'Fraid I'm rarely on this site now... too much else to do! Generally working, partying, travelling, ...
'Fraid I'm rarely on this site now... too much else to do! Generally working, partying, travelling, or recovering :)
Member since:23.09.2001
Reviews:15
Members who trust:10
I was first attracted to opening a current account with Halifax about six years ago, while I was still at university, enticed by a cheap pager offer (it's been made rather redundant now by my mobile!) and an unusually high interest rate.
Unusually high interest rate?! Oh yes, well it was for a current account, 4% gross (meaning before tax is taken off), though that was only to last while I had the 'student' account, and dropped after I graduated. However, they soon introduced higher rates for those that paid more into their account every month - lucky for me that my salary had risen by then!
The interest rate isn't quite as high as it was when I opened the account... but is still very good compared to other current accounts, especially if you can pay a lot into the account every month. On its website, Halifax only compares its rates against the 'big' banks, such as Lloyds TSB, Barclays, Natwest, and HSBC's 0.1% gross rates, but they do currently pay more than Nationwide's equivalent Flexaccount of up to 2.5%. Halifax pay a quite low rate if you put in less than £500 (as of Dec 26 2002, 0.25% gross), a slightly higher rate if it's more than £500 (2%), and an even higher rate if you pay in more than £1000 (3%). The overdraft rate was also slightly lower than Nationwide's.
However, it isn't the interest rates that has kept me faithful to this particular account, it's the convenience of the services they offer.
Halifax has several bank branches around the UK, but as I'm sure most working people will find, it's generally not very practical to try and visit a branch during lunch breaks or after work. With this in mind, they have internet, phone as well as 'hole in the wall' services to help deal with all the transactions you might have.
Having said that, as Halifax won't offer certain services in branches, like bill payments, or withdrawals of less than £300, you don't
have much choice but to use these other services. So thank goodness their online and cashpoint services alone meet most of my banking needs.
My salary is directly transferred to my account by my company once a month, meaning that the only transactions I need worry about are outgoing expenses. I arrange most of these through the online service.
---- http://www.halifax-online.co.uk ----
Obviously, in order to perform any transactions online, you need to register to use the online account first. You'll need either your current account details, or banking details of any other account you have with them (ie credit card), create a username and password, and then fill in answers to a few security questions. Once done, you won't be able to use the account straightaway, but must wait for a letter with an 'access code' to be sent to you. This code has to be entered onto the website, but if you do this incorrectly three times, you'll have to phone up customer service to have a replacement code sent.
I managed to mistype the code (I had trouble reading what it said) the first time it was sent, so had to have a replacement sent. Customer service was very helpful about it when I phoned though, and promptly sent a new code out, which I managed to type correctly.
Once this little ordeal is over with, in future you'll be able to log into the online account using just the username, password, and answer one of the security questions that was asked during the registration process. In this respect, I find the system quite secure compared with online accounts that simply give you a number as a username, and is also suitable for anyone too lazy to think up different usernames and passwords from what they use everyday, as they're given extra protection by the security question they have to answer. (Though of course it is recommended you have a unique username and password.)
You'll also be able to combine other Halifax accounts under the same username, meaning that you can check and sort out transactions on several different accounts, including credit cards and savings, without ever having to log into another online account.
But back to the current account, online, you can set up bill payments and arrange a time for when you'd like them paid - I've set one up for an 'odd' final amount for my flat's service charge for February. You can also set up standing orders, see all your direct debit arrangements, as well as your recent transactions. Anytime you make a transaction online, it will ask you for your password and a security question.
If your friends trust you enough to give their bank details, you can transfer money directly to their account (quickly resolving my problem of never having the right change, or forgetting to get to a cash point first).
Entering the bank details for bill payments, bank transfers or standing orders can be a bit fiddly, but the site will always ask you to double check the details you've given, and once set up, you can use them again and again in future - simply click on the person/company you want to pay, type in how much you want to pay, your password and security answer, and that's it. I have this set up for most of my utility bills, council tax, service charges, and monthly rent.
Every time you set up a new bill payment/money transfer instruction, Halifax send a letter with an update of all your instructions, and their 'bill payment' number (for instance my council tax is 01, electricity bills 05) which is needed for the phone service. The only fault I find with this particular service, is that they don't offer the means of amending the instruction if you later find out it is wrong (Npower wrote to tell me they had given the wrong bank details for their gas payments!)... you have to delete the details, and then create a new instruction. But, thankfully, whatever transaction you create online, is automatically set up for use on the phone, and vice versa.
They promote some of their other services online. Unfortunately you can't buy their travel insurance online, but you can order foreign currency and travellers cheques while logged in, and have it either delivered to a branch convenient to you, or for a fee to your home the next working day if you've ordered before a certain time.
You simply go to the holiday money link on the main page of your online account, select which bank you want to have the money delivered to (or to your home), choose how much you want, and then the money is simply deducted from your account. I found this to be quite efficient, having ordered early on a Friday morning, then picking up the money from a branch near my work place the following Monday afternoon.
Apart from Switch payments, once a transaction is performed, it will appear almost immediately online. I withdrew £10 during a lunch break from a cashpoint, and by the time I got back to work a half hour later, the transaction was already on the website, pretty nifty I think! I've also never found the site to crash, or had problems accessing it.
---- 08457 20 30 40 ----
The phone service isn't quite so straightforward to use, being one of those automated systems where you have to go through a list of options for what you want. Not only that, but unlike the online version where you simply use a memorable username, password and security question, you will always need your bank account details before you can do anything with your account over the phone. However, before you even do this, you have to contact customer service to set up the service, and to set up a six digit pin code for it.
To access your account details by phone, you'll need your sort code, account number, and the two digits the phone requests from your six digit pin code, ie the second and fifth digits. It can be a bit confusing hearing the difference between 'first' or 'third' though. If you pause long enough on the phone however, you'll be taken straight to an operator who can help you out. Woo! A human voice! But this is quite important, if like me, you can never remember what the pin code is meant to be, or that it even has six digits.
You can perform all the tasks that are available online by speaking to an operator, and in fact you'll need to if you want to create anything like bill payments and standing orders. However, if you've already created a transaction for a person or company before, you'll be able to use the automated system for future transactions, as well as checking your balance and past transactions.
---- Hole in the walls ----
You can use cash points to make cash and cheque deposits (though these take longer than if you pay over counter) in addition to most of the basic services offered already online and by phone. If you've arranged the instructions for it, you can pay bills and transfer funds. I've never felt comfortable enough to stand at a cash point long enough to use these though, even if the cash point is located inside a bank branch, and will generally only use it to withdraw money, get a mini-statement, or pay in money.
I'd just like to point out Halifax is one of a limited number of banks that allows you to change the cash point withdrawal limit on your card (LloydsTSB, Nationwide, HSBC and Barclays don't). You might query why that is important... well I was once a victim of 'card surfing', where someone watched me type in my pin number without me noticing, was able to steal my cashcard later, and withdraw £290 on top of taking the £10 that was already in my wallet. While most people might be covered by card insurance and claim all the lost money back (I wasn't at the time), lowering the withdrawal limit would rein in the gains these thieves are able to make, and I would take pleasure from that were it to ever happen again.
However, once in a while, Halifax bump up their withdrawal limit universally across all the cashcards, meaning that I have to go back to a branch to have it lowered back down. This is done at the information point, and they don't ever cause a fuss over it (unless they can't remember how to!)
---- Other stuff ----
Like most other banks, Halifax can be a bit over keen on promoting their other services. I don't remember the number of times they've tried to offer me a loan, or a credit card, and just recently they included a leaflet on pet insurance with my statement! (I don't own any pets.) They do occasionally send something useful though, for instance a temporary offer for commission free foreign currency.
However, sometimes they decide to take their own initiative with my account... just recently, they decided to give me a rather large overdraft facility without asking if I wanted or needed it!
They also tend to be a little too efficient at sending out cheque books... I usually find I've already got two new books before I've reached the end of my first one! But then, I've found this consistent with most current accounts I've held with any other bank.
I generally find the staff in the Halifax branches I've visited consistently friendly and helpful (mainly Lewisham and Moorgate). If there's a queue for the counters, they will usually try to move it quickly by having the information point deal with cheque only deposits.
However, due to the online and cash point services, I rarely ever have to venture into a bank branch, but it's good to know there's a face-to-face service available if I need it. And as long as Halifax continues to provide these services, I won't feel the need to look anywhere else.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Advantages: Extremely good interest rates payable monthly. Excellent on-line banking facilities, Easy to understand monthly statements Disadvantages: They don't seem to have got their administration act together
maggs1939 04.06.2001 ·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Halifax
Dec 31st, 2002
very helpful by (97%):
helpful by (2%):
not helpful by (2%):
