University bank accounts

[BringOn2021]

Dc is about to head off to uni and needs to open their first bank account. I am aware there are many deals to be had, but which would you recommend?

Which has be best overdraft facility (no that they’ll need this)?
Is it best to go with no overdraft in lieu of other things?
which has the best customer service?
Online only or one that has a branch?
which is easiest to open and what info/docs will they need?

any and all help welcome!

Have they never had a current account before?
My 2 dc got theirs age 11. Often an existing current account can be converted into a student account

Usually need proof of ID e.g. passport and proof of address e.g. bill, bank statement, driving licence

Gohenry… wouldn’t class this as a proper account if you know what I mean. So, yes, looking for the first time. But it’s more student accounts come with a realm of offers, are tailored to the new young banker to help with navigating student life and finances… which would you recommend ?

I helped each of my teen DDs open an account at Nationwide over the internet this winter. It was slightly time consuming in that I read through the terms and conditions with each of them to be sure they understood because they had not done such a thing before.

Since it was a teen account, they needed to upload photos of their passports which they ended up needing to show in branch to complete the process but there was less emphasis on proof of address since, as teens, they were less likely to have that. I have encouraged them to have paper statements for the time being so that they do have proof of address if they need it for other things.

I have several accounts at Nationwide and have always found them to be good re: customer service and have plenty of branches. You could check which banks have a branch near your DC's university?

My DH's first account was with Lloyd's b/c there was a branch in his parents' town and a branch in the town where he was at boarding school.

My two have accounts with Santander. They were opened online and had to upload ID/proof of address

People will often go with whoever is doing the free railcard perk - currently Santander.

My dd went with Santander for the free Railcard too

What’s a railcard worth? Is the railcard given just for the first year?

I went with Santander back when I was a student (12 years ago!), primarily because they gave £50 for opening an account...

I got a free £2000 overdraft with it, which I maxed out in my first semester 😅Managed to work my way out of it and been sensible with money ever since, but that was a steep learning curve! So I guess a disadvantage of an overdraft is that if it's a big one, then that's quite a lot of debt to take on, but alternatively it can be a learning opportunity/be a lifesaver in a pinch.

@BringOn2021 this is from the website

Ds2 has just graduated and chose Santander when he was a first year, partly for the railcard offer and also because of the generous overdraft. He has no complaints with it.
He also has his old non-student Halifax account which is where I sent money to him to so it didn't get swallowed up in his overdraft.

My kids all had Santander mini123 accounts, you can add a savings about to it at 16 and then convert to student account at 18. She gets a free railcard which is pretty useful for coming home.

She has a Monzo for day to day money and travel abroad (no fx fees). So student finance goes into Santander acct, transfers weekly budget (£100/pw) into Monzo. Savings account attached to Santander is for birthday money/paid work money / savings for holidays etc, and gets a bit better interest.

Helps budgeting vs burning through everything if it's in one pot. And a second bank card if she loses one!

I think Santander is one of the better student accounts at the moment (Martin Lewis said so so it must be true). DS needs to get his grades and his place confirmed before he can apply....

Agree with having 2 accounts. for misplaced cards, if one account gets scammed, loses phone, you get the idea. DS has a Santander and a Starling (online only).

Best place to look for the best deals is here.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/students/student-bank-account/

My DDs never went into a bank branch. They aren’t relevant to most students. Why would they need one? Go for the best perk. Customer service is impossible to judge. Monzo for every day is a good shout. Learn about internet banking.

Loads of useful info here…. Thanks loads. And thanks @MigGirl for the link. Heading over to it now!

Ok. Santander won’t proceed with an account opening until DC has their results in a few weeks. For those of you who completed this process, was the account opened in a matter of days or can it take a number of weeks? (All checks included)

Smart idea to have two accounts. I'll suggest that to DS. Bit like the £20 notes rolled up in the sun visor of the car....

Would they open an ordinary account and then convert it to the student account once the results are through?

Money saving expert Martin Lewis usually has plenty of info on best student accounts. Likely chance of opening it successfully, benefits etc. That would be the place to start.

Has no student ever worked and needed a bank account? For student ones you must be a student. For obvious reasons. You could open a savings account.

Santander opened the account in days.

Dd has kept her Lloyds current account that she used since she was in secondary. It was upgraded to an adult account when she turned 18 but isn’t a student account.
She also has a Monzo for travelling abroad purposes.

DD just swapped her Nationwide account she had since she was 11 to a student account and got the £100 credit. No need to change details for her babysitting and tutoring clients either.

DD has a Nationwide Junior account that she has kept as it has no exchange fees in foreign currency and she uses this as her day to day account. She also has a nation wide savings account.
She opened a NatWest Student account that her loan goes into. She then transfers a set amount each week into her Nationwide Account for food etc.