Santander - Next bank in line for mass withdrawals of savings?
Discussion
Heard a spokesman for Santander defending the bank on Radio 4 this morning, presumably trying to put fears at rest over the bank being at risk and a 'run' on savings being started.
Kent County Council have already pulled their cash out.
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-21...
Anyone care to speculate over how this might play out?
I personally don't think anything will happen unlike the whole Northern Rock scenario, but once people get it into their heads to take their cash out it will probably be difficult to persuade them otherwise.
Kent County Council have already pulled their cash out.
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-21...
Anyone care to speculate over how this might play out?
I personally don't think anything will happen unlike the whole Northern Rock scenario, but once people get it into their heads to take their cash out it will probably be difficult to persuade them otherwise.
davepoth said:
Pickled Piper said:
Covered by the Government backed gaurantee scheme (can't remember what it is called). So makes very lttle difference to private individuals.
pp
Businesses and people who live in Spain are another matter though; if I were in that situation I'd be considering my position.pp
youngsyr said:
Bluebarge said:
St John Smythe said:
This could become like the petrol buying panic of the other month. I've got savings in Santander and know full well they are covered by the government should anything happen. I've come to the conclusion that 95% of the population are idiotic sheep 
And you're probably right. But if you have more than £85k in savings with Santander, or don't want to rely on a govt scheme which sets out guidelines, but no cast-iron promises, of when you might get your money back, then it makes sense to start bleating. With plenty of solid banks out there, why leave your cash with a weak one?AJS- said:
Got mine out of there today. Bit of a queue, but glad I got in before the panic bank run starts proper!
Applied for a mortgage too - you've got to be in it to win it.
When you say there was a queue, do you mean a 'normal' queue or a queue of people making complete withdrawals? Applied for a mortgage too - you've got to be in it to win it.
TeamD said:
Not much on the beeb website relating to this issue (I suspect they're all down the pub though and with their heads shoved up each others arses!)
That's because it's a non-issue. Kent County Council famously lost a fortune investing in Icelandic banks so they aren't exactly financial experts DonkeyApple said:
dandarez said:
As someone who reads the Mail ...don't laugh
...their financial guy Tony Hetherington is really good, and has been warning about Santander for years!
it started with this...
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/experts/article...
here is more recent stuff
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/saving/article-...
Bank with Santander, only if you're a mug. Problem is most didn't get a choice. They (Santander) even got in with the store cards, for example, like the Debenhams store card - my wife had one, then it quietly was taken by Santander... when I read the small print it was dumped ...immediately!
I'd be pulling my cash out now, but I (luckily) don't have any with them.
I've been warning of Santander for longer. ...their financial guy Tony Hetherington is really good, and has been warning about Santander for years!
it started with this...
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/experts/article...
here is more recent stuff
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/saving/article-...
Bank with Santander, only if you're a mug. Problem is most didn't get a choice. They (Santander) even got in with the store cards, for example, like the Debenhams store card - my wife had one, then it quietly was taken by Santander... when I read the small print it was dumped ...immediately!
I'd be pulling my cash out now, but I (luckily) don't have any with them.
Any bank which has a foreign owner and goes on a huge spree to gain market share in the UK and get as much client cash on deposit as possible is telling us one clear thing: they are using UK client money to rebuild a deeply holed balance sheet.
By all accounts the signs have been there since 07 and I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole like I didn't touch the Icelandic operators.
audidoody said:
I pulled all my savings out of Santander two weeks ago. I found I was earning 0.01 per cent on an e-saver account that was paying 3.00 per cent a year ago. I didn't realise the higher rate was a 'bonus' that expired after 12 months. More fool me for not checking the small print. But why should I have to? Anyway, all my dosh is in a Post Office instant access account paying proper interest
Would have been easier to just move it to a better interest paying Santander account. Seeing as the Post Office "bank" is owned by an Irish bank I doubt it's any more secure than Santander.Olivera said:
It's pointless pulling your money out of santander UK as it's covered by the government guarantee scheme. Even if we didn't have enough money to cover the guarantee then we would simply print money to cover the deficit.
If you read the thread you will note that many people have acknowledged the government guarantee scheme, but have then gone on to say it is far less worry/hassle to simply move banks than wait for the government to allegedly pay you back once the one you are in goes pop.NinjaPower said:
If you read the thread you will note that many people have acknowledged the government guarantee scheme, but have then gone on to say it is far less worry/hassle to simply move banks than wait for the government to allegedly pay you back once the one you are in goes pop.
So which bank would you move it to then? I guess RBS or NSI would in theory be the safest being government owned, of the rest it would have to be HSBC. However these pay awful rates of interest so unless you are likely to need your money out in double quick time I think it's best to just leave your money where it is, take the higher interest rates and then if it all goes pear shaped just wait till the government repays you. It also reduces the likelihood of a bank going pop if everybody just leaves their money where it is.I have to confess that I had money in Icesave and Kaupthing which I moved out a short time before they went pop (on the advice of my financial advisor), but at that time the government guarantees where lower and much less understood.
If one of the big banks goes then we're all in trouble anyway I guess.
Mermaid said:
There are quite a few paying around 3% - Halifax, Derbyshire, Coventry and I think NR also. Santander is Uk regulated to also counts but check this.
http://www.moneysupermarket.com/savings/
Sorry, that was a bit of a rhetorical question. My point is are any of those alternatives actually a "safer" place to deposit your money than Santander?http://www.moneysupermarket.com/savings/
Mermaid said:
traxx said:
Thanks -"Nevertheless, they can be confident that their deposits up to £85,000 are guaranteed by the British government should there be a loss of confidence.
Although it is a wholly owned subsidiary of Madrid-based Banco-Santander, the UK offshoot is regulated by the Financial Services Authority and would have access to Bank of England emergency funds in the unlikely case that it is threatened.
Senior UK regulators noted last night that Santander UK had more share capital and a better cushion of cash than the Spanish bank and it is hermetically sealed from the problems of the Spanish banking system."
Now would Osborne stand up and say savings in Santander are safe up to £85k?
DonkeyApple said:
Exactly. As per usual the public have misunderstood the risks and are looking at the wrong thing.
The fact that Santander in the UK has been downgraded to the level of a ropey building society or a Govt owned bankrupt bank isn't actually the issue.
The fact that the vast majority of clients will have savings under the £85k level and so covered by the FSCS isn't the issue.
The fact that Santander UK is a legal banking entity in its own right and on paper ring fenced from its parent company is also not the issue here.
There is only one single issue for people to focus on and it does not matter whether you are a Santander customer at all. It matters to every single tax payer in the UK.
If Santander UK were to be emptied of money overnight by the flick of a switch by their parent company then it won't be the customers of Santander who lose out but every single UK taxpayer as we will be the ones covering the FSCS payout to the customers and picking up the tab for one of the UK's largest retail banks.
So, as a taxpayer do you want to be on the hook for paying out on this one,
As a Brit do you think for one second that a Spanish govt that is on the rocks and facing up to the total ruin of its banks and its people would hesitate to flick the switch that syphons billions of British savings to them? At what point in history has a European ex power ever, ever not accepted a gift horse from Britain?
Let us get serious here. When the chips are down we are an island off the coast of Europe and Europeans will not think twice about using anything they can take from here to help themselves.
So, the really big question to ask if the actual risk is of the overnight illegal plundering of a British bank by a foreign power is what is the British Govt doing about it?
First thing I would do is to ascertain the nationality of those within the bank who have the position to work on flicking that switch? In fact, I would first ascertain whether the UK arm is actually the one in control of of it is all done from Madrid. That would be rather telling.
The simple fact is that we would be absolute fools to think that the Spanish wouldn't plunder the UK bank when the chips are right down and the other simple fact is that we cannot afford to bail out what is actually a perfectly healthy bank if it had no parent.
I know what I would be doing in the position of the British Govt.
So is it better for us taxpayers to start withdrawing our money now and almost cause a catastrophic run on the bank which we'd all end up paying to sort out or should we leave the money in there, meaning that Santander UK can continue to function but at the risk that the naughty Spaniards might steal it? Either way the UK government will have to pick up the tab, in the short term at least.The fact that Santander in the UK has been downgraded to the level of a ropey building society or a Govt owned bankrupt bank isn't actually the issue.
The fact that the vast majority of clients will have savings under the £85k level and so covered by the FSCS isn't the issue.
The fact that Santander UK is a legal banking entity in its own right and on paper ring fenced from its parent company is also not the issue here.
There is only one single issue for people to focus on and it does not matter whether you are a Santander customer at all. It matters to every single tax payer in the UK.
If Santander UK were to be emptied of money overnight by the flick of a switch by their parent company then it won't be the customers of Santander who lose out but every single UK taxpayer as we will be the ones covering the FSCS payout to the customers and picking up the tab for one of the UK's largest retail banks.
So, as a taxpayer do you want to be on the hook for paying out on this one,
As a Brit do you think for one second that a Spanish govt that is on the rocks and facing up to the total ruin of its banks and its people would hesitate to flick the switch that syphons billions of British savings to them? At what point in history has a European ex power ever, ever not accepted a gift horse from Britain?
Let us get serious here. When the chips are down we are an island off the coast of Europe and Europeans will not think twice about using anything they can take from here to help themselves.
So, the really big question to ask if the actual risk is of the overnight illegal plundering of a British bank by a foreign power is what is the British Govt doing about it?
First thing I would do is to ascertain the nationality of those within the bank who have the position to work on flicking that switch? In fact, I would first ascertain whether the UK arm is actually the one in control of of it is all done from Madrid. That would be rather telling.
The simple fact is that we would be absolute fools to think that the Spanish wouldn't plunder the UK bank when the chips are right down and the other simple fact is that we cannot afford to bail out what is actually a perfectly healthy bank if it had no parent.
I know what I would be doing in the position of the British Govt.
DonkeyApple said:
It's irrelevant.
If you have more than £85k then obviously you should remove that excess and if they have all your money then you should move some to tide you I've in the event.
No. As I tried to explain above the key is what the Govt are doing to protect the British taxpayer from an act of theft.
What can the government do abut it, short of introducing protectionist currency and banking controls that will isolate the UK and make the city of London uncompetitive? If you have more than £85k then obviously you should remove that excess and if they have all your money then you should move some to tide you I've in the event.
No. As I tried to explain above the key is what the Govt are doing to protect the British taxpayer from an act of theft.
dxg said:
And so it begins.
At some point over the past few days, RBS have changed their online banking system so that you can't access those accounts that are heading to Santander without a 'new customer number.'
What is that new number? Anyone's guess.
Do you go to RBS or Santander with the problem? Anyone's guess.
You could always phone up and ask?At some point over the past few days, RBS have changed their online banking system so that you can't access those accounts that are heading to Santander without a 'new customer number.'
What is that new number? Anyone's guess.
Do you go to RBS or Santander with the problem? Anyone's guess.
A work colleague has just tried to withdraw her ISA from Santander and has just been refused.
The bank told her she was simply not allowed to withdraw the ISA, or move it elsewhere.
She told them she was happy to pay any penalty fees and lose her accumulated interest for the year but they still refused.
Is that legal?
The bank told her she was simply not allowed to withdraw the ISA, or move it elsewhere.
She told them she was happy to pay any penalty fees and lose her accumulated interest for the year but they still refused.
Is that legal?
fido said:
"Partial withdrawals are not allowed. You can access the whole of your balance by closing the account or by transferring the cash ISA in full to another ISA. On early closure an early closure penalty equivalent to 90 days' interest will be applied to the account. No early closure charge will be applied if closure is requested by your personal representative in the event of your death."
In summary, close account & lose 90 days interest - unless said friend has died.
She doesn't want to make a partial withdrawal or access any of the cash, she wants to close the ISA account completely and move it to another bank, which from the quote above seems 'allowed' but with penalties.In summary, close account & lose 90 days interest - unless said friend has died.
She was told she could not get her money out or transfer it to another bank's ISA scheme full stop.
She then asked for this clarification in writing but they refused.
She is now taking it further.
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