I joined Halifax Online last year and have had no problems with it. I am able to access my current account details 24 hours a day and every time I have tried to access the service it has been successful - I have never known the service to be down.
In order to register for the service you need to have a Halifax Current account and to have registered for their telephone banking service. This may seem strange, but what they do for extra security is ask for two random digits from your telephone security number when you first register for the online service. In order to get a security number from the telephone service you need to answer identity questions.
The way they get your details is really clever - you ring telephone banking and they take your details, then the first operator takes the answer to a security question - then you are put through to another operator who takes another detail, then a third operator who asks the last (I think there were three questions) - once this is done you are set up for telephone banking - so not even the operators at Halifax Direct know all your details so the system is really secure.
Anyway, back to Halifax Online - you can view an up-to-date statement, and I mean UP TO DATE - if you go to a cash machine and take out some money it appears immediately on your transaction list. You can view and delete your direct debits, set up bill payments, pay bills, transfer money between accounts - basically pretty much everything you can do on telephone banking.
My favourite feature is that you can set a date for bill payments to be made in the future - excellent for paying bills when you're on holiday, for instance.
The screens are really simply laid out. I consider myself to be very proficient with the internet, but I still appreciate the simple layout of Halifax Online. They have obviously gone to great lengths to make it very easy to use, where other online banks have fancy looking screens Halifax Online's layout is simple - as I think it should be - you need to know what you're doing when you're dealing with money I think!! Put it this way, my Dad can use Halifax online and he's no internet buff!!
In April they launched a Websaver account which is an internet savings service. It currently pays 6.35% interest from £1 which is excellent. It tells you the current rates when you are logged in, and again gives you details of all transactions on the account.
You can give your Websaver accounts different names, according to what you're saving up for. Again I found this really easy to use.
I suppose I feel more confident with Halifax Online than I would with say First E or Cahoot because you can always give them a ring or go to a branch if you have problems. Recently, my branch got an internet kiosk installed and apparently they are putting these in all branches - it's basically a computer connected to Halifax online that customers can just walk in and use. Before X-mas I was in town getting presents, and I just strolled in, logged on and transferred money from my Websaver to my current account - took about a minute!
Lastly, the current account now pays 4% interest which is 40 times more than HSBC, Barclays, Natwest and Lloyds so I'm now a lot better off with them too.
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Great review. I'm also with Halifax online banking. Shame they don't have secure messaging (prefer to email rather than phone!). Only downside for me comes when transferring money to or from the current account to a websaver or another Halifax current account holder. The money does indeed go instantly, which is great, but it is very annoying just to see one word - Transfer - on your statement. No way of recalling which account, or to whom, you made the payment. Yes, you could click on each one in turn and try and match up corresponding figures. But, it would seem so simple just to either give you an option of putting a reference for a transaction, or at least giving the name or number of the websaver. Maybe it's just me...... memory not good these days! But despite this, would still recommend Halifax high interest account. Rather than 8p a month with Barclays, it's even £8 interest sometimes!!
lilly2006 30.01.2006 12:19
I agree, i'm with Halifax online and it is excellent. I haven't been to a branch in months as i can do everything now online! Great review
roberthart 21.01.2003 21:44
very useful thanks, interest rates are way higher than HSBC and sounds like the online banking has a few more options too.
Advantages: Plenty of articles, has some messageboards, excellant quotes facilities Disadvantages: They've just ditched their Shares portfolio service, which was light years better than any similar service on the 'net
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