Just over a year ago we were considering changing our mortgage to get a better deal I was intrigued by Virgin One’s advertising and decided to contact them. They claim that eight out of ten people would save thousand of pounds with this account. Obviously with a claim like this I had to find ... Read review
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A review by Donald on Virgin Money Accounts January 2nd, 2002
Author's product rating:
Efficiency of service
Competitiveness of charges/rates
Online - Content/organization of site
Advantages:
see text
Disadvantages:
none so far
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Just over a year ago we were considering changing our mortgage to get a better deal I was intrigued by Virgin One’s advertising and decided to contact them. They claim that eight out of ten people would save thousand of pounds with this account. Obviously with a claim like this I had to find out more.
I initially contacted them by phone and found them to be very helpful and informative. After providing some basic information they gave me a personal illustration, giving details of what my mortgage account would be with them, and things then progressed from there. I was somewhat apprehensive about changing my current account over, which I had had with the same high street bank for 20 years, but things went smoothly and the Virgin One staff contacted us regularly with updates.
Virgin One is different to most other mortgage lenders because you put all your finances in one account, i.e. your current account, savings and mortgage are all operated from the same account. Interest on this account is calculated on a daily basis. This means that any money you have in the account that you haven’t spent is working towards paying off your outstanding balance. Because all your money is in the one place you are paying a single interest rate on everything you borrow. I thought this would be confusing but believe me it’s not!
So, how do you run the account? Well actually pretty much like an ordinary bank account. We have chequebooks, debit cards, and although they don’t operate like a high street bank you can use the majority of the high street banks to pay in or withdraw cash (and I’ve never been charged for this). At the outset a ‘borrowing limit’ is agreed and you then have flexibility over how much is spent/saved each month. Of course if you are reckless with your finances this may not be the account for you as it would be all too easy to go on a spending spree and ‘think about it later’ (by the way I’m not talking from personal experience here!)
Virgin One provides monthly statements, which are very informative although somewhat more complicated than your average statement from an ordinary current account. In addition to the statements telephone banking can be used 24 hours a day, and I have always found the staff to be very polite and helpful whenever I have contacted them. The account can also be accessed online. The initial logging on process can be somewhat lengthy but this is mainly due to the many security measures, so this isn’t really a complaint just a nusciance at times. Another impressive feature is that any transactions completed by 5pm are shown on-line that same day.
Because Virgin One is part of the huge Virgin empire customers receive discounts and special offers on many other Virgin products (Virgin wine, flights etc).
We have now been running our account for almost a year and I am extremely pleased with the way things have gone. This type of account would not be suitable for everyone, but I now feel pleased to have broken away from the traditional type of mortgage account, and would recommend this to anyone out there considering changing their mortgage lender. If you want any further info there are lots of details at the website www.virginone.com.
Advantages: Fantastic flexibility, excellent service, simple charges Disadvantages: Interest rates not the lowest, may be too flexible for some people
...it. I have had a Virgin One mortgage for several years now. I must say that it is the best way of banking I have ever seen and it is definitely a revolution. That said, the One Account may not suit everyone, so read on...
Have you ever been overdrawn? Or bounced a cheque? Or had a Direct Debit missed? Or been charged a penalty because you forgot to pay off the minimum payment on your Credit Card? Or been charged by your bank for overdrawing your ... ...convince us otherwise.
The Virgin One Account changed all that. Imagine if you could get a personal loan (anytime you want it) and a credit card with an interest rate of 5.2% APR and a savings account which effectively pays 6% or more. No hassle, no fees, no extortionate interest rates. Everything together in one place. Sorted.
The Virgin One Account is all honest and up front - everything is presented in plain English.
You get a VISA Credit Card, ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Combines your current account, savings & mortgage & calculates interest daily on the combined balance. Also allows you to borrow back up to the initial advance at any time. Disadvantages: If you're not good at budgeting you might find you haven't paid it off by the end of the term (actually I don't think they'd really let this happen)
...that I should get a Virgin One Account. I had started temping a few months earlier which meant that, potentially, I didn't have the same money coming in every month and, potentialy, I could have times when I wasn't earning so trying to make regular mortgage payments could be difficult. Also, as an accountant I could see the financial benefits in the flexibility of the account so I logged on to their website to find out more.
The One Account is a ... ...over you know you can pay out for it. Each month your statement tells you how far ahead or behind you are and what your new budgeted monthly amount should be.
I am a Virgin convert and my faith has been restored - not all banks are the same! ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: So easy and simple Disadvantages: takes a while to get used to it
...money. I saw the Virgin One account advertised a few times, but couldn’t quite suss it out. Money and me don’t work very well and it would have to be explained at a very simple level for me to understand it.
So I went onto the webb site www.virginone.com to have a look and try and get some info. The site itself is very informative, however to get a good idea of whether this is the account for you, you need to have some figures available, ... ...forms I decided to phone Virgin One instead, and I am so glad I did. Each person I have spoken to has been so helpful, extremely pleasant and brilliantly patient with my never ending questions. So I signed up for an account.
The whole process took about one month, the only thing I needed to pay for up front was the evaluation fee – this cost me £139, but I think it can vary depending on the area you live in. Other fees were solicitor fees, ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Flexible, total control, premium service, low cost Disadvantages: lack of face-to-face contact
...Branson springs to mind. And Virgin One (now under Royal Bank of Scotland control) delivers in the same manner. With Virgin One gone are the days when one's mortgage value goes up instead of down, interest calculatedted monthly/annually and penalties imposed for daring to pay off huge chunk of your own debt (this is the essence of a mortgage afterall).
Instead you can truly take control of your finances and not be penalised. On the contrary if sensibly ... ...more you pay off the mortgage the lower the interest rate becomes). The rewards are greatest if all finances are handled through the account - have salaries, under-performing investments and any spare cash paid into the account and, because of the daily interest calculation, the lower the loan amount, the lower the interest cost. Simple really.
And the Service ? Second to none. I transferred from a rival institution and the Vigin One staff took ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Easy to pay In, you can see your investment grow online, very helpful staff Disadvantages: Can't really think of any from my point of view
...begin. I got to the virgin website and found it easy to navigate and informative, but being a bit suspicious I thought I'd ring them.
Spoke to a guy called Paul who answered all the questions he could. I could get a mini stocks and shares ISA which seemed to be good for saving regularly for the long term.
Now I don't have a lot of money to save so this ISA was ideal as you can open it with £1 and can deposit whenever you like up to your yearly ... ...it's easy to get your money if you need it with no penalties (other than the obvious loss in interest or income), but it's also sent only as a cheque. This is great for somebody like myself as if I could drawer it from acash machine for example, it'd be 'gone in 60 seconds' so to speak.
So to sum up, I am a complete gumby when it comes to investing, but I opened this account with £10 on 23rd July this year. Checked it today (online of course) and ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: good service Disadvantages: non really
...This company which is contactable on 0870 737 8000 or at www.sharepeople.com runs a really good share dealing service (on-line & telephone)
Advantages are:
It runs justlike a bank account and pays large amounts (5% +) interest
You use this account to trade
you can get them to phone you (free) when a particular share reaches a particular value for buying/selling - you then go on-line and trade
if you register before 31/8 running the a/c is free forever
Disadvantages are:
the buying/selling fee is a flat rate of £17.95 (some other services are cheaper - ie: virginmoney - but look out for annual charges and the interest rate on the account!)...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful
Advantages: it will save you thousands on your mortgage/debts Disadvantages: none
...money (debts, earnings and savings) into one account and they all go together to give you one "current" account that you can control with ease. The biggest plus however was still to come - the interest on your debt is calculated daily!!
I asked my parents what they thought - and they pointed out that I was old enough to make my own decisions - a sure sign that they didn't approve but didn't want to say so! I did it anyway.
I filled in the forms, got a valuer round my flat (which cost me £150), got a solicitor (another £150) and changed my mortgage. Northern Rock were suitably outraged and insisted I give them their £1000 "gift" back.
Finally in December I got my chequebook, visa and switch cards and my first statement!! It said I owed Virgin £40,500. My god - I owed them more money than before I started!!!
However, now, 18 months...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: easy to use, very good customer service Disadvantages: overspenders beware!
...An excellent product and excellent service from Virgin. Why have mortgage, loans, credit cards, savings and current account separate when you can put them all together and save yourself money.We were looking for a way of being able to repay our mortgage over a shorter period without committing ourselves to hefty monthly repayments. With the VirginOne account we have done just that.
It is so easy to get started - the telephone helpline is extremely helpful and take all the details they need to process the application - there are no long interviews with bank managers or reams of paperwork. They then send you the forms with all the information pre-printed - all you need to do is check and sign it then return to them.
You decide on the borrowing limit you will need to cover your requirements. The interest rate you pay is dependent...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Most of the responses to this thread seem to come from people that are either not members or people that have not fully taken advantage of the Money Club's services. Like a gym membership, it won't do you any good if you don't use it and the benefits... more
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