used them a few years back. were ok, unreliable app. no where near as bad as clydesdale ... or virgin now i guess. Starling for me now
Depends what for. Mortgages, I won't deal with anyone else now. They made the whole process so simple and stress free I no longer care if their interest rates aren't the lowest (they have been consistently though), and they pick up the phone reliably quickly. Never had any issues with the current account, but yeah, the app isn't great. It refuses to let me amend standing orders. I can make new ones, just not amend or cancel. At least they answer the phone quickly. Never had any reliability issues though.
They are okay, I recently switched my "switching current account" to them for £150 joining bonus and some other £20 bonus in 3 months time. Opening and switching went smoothly nothing out of ordinary. I've yet to use the app in anger. Remortgaging to Natwest, that was so painful, their appointed solicitor were absolutely, totally, utterly useless.
They exist. Haven't directly dealt with First Direct but my dealings with the wider HSBC group have never been anything other than an utter shitshow.
I’ve been looking into this carefully and, am not going into this lightly. Looking at various review sites, FD have the best feedback of the retail banks and, hugely better than my current bank, Lloyds. Money Saving Expert give them a 90% positive rating.
Been with First Direct since 1993 and wouldn't bank with anyone else. I do most of my banking with the phone app, now, but never have an issue talking to someone on the phone and any issues are always sorted out very quickly.
Not used them I have been looking at these for a remortgage with the impending interest rates increases I'd like to lock in a new rate soon, these look good mostly because the claim to allow unlimited over payments, not clear if that is pay what you want in rather than any time you like, sometimes my 10% overpayment cap is limiting.
Maybe look into one with a linked offset account? That's what I've got, and while I also have a ten per cent annual overpayment cap I can put as much money as I like in the offset account (and take it out again afterwards, if I need it.) You still pay the mortgage, but only on the difference between what you owe and what's in the offset account (which, then, doesn't earn traditional interest.) If you have a £100,000 mortgage but £50,000 in the offset, you're charged as if you have a £50,000 mortgage - and can choose whether that means paying the same each month and reducing the term (i.e. paying it off earlier) or reducing the monthly payment but keeping the same term. Unless I'm missing something, which I'm hopefully not 'cos like I say I've got one of the piggin' things, it offers the benefit of paying extra on your mortgage but without overpayment limits and the bonus of being able to change your mind and spend the cash if you need to.
The unlimited overpayments are just that. Pay in whatever extra you want, when you want. We doubled our monthly standing order, but you can do lump sums. Just be careful you don't clear the full balance within the fixed term, or early repayment fees will kick in.
No personal experience, but three people I know swear by FD. I would probably switch for the cash bonus if I wasn't so a) lazy; b) set in my ways; and c) put off by potentially having to change back again at a later stage.
