01/12/2009 by bill.

HSBC has now extended its £50 cashback offer to HSBC Bank Account customers as well as HSBC Bank Account Plus customers.

The HSBC Bank Account boasts the following features:

- Overdraft facility with a rate of 19.9% EAR variable
- Manage your money with free 24/7 Internet Banking*, pay bills and make payments securely.
- Monthly statements (or Go Green to save paper and view your statements online)

More

More about selecting a bank account

Posted in Banks, Bank accounts, Current accounts | Print | 1 Comment »

02/08/2009 by bill.

Most banks offer student accounts with various incentives such as free travel insurance, rail cards and gifts but students are advised to compare the full terms offered before selecting the best account for them.

As always the advice is to shop around, don’t go to the first bank you see offering an apparently good deal, and do not be tempted to choose your parent’s bank, if they have not switched recently they could probably get a better deal elsewhere anyway!

The most important things to look for are:

Overdraft facilities, interest and fees - Most student accounts offer limited interest free overdrafts
Charges if you go into the red
Does the account come with a credit card? If so what is the credit limit and other terms?
Interest paid on credit balances (although few students have regular credit balances)

You might also want to consider whether there is a branch near to your university or where you are going to live, but most accounts offer internet banking anyway and you will be able to withdraw cash through ATMs at any bank.

For more advice on selecting the right current account for you see moneyjungle.net

Posted in Bank accounts, Current accounts | Print | No Comments »

28/07/2008 by bill.

Few of us relish reaching our 50th birthday but it does mean that you can qulaify for some great financial deals. Many of us still have curent accounts with the bank we joined when we first started work. If you are one of them take a look at the Alliance and Leicester Premier 50 current account (***).

Premier 50 is designed specifically for the over 50s and comes with a wide range of benefits:

• Earn 8.5% AER (fixed until 31.01.09) on balances up to £2,500. Rate reverts to Bank of England Base Rate less 1%. 0.10% (variable) on balances over £2,500.

• No interest or usage fees on agreed overdrafts for first 12 months (0% EAR typical overdraft)*
*after 12 months, 0% overdraft continues but a usage fee of 50p a day (£5 max per month) applies if agreed overdraft is used. Max overdraft limit is £2,500

Premier 50 Travel Insurance

• Premier 50 offers worldwide annual travel insurance

(available up to the age of 79)

Premier 50 Health Benefits

Click here for more details

Over 50s can also qualify for great savings rates, for example the Saga Online Top 5 Tracker Account offers 6.26% aer and comes with a guarantee until 31 May 2010. Since the companies offering the best variable rates of interest tend to change from week to week, it is difficult to be sure that you have found a good rate for your investment. With the Saga Online Top 5 Tracker Account the interest paid will be no more than 0.25% gross* below the previous monthly average of the five top variable rate internet accounts (as quoted by Moneyfacts).

(*** denotes that My Money Jungle may receive commission on sales via links from our website.)

As always we recommend that anyone looking to open a bank account or savings account undertakes research to find the most suitable product for them and, if in doubt, seeks independent financial advice. For more information about selecting bank and savings accounts see moneyjungle.net

Posted in Current accounts, Savings | Print | No Comments »