Scot-er-land, Scot-er-land, Scot-er-land... {updated} (Bank of Scotland)

Member Name: ronniec

Product:	Bank of Scotland
Date:	10/11/00 (104 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It does exactly what it says on the tin. Good customer service, great account card.

Disadvantages: Haven't experienced any.

Who'd have ever though a devout Anglophile such as myself would ever even consider the sacriligous act of joining a foreign bank. English money should stay in English hands! Queen and country need it to conquer the Boers!

Well, maybe I'm not that staunchly patriotic. The Skipton was the closest I ever got to an off-shore bank account before I joined the Bank of Scotland. I've been with them for over six months now, and on the whole, my experience has been good.

For a student, there are three things about a bank account that you want to see: stupidly large overdraft limits, bank managers with friendly-looking faces, and shiny free gifts. Impressively enough, the Bank of Scotland manages all three. A first-year overdraft limit of £1250 (recently upped from a round grand) is more than adequate, even for members of the Grape & Grain society. Even better, the managers of both my local and home branches are not unattractive ladies, to say the least. It's amazing how far feminine wiles will get you in business, y'know. And my own offer of £60 or a cheap Nokia phone stands out above all else.

So, suitably impressed after my middle of the road experiences with Lloyds TSB, I signed up for a student account in a matter of minutes, and waited for my loan cheque to come through. Now, this to date has been the only hitch in my banking life. I do a lot of banking, you see, especially in the privacy of my home. A delayed cheque meant the nasty holes i'th wall wouldn't give me any money for several weeks, and despite my pathetic pleas, the Bank of Scotland wouldn't lend me anything to tide me over until the cheque finally came through. I was somewhat disappointed at the time, given their promotional paraphenalia which promised so much.

Since that initial glitch, however, I have to say that on the whole I have been quite impressed with the bank. They leave me to use their facilities in peace, without endless junk mai
l or stomach-churning messages popping up when I use their cash machines. This is all I want from a bank. I want to put my money somewhere where I'm not liable for its safety and will be indemnified should it curiously go missing. I don't want to be molly-coddled or patronised - and the Bank of Scotland does neither of these.

To be frank, the interest rate they offer is irrelevant to me in particular and I imagine most in general. There is never enough money in the account to make the 0.0005% rate worth anything more than a bar of chocolate. If my memory serves me correctly, I believe I chose this bank because it had a slightly higher rate than most of the competition. But to be realistic, 35p every six months will be of little concern to most account holders.

Customer service has, when I have had call to make use of it, been more than adequate. Not once have I had a problem with the bank themselves - I have only needed to contact them to make general enquiries as to my balance and so on. On each occasion, service has been prompt, and although I can only speak for my lcoal branches, the staff have been friendly and approachable. I understand fully the irritation of working with the general public for eight hours a day, but the Bank of Scotland must have an exceptional training scheme to keep its staff morale so seemingly high.

Fortunately, no charges are made for withdrawals from cash machines, at least those part of the bank itself or the Link network. With fees of up to £1.50 charged by others, so I am told, this is a bonus worthy of mention. Also, a student account entitles you to a Highline card, a very handy piece of shiny plastic that serves as a withdrawal card, a £100 cheque guarantee and most useful of all, a Switch card (great for online purchases, especially for those who do not want Visa/Mastercard credit cards).

My general impression of the bank is good. They have come across as relaxed and informal when you s
imply need their facilities, but attentive and fast-acting when you need attention. The only gumpf you will get through your letterbox is your statement - this excepted, you could be forgiven for forgetting you even had an account with them.

If the glitz and glamour of other High Street banks seems false and pretentious to you, the Bank of Scotland would be my recommendation for an alternative account at the very least. Their service is impressive and the facilities on a par with the competition. Well worth a look, even if the thought of supporting vivisection disgusts you.

Summary: