I have been with Nationwide now since about 2006 and am very happy with them as a building society. I first got an account with Nationwide when I was about fourteen and had a smartbook which was fine because I did not need to withdraw money all that often. However, more recently it became apparent that it would be better to have a card account so Nationwide recommended a Flexaccount. The Flexaccount itself (moving slightly off topic for a moment) offers a number of benefits to customers. It gives customers: free travel insurance, it's free to use and you can bank on the internet. Now back to talking about Nationwide Building Society more generally. I have never been with another building society bank so I do not have a lot to compare them to. They do however make everything so simple for me that it is not worth moving my money. I am very happy with Nationwide.

Why I am I happy with Nationwide?

They are the UK's biggest building society which reassures me that they are not facing the difficulties that perhaps some of the smaller building societies are. They are as unlikely I feel to go bust as any other developed financial institution so I feel safe having my money with them.

They have no shareholders which probably explains why when you compare loans and savings on comparison sites nationwide is always there or there abouts. The competitive interest rates are very appealing to my as I have no need at the moment to borrow and I do make use of the many different types of savings that they offer.

The staff have always been very useful on the few instances I have need them. For example, when I was changing my account they were very helpful and it was done very quickly.

They have a huge presence both on the highstreet and online which is very reassuring.

I feel my money is secure both online and in branch.

Anything I am not happy about?

The immediate and quite steep charges for going overdrawn unauthorised. It is an immediate £20 penalty regardless of how short the time of being overdrawn may be. I was literally overdrawn for two hours and yet was charged £20. It felt a little excessive and still does.

No student account is offered by nationwide which gave me the hassle of trying to open a student account with Natwest which was so difficult I just gave up.

Overall thoughts on Nationwide

I think Nationwide offers customers everything they want in a building society or bank. They offer that confidence that they are financially stable and secure which is very good. They are easily accessible both online and in branch. They offer competitive rates for both borrowers and savers. The staffs at Nationwide the few times I have called upon them have been very useful.