U.K. Bank account - advice needed

[Debbie in B.C.]

Good Morning all,

Off topic, but I'm hoping there are some bank employees here, that can give me some help.

I want to open a sterling account in a U.K. bank, but don't really know who offers the best rates of interest, and the cheapest monthly fees.  Ideally, fee free would be the best, as I want the account mainly for holiday money, and direct deposit of pensions.

I have checked a few web sites, Bank of Scotland, AngloIrish, and Halifax, but all three require minimum investments of £5000 or £10,000 to open an offshore account.  Ouch!!
The Bank of Scotland main site notes that their regular accounts are only for people living in the U.K., so that counts us out.

Lloyds bank doesn't have the minimum investment, but charges £7.50 per month for a savings account.

Can anyone offer some ideas?

[RuthieB]

Debbie
I think a lot depends on what you want the account to do - are the pensions UK based?  Or are you transferring from Canada? Will you be making regular transfers from Canada?
Sadly, International transfers may attract fees. Does your bank in Canada have any advice for you?

Cheers, RuthieB

[Debbie in B.C.]

Hi RuthieB,
The pensions will be U.K.  - when we qualify for them, we still have a few years to go there.  But mainly I want it for holiday money, and being able to access an account in the U.K. for purchases online.

I haven't asked my bank here in Canada for any advice, I thought it would be like here - open an account, stick money in and do everything online.  LOL!

[carol8353]

Hi Debbie,

Some info below from Barclays about offshore banking.

Not something I get asked about much working in a small town branch in the middle of England 


http://www.barclays.com/internationalpersonal/ib_3_0_int_pers.htm

Hope this helps


Carol

[Debbie in B.C.]

Thanks Carol - Barclays requires a minimum £10,000 deposit.  That's a bit rich for us.   

[loo]

My experience, as a Canadian who sometimes visits Britain, is that all their banking fees are very high compared to ours, and that they charge (a lot) for absolutely everything.  I would doubt that you could get the kind of account you're looking for.  You would probably be better off to get the cheques mailed to you and deposit them in your account in Canada;  it might be worthwhile to have a Canadian account in a bank which is affiliated with the cheque issuer in England - the banks all have their "cousins" abroad.  When you travel, use credit cards;  it's about the cheapest way, all things considered.  I know you'll be losing on the exchange going both ways, but, if you add it up, you're probably better off this way.
I used to have an account in the US, but I closed it because they were charging me a monthly fee just for NOT using the account!  When I had first opened it, it made sense, but not any more.

[gjil]

 Have you tried, www.hsbc.co.uk. They are quite flexible. While I was living abroad they were the only bank that allowed me to open an account, even though I was not living in the uk at that time. Many banks want you to be a resident and to have lived in the uk for at least 6 months before yon can open an account with them.

  gjil

[loo]

Have you tried, www.hsbc.co.uk. They are quite flexible. While I was living abroad they were the only bank that allowed me to open an account, even though I was not living in the uk at that time. Many banks want you to be a resident and to have lived in the uk for at least 6 months before yon can open an account with them.

  gjil

Good idea!  I hadn't thought about them.  They have a presence in Canada, and are more flexible on a lot of things;  being a foreign bank themselves, they are more understanding, I think.

[Debbie in B.C.]

Thanks loo & gjil for the good ideas!
I will have a look at HSBC, in fact, there is a branch just up the road from me, so I will call in and speak with them. 
The residency requirement from the U.K. banks was a real stumbling block!  I didn't think there would have been any problems as most of my family in England have accounts out here in Canada, and I opened a US account in Hawaii a couple of years ago.  It never occurred to me that opening an account in Britain would be so difficult, or expensive for a non resident.

Happy New Year to everyone!!
Once again, my pals at Rootchat come to my rescue.

Deb