Back to basics

Approximately one in twelve of us have trouble opening a current account at a bank. When the Government got wind of this they decided it was unacceptable so they insisted that Banks provide service for people who have poor credit histories, are low wage earners, or simply have had financial problems in the past. These are Basic Bank Accounts.

  Try getting a basic bank account

If you go into a Bank on the High Street and talk to a member of staff about a Basic Bank account the chances are they will deny all knowledge of them.

They won’t be lying to you. It appears that many banks, although Government has insisted they all provide Basic Bank Accounts, still do not actually brief their staff on these less profitable accounts. To open a Basic Bank Account you may have to go to different banks until you find one that will accept they actually provide such a facility.

  Why a basic bank account

A basic bank account will provide you with an account that you can pay cheques into and set up direct debits from. It will not however, provide you with any credit facilities such as an overdraft. You will usually be issued with a cash card which you can use to draw money from an automated teller machine (‘hole in the wall’), as long as you have it in your account. You can also use this cash card in shops as a debit card, again assuming you have the money in the account, but with a Basic Bank Account you won’t be issued with a cheque book.

  Advantages

A Basic Bank Account will enable you to cash cheques for free. Some places other than banks that cash cheques charge as much as 20% for doing so. Instantly, you can see that there are advantages in having a bank account!

You can also save money on household bills such as gas and electricity by setting up direct debits as they offer a discount to customers paying through this method.

If you are currently using somebody else’s bank account to have your wages paid into then you will now be able to receive your independence and regain your privacy.

  Starting up

Most Basic Bank Accounts can be started with as little as £1.00 – they were created by the Government to be as easy as possible. Your only obstacles will be the banks themselves who see little opportunity for profit in them.