New Bank

manlad

I'm going to move bank as I've got fed up of Ulster Bank- Service, Charges etc.

Can anybody recommend for me?

DMcL1971

Most people who are moving account seem to be going to PTSB. Their current account has no fees providing you lodge a total of 1500 to the account each month. (Which may be made up of several smaller lodgements and withdrawals as long as the total of all lodgements add up to €1,500 or greater.) The internet banking is good and so is the customer service.

pjproby

I moved from Danske to KBC in February. Anyone thinking of moving bank voluntarily should have their head examined. Its a total nightmare and still not quite resolved. Read Niall Brady's account in last Sunday's Sunday Times. it mirrors mine entirely.
KBC are fine. The switching process does not work well.

DMcL1971

Here is some practical advice on how to switch. I have switched banks several times in the last few years. So I have seen what commonly goes wrong.

When opening a new current account with PTSB or any current account provider, they offer a switching service. This means they will look after contacting your old bank, switching all your DD's over, transferring your balance and closing the old account for you. Though it sounds like a great service I would strongly advise against using it. I have heard far too many stories from people of how one or two DD's didn't get switched over and payments bounced. Next thing you know you have a new bank account and you don't know which bank account your DD originators are using. Worse still you might miss a mortgage payment or have the credit control department of some service provider chasing you for missed payments. It is far better instead to control all this yourself.

So, to avoid all those hassles, I would recommend you do not use their switching service and instead you do it manually, and it is a lot easier than it sounds.

First, set up the new current account with PTSB. When the account is set up you will receive a letter confirming your new sort code and account number (BIC/IBAN) in around 3 days. A couple of days later you will receive your ATM card and your PIN. Around the same time you will be set up on their online banking and phone app. Your new account is now ready to use.

Second, inform your employer of your new account details so that your salary goes to the new PTSB account.

Third, you want to start transferring you DD’s across to PTSB. Start off by transferring some money into your PTSB account, so that you actually have a balance. You can then sit down and ring each of your DD providers and tell them you want to change your DD details. Now you are probably thinking that that sounds like a pain in the arse, well, surprisingly it’s not. The majority of them do the details change over the phone and send you a confirmation letter in the post the next day. A couple of the more old fashioned ones might insist you sign a new mandate and fax or post it back into them. I did this in work one day during lunch break. In 45 minutes I had all of my 6 DD’s transferred, the vast majority of that 45 minutes was spent waiting in the call queue to get an answer. You could also transfer them one at a time if you like, therefore making doubly sure everything goes the way you want it timing wise. Make sure to leave some money behind in your old account just in case a DD doesn’t transfer correctly or in time. That way you avoid a DD bounce issue.

Fourth, wait for a while until you see the DD’s coming out of the new PTSB account. Once you are happy that everyone is now using your new details and your old account has been sitting there doing nothing for a while, you can just transfer the remaining balance of your old account to the PTSB account and tell your old bank to close your old account.

Obviously this method is dependent on a few things. You being able to figure out what DD’s are supposed to be coming out of your old account, is the first. Second that you actually have enough money to be able to leave a small balance in both the new and old accounts for a couple of weeks while you make sure everything has settled down nicely.

Deco99

Went in to a PTSB branch today to open an account, some building repairs going on. Fella approaches me in jeans and a shabby enough t shirt and asks am i ok, i said yes (and wondered what a weird question from a builder) turns out he was the customer service. Whatever the issue was i still didnt set up the account. Do people think after a weird and negative experience like that should i really go back, it was worth about 50 quid a year switching but i think i prefer to know i'm dealing with a professional outfit. Is this likely a one off or do other people have similar experience with PTSB

DMcL1971

Deco99 wrote: »

Went in to a PTSB branch today to open an account, some building repairs going on. Fella approaches me in jeans and a shabby enough t shirt and asks am i ok, i said yes (and wondered what a weird question from a builder) turns out he was the customer service. Whatever the issue was i still didnt set up the account. Do people think after a weird and negative experience like that should i really go back, it was worth about 50 quid a year switching but i think i prefer to know i'm dealing with a professional outfit. Is this likely a one off or do other people have similar experience with PTSB

I think you will find that was a one off. Normally their staff are in uniform, I would hazard a guess that he may not have been in uniform because of the dirt and dust caused by the building works. Walk into any of their other branches and you will find that they are as professional as any other bank.

Deco99

Hi DMcL1971 you seem to be fairly knowledgable on the banking front, i went in an opened the wrong account, was on my lunch break so was probably too anxious, anyway i opened a interest first deposit account with them when i actually want the bonus booster instant access, they sounded similar at the time. You reckon this will be a big deal to change, within the 14 day cooling period and all, no extra fees?

DMcL1971

If you go back into the bank as soon as possible they should be able to resolve it for you. As you say, you have a cooling off period when you open a new account. It should be straight forward.

Deco99

DMcL1971 wrote: »

If you go back into the bank as soon as possible they should be able to resolve it for you. As you say, you have a cooling off period when you open a new account. It should be straight forward.

You say should, in my experience most things that can be straight forward rarely are i got explained what internet banking was earlier and when i asked what the fees for early withdrawal were, i got told "oh they could be €50 or alot more" I asked how much more and why as they hardly make up the figure out of thin air. Then i got shown the most basic formula on a sheet of 1% of balance by the time left divided 365 days.

Thanks for your help btw, i'm ranting cause i hate anything to do with customer service.

DMcL1971

You 'Should' have no problem closing the Interest First account because the T&C's state:

15.(d) No withdrawals from the Account are allowed during the term except withdrawals (partial or full account closure) made up to 14 calendar days after account opening or up to 14 calendar days after the maturity date (where the investment is renewed for a further fixed period).


The reason that they can't give you a straight forward amount for the penalty for early closure is because they are paying you your interest upfront. They are assuming that you are going to leave the full amount that you deposited in the account for the full period of the account. On that basis they are giving you the full interest amount upfront. If you cancel in 6 months they will want half the money back, if you cancel in 9 months they will want one quarter of the money back etc. On top of this there is also an additional penalty charge which is dependent on the prevailing market interest rate on the date of cancellation. So the penalty depends on what date in the future you might decide to close your account. This is detailed below.

15.(e) Prior to expiry of the deposit term, a full withdrawal may be made (no partial withdrawals are permitted) and in such event, you will be liable:
(i) to repay to the Bank the amount of interest paid to you in respect of the unexpired deposit term, that is the period between the date of the withdrawal and the maturity date of the investment and
(ii) to pay for the cost of replacing the funds which, subject to a minimum payment of €20 (or such other amount as may be determined by us) will be the greater of the amount calculated by the following formula:

((1% X X T)/365 OR(B X T X D%)/365

WHERE
B is the balance remaining on the account.
T is the unexpired term remaining up to the maturity date in number of days.
D is the difference in the prevailing market rate of interest for a term equivalent to the period remaining up to the maturity date and the funding rate applicable at the date of opening of the account.
The sum of (i) and (ii) above will be deducted from the closing balance.

Deco99

Thanks, she showed me the formula and i understood it, very straightforward, it was the vagueness of the answer i found annoying. The whole experience annoyed me, from getting internet banking explained to me to not just telling me the late fee formula. Do they not realise a large portion of people work in finance or finance related jobs or accountancy and understand this stuff when its put in front of them.

Unrelated story from a friend who was withdrawing money from an account and was told it would be 12-15 days. When asking why he was told its in a fund and this stuff is a bit tricky but it takes time to release the funds. He told them he actually worked in funds and knew it only took 3 days and give a few days admin on the banks side 5-7 was a more reasonable timeframe. I'm a bit irked with the difficulty they make what is as you say straightforward stuff. It reminds me of the medical cards, make the task so arduous that the process will make you give up. again ranting only. Your help is appreciated.