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Santander: 123 Current Account (discontinued) reviews

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4.17

Based on 1,252 reviews, last reviewed 5th Sep 2025

100% increase in 5 star reviews

in the past 90 days

No new 1 star reviews

in the past 90 days

55%

27%

Latest highest rating:

5

Santander Good app. Easy to set up and use with minimal fuss. Everything seems straightforward Reviewed on: 5th September 2025

Latest lowest rating:

2

Is that a bank for the elderly ? Strong impression that the bank have little time for customers . I approached my local branch 4 times since May 2025 for certificates of interest whic... Read more Reviewed on: 23rd June 2025

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About this product

The Santander 1|2|3 Current Account is no longer available to new customers.

Review Santander: 123 Current Account (discontinued) now

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Santander 123 Current Account (discontinued) reviews (1252)

123 account

This account is perfect for everyday bills i get money back for every direct debit and santander have excellent online banking facilities where i can manage my account online Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

Santander has secured my money and my trust

Santander's security is second to none. With tendencies such as accidentally calling America (and other places) from a phone booth, to losing my credit card for a week before noticing, I was always going to have trouble keeping track of my finances. Thankfully, Santander are ever vigilant where I am neglectful. Online payments always require a secure password before they go through, ensuring the security of my money even if my card was stolen and I delayed telling the bank about it. When my attempts to pay for a phone booth by credit card went awry, resulting in some bizarre transactions, Santander quickly followed up with a phone call to confirm that I authorised them. As I hope I have illustrated in these examples, Santander goes above and beyond in making sure that their customers' money is safe and secure, and it is for this reason that I would recommend it to my family and friends. Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

I was really impressed until the fees hiked up massively. still a good account, but not as good as it was. on the way down and I am likely to be on my way out of the account.

Santander offer great incentives to bank with them. Cashback for utility bills, tiered interest on your account. Low fees. No, strike that - quite significant fees and way higher than previous!! Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

Generally good

I find Santander to be a generally good bank, never had any real problems with them so far and they seem to be on the ball with regards to account security. My only concern is that in the past i`ve been able to invest my money in savings account - this changed when they introduced the 123 account - they do offer a decent (by current standards) rate of interest for those with over £20000 (3%) but i`m not all that keen on being forced to keep all my savings in a current account which then could be accessed by someone if my card was lost/stolen. Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

Would be much better if staff knew what they were doing...

I am an ex-pat from the US who has been living in England for nearly two years now. I have residency (as per the .GOV outlines), yet still struggled to find a bank that provided services to non-EU/UK clients that were adequate and acted as more than just a glorified piggy bank. I signed up with Santander because they gave the most - a current account debit card, online banking, decent interest rates, and the opportunity to upgrade to a full 123 UK account in the future. I went in to my local branch several months ago to enquire about upgrading, and was told this would not be a problem. I sat for over an hour with one of the staff, going through my information and putting in the application for the upgrade. I was made to close my account in order to do this. At the end of that hour, I was rejected. I was not told why, and I was left without any account. I found this a huge failure on the part of the staff, as it was because of their reassurances that I followed their instructions. I finally managed to get it sorted after over a month of hassling, and am still incredibly distrustful of their customer service. Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

Good experience

Good interest rate, cash back on direct debits & good customer service - a good combination! Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

Customer Service

Brilliant customer service. Workers are approachable and they give me great advice. I love going into my branch in East Ham because I am treated with respect and kindness Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

Good service, but too high a fee increase

I have been with Santander for years and they have given good reliable service, but the recent closure of my local branch in east finchley added to a big % increase in monthly fees means I will be leaving them for a better provider. This time last year i would have recommended them, but no more Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

An easy-going bank with a pleasant atmosphere

Getting a current account set-up with the bank is a simple process, and when I joined the bank last year I was supported from the beginning right through to when I received my card. Santander has an overall beautiful atmosphere, particularly the site in Lewisham, and in comparison to the Barclays branch just moments away, it is like a peaceful paradise where you are served swiftly and there is none of the confused meandering around. However it would be very helpful if Santander could make it possible to sign up for online banking on their website, rather than just in a branch. Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

still worth it

the 123 current account has received a lot of bad press recently. Yes, Santander have bumped up the monthly fee. Yes, that negates some of the earnings you will receive making it less value and that wasn't a nice thing to do. However, the account is still exceptional value. The cashback. The interest on up to 20k. The rewards. It all still adds up to a great account that will make you money in rewards rather than lose you money due to the fee. While it wasn't nice to know that some of my earnings will be reducced, i understand the reasoning and am perfectly content to stick with this excellent account. Do your own research, don't believe everything you read and if you do, you could still be quids in. Reviewed on: 19th February 2016

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