Student Account With Railcard

[me123]

I'm off to uni in the next few months, and I have a couple of questions.

Does anyone know who gives you the free railcard with the student account if the deal still exists? I think it's Natwest, but i read somewhere that they only use it in August and Septmeber or something to entice people.

Is it a full railcard you get with it, or is there some obscure restriction for this?

And finally, is it a good deal? From what I've seen, if they give me the railcard, the low interest rate effectively cancels out any major losses (and most student interest rates are low anyway) and the overdraft limit's OK for a student account, but I'm no financial expert and I don't want to be missing a better deal.

Basically, I just want to know if I'd be better off paying £120+ over my 5 years.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Craig]

I think they only run the offer at the start of the uni year to try and attract the new students. Most banks offer something free when you sign up.

I went with Lloyds TSB as I already had an account with them. Just make sure you get a decent interest free overdraft and remember to check what their charges are.

 

[djw1981]

If you open a student account before September you get no benefits from most companies

 

[Tom B]

NatWest provide a free railcard for 5 years, but if you open an account with RBS proper they provide it for 1 year - but give you a third off a Ridacard (or equivalent).

I have a NatWest student account, and use that for spending money out of, and get money paid into two higher-interest Nationwide accounts. Every so often I transfer a couple of hundred by trainernet.

 

[87015]

I wouldn't worry too much about a free railcard - £20 a year is peanuts once you get to university and having a free overdraft is likely to be far more important. Have heard more than once about the railcard failing to materialise ex NatWest aswell even when opened at right time/forms completed etc.

 

[1D53]

Have heard more than once about the railcard failing to materialise ex NatWest aswell even when opened at right time/forms completed etc.

Yeah - they screwed me over for it.

 

[djw1981]

You can, ahem, open an account with Natwest and not pay your student loan into it and then get the railcard. Mine has £1.14 in it (and has done for 4 years). So I get the overdraft etc facilities from HBOS and the railcard from natwest.

 

[Tom B]

^ Indeed - there isn't a criterion which says you need to have your loan paid into it. Indeed, if you complete the student finance forms in June or whatever but don't get the bank account until September, you're not going to know it's a/c no and sort code!

 

[djw1981]

Some student account do insist on student loan etc being paid in from the January (for termly loans) and if this is not met, they close your account - to stop people opening 10 accounts, £15 000 of overdraft and such like.

 

[me123]

I'm trying to avoid loans personally (I know it won't happen, but that's my aim ) but I get £890 from SAAS with very low interest rates which I've been advised to take anyway because I can get a lot of interest on it in a "normal" account (thus making a profit) and to use my student account to some degree. At the moment, this has to be sorted by Friday (according to my school, anyway) so it needs to go into my "kids" account for the time being . (of course, I don't know when I get the money, so it may be that it only spends a few days in that account).

The way I see it is that I'm paying £120 for my railcard over the 5 years of my course which is better than an MP3 player (my iPod is basically perfect) and shopping vouchers. Of course, the interest in most student accounts is negligable.

 

[djw1981]

SAAs is the loan to which I referred. You can change you account details but filling in a form that SASS / SLC will send you in August. It's really very easy. You could have each payment to a different account if you could be bothered. SAAS loans are paid IIRC over 10 months (Sept-June), unlike LEA ones which are paid termly.

Most current accounts pay little interest but that's because they are current not deposit accounts. Take the maximum overdraft (free to you) and sick it in a savings account (then you make money on your bank!)

 

[Tom B]

When I tried to get my bank details changed it was like pulling teeth.

SLC helldesk said to call the DMBC. DMBC said to call the SLC. After shouting at a few muppets, they eventually said "look on the website"...

Take the maximum overdraft (free to you) and sick it in a savings account (then you make money on your bank!)

Now that, good sir, sounds like an excellent plan... next time they ask me if I want an interest-free overdraft I might just have to say yes...

 

[djw1981]

You fill in the SLC form.... the one they send you 40,000 of each time they send a letter.

 

[87015]

How do you lot save any of your student loan? Myn's all vanished long before the end of the semester it is supposed to cover!!

 

[djw1981]

Work part time. Few nights out.

 

[Tom B]

Only 40,000?

What does annoy me is some people on my course who whinge about having no money, and spend every waking moment drinking...

 

[djw1981]

Indeed. I dunno how they have the stamina for it, let alone the money.

 

[bluenoxid]

All I know is I make money from it, so Im not bothered.

Budget, budget, budget and if you avoid debt from banks, do so.

Short term jobs are great for students.

 

[Tom B]

They don't, so they get into debt, then complain about being poor... you can live within your means if you budget carefully.

 

[me123]

Thanks for your help everyone. Having no family members or close friends who have ever gone to university, it's all a bit if a minefield at the moment (particularly regarding finances) so you've been very helpful.