I'm smiling :) (smile.co.uk)

Member Name: herbie__53

Product:	smile.co.uk
Date:	29/01/09 (59 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Internet and call centre access with helpful staff

Disadvantages: Only minor niggles - not part of Faster Payments service for receipts

I have had a smile current account for about 5 years now, when me and my husband moved in together this was the joint account that we opened. We have had the Smilemore account for a short while, but soon changed back to the regular (and free) current account as we found the benefits such as breakdown cover and travel insurance etc weren't being used enough to warrant paying the monthly charge. Since opening this account we have had second bank accounts with other banks, namely Alliance and Leicester and First Direct, and I must say that neither of these came close to matching the service I get from Smile. The main good point of the bank I think is that you get access to your account online, and there is also a UK call centre which is open 24 hours and after punching in your sort code and account number you get put through to a real person, any time of day. I have always found them to be helpful sorting out problems and doing everything they can for you. Its also an added bonus that you can pay in cheques and cash at a Post Office, which is really handy for me as I live in a village (which has a post office but no banks!) and the nearest branch of Coop bank is in the town, which I would have to drive to. If you pay in cash at a post office it gets credited to your account immediately, unlike Alliance and Leicester who won't credit you until the next day. That's really handy if something unexpected takes you over your overdraft limit and you need to pay in some cash before the end of the day so you don't get charged!! The website is easy to use, ok it may not look as flash as some of the other ones but it does the job. The only gripe I would have (and this really doesn't bother me - but it might some people) is that on your recent items list you don't have a running balance, just the balance at that point in time shown at the top of the screen. Once a statements gets produced with those items on it, then you get the running balance next to them. Smile are fairly quick at replying to the Secure Messages through the internet banking (a lot quicker than some people!) but if you phone you normally get the issue sorted straight away. One other point to mention is that Smile as yet don't operate the Faster Payments service for receiving payments.
I don't think the interest rates on the accounts are that great, but I wouldn't move to another bank offering higher interest rates as the service that Smile gives is second to none.

Summary: A great account.