I opened a Windfall Bond with this company - they offer a great product and were very helpful and friendly with all my questions prior to and during the application process.
Reviewed on: 18th February 2021
I have had a positive experience with British Friendly who gave me the cover I needed fro income protection. they have always been fast to respond with my queries and offer good rates for their product.
Reviewed on: 18th February 2021
I have just opened a savings account with them and I have never before found setting up and registering for online banking so annoying, long-winded and frustrating!
I almost gave up with the amount of paperwork and failed attempts I made!
However, the 2.5 % interest is the best I could find on the market at the moment with a maximum of £500 a month paid in for a year.
Reviewed on: 22nd November 2019
This is a great company with excellent value products and the staff are friendly just like their name.
Their Mutual Benefits scheme offers lots of extras at no extra cost such as second opinions from doctors, high street discounts, counselling, wills and power of attorney registrations.
They also offer self-employed policies.
Reviewed on: 6th July 2019
They offer a good level of cover at reasonable rates with discounts fro customers who already have cover with them. The only thing was that due to their change of underwriter this year my renewal quote had garden/outdoor coverage included but for extra fee. As I don't have an garden I had to phone to renew instead of doing it online in order for it to be removed.
Customer service is good on the phone.
Reviewed on: 9th November 2018
I took out this savings account as I already had a current account with them and it is only available to existing customers .
The interest rest is 5%, although you can't pay in more than £250 a month - it will at least be a little bit extra and the end of the year when the account matures and the interest is paid.
It was easy to open and set up online
Reviewed on: 18th January 2018
I used to regularly pay in cheques and cash into the quick drop box in the local bracnh. I would keep a stash of the paying-in envelopes at home, fill them in before I went and drop them in on the way to catch my train to work.
Since 'improving' the branch, they have removed the drop-box, taken away threeog the staffed counters, leaving just two and added two machines.
One or both of the machines are usually broken, and when they are working it now takes several minutes to make a payment and involves putting in your card, typing in details of the payment and various other details.
I now have to make a special trip to the bank as there are long queues and eveything takes so long.
Reviewed on: 16th November 2017
They gave me a hassle-free experience when taking out my first mortgage, allow me to overpay, have great customer service whenever I contact them and they resolve the issues easily. The cashback and loyalty bonus and new home welcome pack all added to me satisfaction.
Reviewed on: 21st June 2017
It is free to use and provides lots of details of your credit score and explains what everything on it means. It gives you tips on how to improve your score and finances as well as coaching videos. The pages are well laid out and comprehensive. You get a monthly email with special offers and a reminder to check your score.
The only thing I had a problem with was answering some of the questions when signing up as it asked lots about bank accounts - I have had so many it was difficult to know which ones they were asking about. I also struggled to remember an address I was living at 20 years ago!
Reviewed on: 1st May 2017
They sent my contactless card to the wrong address!
2
I recently moved and was told by Barclays I had to tell them my new address in a branch. I did this and they typed it into an ipad. I then had a statement and paying in book e-delivered to me from a neighbour at a similar address - Barclays had written that down instead of mine. I informed Barclays of their mistake straight away and told them my correct address yet over a week later they sent a contactless debit card to the wrong address! Thankfully the person living at that address was honest and put it through my letterbox - had they not been it could have been a whole different story. After all this I discovered I could actually change my address my self online and had Barclays told me this to begin with I could have saved a loss of stress and hassle. This has really lowered my faith in this bank.
Reviewed on: 7th February 2017
I tried to get a quote for contents insurance as my Grandmother had previously had good rates for her buildings insurance with them.
However, they wouldn't insure me as the postcode was in an area at risk of flooding even though I live in a 2nd floor flat, a long way from the river. My Grandmother, who lives closer to the river than me, in a bungalow did get insurance!
Reviewed on: 28th December 2016
I got a first time buyer's mortgage through the Nationwide recently and they have been really helpful, especially when I've contacted them with lots of questions as I am new to the mortgage game.
The mortgage itself is at a very competitive rate and had no arrangement fees - in fact I got £500 cashback after completion! I also had the very welcome bonus of a new home box delivered on the day I moved in full of goodies and useful items - everything from teabags, biscuits and mugs to a home magazine, toilet paper and kitchen roll.
They have a secure message system online which I have used a few times and they always get back to me quickly with the correct information. I already had two other products with them to it was easy to log into the system.
I would definitely recommend them as the branch staff are also helpful and friendly and there are still lots of branches around.
Reviewed on: 14th November 2016
I have just taken out contents insurance with them as their's was the best rate and cover for me but so far their service has left me very unimpressed.
The first problem I experienced was with having online quotes emailed to me. It let me save one but then it would not let me do any more with the same email address as it said 'this address is already registered'.
I therefore phoned up and, after going through the quotation and policy in some detail, I was told that, due to an error on their system, I couldn't insure personal possessions away from home for £500 - it had to be a minimum of £1000 and this put the cost of the policy up further.
Had I continued to take out the policy online I would have been none the wiser as I would have been able to cover for just £500. They explained there may have been problems further along the line with this as I may not have been covered properly or may have had to pay an additional premium.
I then had issues with registering and logging into my account online - they sent two emails containing temporary passwords - one email was addressed with my correct name and the other with my name followed by random letters and numbers - neither password worked.
I spent 30 minutes on hold trying to resolve it by phone but I gave up as it cost so much to call.
I emailed customer services - they left me a voicemail asking me to call back but the number they left didn't work and I have sent two further emails including a complaint but have not yet heard back - it has now been over a week.
All of these problems have not instilled any confidence in them so I hope I never have to make a claim!
Reviewed on: 13th October 2016
My partner and I have been using the AA for our annual travel insurance for the past few years as he has breakdown cover with them - the biggest draw is that this means we don't have to pay an excess on any claims (although thankfully we haven't had to make any).
The cover is really comprehensive and, unlike some companies, they offer an additional premium to cover ash cloud/volcanoes etc which we took up for our Iceland trip for peace of mind.
The couples rate is much better than the individual one but the level of cover they offer for medical expenses and emergency assistance is excellent so if you travel at least twice a year it is worth it. It also includes trips of 2 nights or more in the UK if you have pre-booked accommodation which means you can claim for cancellation even if you aren't going abroad.
I have spoken to their staff several times and they are always helpful and friendly and on a freephone number in a British call centre.
I would definately recommend this insurance, especially if you already have breakdown cover with them.
Reviewed on: 25th July 2016
I have had an HSBC Gold credit card for about 20 years. During this time I've always paid the balance as soon as I made a payment so I have never paid any interest on it. I used it mainly for over the phone purchases or high value spends like holidays.
Despite being a loyal customer for so long I had never been offered any added incentives to use the card - no points, cashback or discounts for anything.
For this reason I now prefer to use my Nationwide credit card and only use the HSBC one occasionally to avoid paying the non-usage fee. It has the highest credit limit of my three cards so I have maianly kept the account in case I need it in an emergency.
I have no complaints about it though and as it is linked to my current account it is easy to check my balance when I do spend on it.
Reviewed on: 20th June 2016
I have had this card for several years but I have had a few issues with it.
Barclaycard say that you don't need to inform them if you are going away yet I always do as I choose not to take my mobile or computer with me when I travel abroad so I can't be contacted.
One example of a problem was that after a trip to Iceland I came home to find several messages left on my landline to say someone had attempted to use my card fraudulently.
I cancelled the card, paid for a credit check and worried a lot about what may happened but it eventually turned out that it was when my partner and I had had several unsuccessful attempts at using a 'pay at the pump' petrol station in Iceland. Yet Barclaycard hadn't previously been able to give us any details of the so called 'fraud' which caused us so much worry.
I ended up taking out another credit card with a different company just to use abroad that allows you to put your travel details into their website.
Other than that they are a good card provider. I can't comment on their interest rates as these days I just use it as a safe way to pay online and I pay the bill immediately.
Reviewed on: 6th May 2016
Nationwide's select credit card is a great option as you get cash back every time you use it. If you have a current account with them as well it is perfect for using abroad as there are no fees which makes a big difference to holiday expenses.
Their customer service is good too - when I had a problem with my card recently they were very helpful and understanding and resolved my problem fairly and easily.
Reviewed on: 21st April 2016
This is a great account that was easy to set up online - it offers 5% interest as long as you pay in £500 a month and this doesn't have to include your salary. You don't need to set up any bills with it so you can keep your other current accounts for this if you prefer. The staff were friendly and helpful when I phoned up for help whilst trying to set up a standing order and overall I have had a very good experience with them so far.
Reviewed on: 28th March 2016
I have had a Virgin Money pension for over 17 years - it was a great one to start with as you can pay in as little as £1 a month which means you can set it up even if you are barely earning and increase it when you can. You can change your monthly payment amount as often as you like and pay in extra single top-up amounts whenever you like. What's more, you get to make use of the Virgin Money Lounges if you happen to be in a city that has one!
Reviewed on: 28th March 2016
