I went to santander to open another bank account and got various questions about why i wanted to open another account and if i didnt take an overdraft they werent going to open one. I went to RBOS where the girl was very helpful, i told her i wanted a basic bank account, no over draft and no cheque book etc, no questions asked and it was fine, got approved on that day so i would recomment that, only thing is is that if you go over your account you get charged £6 per day for being over your account, but apart from that very helpful

Hi DebtFreeWannabee

Think banking was my next option if I couldn't get an account at Santander.
I also like the idea of all bills payments etc being paid and then I get 'spending money'

Coopersmum78 - I told Santander I wanted a basic account with a debit card, no overdraft or cheque book but it came with an approved overdraft which I just said I didn't want and there was no issue.

Hi Coopersmum78.

I'm staggered that Santander told you that unless you took an overdraft they wouldn't let you have their bank account. That seems to encapsulate so many things that are wrong with British retail banking in a single action.

Hello mummy2twins,

Did you check that this account is available to people in trust deeds? I have a slight concern that you're at risk of disruption if they found out later; accounts offering credit sometimes exclude people with trust deeds from acceptance (even if the credit isn't requested or used). This may not turn out to be a problem but it's worth being sure.

Regarding think banking,anything that you have to pay for while under strict budget conditions of a trust deed is a no no for me. It really should be the last option while free banking still exists.

Paul

We used to think exactly the same Paul.

The team at Think Banking took the time to talk to us about their account and, in certain circumstances, it changed our view.

Not everyone is a natural money manager, and for same people this can make "free banking" extremely expensive due to penalty charges month after month for missed and unfunded payments.

So in general we think people may prefer the free accounts, but people who find they incur a lot of bank penalties may be better off with a paid-for account that eliminates the risk of being punished heavily if mistakes are made.

Hi guys

Yes, free is always best but it's not always an option.

I'd say my own reason is partly that but also the fact that there is no bank within 15 miles that I could actually have used as we live out in the sticks with limited choice, all of whom were creditors.

Think accounts are held in trust at RBS meaning I can deposit cash and cheques in my local RBS branches without any danger of offset - think is not owned by RBS, they just "rent" their banking facilities.

Not every situation is the same and it's horses for courses.

Cheers

DebtFreeWannabee

I agree that very situation is different. So are the fees for think banking an allowable expenditure during a trust deed??

As for not having branches nearby I havent even seen a co op bank in 4 years of using them!!!!

Paul

I didn't advise Santander I had signed a Trust Deed due to the previous problem I had at Clydesdale.
If they had asked I would have been honest.
Is there any reason why they should find out at a later date?
Are they automatically advised?

I really hope this won't cause problems in the future

I know of many people who have opened Santander accounts whils either in or about to sign trust deeds - none of them have had any problems as far as I recall. So I think you'll be fine mummy2twins

Thanks for the re-assurance Kevin 🙂

I just hate the thought of getting everything transferred over to new account only for something to happen and have to change again.