Online Banking

[coalescent]

Apparently, we all like internet banking now. Rated out of five, the league table runs like this:

Smile 4.4
First Direct 4.4
Co-operative 3.9
RBS 3.9
Nationwide 3.9
HSBC Bank 3.8
Cahoot 3.8
Egg 3.8
IF 3.8
Halifax 3.7
Barclays 3.7
Lloyds TSB 3.6
NatWest 3.5
Abbey National 3.4
Bank of Scotland 3.3
Woolwich 3.3
Alliance & Leicester 3.3

Mean: 3.8

I'm with Barclays. It's generally pretty good, but over the past few weeks I've been wanting to use it more, and a few things could stand improving. For instance, you can't update your postal address online, you have to go to a branch (or phone) to do it. And you can't transfer money between all of your accounts; some of them need authorising, which is fair enough, but for a few types you're Just Not Allowed. You can see the balance, but not move anything in or out. Hopefully, the fact that they came fairly down the above table will spur them to improve things.

Meanwhile, a big thankyou to everyone indulging my two-day splurge of pretentiousness. It just feels good every so often. ;-)

Comments

[fba.livejournal.com]

What I find interesting is the brands that are basically the same institution but marketed differently - Smile and Co-Op for example. Or more interestingly First Direct, RBS and Nat West..... You would think that each brand would learn from the successes and failures of other brands within their group.....

Personally speaking of the 4 online systems I use, Nationwide is excellant - you can do pretty much anything as they have a secure messaging system if you want to do something not directly supported by the software, MBNA and Morgan Stanley are OK - you can view and download statements and pay them online with a debit card, while Bank of Scotland's system sucks big time - you can't even see recent transactions.....

[tizzle-b.livejournal.com]

I use HSBC & egg and find HSBC really good and I can do everything with it that I'd ever want to do over the phone/in the branch.

egg, OTOH, is pretty bad as it's been quite awkward to transfer money between accounts in the past.

[ang-grrr.livejournal.com]

Don't talk to me about Egg. Grrrr.

Smile, OTOH, are fantastically beamy lovely and I wish I'd always banked with them.

[tizzle-b.livejournal.com]

Ah, I remember the tales of woe which followed the 'Online Bank' a while back.

I've no money left in my egg account, IIRC, so I'm unlikely to start using it again unless I need to dump some money somewhere & haven't opened another one.

Yay!

[applez.livejournal.com]

Been using Barclays online for years now ... quite good, puts my Citibank to shame. That reminds me, I probably should check that account again...