alliance and leicester transfer bonus for account transfers

Hi again. I've now spoken to the Abbey press office, which deals with Alliance & Leicester current accounts since Santander took over the bank.

Basically, they argue that the £100 incentive is there to encourage people to switch - but it only wants customers that will use it as their main current account. The concern, from their end, is that people might only open an A&L account in order to claim the £100 incentive, and may be paying their salary into another deal with another bank elsewhere. Obviously, A&L wants people that will pay their income into this current account.

It is likely that A&L wants to attract long-term custom, and believes that people with direct debits are more likely to stick with it for a while rather than jump ship after their £100 come through.

I've also spoken to a couple of people who work in the current account market, and they agree that this seems a little unfair. But it doesn't seem like you can do anything about it, as it was stated on the website that people without direct debits could not claim the £100.

Thanks for bringing this to the attention of other Moneywise users - it certainly highlights the importance of always looking beyond gimmicks and incentives to make sure a deal is right for you.

Rebecca Atkinson

Rebecca Atkinson is the news editor of Moneywisec

I was very tempted to open an account with A+L but have changed my mind after reading many, on-line, negative reviews about this scheme and terrible customer service.

I recently opened an Alliance and Leicester account - attracted I must admit by the £100 and the interest free overdraft. Direct debits and a standing order were moved from my old account within about 8 weeks and I paid in my salary and other amounts totaling over £500 within the first month. I have now received a letter from them saying that as I did not move a direct debit within 11 weeks I am not eligible for the incentive. As this is not true I have written appealing against this decision and I am still waiting a reply.

thanks for the advice, it does help not to rush things financially yet im still contemplating my transfer to A&L.

I transferred to A & L with no problems and received the welcoming bonus. I have also taken advantage of an account paying 4% fixed rate. They have a first rate in bank personal service and the adviser who has dealt with me is brilliant. It always pays to read small print before going ahead to make sure you comply fully with the rules and that the accounts on offer really do suit your needs. I have no regrets leaving my previous bank after 40 years.

ps

this number is for alliance and leicester 0116 201 1000

it gets you through to their operator- who then claims that the internet banking number (0844) is the only way through to that dept, though you can get through to current accounts etc this way

I took up this opportunity a year ago when the offer was GBP50 to share between me and the referee, with a one year fixed 8.5% interest on balances up to GBP2500. It was the interest rate that attracted me, and given current interest rates it turned out to be a good deal. I saw the GBP25 as a sort of bonus interest. In order to maximise the return, I opened a single account and then referred my wife, who opened another single account. So we got a total of GBP75 plus 8.5% interest on GBP5000 for one year, which has just finished. The GBP500 per month was pretty obvious if you read the T&Cs, which you always should. E.g. if you fail to fund this account with GBP500 per month they charge you GBP5. This took some shifting around of funds each month, but the high interest made it worth it (and relatively easy with internet banking and standing order set up). I have never had any direct debits from this account and it has not affected it, so this may be a new T&C. It does seem a bit sneaky! The high interest period has now finished, and  although it does pay a decent 1%, I am looking to close one of the accounts, and as Andrew points out, you can´t do it over the internet, so I am stuck with puting 500 in and out of a useless account for a bit until I can do that.

I have found the same thing with their savings accounts - although they offer pretty decent initial rates, it soon drops. They had a big push on an eSaver before Christmas, with prize draw and all, but the interest rate dropped within 3 months to be uncompetitive I took out their online saver 3 in March, only to have the rate drop within a week, and I emptied it in favour of their online saver4! So although they offer high initial rates,you have to watch them in case they drop. The Online saver4 currently still pays a decent 2.5% with instant access which isn´t bad, unless someone out there knows different?? Meanwhile, like Andrew I have a bunch of A&L accounts with just GBP1 in them!

I have just come off the phone from them - I applied for the switching service over 11 weeks ago and they have only started the switch on the8th June. Which means I am ineligible even though they have delayed the switch. THIS IS A SCAM! I plan to sue them and take it to the national press.

Santander/Alliance & Leicester are the most incompetent and obstructive organization I have ever encountered. They are incapable of handling simple processes like address changes, share sales, or transfers between accounts without making a series of basic errors. Their Complaints Procedure and “Customer Service” are a sick joke. I am still waiting after more than six weeks to find out how they managed to “misplace” £40,000 by transferring it from an ISA to a non-existent account.

My father, sister, daughter and I have all terminated our accounts with them, and I would advise anyone thinking of opening an account with A & L (or any other part of Santander) to look elsewhere – anywhere!

M E Leigh

I started switch process may 09, As of today- 6/8/9 Alliance & Leicester havent completed the switch.

I recieved letters from my Direct Debits to say that they havent been paid due to insufiecient funds. Whats more hilarious is that A&L have transferred all my DD from my old account, but have failed to transfer the £500+ thats deposited into the old account.

Everytime i check my account balance the balance incorrect. Today on the phone im £99 in credit... at the machine im £320 overdrawn!!!

DONT EVEN BOTHER TRANSFERRING TO ALLIANCE AND LEICESTER- Its a farce. So much so im going to close down my ISA which is with Abbey National (now part also of Santander).

I am waiting to hear from a manager- I will also be writing to the ombudsman.

Lucky you; however you are the minority and these Spanish sharks will be reported to Martin Lewis for their totally unreasonable and unfair practices to the majority of switching customers.

I allegedly missed my 11 week deadline by 6 days and have just received a letter to confirm this and won't receive my bonus. What gets me is that they screwed up a standing order of mine so i paid twice, once from the old account and once from this new one as well.

They were not clear that the account was fully up and running. I had checked the dd's but they weren't all set up online, and you don't want to put £500 in to the new one if you have bills going out of the old account.

I called immediately on receipt of the letter dated the 3rd, to be told that it was in the t&C's blah blah. I said that if they don't pay i will simply transfer to another account (the old one is not fully closed yet). I suggested that their admin costs might equal the £100 if I have to move it back but they seemed uninterested. Nowhere does the literature they send you clarify that the account is now open and you need to fund it with £500 by a specific date to qualify for the £100. They won't have my money for long, I shall switch very quickly indeed.

Tried for the A+L £100 bonus but did not qualify as hadn't paid in £500 within a month. I had asked for my income to be switched by A+L which would cover that but that wasn't done. My mortgage direct debit didn't go thru either. Am now 2 months behind in mortage payments and owe A+L one quarter of this months income in bank charges for the direct debits they did pay. Apparently it's my fault it's all gone wrong for not checking they had got it right and as a goodwill gesture they have offered to knock £25 off their charges. This would not cover the charges caused by non-payment of my mortgage.

me to i rang them and they said i would have to appeal but i told them to cancel account.but now they will send me a letter saying i will be paid £100. i think this is a scam.how many people are still going ahead with this account and not getting their £100.

Switching my account to A&L Premier current account to get the 100.00 reward has been a nightmare. I’ll try to make it brief.
- Switched the account at the branch on the first week of March. I was told I would receive a welcome pack
- I didn’t receive any welcome pack. I ‘accidentally’ received a letter from A&L with a wrong address. It was with a bunch of my other mails. The postman was smart enough to bunch it with my other letters.
- Called the customer service, change of address cant be done over the phone, I have to go to the branch with an ID. And a silly suggestion: Go to the wrong address and personally collect my mails. LOL!
- The branch has my correct address . Apparently, an underwriter has to key in my details to their system and this is where the error happened. The staff called a number and requested that my address be changed.
- Received two letters for the change of address. Addressed to the correct address and the wrong address (again, thanks to the smart postman). Phoned them again. I told them that if the person living at the wrong address is a fraudster, then they have unnecessarily exposed me to fraud. The reply is that, they automatically send the change of address letters to both new and address for security reason. How ironic!
- I thought the error with the address has been sorted out until I “accidentally” received a mail from A&L’s switching team with the wrong address.
- Phoned them up again. Apparently they have different systems. Whilst the main system has my correct address, the other systems/teams still have the wrong address. The other systems/teams are: Switching Team, Internet team, Travel Insurance Provider and the Plus Saver account team (the later two comes with the Premier Direct Account)
- Up to this writing (17April, 1month and 13 days after opening at the branch) I have not received the correct PIN for my internet account details.
- They have credited the 100.00 reward, but was it worth it for the stress, phone bills and unfriendly customer staff? There was one who sounded threatening that I would be connected to the Complaints Department! How’s that for trying to correct A&L’s mistake?

I have been a current account customer with A & L for approx 5 years and everything went through very smoothly, I have just opened a similar account with Santander to get the 5% interest and everything has gone through fairly smoothly even though it was within the last 2 weeks of the tax year when all the banks were busy with ISA's. The member of staff I saw in the branch was excellent and she arranged all the transfers between accounts PICR and PODR accounts. Now the Halifax is another matter I have repeatedly had to complain about their staff in branch, terms and conditions not being met and the rates of interest not easy to keep track of. Ive opened an account which is entitled Guaranteed Savings Reward but all the paperwork and the cash card do not show reward on them the excuse that I have been given is that I may not fulfull the terms and conditions therefore the reward may not be awarded to me, my argument with them is that in a years time will I recieve the reward in any case as they will squirm there way out of paying this extra interest.

Tried to move from one bank to A&L as thought they would offer me a better service. Evenif this may have been true financially, eventually, I chose to cancel the whole thing a few days after the deal was done because I soon realised it was almost impossible to get in contact with a real person. When I did finally get to speak to someone they sounded like they had heard this complaint a thousand times before and were tired of it. I felt sorry for them. And decided to cancel the whole thing. I was afraid for them to be in charge of my money. Completely USELESS, I am so relieved I got out before I got in. I would have liked to know timescales/processes before I tried to apply, it makes it sound so simple but it is everything but. The product was Alliance and Leicester Premier Current Account Switching Service.

OMG - I thought I was the only one on the planet whose balances don't show the true state of the account.
Mine is on an on-line account - The balance on the screen shows one figure - the available balance another completely different figure.
I've always assumed the difference to be direct debits coming due - but no - apparently you need to ignore the balance they tell you (it's a lie) and just look at the available balance!
I thought I'd covered all my direct debits this month - but apparently not - have just been charged £50 for going £20 over my overdraft limit for 34 hours - because I stupidly believed that the balance that showed on the computer was correct!!!
The CSR when phoned was incompetent - and very nervous when I mentioned the possibility that this was perhaps fraudulent?
I know this isn't the first time I've thought I've covered my direct debits only to be hit with bank charges, but now I'm quickly coming to the conclusion that I've been duped and I reckon I've probably had to pay out hundreds of pounds either directly because I've believed the balance on the screen or due to bank charges in subsequent months which I've been unable to cover.
I'm sure it's some sort of scam - but looking at other postings on other sites I don't really rate my chances of getting any explanation (or any money back) when I write to them!
Please - anyone considering opening and A&L account - DON'T DO IT !!!!

Hi

I also opened a Premier current account with A & L last April mainly because of the £100 bonus. I followed all the instructions by the letter (or so I thought), had my salary paid into the account straight away and transferred all my direct debits. However, 6 months later, I have not received the £100 payment. I have called them up and they have told me that on the date I applied ONLINE for the Premier account and the switch, the £100 offer was only applicable if you did it AT A BRANCH. I suspect that this is not true, but I have no evidence now to prove them wrong... has anyone else had this problem?

Even if the interest I get on my savings is better now than what I had with HSBC before switching, I still find this lack of clarity in the terms and conditions very disappointing.

M. J.