How is your bank treating you?

[The Secret Campaigner]

I seem to be getting one or two complaints about Nat West from the businesses I visit. The main complaint is regarding overdraft facilities.
Some of these businesses have had overdrafts for up to 20 years with no payment defaults yet the caring Nat West are either recalling the overdrafts and forcing these businesses to go bankrupt or changing the overdraft to a high interest loan.

Are all banks doing this?

How is your bank treating you?

Do you think your bank charges are acceptable?

Who should be crowned The Worst Business Bank in the UK?

 

[smo]

They are ok - nothing more, nothing less.

We use Bank of Scotland who recently changed their systems over to Lloyds, including their website but the access fob didnt turn up until after the change over! Statements have not arrived since and cheque payins no longer have paying in slip numbers against them so are totally un-identifyable.

They do keep pimping their services and saying they are willing to lend, yet with 19 years profitable trading they refused to help us with a mortgage to buy new bigger premises unless I personally had a 50% deposit!!!!

 

[Homer J Simpson]

Barclays have promised three times (once a day for three days) that we'd get a call within the next three hours. Think it's time to switch banks.

Would be interested if anyone has any views on the Co-Op bank?

 

[Scousejock]

All of the banks are very much the same. The people you speak to have no authority. None of them are particularly active when it comes to lending as they all have too much lending out in the market already so they have all therefore tightened criteria up to a point where only a small percentage of deals fit their system.

 

[Emcar Vending]

Nat West aren't the only ones.

I've banked with Yorkshire since 1984. A small overdraft, secured with assets worth at least 20x the overdraft limit, suddenly became unsecured at double the rates I had been paying. This overdraft had never been exceeded and I was well able to afford it.

Couldn't speak to the faceless credit control department, just my business 'manager' who didn't have a clue about my business.

I eventually liquidated some assets at less than favourable prices and paid the overdraft off.

 

[Super Simon]

I'm with Barclays and never had a problem.

Although I have heard horror stories of NatWest calling in overdrafts and turning them over for loans etc. I once banked with them personally, but never again. NatWest are the worst bank I have ever had the displeasure of using.

 

[mhall]

I'm not religious but Jesus was spot on when he threw them out of the temple. Spawn of the devil and, in my experience, Barclays are the wosrt of the worst - but unfortunately we have to have them, there is only so much cash you can store under your bed !

 

[Newcott]

I've just booked an appointment to see NatWest on saturday after some poor support on my personal account - its infuriating to see there "More helpful banking" adverts then trying to open an honest and decent conversation with the call centre is about as fun as pulling your fingernails off.

Other thing that really got to me is their new method of trying to contact me - an automated phoneline that leave's a voicemail "Please call Natwest on...." Yeah because that doesn't sound scammy as feck....

Not happy with them one bit atm.

/Rant over

Heard LLoyds is ment to be quite nice - going to see them too

 

[Storage Prices]

We've been with HSBC since 2009.

We applied for an overdraft about 6 months ago, booked an appointment, updated our business plan (inc. cash flow forecasts etc), and showed that (even on previous trading history - not future projections - and not taking into account that what we were using the overdraft for was to help us expand our product range 8-fold) we could pay the overdraft off completely in 3 months - we were refused.

When asked why we were refused, they couldn't give a valid response - the person we were speaking to actually admitted that he had no idea either, as our financial position looked relatively strong.

To be honest, I hear bad stories about all banks, and I think they're all as bad as one another right now.

It too infuriates me hearing these adverts on the radio about banks lending people £100k+ to develop/expand their business, when we were refused an overdraft of less than £10k!

 

[oliver3487]

we have a 40k unsecured overdraft with Natwest. Be with them 2 years, had the overdraft for 1. No problems yet, but all these stories are very worrying.

 

[mkgreenfield]

Don't get me started on banks... Was badly treated by lloyds tsp a while back, really set my business back

 

[Surge Computers]

Don't get me started on banks... Was badly treated by lloyds tsp a while back, really set my business back

LLoyds TSB have been fine for me, provided us with a £500,000 loan a while back, pretty much paid that back now.

 

[Storage Prices]

Oliver,

What was the application process like for that 40k overdraft? Laborious? Or relatively quick and easy?

 

[Storage Prices]

Oliver,

What was the application process like for that 40k overdraft? Laborious? Or relatively quick and easy?

 

[oliver3487]

20 minutes of filling in forms and had the overdraft on our account within 48 hours after that.