Great Service and Facilities (nationwide.co.uk)

Member Name: ultras67

Product:	nationwide.co.uk
Date:	17/01/03 (918 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easy to Use, good options

Disadvantages: can be fiddly to set up

I am currently travelling a lot abroad. What I needed was an account that would not charge me for foreign withdrawls from my bank account.

I found that the Nationwide Flex account fitted the bill perfectly. An added bonus was that I could monitor and make transactions on line - like set-up / amend / cancel Standing Orders/Direct Debits/Bill Payments, check mini statement or see a more detailed statement or order a full statement in the post.

The Flex account card is a multipurpose one. It is a ATM cashcard, a Visa Debit Card and it is a Delta card ( you can use it like a Switch card or make withdrawals abroad anywhere that has a Visa sign ).

Unlike most banks when you draw money abroad, there is no loading charge, no currency charge at all. The only money taken from your account is the exact sterling equivalent - excellent news. It could save you so much worry in carrying cash around.

The actual online banking service was a bit awkward to set up. I had to register at a branch which needs you to enter three bits of personal data and then wait for them to send you a letter with your account number and PIN number to use the online service. Unfortunately I had to wait about 4 weeks for all the data to be correctly entered as I was changing addresses at the time and some of the data didnt match.

Logging into the system is very easy -as long as you can remember one piece of your personal data and the account number, you should have no problems! Just go to www.nationwide.co.uk and bingo, you will have access to all your Nationwide accounts - mortgage, visa card, flex account and so on.

E-Savings is the other option available once you go online. It is an internet only saving account which gives you far higher rates of interest - currently 4%gross and 3.2% net. Money can only move to and from this account to your online Flex account. You cannot deposit at a branch or get the money on demand. All the transfer
s take 3 days so its not ideal if you will be needing money urgently.

All the interest rates are tiered for the Flex account.
The interest rates are
0 - 499 0.5% gross 0.4% net
500 - 999 1% 0.8%
1000 + 2.5% 2.%

For overdrafts the current rates are
Authorised Overdraft 9.9%, No Fee
Authorised Overdraft for mortgage customers 9.3%, No Fee
Unauthorised Overdraft 19.9% Monthly Fee 10 Pounds
There are also charges for things like unpaid Direct Debits etc.

I have been with Nationwide now for just over a year now and apart from the initial hiccups I have had no problems and would thoroughly recommend one.

Summary: