Danske bank to close retail customer accounts

draiochtanois · 01-11-2013 11:24am

This post has been deleted.

aw · 01-11-2013 3:16pm

draiochtanois wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

This will be interesting to me also as I have some.

The standard fee to rematerialise them is something like £65 per cert (it is done by Northern Bank I think so it is the equivalent in euro).

draiochtanois · 01-11-2013 3:43pm

This post has been deleted.

kennM · 01-11-2013 7:06pm

Renny Barrett wrote: »

This is going to cost me dearly, I fear - I have an offset mortgage with Danske, and if they close my accounts which are offset against my mortgage, then the benefits of the offset mortgage disappear :-(

Hey Renny, I'm in the same boat as you....

Our current accounts are attached to the mortgage product in essence and as such can't be closed and just service your mortgage. NIB/Danske have a contract with regards to the product and its terms and conditions. We are fulfilling our side of the contract and arrangements will need to be put in place that does not leave us in a worst off position.

I was chatting to a friend who works with one of the major banks and financial ombudsman today and he was saying that they need to either continue the current terms and conditions or have the comparable (Same terms and conditions) offered by another bank.... either way the onus is on Danske bank to resolve this.

If needs be I'll be digging in my heals on this one....

They are not going bankrupt, they are refocusing their efforts into different areas and pulling out of retail banking. They can't just break the contract because it no longer suits them.

Stheno · 01-11-2013 7:11pm

kennM wrote: »

Hey Renny, I'm in the same boat as you....

Our current accounts are attached to the mortgage product in essence and as such can't be closed and just service your mortgage. NIB/Danske have a contract with regards to the product and its terms and conditions. We are fulfilling our side of the contract and arrangements will need to be put in place that does not leave us in a worst off position.

I was chatting to a friend who works with one of the major banks and financial ombudsman today and he was saying that they need to either continue the current terms and conditions or have the comparable (Same terms and conditions) offered by another bank.... either way the onus is on Danske bank to resolve this.

If needs be I'll be digging in my heals on this one....

They are not going bankrupt, they are refocusing their efforts into different areas and pulling out of retail banking. They can't just break the contract because it no longer suits them.

I worked in UlsterBank when they changed their model to work under the RBS Systems a few years ago, and as part of it, they discontinued all offset accounts in the retail market.

They were able to do it for pretty much every situation once they followed a serious or rules set out by the regulator. I would be pretty certain that somewhere in the small print related to your current account/mortgage offset arrangement there will be something there that they can use to close the current arrangement and simply convert it to a mortgage on a stand alone basis.

Thoie · 01-11-2013 8:02pm

One thing to bear in mind during all of this is that no matter how inconvenient it might be for us, the people on the other end of the phone are losing their jobs, so try to be nice when the time comes to deal with them.

kennM · 01-11-2013 8:49pm

Stheno wrote: »

I worked in UlsterBank when they changed their model to work under the RBS Systems a few years ago, and as part of it, they discontinued all offset accounts in the retail market.

They were able to do it for pretty much every situation once they followed a serious or rules set out by the regulator. I would be pretty certain that somewhere in the small print related to your current account/mortgage offset arrangement there will be something there that they can use to close the current arrangement and simply convert it to a mortgage on a stand alone basis.

You're basing your statement on a couple of things:

(a) Assuming RBS small print is comparable to Danske/NIB small print
(b) No clarity around serious of rules set out my regulator
(c) Ulster bank I believe were in a different situation? They were taken over by RBS as I understand it. In the case of Danske bank, the entity remains... they are strategically moving out of retail banking.

At the end of the day there is a contract between each customer and the bank. Contract law still applies.

Personally I'll be familiarising myself with the small print...

Danske bank are due to write out to each customer in the coming weeks regarding their individual products & arrangements. We'll see what is said.

Regarding another statement about the people on the other end of the phone losing their jobs. Absolutely 100% compassion and understanding for their situation. I've found NIB staff superb over the years and cannot fault them in any way shape or form. Absolute shame. Thoughts and prayers go out for them.

kennM · 01-11-2013 9:40pm

Just checked small print... nope, can't change it....

They've also said mortgages will continue under their existing terms and conditions. There is a clause in the small print where they have the right to transfer the agreement in whole or in part but does not make a material difference to terms and conditions. So essentially they could shift it to another bank under offset terms and conditions....

Time will tell but confident that we can't end up worse off than our current terms and conditions.

byrnefm · 01-11-2013 11:35pm

I used to be with Ulster Bank a few years ago until I got my mortgage with NIB. One thing which Ulster Bank online banking couldn't do (in 2007) was to pay my AIB Credit Card, as there was only a way to transfer money from one a/c to another but not with reference text (which I needed to specify my credit card #).

Does anyone know if this is now possible with their online banking, that is, to specify reference details / text? The reviews I've seen on Google Play for Ulster Bank's app is generally very positive (esp compared to AIB's for example)

Also, I'm wondering how TRS will now be paid if my current a/c is no longer with Danske but my mortgage is... though I guess they'll let us know that in due course.

Toto Wolfcastle · 01-11-2013 11:38pm

I pay my AIB credit card from my Ulster Bank account. You can put the card number in as the reference.

Stheno · 01-11-2013 11:39pm

kennM wrote: »

Just checked small print... nope, can't change it....

They've also said mortgages will continue under their existing terms and conditions. There is a clause in the small print where they have the right to transfer the agreement in whole or in part but does not make a material difference to terms and conditions. So essentially they could shift it to another bank under offset terms and conditions....

Time will tell but confident that we can't end up worse off than our current terms and conditions.

Possibly then they will do what Halifax did and just get it administered via the links of Certus, how they will deal with the offset is hard to understand, having worked in the area, with the likes of mortgages where interest is calculated daily, savings can be massive using offsets.

byrnefm wrote: »

I used to be with Ulster Bank a few years ago until I got my mortgage with NIB. One thing which Ulster Bank online banking couldn't do (in 2007) was to pay my AIB Credit Card, as there was only a way to transfer money from one a/c to another but not with reference text (which I needed to specify my credit card #).

Does anyone know if this is now possible with their online banking, that is, to specify reference details / text? The reviews I've seen on Google Play for Ulster Bank's app is generally very positive (esp compared to AIB's for example)

Also, I'm wondering how TRS will now be paid if my current a/c is no longer with Danske but my mortgage is... though I guess they'll let us know that in due course.

Yes my online banking with ulster bank allows me to transfer and put in a specific reference for both one off and regular standing orders.

BuffyBot · 01-11-2013 11:40pm

Yup it is possible.

dixiefly · 03-11-2013 10:12am

kennM wrote: »

Hey Renny, I'm in the same boat as you....

Our current accounts are attached to the mortgage product in essence and as such can't be closed and just service your mortgage. NIB/Danske have a contract with regards to the product and its terms and conditions. We are fulfilling our side of the contract and arrangements will need to be put in place that does not leave us in a worst off position.

I was chatting to a friend who works with one of the major banks and financial ombudsman today and he was saying that they need to either continue the current terms and conditions or have the comparable (Same terms and conditions) offered by another bank.... either way the onus is on Danske bank to resolve this.

If needs be I'll be digging in my heals on this one....

They are not going bankrupt, they are refocusing their efforts into different areas and pulling out of retail banking. They can't just break the contract because it no longer suits them.

I have a current account linked to my mortgage. In my case I had reactivated my Ulster Bank account because I wasn't happy that Danske had closed the branch network and increased fees at the same time.

As stated above, my mortgage account is linked to my current account. Will Danske remove that link and allow me to pay into the mortgage account directly from my Ulster current account?

When will the credit card be phased out / will it transfer to another provider?

Does anyone know if Danske have an advisory number to call in relation to the changes or do we just call the standard numbers?

dixiefly · 03-11-2013 10:13am

Truman Burbank wrote: »

Long term frequent on-line Ulster Bank customer. Never needed card reader. Got one? Yes. Required to use? No. No change in log-in details (customer #, 4 digit pin & 3/6 password ) ever.

Afaik, the card reader with Ulster is mostly used when setting new payees.

kennM · 03-11-2013 10:21am

dixiefly wrote: »

I have a current account linked to my mortgage. In my case I had reactivated my Ulster Bank account because I wasn't happy that Danske had closed the branch network and increased fees at the same time.

As stated above, my mortgage account is linked to my current account. Will Danske remove that link and allow me to pay into the mortgage account directly from my Ulster current account?

When will the credit card be phased out / will it transfer to another provider?

Does anyone know if Danske have an advisory number to call in relation to the changes or do we just call the standard numbers?

I'd sit tight and wait for them to write out... we can't be adversely affected by this change and we have active contracts in place.

Regarding your question... I've checked the terms and conditions associated to my mortgage and it is possible to "feed/pay" your mortgage from a current account in another institution.

Regarding what will happen with existing products/credit cards etc. the onus is on Danske bank to resolve this and I'm not going to stress about it till I hear from them.

You can be sure some of the existing banks will try and target the Danske bank customers with attractive terms and conditions.... worth keeping an eye out for these too.

Regarding standard numbers giving solutions/answers.... i'd say its early days yet. You have to remember the staff handling customers only heard the news at the same time we did..... unfortunately those people are likely losing their jobs so its an incredibly difficult time for them.

In the original press release it stated that they will be writing out to all customers with regards to their existing products and offerings and what will happen.

Hope this helps

ABC101 · 04-11-2013 5:20pm

I sent two internal email queries on Friday. No response since.

Obviously staff must still be in a state of shock... and are probably inundated with email from clients.

But has any poster got a response yet?

I have deeds of 1 property with them (held in N.I. I believe)... so I must get those deeds back before they pull out entirely.

As for the announcement that they are going to concentrate on Corporate and Investors... I don't believe it... it's just a stop gap measure to a full scale pull out.

It's a terrible pity really, the Online banking model is very good, trading stocks program was good, and the discounts with prestige accounts / offset mortgages was very good too.

Big loss for the Irish public, sad day for employees as well, some great people working there.:mad:

Leslie91 · 05-11-2013 11:32am

I've started the process of moving the current account to PTSB. So far v smooth. But one thing to bear in mind is that they are v conservative when it comes to the credit card. They have told me I won't be getting anything like the line I had with NIB/Danske so I might look outside them for credit card. Can anybody recommend another provider when it comes to credit card?, I'd like to be able to see the account online, not fussy ref MC or Visa.

dixiefly · 05-11-2013 12:11pm

kennM wrote: »

I'd sit tight and wait for them to write out... we can't be adversely affected by this change and we have active contracts in place.

Regarding your question... I've checked the terms and conditions associated to my mortgage and it is possible to "feed/pay" your mortgage from a current account in another institution.

Regarding what will happen with existing products/credit cards etc. the onus is on Danske bank to resolve this and I'm not going to stress about it till I hear from them.

You can be sure some of the existing banks will try and target the Danske bank customers with attractive terms and conditions.... worth keeping an eye out for these too.

Regarding standard numbers giving solutions/answers.... i'd say its early days yet. You have to remember the staff handling customers only heard the news at the same time we did..... unfortunately those people are likely losing their jobs so its an incredibly difficult time for them.

In the original press release it stated that they will be writing out to all customers with regards to their existing products and offerings and what will happen.

Hope this helps

Thanks, sounds reasonable.

pjproby · 05-11-2013 2:33pm

Danske bank will most likely be obliged to offer a personal loan to clear CC debt and overdrafts. It might be a better bet to wait and see. There may be other options yet.

Dr. Sh1te · 06-11-2013 7:53pm

Does this now mean we won't be getting the mastercard debit cards they only wrote to us about a few weeks ago ? (Roll eyes)

JTMan · 07-11-2013 8:20pm

Dr. Sh1te wrote: »

Does this now mean we won't be getting the mastercard debit cards they only wrote to us about a few weeks ago ? (Roll eyes)

Correct. It seems.

jmcc99_98 · 08-11-2013 3:10pm

I have a fairly hefty balance on my Danske Mastercard (€4k) I have been managing to take it down from 5k over the past 6 months or so.

In any event I rang Danske this morning to find out what happens with that, they said that I would be given 2 months notice but essentially I would have to pay it off or look for the balance to be transferred to another card/bank. There was no mention of a loan being offered to pay it off (as mentioned earlier in this thread)

I may yet manage to transfer it to a new credit card (with whatever bank I transfer to) but I doubt they will offer a 4k limit or they may offer me a separate loan to pay it. It would be much handier if Danske could offer a loan for the outstanding balance as I have an excellent payment record with them etc

Has anyone had any other details regarding Credit card balances?

kennM · 08-11-2013 3:16pm

jmcc99_98 wrote: »

I have a fairly hefty balance on my Danske Mastercard (€4k) I have been managing to take it down from 5k over the past 6 months or so.

In any event I rang Danske this morning to find out what happens with that, they said that I would be given 2 months notice but essentially I would have to pay it off or look for the balance to be transferred to another card/bank. There was no mention of a loan being offered to pay it off (as mentioned earlier in this thread)

I may yet manage to transfer it to a new credit card (with whatever bank I transfer to) but I doubt they will offer a 4k limit or they may offer me a separate loan to pay it. It would be much handier if Danske could offer a loan for the outstanding balance as I have an excellent payment record with them etc

Has anyone had any other details regarding Credit card balances?

They said they would be writing out to each customer... personally going to sit tight till they do. Lets see what they put on the table first. If needs be then fight it, they are not pulling out of the country or folding. They have decided to get out of retail banking but we have contracts with them where we are upholding our side of the bargain..... so the onus is on them at present.

Rick Rod · 09-11-2013 11:44am

jmcc99_98 wrote: »

I have a fairly hefty balance on my Danske Mastercard (€4k) I have been managing to take it down from 5k over the past 6 months or so.

In any event I rang Danske this morning to find out what happens with that, they said that I would be given 2 months notice but essentially I would have to pay it off or look for the balance to be transferred to another card/bank. There was no mention of a loan being offered to pay it off (as mentioned earlier in this thread)

I may yet manage to transfer it to a new credit card (with whatever bank I transfer to) but I doubt they will offer a 4k limit or they may offer me a separate loan to pay it. It would be much handier if Danske could offer a loan for the outstanding balance as I have an excellent payment record with them etc

Has anyone had any other details regarding Credit card balances?

I would sit tight and let them offer you a solution. Don't pay anything bar the monthly min

byrnefm · 10-11-2013 6:39pm

Dr. Sh1te wrote: »

Does this now mean we won't be getting the mastercard debit cards they only wrote to us about a few weeks ago ? (Roll eyes)

It may depend when they close our current accounts - the Laser scheme will no longer work after February 28, 2014. Unless they expect us to just withdraw cash from our card after that! Or maybe we can use the Maestro feature on it?

josip · 10-11-2013 6:54pm

byrnefm wrote: »

It may depend when they close our current accounts - the Laser scheme will no longer work after February 28, 2014. Unless they expect us to just withdraw cash from our card after that! Or maybe we can use the Maestro feature on it?

Danske bank are never slow to carry out an announced change.
Perhaps February 28 is the most logical date for the account closures.

JTMan · 10-11-2013 9:16pm

SEPA comes into full force on 1 February 2014, so I am surprised that Laser will still exist, as the ISPO have said, until 28 February 2014.

Anyway, Danske Bank have said that they will give 2 months notice before they mandatorily close current accounts. Perhaps, they will give notice, later this month.

Regardless, Danske Bank customers would really want to start switching sooner rather than later.

chughes · 10-11-2013 9:47pm

Fungus wrote: »

SEPA comes into full force on 1 February 2014, so I am surprised that Laser will still exist, as the ISPO have said, until 28 February 2014.

Anyway, Danske Bank have said that they will give 2 months notice before they mandatorily close current accounts. Perhaps, they will give notice, later this month.

Regardless, Danske Bank customers would really want to start switching sooner rather than later.

Just wondering why you say that. I know they will close the current accounts by the end of February but why do we need to switch sooner rather than later? What is the implication of going to the wire with Danske?

JTMan · 10-11-2013 10:17pm

chughes wrote: »

Just wondering why you say that. I know they will close the current accounts by the end of February but why do we need to switch sooner rather than later? What is the implication of going to the wire with Danske?

Danske might do it sooner than the end of February, it could be the end of January or sooner.

You need to consider, how quick will your HR department be at switching your salary into the new account? If you have money coming into your account, from other parties, such as rental income, how quick will others be at fixing their direct debits etc?

You need to operate 2 current accounts for a period of time.

Going to the wire with switching is asking for problems.

Some people have a large amount of wires going in and out of their account and it takes time to sort it all out even with automatic switching.

No point in sitting on your hands and waiting for the Danske letter, better to get the ball rolling so you can have a decent period of having 2 current accounts to save potential hassle.

Plus you get the added bonus of moving earlier to a bank that does not charge for day-to-day banking.

kennM · 10-11-2013 10:25pm

Fungus wrote: »

Danske might do it sooner than the end of February, it could be the end of January or sooner.

You need to consider, how quick will your HR department be at switching your salary into the new account? If you have money coming into your account, from other parties, such as rental income, how quick will others be at fixing their direct debits etc?

You need to operate 2 current accounts for a period of time.

Going to the wire with switching is asking for problems.

Some people have a large amount of wires going in and out of their account and it takes time to sort it all out even with automatic switching.

No point in sitting on your hands and waiting for the Danske letter, better to get the ball rolling so you can have a decent period of having 2 current accounts to save potential hassle.

Plus you get the added bonus of moving earlier to a bank that does not charge for day-to-day banking.

Are you a Danske bank customer?

There is no such thing as a bank that does not charge for day to day banking in Ireland any more.

Conceptually what you say is logical but its not as black and white as that in certain cases. The onus is on Danske to solve the issues and as such I won't be doing anything until I hear from them accordingly.

championc · 11-11-2013 11:40am

Hey KennM, don't come on here whinging when you get caught up midway between closing one and opening another and having no money.

Fungus is quite correct. Danske have told everyone to get out now. There is no penalty to have two accounts with two banks simultaneously.

What are you hoping will happen ? Do you think that if enough people dig in their heels, that the bank may reverse their decision ? Dream on mate.

As for free banking, I guess you haven't seen the Ads for PTSB then ? Of course, terms and conditions apply

kennM · 11-11-2013 11:53am

championc wrote: »

Hey KennM, don't come on here whinging when you get caught up midway between closing one and opening another and having no money.

Fungus is quite correct. Danske have told everyone to get out now. There is no penalty to have two accounts with two banks simultaneously.

What are you hoping will happen ? Do you think that if enough people dig in their heels, that the bank may reverse their decision ? Dream on mate.

As for free banking, I guess you haven't seen the Ads for PTSB then ? Of course, terms and conditions apply

Hey championc... you can wind your attitude in for starters... I haven't came on here whinging when I get caught up between closing one and opening another and having no money!! not me at all!!

Danske have not told everyone to get out now. Are you a customer? If not they have told you absolutely nothing! you are looking at media reports. I am a customer and I have the letter from Danske bank stating that they will be writing to each customer to outline how each of their products will be affected.

I'm not speculating that they will reverse their decision whatsoever... no hope of that. The onus is on Danske bank to resolve the issue, plain and simple. I've spoken to someone from the Ombudsmans in that regards...

The simple fact of the matter is that Danske bank have signed contracts with regards to supplying services & products for assigned fees. You and I as well as the bank are bound by those terms and conditions, plain and simple..... just because retail banking isn't their desired business going forward doesn't mean they can just break pre-existing contracts.

Yes I have seen the ads from PTSB.... exactly, terms and conditions apply in order to avail of free banking. I personally reckon some banks will try and attract Danske bank customers with preferable offers too.

championc · 11-11-2013 12:10pm

I am indeed a customer and it is a complete PITA that this is happening. I haven't read the small print but I would "assume" that they are only "contracted" for the duration of the quarterly management fees, or whatever they call it.

I have the complication, like many others, of having a Custody Account so that's hassle I could do without.

I accept that Danske will be writing to all customers and lets suppose they give us all 12 or 18 months, not meaning to pry on the specifics of your finances, but why are you so determined to stay with them until their final days of operation for the Personal Banking sector ?

kennM · 11-11-2013 12:51pm

championc wrote: »

I am indeed a customer and it is a complete PITA that this is happening. I haven't read the small print but I would "assume" that they are only "contracted" for the duration of the quarterly management fees, or whatever they call it.

I have the complication, like many others, of having a Custody Account so that's hassle I could do without.

I accept that Danske will be writing to all customers and lets suppose they give us all 12 or 18 months, not meaning to pry on the specifics of your finances, but why are you so determined to stay with them until their final days of operation for the Personal Banking sector ?

Not determined to stay with them... to be honest I'm disappointed to see them leaving retail banking, thought they had great staff and good technology backing them up.

From my own perspective I have an offset mortgage, so sitting tight to see what arrangements are going to be put in place. My assumption is that my mortgage and banking will be provided by another bank... i.e. offset mortgage with account facilities with another provider.

championc · 11-11-2013 1:15pm

I think the thing that is upsetting people the most (or certainly me) is that it just smacks of greed, going for the big guns, rather than looking after the man on the street, the very man who one day, may have his own business and will look for a banking partner - Danske will NOT be top of his list.

Maybe this is the start of an Irish pullout, in maybe 5 to 10 years time.

draiochtanois · 11-11-2013 3:01pm

This post has been deleted.

JTMan · 11-11-2013 7:26pm

kennM wrote: »

There is no such thing as a bank that does not charge for day to day banking in Ireland any more.

PTSB give free day-to-day banking if you deposit at least 1,500 EUR per month.

kennM wrote: »

The onus is on Danske to solve the issues and as such I won't be doing anything until I hear from them accordingly.

Depends on the issue. If your HR department use your old bank details and the payment bounces due to account closure then Danske won't help.

_Kaiser_ · 12-11-2013 3:49pm

kennM wrote: »

My assumption is that my mortgage and banking will be provided by another bank... i.e. offset mortgage with account facilities with another provider.

Not a customer myself but I'm curious why you think this will happen? Your contract/account is with Danske. Why would another bank be under ANY obligation to give you the same terms and conditions as you have now?

.BrianJM · 12-11-2013 5:04pm

Just received my statements which included a flyer about "Get Ready For SEPA". Not a hint about closure.

~

Fungus wrote: »

PTSB give free day-to-day banking if you deposit at least 1,500 EUR per month.

That's somewhat more than I can manage; however, if I were to withdraw €1500 from savings, deposit it and then transfer it back to savings, would that qualify. (Sorry if it's covered on their site but I haven't got round to reading all the small print on what's left in the banking sector.)

BuffyBot · 12-11-2013 5:14pm

Yes, it would.

kennM · 12-11-2013 5:24pm

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

Not a customer myself but I'm curious why you think this will happen? Your contract/account is with Danske. Why would another bank be under ANY obligation to give you the same terms and conditions as you have now?

You can't just break a contract because its no longer convenient to you... which is exactly what Danske is doing, they no longer wish to provide retail banking services. Also from speaking to an acquaintance who works with the ombudsman this is the most likely thing to happen in my case.

JTMan · 12-11-2013 8:03pm

Auld-Yin wrote: »

Just received my statements which included a flyer about "Get Ready For SEPA". Not a hint about closure.

FFS. Danske are also still advertising products that you can't open. Clearly, there are operational issues with the closure.

Auld-Yin wrote: »

That's somewhat more than I can manage; however, if I were to withdraw €1500 from savings, deposit it and then transfer it back to savings, would that qualify.

Yes.

Aimeee · 13-11-2013 11:07pm

All banking with Danske here including Tracker mtg.
Just wondering if we were to move now, ie salary arranged to new account, would this affect Tracker, ie by not servicing the mortgage from the current account, (like many others opened that account as it was part of the deal of getting the Tracker if memory serves).

Also re Credit Card, I notice PTSB have a 0% for 6months balance transfer, wondering would we be as well off to avail of that now or hold on until next year and see what Danske do?

kennM · 13-11-2013 11:09pm

Aimeee wrote: »

All banking with Danske here including Tracker mtg.
Just wondering if we were to move now, ie salary arranged to new account, would this affect Tracker, ie by not servicing the mortgage from the current account, (like many others opened that account as it was part of the deal of getting the Tracker if memory serves).

Also re Credit Card, I notice PTSB have a 0% for 6months balance transfer, wondering would we be as well off to avail of that now or hold on until next year and see what Danske do?

Same boat as yourself, offset rather than tracker.... I'm personally waiting to see what Danske say on the matter. They've said they'd write out to each customer regarding their products so lets see what they have to say. Anything being bandied around at present is nothing more than speculation.

Thoie · 14-11-2013 12:54am

Aimeee wrote: »

All banking with Danske here including Tracker mtg.
Just wondering if we were to move now, ie salary arranged to new account, would this affect Tracker, ie by not servicing the mortgage from the current account, (like many others opened that account as it was part of the deal of getting the Tracker if memory serves).

That's why I'm waiting to see what they say when they write to me. In my case it will be very straight forward - I kept my original current account as it was, and just transfer the mortgage amount (with a cushion) to the NIB feeder account once a month. I'll just stop that transfer, and set it up to transfer to the mortgage instead. The only other thing to change will be to have the TRS paid elsewhere. I'm waiting because I just don't want to give them any excuse to take my tracker away

ABC101 · 14-11-2013 6:55am

I have not received any communication from Danske yet. I have an offset mortgage and I don't know how it is going to offset anything if my current account is closed.

I suspect the staff in Danske Ireland do not know either. I sent in several emails but no reply yet.

It seems to me that some "genius" in Copenhagen decided to get off on "playing God" and make life difficult for lots of people here, but they did not think it through properly.

I would imagine that there is lots of emails going from staff in Ireland to head office in Copenhagen asking for advice as to how we deal with offsets and custody accounts etcetera.

To me it sounds like a classic case where the management at the top are disconnected from the chaos they are causing at the bottom of the organisation.

Why did they not try selling the Irish division like National Australia Bank did in the 90's??

The Dagda · 14-11-2013 9:55am

kennM wrote: »

You can't just break a contract because its no longer convenient to you... which is exactly what Danske is doing, they no longer wish to provide retail banking services. Also from speaking to an acquaintance who works with the ombudsman this is the most likely thing to happen in my case.

It's reasonable to interpret Danske's actions as breaking their part of the contract, but what makes you think that another bank would have any obligation to facilitate you?

Is there a precedent for what you are suggesting?

jmcc99_98 · 14-11-2013 10:21am

Danske are not pulling out of the mortgages they already have. I have a tracker with them and afaik they will retain the mortgage. Like some of you on here my mortgage was requisite on my having a current account with them. However I spoke with them a few months back, well before their decision to pull out, and I asked that as they had closed their branches the service they were offering was no longer the same as I agreed to sign up to originally. They said that as the way they did business had changed dramatically, i.e. they no longer had branches, that there would be no problem changing current account without affecting the terms of my tracker mortgage.

So anyone who is worried about having a current account as a term of their mortgage will be fine, they will allow the mortgage be serviced by another current account. I'm not sure what the story is with offset mortgages though as I don't know a huge amount about them.

The end of the day they can't have a term of a contract which is impossible to adhere to

kennM · 14-11-2013 10:51am

The Dagda wrote: »

It's reasonable to interpret Danske's actions as breaking their part of the contract, but what makes you think that another bank would have any obligation to facilitate you?

Is there a precedent for what you are suggesting?

From speaking with an acquaintance who works with one of the leading banks with the regulator its probably likely that the offset mortgages will be sold to another bank and another bank will provide the same service, i.e. offset mortgage.

Ultimately a mortgage is a product that a bank makes money on (except trackers

). So they have a financial value to the bank (assuming the customer is paying etc.). Pure speculation at this point but I would suspect that Danske bank are probably negotiating with other banks with regards to selling the offsets on at a reduced cost..... when I say reduced cost I mean the money the bank would have made if the term of the mortgage had been completed with them.

All we can do is speculate until Danske break their silence and write out as previously indicated.

ABC101 · 14-11-2013 10:53am

Link here for a brief explanation on how offsetting mortgage works.

http://www.moving.ie/mortgages/offset_mortgages.asp

If I have to close my current account then in effect my offset mortgage will no longer function as a offset.

Depending on the normal daily balance savings can be substantial over 25 years, I mean saving 50 to 70k in repayments alone over this time.

Danske bank to close retail customer accounts

Comments