[Closed] Which bank/building society?

Smile (Co-op) are ace and seemingly in good place.

I do like the Co-op's ethical stance on investiments...

Another vote for the co-op from me. Not many branches about though. Customer services always been very good.

Co-op. Great service in the branch and you get to know they have ethical policies.

APF

Go with Smile - Co-op but you don't need a branch and can pay in and withdraw via post office, or bank machines 🙂

I'd run with the Coop too.

You also collect points for pounds in your account and pay out is twice a year in membership points/profit.

The cooperative bank is funded entirely from customer deposit, which makes it pretty solid, and the credit rating agencies actually improved the rating of our debt exposure when they were re-rated a month or so ago

You may have guessed that I work there (for the IT dept naturally, I am on STW!) so I freely admit that I am biased 🙂

Marvin, you can now access bank services from Britannia branches so we now have c300 banking outlets, and we're in the process of rolling out access to bank services to food/retail stores where feasible (hyde is one)

The BS that are still mutuals and funded from its deposts are about as safe as it gets, Nationwide, Yorkshire, Coop etc etc. Either or one that is majority owned by the governement.....

I went with HSBC as they talked and listened to me rather than simply try to sell me something and their face to face customer service, so far, has been excellent.

RBS. You're effectively banking with HM Government, what could be safer than that?

They have been grand as a retail bank. Shame about the megalomaniac over-expansion culminating in ABN-Amro, and ill-advised investment banking wing. :-S

HSBC here. My entire family uses Coop, but I found them so monumentally incompetent when I once tried to open an account that I can hardly stand seeing their signage now.

I have had good luck with HSBC, while they seem to be one of the stablest banks going. I have certainly never heard them mentioned when the media are talking about problematic institutions.

I've been with RBS since I worked for them when they were pretty small (early 90's), they've always been pretty good despite all the turmoil.

Haven't worked for them for fifteen years, but now I suppose I kind of own them instead 🙂

I am considering moving to CoOp because of the ethical thingy though, we'll see.

HSBC, basically because I had to as I worked for them at the time and it was a condition that you had to have your salary paid in to an HSBC / First Direct Account. Never had any issues with them though, and their on-line banking is great. Not sure I'd ever bother changing.

the government compensates in the event of a failure up to 30k IIRC, so i wouldn't worry too much about a bank falling over. whether or not your 30k would be worth anything by that time anyway might be a different question... 😀

I think it may even be £50k now. Not a concern for me 😥

Flemings or Hoares

Flemings or Hoares

I'll thank you not to cussing on here, there are ladies present.

Thanks for the replies, Folks...

(CFH, I had you down as a Coutts man, but I suppose they have gone a bit down-market recently with the RBS thing...) 🙂

I receive good service from HSBC, and I have only heard good things about First Direct, which could be an option if you feel their way of operating would suit you.

It's £85K max compensation btw (if they're registered with the FSCS ) went up a while back .

mutuals safe.. ask those involved with the skipton and the scarborough (before it disappeared..)

I don't know whether or not Santander are likely to go out of business, but tbh every time I have to deal with them I wish they would.

I don't know whether or not Santander are likely to go out of business, but tbh every time I have to deal with them I wish they would.