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Flex account, we have been ripping the ar5e out of it.


Chancer
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According to an article in the Guardian at the weekend out of the 3.5 million who have a Flexaccount only 1.2 million, or about 1/3, use it as a their primary account and I would guess that 1/3 includes quite a few who use it as their sole method of currency transfer to France and Spain etc. so are far heavier users than simple holidaymakers.

The sting in the tail for their 'added value' insurance etc. is that to qualify for any of it you have to pay in a minimum of £750 each month. Plus the travel insurance only covers the principal account holder not his or her family AND excludes over 65's although you can pay an £30-35 supplement for 66 to 79 year olds. Still useless for non UK residents though.

I think they must have been taking lessons in spin from Tony Bliar [:'(]

 

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I can understand why many of you are complaining to Nationwide but it will make no difference, because the truth and reasons for their action is clearly  summed up by Martin Lewis' (Money Saving Expert).

"It's not an error by Nationwide, the building society is actually trying to kick nearly a million customers out of the door. That's because out of its 3 million+ account holders, 1.4 million use the debit card overseas and 900,000 of those use the account ONLY for that and nothing else – and that costs. So Nationwide wants them gone to ensure it's focusing on people using their account 'properly', as it sees it."

The full article is here: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/travel/2010/07/nationwide-kills-cheap-overseas-spending-for-current-account-customers

Baz

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Yes, but it's still throwing the baby out with the bath water. They want their cake and eat it because not only have they stopped free withdrawals but to qualify for their 'compensation' you basically have to use it as your primary account. I already do and have no problem with that and the freeloaders being the ones to suffer.

It's an OTT move IMO but unlikely to be changed now.

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You have to imagine that the high heidjins at Nationwide have done those rather basic sums already. They are expecting an initial avalanche of complaints, most of which will be instant victims of the delete button (in fact their IT is probably set up to send them all straight to the spam folder - do not pass go, do not get looked at by even the lowliest work experience monkey). Remember that they're actively trying to ditch a bunch of people who are bacisally freeloaders as far as they're concerned.

Irritating for expats using the service as a main account, but you can't really expect that there are enough of those to alter Nationwide's view of the greater picture, especially since lots of them no longer have a base in the UK and are therefore stuck with the account they already have.

At the end of the day this really doesn't matter - there are enough cheap alternatives for people who want to transfer dosh to foreign accounts/use cards in European ATMs, so unless you insist on using bank transfers for some reason it's not about to cost you anything.

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[quote user="oldgit72"]In all probability those 900,000 have above the average cash deposit in Nationwide. 900,000 people withdrawing these deposits might give them something to think about.[/quote]Huh, you've got that back to front I think ?

"900,000 of those use the account ONLY for that and nothing else"  don't sound to me like above average depositors !

[quote user="misplacedperson"]At the end of the day this really doesn't matter - there are enough cheap alternatives for people who want to transfer dosh to foreign accounts/use cards in European ATMs, so unless you insist on using bank transfers for some reason it's not about to cost you anything.
[/quote]I have no idea how you work that one out, NW was free and even with the charges remains about the best of the bunch so where are your cheap alternatives, please do elaborate because I'm sure we will all be very interested.

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They might be "free" but free is NOT free when there is a spread in the exchange rate and you get a less than competitive rate when you change £s to €s or other way round.

Oldgit might have got his figures in a twist, Erns, but he's right in saying that us expats probably do keep more than the average amount in our bank accounts if only to pay all the high bills we have in France!

Not only that, we tend to be prudent people (that's why we have saved enough to come and live abroad) and tend to keep more in an instant access account like Flex than others . You know,  just in case we go to the ATM once too often or the caisse at Intermarché for no apparent reason rejects our credit cards. 

Well, I do keep extra in mine anyway and I do the same for OH's (yes, of course, I have full access to HIS money as well![:D])

 

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My take on it is that they make very little money on us prudent people with debit cards and who never go into the red.

The overdraft facility on the flex account is excellent and surprisingly cheap, nonetheless I nearly always forget about it and use a credit card from another institution to bouclé le fin du mois.

The next month I forget to pay it off, the month after that I cant afford to as the cut off date is before my meagre net rental income arrives and so on.

I think I have inadvertantly used  my flex account overdraft once and paid 2p in interest, againts that I travelled round the world using the debit card and have lived in France for 5 years as my sole means of support without paying a penny in charges.

No I reckon that they are targetting those who holiday abroad as opposed to live there, the "free" holiday insurance will bring customers to them al of which will have to have their salaries paid in and if they do their sums will apply for a credit card which unlike most of us they will probably borrow on during the holiday and at christmas, kids birthdays, etc etc.

I think we have to accept that we are not the sort of customers that make them or any other bank any money and conversely we have done very well out of the deal until now.

Its interesting that they are contacting those that have complained, because of this I will now write once I can compose something positive that might turn it at least in part into a win-win situation.

In my opinion making furious complaints and being in high dudgeon when phoned is a lost opportunity and frankly a bit French considering the benefits that we have all profitted from which no other bank has ever offered.

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I guess they are "faceless" as most big institutions are these days.  They probably have all the standard letters ready to print out and send out to you.

You'd perhaps feel better complaining but, like someone else has pointed out, it'll be a pretty pointless exercise [:'(]

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[quote user="Chancer"]

My take on it is that they make very little money on us prudent people with debit cards and who never go into the red.

.

[/quote]Banks and building societies still make money by lending your money to other people.  By not going into the red you are not necessarily a drain on a bank - your money is always an asset to them.  Hence they're prepared to give you an incentive to stay with them if they get a minimum of £750 of your money every month to do what they like with.

The great rates which we've always got from the Nationwide for withdrawals abroad have been a great bonus which I'll sadly miss but I won't be moving my money even if they reverse this decision for those of us who get our UK pensions paid in each month.  It is virtually impossible to find a proper building socieity in the UK now.  At one time nearly every one I found changed into a bank and my beloved National Giro got privatised too so that I got left with the Nationwide almost by default.  I think only the Portland plus a couple of other little ones remain afaik.  What other choices have those of us who don't want to put our money in the hands of a for-profit bank now got?  At least in France it's still easy to find both so we have a proper choice, even if we do pay through the nose if we want a cash card.

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[quote user="misplacedperson"]Co-op?

http://www.co-operativebank.co.uk/servlet/Satellite/1204529928525,CFSweb/Page/Bank?WT.svl=footer

http://www.co-operativebank.co.uk/servlet/Satellite/1193206370390,CFSweb/Page/Bank-Offshore

[/quote]

Nope -

Foreign transaction services

Cash withdrawals 2% of the value of the  withdrawal or £2 (whichever is the greater)

At VISA or PLUS dispensers or over the counter at a bank displaying the VISA sign. This includes the purchase of foreign currency or travellers’ cheques made with the card.

Foreign transaction fee 2.75% of the value of the transaction. Applied to any debit or credit card transaction in a currency other than sterling.

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Replying to GG, yes, I believe that your state pension can be paid straight into your French bank in euros at no charge to you.

Don't think that applies to private pensions or annuities, though.

And it does also mean that you cannot choose WHEN you wish to transfer (such as when the rate is a little less dire) or indeed HOW MUCH you wish to transfer at any one time.

Less choice all round and that also goes for Coops' point that there just aren't that many independent building societies left and also, by no longer having a UK address (for the full-timers), you can no longer apply for new accounts in the UK anyway.

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[quote user="sweet 17"]

Replying to GG, yes, I believe that your state pension can be paid straight into your French bank in euros at no charge to you.

Don't think that applies to private pensions or annuities, though.

And it does also mean that you cannot choose WHEN you wish to transfer (such as when the rate is a little less dire) or indeed HOW MUCH you wish to transfer at any one time.

Less choice all round and that also goes for Coops' point that there just aren't that many independent building societies left and also, by no longer having a UK address (for the full-timers), you can no longer apply for new accounts in the UK anyway.

[/quote]

You can get your money transferred, even private pensions etc, BUT, it depends on who it is with as to whether it is free or not.  OH gets his paid here because they (I presume) do not charge him for it, whilst I have mine paid directly into the dear old Nationwide, as all my providers charge for each transfer each month - in most cases £3 a time, and since at least 2 of mine only just get into double figures a month, it is not worth it.

I must admit this news from NW has annoyed me as I intentionally started my NW account once I knew I was coming out here, and because I had been pi??ed off when FD did something similar, ie charging for those who had no other account but a current account - who did not pay in more than £1000 a month.  (Difficult when your salary is not enough to cover their minimum amount).  However, FD rescued me when NW made a mess of my transfer to buy the new house, and now I am back online (been busy with the move) I too intend to send a letter of complaint.  I have never formally "made" my NW account my main account, but since all my pensions go into it I think they might have managed to suss out that it probably was.......

If it comes to pass I will likely take my savings away from NW, leaviing the pensions to be paid in each month and get FD to do a SEPA transfer of large amounts as needed......  proof of the pudding and all that.  If enough people take away their savings and trade from NW they may find a change of heart is required.

But at this moment, this is all something I could have done without.

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I did not think it was unreasonable to be furious nor express high dudgeon. 

I appreciate I did not make it clear in my original post but I do have other accounts with N'wide, as have other people. It was because I do not simply use N'wide to draw cash when abroad that I was so angry at its 'one size fits all' approach.

I do urge everyone affected to please make a complaint, it may cause a rethink.

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Whilst I'll not be leaving the Nationwide I do agree with you Mona.  If we all just sat back and let people change things without complaining then where would we all be? I shall certainly be writing myself.  As teapot says, we can vote people off the board if we wish - we do own the company.

Misplacedperson : Yes the Co-op would certainly have been an option if we'd still been in the UK but sadly we can't open an account with them now that we've severed all ties with the "old country."

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Mona, I find your anger completely justified.  And, sometimes, it is no bad thing to express your anger.  How else would you get someone else to see that you truly enraged?

IMO, high dudgeon definitely has a place in life!

Me, I'm just psyching myself up to writing......I'd have done it by now except that I have a lot on my plate at the mo and my energy is used up in doing the things I MUST do and possibly not in the things I SHOULD do.

Keep it up, Mona, we need people like you to say what some of us are too mealy-mouthed to express![:D]

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Thank you for your support sweet 17 and cooperlola.

I think it's unusual for them to contact the person making a complaint rather than sending a bland email to fob them off.  I was told they were gathering comments, responses and suggestions to pass on, so again, I urge eveyone to let them know how you feel.

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