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Thread: advice on a student bank account

  1. #1
    Senior Member kasavien's Avatar
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    Question advice on a student bank account

    Evening all

    I was wondering if a few people could recommend a good bank to apply for a student bank account with, the main criteria being a bank that offers a good 0% overdraft. Also if i get a 0% overdraft are there likely to be any catches that i should look out for?

    Thanks

    Andy

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    radix lecti dave87's Avatar
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    The main catch for the overdraft is the timescale after leaving uni in which you have to pay it off - Barclays give you 2 years or up to 5 if you pay a monthly fee.

    Other things to look out for -

    Any promotions - (one of the banks were doing free CDs every 3 months)
    Size of the Overdraft (though bare in mind what I said above)
    Type of Card - I got a Visa Debit from Barclays, others usually have Visa Electron or MyFirstDebitCard (Solo) - depends where you shop as to which is accepted. Visa Debit seems to be the most widely accepted though.

    Otherwise, they all appear to be roughly the same in their approach to student finance.

    Dave

  3. #3
    Senior Member kasavien's Avatar
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    Paying it off shouldn't be a problem, the reason i need one is that i need to budget for rent, car insurance, car tax and deposit on next years house. as soon as i get next terms loan i'll be fine, it's just the timing of everything i have to pay doesn't fit with the money i have.

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    Senior Member kasavien's Avatar
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    just seen this actually

    http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi...93692301,68353,

    looks like Halifax are the best at the moment.

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    HEXUS.social member finlay666's Avatar
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    Halifax seem to have a decent deal on with a nice size overdraft, Id avoid Natwest, with them currently and although the railcard for me is useful they seriously do my head in as the main branch I use they are generally incompetent (I applied for a student account....I had to apply a month later for the overdraft! the stupid woman hadnt said I had applied for one but had put me down for a credit card instead...the one thing i DIDNT want)

    msn had a thing where you could compare them, although IMO my current account is fine for me atm, but I need to cover myself for rent (just had to pay 2 lots of deposit and admin fees for a place next year and im in the market for a housemate so I have spent pretty much all of my loan untill the good ol parental contribution covers me for my share of the deposit/fees)
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    When I attented Uni, I got mine through hsbc, as Id been with them for a while. It all worked out fine, first year didnt use it, but then as I started to use the £1500 I found out I was stuck in a rut, paying money in that was the banks really, I didnt have a penny to my name, the loan didnt clear it all, after paying rent and bills I was back in the overdraft.

    Im still in my overdraft and it hasnt been easy getting out, even with money coming in, im living on the banks terms, now by september they have told me there going to start charging me.

    In my opinion - dont bother getting an overdraft - live within your means and no further, dont rely on the loan, its a false net to fall back on.

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    YUKIKAZE arthurleung's Avatar
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    I got a question too.
    I'm with Halifax now, I'm not sure if it is wise to "move" my overdraft into a saving account to earn interest?

    If I move my 1700 overdraft to saving, It would be extra 5 free pints of beer every month

    Would the 5 free pints of beer affect my credit rating in the future or I should just make better use of my overdraft?
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    Senior Member kasavien's Avatar
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    I can't see why it would adversely affect your credit rating so long as you pay the overdraft back on time. Money saving expert seem to encourage people to do this, if it was going to be bad for your credit rating i doubt they would encourage it.

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    Anyone except Barclays. They lied to me too many times about overdrafts etc.
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    I was gonna recommend halifax/bank of scotland to you. They've got the biggest overdraft and that's really what you want.

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    radix lecti dave87's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fabula View Post
    Anyone except Barclays. They lied to me too many times about overdrafts etc.
    Jus wondering, I'm with them, what did you face?

    I mean the only lie I've had is that I get a £1000 overdraft, where in fact its only £200 until you use it, and then they may charge you if you go into it without asking...

    Dave

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    Ғо ѕніzzLє му піzzLє chicken's Avatar
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    I would say HSBC as an instant response because of the amount of people I knew at uni who were happy with them, but Halifax sounds like a good contender on here too.

    I would definitely avoid the Royal Bank of Scotland as they were inefficient, told porkies about when changes I made would come into effect, then held them back long enough to incur charges and sometimes didn't even do what I asked at all despite nodding, smiling and saying "Yes it will be in place by midnight". I was sooo glad to get away from them!
    Note: They are the Royal Bank of Scotland, they have nothing to do with the Bank of Scotland who are part of Halifax.

    Oh and don't sign up a credit card, even if you intend to pay it off fully each month. A debit card is much easier to manage and if you hit a snag (as I did with the RBS debarkle causing charges and taking my money) you end up not being able to make 1 month and it all goes downhill from there.
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    HEXUS.social member finlay666's Avatar
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    RBS.....work with Shatwest
    need I say more lol!

    Im moving my account over to halifax when I get the chance, going to stick the overdraft into a savings ISA so at least over the summer I have a rather nifty lil bit of money to my name aswell hopefully
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    I've had no problems with natwest, £1250 0% overdraft, which can be increased every year. And i like their online banking where i can keep most of my money in an e-savings account.

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    Don't feed the trolls... tiggerai's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by crazy_bob_uk View Post
    I've had no problems with natwest, £1250 0% overdraft, which can be increased every year. And i like their online banking where i can keep most of my money in an e-savings account.
    I've had mine for 5 years now, up to £2000 overdraft. Good graduate account payback scheme too. (pay 0% overdraft back over 3 years)
    No complaints with Natwest whatsoever, and have a few mates from uni who had Natwest too.

  16. #16
    Ғо ѕніzzLє му піzzLє chicken's Avatar
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    tbh as much as they are a part of the RBS group, I've only heard the odd minor grumble about NatWest, and that's to be expected from any bank really, my comments earlier were more about RBS themselves.
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