - so I gave up on it.

I use Smile, they are great. I have no hesitation recommending them. Good website and great customer support

I have used Cahoot for years. I have never had any problems with them. They are a dedicated Internet Bank, so it's what they do best.
The interest rates are always amongst the top performers (5.5%), and it's a breeze to transfer money between accounts and externally. I really couldn't rate rate them better for ease-of-use.

They never call you up, offering you credit cards etc, and they have UK call centres for when you want to call them.

The downside: They are owned by Abbey/Santander which means that they have a lot of exposure to the mess we are in.
They have no online ISA which bugs me, as I'm sure they would offer great rates.
To pay in cheques (which occasionally you have to do) you need post them, which adds a coupe of days for the cheque to clear.

But overall, highly recommended.

I fount it dificult too. I made a list of all the things I needed and went to my branch, had a moan and they did it all for me. Job done. Try doing that at abbey LOL.

Maybe you were new to computers at the time eh

Not exactly, I've worked in IT for 20 years.

Maybe it was because I run Firefox - I have the attitude that if they can't design a website that works in a standards compliant web browser then I wont trust them with my money.

Plus I'm sure as hell not doing any Financial transactions in Internet Explorer!

I have to say I have never had any probs with my flexaccount using firefox, but point taken regarding IE

I think the Nationwide system is good once you are in. I have had problems being locked out several times, even though I have pedantically typed in the correct information at login each time, and have had to get my password reset via telephone and then waiting for a new one in the post.

Well you got that of your chest then ,

anyway moving on.............

Who do you bank with then ? As you've yet to recommend one .

I use six different banking websites. In order from best to worst:

Halifax - 6.45% to 5.01% across my various accounts
Good layout, showing all accounts and their balance up front. Facilities for everything you'd expect from a main branch: everything from viewing previous statements to applying for an overdraft or another account. Interest rates clearly shown or linked. Easy money transfer in and out (with a current account). Simple log-in with memorable rotating question. Standard SSL certificate.

Egg - 6.05% AER (might be bonus rate)
Good layout of main screens. Interest rates clearly linked. Does not support deposits without a debit card, and address book system is hard to use. Longer, but straightforward log-in without rotating questions. EV SSL certificate.

ING Direct - 5.15% AER
Log-in requires remembering a long customer number (supplied on a bit of card), a 6-digit PIN and a memorable date. Has an irritating dancing key-pad to thwart keyboard loggers. Otherwise, good layout and very easy to use. Occasionally fragile in Firefox when they re-work the site. Money transfer in and out via BACS. EV SSL certificate.

Sainsbury's Bank - 6.00% AER
Log-in appears straightforward, but uses ridiculous rotating questions (What's your memorable singer? What's your memorable name? What's your memorable place?) with stupid length limits. You can unlock the site without ringing up just by being able to answer a secret question anyway, so there's really only one password. I hate this log-in process with a passion. Budget web-design and tricky money transfer. Deposits must be made from a current account. Very limited facilities. Overnight transfer to Halifax accounts with no loss of interest. Standard SSL certificate.

Bradford & Bingley - 1 year Ebond, 6.50% AER maybe?
Painful to apply for - required a cheque FFS! Letters and documentation are ambiguous, because they are used for two types of accounts with vastly different terms and conditions. Log-in requires an alphanumeric account number found on a bit of cardboard. Severe restrictions on password length and complexity. Interest rate is not obvious at all -- in fact, without digging through the paper records, I can't find out which eBond issue I got by looking at the website. Can't really compare money transfer facilities with this account. EV SSL certificate.

HSBC
Site doesn't seem to respond in Firefox (Minefield build). Log-in requires account number found on a bit of cardboard. I couldn't actually log-in to write this, because I've forgotten the security number (again!). Application process required exchange of identity documents by post, and by the end of the process I'd nearly lost the will to live. Money transfer facilities painfully limited. Avoid -- I haven't touched it since I opened the account. Standard SSL certificate.

Hope these comments are helpful to someone.

Nice mix of unrelated banks there re the FSA guarantee. What account do you have with HSBC? I find their site very confusing trying to figure out the various accounts and their IRs seem pretty poor.

Actually, these weren't opened with the 35K problem in mind -- they've all been a good deal at some point in the past, but some (like ING, Egg and HSBC) hold only a token amount. Most of my cash is with HBOS (including Sainsburys Bank).

I think HSBC was the Online Bonus Saver. At 5.75% AER, the interest rate is not actually that competitive, and with the poor opening process and rubbish website facilities... really, what's the point? I put £100 in at opening, and left it there in case they have any good deals in the future or HBOS looks wobbly.

Can I assume you have more than 35K in at least one account? I ask as I am trying to gauge who, those lucky to have substantial savings, are spreading 35Ks over numerous banks compared to those who are simply opting for the best saving rates.

Are we just too paranoid on this site and the threat of a major UK bank going under is just too ridiculous?

I think we're too paranoid. I'd have bailed from NRK long ago if I were exposed there, but I'm not particularly worried about B&B, and positively relaxed about HBOS. Then again, I prefer a good European bank -- I'm not touching ICICI or FirstSave with a barge-pole.

HBOS do have most of my spare cash (more than 35K), spread over no less than eleven (!) different accounts and investments. Don't get me wrong -- I watch the markets and shift position accordingly, and I'd drop my exposure at the slightest whiff of trouble -- but there's nothing to panic about at the moment in my opinion.

I'd also recomend smile (7ish years now)

Good preferential rates on savings/cash isa and credit cards all manageable on line.

As are loans

Very helpfull staff on the end of the phone.

I took a look at Smile last night and found their rates to be very low.

Yes, they are low now and the customer service isn't as good as it used to be. It can take 2 days to get a reply on their secure messaging whereas it used to be same day.

I read on MSE how an ex-employee of theirs says that customer service has dropped and the staff are sick of working there.

The Halifax online banking system is very good, and if you have a current account, ISA and credit card you can manage them all under one roof.

Their real life system is good as well, there's always less of a queue than at the Natwest!

I'm really grumpy about the news that A and L are in trouble...

This was the account my accountant recommended when I finally got around to having a dedicated account for my freelance business (mind you he also strongly advised ftbuying a flat for 300k but luckily I found this forum first)

Anyway with a huge effort I have managed to finally get all my clients to start transferring dosh to the new business account...I have transferred the surplus out to my First Direct deposit account

But I really would like to avoid opening up a new business account and telling all the clients again....am I being stupid? I know about the 35k protection - but would the account get frozen for months if A and L went belly up? sigh