No notice period. Interest paid monthly or annually. Apply in minutes. Your eligible deposits with RCI Bank UK Limited are protected up to a total of £85,000 by the FSCS
Instant access to your savings. Unlimited deposits and withdrawals. Interest paid monthly, either to a linked current account, or adding it to your Online Flexi Saver account. Easy application process, you just need a UK mobile phone and UK driving licence or passport. Manage account online. Maximum balance £250,000. Must have a linked UK current account. Your eligible deposits with Investec Bank are protected up to a total of £85,000 by the FSCS
Save from £1. Unlimited payments and withdrawals. Interest paid annually. Open in a single or a joint name. Maximum deposit £500,000. Open and manage account online. FSCS Protected. Must be UK resident. Must be aged 16 or older
Choose monthly or annual interest payments. Unlimited deposits and withdrawals. 24/7 access to your savings. Open and manage online. After 12 months the rate will revert to the underlying rate, currently 1.45% gross/AER variable. Post Office Online Saver is provided by Bank of Ireland UK. FSCS protected
Unlimited withdrawals subject to 95 days notice. No notice period. Interest paid monthly or annually. Apply in minutes. Your eligible deposits with RCI Bank UK Limited are protected up to a total of £85,000 by the FSCS
The interest rate tracks the Bank of England (BoE) Base Rate. Interest is calculated on the minimum daily balance and applied to the account on the first day of every subsequent month. Open and manage account online. Your eligible deposits are protected up to £85,000 by the FSCS. The maximum deposit you may pay into any one OakNorth Account is £500,000. The maximum amount (excluding the interest) that you will be allowed to hold on deposit with OakNorth Bank across multiple accounts is also £500,000. Unlimited withdrawals, subject to 95 days notice. Available to individuals only
Unlimited deposits and withdrawals. Interest paid monthly: can be added to your Notice Saver or paid to your linked account. Easy application process, you just need a UK mobile phone and UK driving licence or passport. Manage account online. Maximum balance £250,000. Withdrawals subject to 90 days notice. Must have a linked UK current account
All funds deposited into the RCI Bank E-Volve Savings 14 Day Notice Account will be used to fund pure electric vehicles and charging facilities. Interest paid monthly or annually. Manage account online. UK-based support, seven days a week. Unlimited withdrawals subject to 14 days notice. Your eligible deposits with RCI Bank UK Limited are protected up to a total of £85,000 by the FSCS
3 penalty-free withdrawals in a 12 month period. 4.72% AER/4.62% gross (3.82% AER/3.75% gross + 0.90% AER/0.87% gross 12-month boost). Interest paid monthly. Deposit and withdraw almost instantly. No fees or charges for holding account. FSCS eligible on your deposits. 3.62% AER/3.55% gross if 4 or more withdrawals are made within 12 months (on boosted rate). 2.72% AER/ 2.68% gross if 4 or more withdrawals are made within 12 months (without 12 month boost). Must be UK resident. Must be aged 18 or older
If you like to have your overdraft as a safety net then the First Direct 1st current account is a great choice with its £250 0% overdraft.
Access to a Regular Saver paying 1.00% AER/gross fixed for the first 12 months.
Additionally, if you go more than £250 into your overdraft, you pay interest of 15.9% EAR, making it one of the lower-cost overdrafts on offer.
While the benefits of the First Direct 1st current account are attractive, it won’t be suitable for everyone because it requires paying in £1,000 every month. Failure to do so could result in you having to pay a fee of £10 per month.
First Direct offers, as standard:
Beautifully designed Internet Banking service
Award-winning customer service from real people answering your calls, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
Mobile banking on the go with their app for iPhone, Android and iPad
It is important to note, however, that you don’t receive interest payments on your balance, which is not ideal for those people who are keeping large sums of money in this account and would like to see some kind of growth.
A separate savings account could counteract this issue but still allow you to enjoy the other benefits, such as the low-cost overdraft.
Why use an overdraft?
An agreed overdraft can be a useful tool if you want to borrow money over the short-term, or in an emergency allowing you to borrow money through your bank's current account up to a certain limit
An 'authorised overdraft' is the set limit agreed with your bank. However, you will be charged for using this, and what rate you pay depends on your bank and the type of account you have
You risk high charges if you slip over the agreed limit and if you continually max out your overdraft you may also find it hard to get credit elsewhere
Remember that your overdraft isn't guaranteed to stay in place, as this facility could be taken away by your bank
Useful Information to Know
You need to pay in £1,000+ each calendar month, or maintain an average monthly balance of £1,000 to keep the account free, otherwise there will be a ten pound fee
First Direct shares its £75,000 UK savings safety guarantee with HSBC, so ensure you don't hold more than £75,000 across the two banks
Finally, the account comes with a satisfaction guarantee.
If you don’t love their service within 12 months of opening your account, they will give you £100 providing you have met their initial criteria. You will get the money within 28 days of the criteria being met.
Generally, people seem very happy with the customer service that First Direct provide. This is likely due to their 24 hour/day calls and seamless internet banking program.
