A bank to make you Smile (Smile Student Banking)

Member Name: DJBorley

Product:	Smile Student Banking
Date:	18/01/03 (295 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easy to use, Convenient, They make moving to smile very easy

Disadvantages: Slow to load on a 56K modem

I first joined smile when it first started back in late 1999. Partly because of the funky music that accompanied the TV ads, but mostly because at the time there were very few Internet banks to choose from. In fact, I had an account with Lloyds at the time, and when I asked my Bank Manager about accessing my account over the Internet, which I saw as an important move for the not-too-distant future, he laughed and waved away such an idea "for the foreseeable future".

If you log on to the website now, www.smile.co.uk, it lists the reasons why you should join smile:

**********

"Why smile"

A bank that's open, ethical and genuinely modern. One that keeps its promises and delivers lasting benefits instead of gimmicks just to get you on board. Where you always know where you stand, with no nasty hidden surprises. One you can trust to say what it means and do what it says.

We're obsessed with giving you the best sustainable deal. Saving, borrowing or just managing your day-to-day finances, you'll find our rates more than competitive - and unlike some banks, they won't change the minute your back is turned. No cynical promotions. No hidden charges or restrictions. No bull.

We'll always be straight with you. About our charges. About any changes we have in the pipeline. About sorting out any problems. About explaining money matters that affect you.
Why? Because we want to build a business we can be proud of. We want our family and friends to know we work for the best online bank in the world - the best because our customers say so.

How can we say this when the other banks are trying to find ways to make more and more money? Simple. Because unlike them, we're not quoted on the Stock Exchange - we're part of the Co-operative Movement."

**********

Joining couldn't be easier, with only one form to fill in, no matter how many smile accounts y
ou want to open, using a
form which smile send to you securely to protect your confidentiality. Another good reason for choosing to move to smile was the fact that they gave you the forms to fill in, print out and send off to your existing bank in order to switch your banking to smile, which made life very easy, as not only did they transfer over all my Direct Debits, but they also closed my account with Lloyds at the same time, and all it took was a few details, a couple of printouts and my signature! If you've ever moved bank before, you'll know how annoying it can be to get everything transferred over - smile explain it this way:

**********

"We want your move to smile to be as easy as falling off a log. So we do it all for you: Once your smile account is opened and you've got your account number, there are 3 easy steps...

1. Answer a few questions online - your letters will be ready in seconds
2. Print out your letters (or we'll post them to you if you prefer)
3. Post your letters

Moving to smile should take less than four weeks. Your old bank won't like losing you and may drag their feet. We'll do our best to speed things up - we're getting to know people in other banks quite well.

We have a dedicated account transfer team who'll keep you informed during the transfer. Don't forget you've always got your guaranteed £500 fee free overdraft to tide you over.
If your main bank account is a Co-operative Bank account, it's even easier. Just call 0870 (THE BANK) 843 2265 or send us a secure message once your account's open."

**********

3 long years have passed since I opened my account, but I can safely say that smile has been the best bank I've used. 24/7 access to my account, instant money transfers between smile accounts, and the ability to set up or cancel direct debits and standing orders all online. This is all very well
for those of us with internet access
at home and work, but the beauty of smile is that because it's owned by the Co-op Bank, you can pay in cheques at any Co-Op Bank, or any Post Office (or send off cheques through the post), and you can use any Link machine, with no extra charge from smile, to check balances and withdraw money. Each current account (which is where I use smile 95% of the time) comes with a standard £500 Overdraft, and an interest rate (as at 02/01/2003) of 3.04% AER, which is a lot more than you will find in most High Street banks.

As well as a current account, smile also offer 8.9% APR typical on a smile loan, 9.9% APR on a smile credit card, 3.75% gross AER on a smile savings account and 4.25% gross AER on a smile cash mini ISA, none of which I currently have, but they are all accessible from your main screen on smile once you've logged in, for ease of management, and all with very competitive rates.

I've had no hesitation recommending this service to friends, all of whom have come back with the same high opinion of smile. Easy to use, user-friendly and excellent customer services all make this bank stand out.

On the negative side, if you're not a great fan of email, which is the fastest way to correspond with a customer service rep regarding your account, then this may not be the way to do your banking, though you can always phone up for advice or technical help, should you need it. The only other complaint I may have is that, having logged in on a normal modem; it seems to take forever to load up your account details. Fortunately, being a huge email fan, and someone lucky enough to have Broadband, neither of these pose a problem to me.

With a funky logo and an easy-to-use service, this is the way forward with banking, as we know it. Go to the smile website, click on "Apply now" and you're on your way. Banking of the future, available now. I love it, and I'm sure you wi
ll too, and if the above doesn't sell the bank
to you, then check our their approach to customers, and their attitude which seems to reflect their positive name:

**********

"Where are smile"

We don't maintain an expensive branch network.
We DO work in a poo-powered pyramid

The smile team is based in a modern glass pyramid in sunny Stockport, near Manchester.
We don't have an expensive branch network to maintain, most of the stuff we need to run our bank is found in our famous pyramid. This saves us money on running costs and we can pass some of these savings onto our customers.

But at smile we're not just about great rates, we want our customers to have happy hearts as well as happy wallets. That's why our pyramid gets all its electricity from gas generated by digested sewage from a plant in Bournemouth, rather than use finite natural resources."

**********

Summary: