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The Advice Thread

Funnily enough I got the Revolut app today for using in Barbados in January.
 
Keep a Lloyds account as the staple (and the app is excellent by the way, thoroughly recommend) but bounce around the others as offers and favourable rates dictate. Over the last few years have used/am using Lloyds, First Direct (different, by also very, very good) Metro, Chase, Paragon, Trading 212.

As standard accounts Lloyds and First Direct are superb, the others are more for other bits but tbh have had absolutely no issues whatsoever and would have no hesitation in doing the ‘hipster’ thing (whatever that really imeans) and making things work for you. These new high(er) return banks tend to have their advantages in the short term so if you’re happy to play the game can be advantageous but it depends what you’re looking for.

Quite surprised by the number of people I know using offshore. Not necessarily wealthy people with tax avoidance at the core, but people attempting to hide income/assets in the case of relationship breakdowns or CSA for example. The rates on offer can be eye-watering too. That’s a whole new world and a murky one that we all need to wake up to. In an era of globalisation, a transient population and an increasing number of personal relationships spanning different countries and continents the days of the traditional High Street bank are becoming a thing of the past. Might not sit well with everyone’s moral compass but offshore is worth looking into and it’s not just for those with significant resources either. Not getting involved in the rights or wrongs or morality of that, but it’s a tide that’s difficult to swim against.

Anyway, fuck it, for a rock solid uncomplicated provider you can’t go far wrong with Lloyds, in an era of rapid change there’s a certain comfort and security from a brand like that.
 
We have a Lloyd's joint account for day to day stuff, missus has a Nationwide account which she likes, I opened a Starling account this year for holiday spending which so far has been good.
The only one I have an app for is the Starling which seems to work OK.
 
Revolut are one I would avoid. Their USP was fee free overseas spending but you can get that loads of places now.
 
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Tredman said:
Resolut are one I would avoid. Their USP was fee free overseas spending but you can get that loads of places now.
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I've had a Revolut account for years, never had an issue. Wouldn't use it for credit or loans etc but it's handy to transfer money to friends or family members when abroad and someone picks up dinner.
Myself and the wife also throw a few hundred euro into it every now and again for paying for services that prefer cash.
Two recent examples are when my wife reversed into a bollard - the panel beater wanted paying through Revolut rather than card and it was the same when we got flooring put in our attic. They offered a lower price if it was 'cash'. These guys obviously don't declare these jobs to Revenue but it's a saving of hundreds for the customer so it's attractive to pay that way.
 
Dublin Drummer Wolf said:
I've had a Revolut account for years, never had an issue. Wouldn't use it for credit or loans etc but it's handy to transfer money to friends or family members when abroad and someone picks up dinner.
Myself and the wife also throw a few hundred euro into it every now and again for paying for services that prefer cash.
Two recent examples are when my wife reversed into a bollard - the panel beater wanted paying through Revolut rather than card and it was the same when we got flooring put in our attic. They offered a lower price if it was 'cash'. These guys obviously don't declare these jobs to Revenue but it's a saving of hundreds for the customer so it's attractive to pay that way.
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A business model build on tax evasion doesn’t seem that sustainable. I used it for foreign payments etc a few years ago - as you mentioned it’s now pretty ethically dubious, given they are a European based company they will be targeted sooner or later.
 
I’ve been using Currensea for overseas spending - it links directly to my Nationwide account, but performs the transaction at a much better exchange rate - saves a fair amount of dosh.
 
SSB said:
Switched to Chase a couple of years back and have no complaints.
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You need to keep your eye on Chase as their interest rates were very attractive a couple of years ago, but they’re all about opening offers then very crafty with their constant tweaking of rates and equalisation across various accounts. The drip-drip effect means you don’t immediately notice significant change and you can fall behind the curve without realising it.

Already a couple of managed declines in 2024 and another hit on the Boost planned Jan 2025. Still great as an every day current account but if there’s any surplus Chase have shot their bolt and it would be time to look elsewhere.

 
For our couple of trips abroad this year we have started using a Post Office travel card which we top up via the app before we go and can top up whilst away if need be but doesn't link to our bank accounts and can be used like a contactless debit card in most establishments. When we went to Portugal in June we put £700 on the card and took £700 in Euros for places not accepting the card but brought £635 of the Euros back!
 
EpsomWolf said:
You need to keep your eye on Chase as their interest rates were very attractive a couple of years ago, but they’re all about opening offers then very crafty with their constant tweaking of rates and equalisation across various accounts. The drip-drip effect means you don’t immediately notice significant change and you can fall behind the curve without realising it.
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I haven’t got enough savings to worry about how much interest I’m getting! But at the moment the Chase boosted rate is 5.1%
 
I use a travel credit card for abroad (Halifax Clarity). No charges (other than interest) for cash withdrawals, no charges for foreign-currency purchases.
 
As luck would have it I've had a leak happen yesterday. It's from the bathroom sink /bath, the pipe runs through an enclosed space above my single floor kitchen extension. The leak is in an enclosed pipe which will require cutting a hole in the kitchen ceiling to get to.

It's manageable because the leak only happens if we use the sink or bath...so weve stopped using them.

Question is can I ask the insurance company if they'll cover it and if I decide not to (due to the excess, losing NCB etc meaning it's no worth doing)? And instead get a plumber and a plasterer to do their thing on my dime rather than the insurance company?

Can anyone offer any advice how to go about this?
 
AndyWolves said:
As luck would have it I've had a leak happen yesterday. It's from the bathroom sink /bath, the pipe runs through an enclosed space above my single floor kitchen extension. The leak is in an enclosed pipe which will require cutting a hole in the kitchen ceiling to get to.

It's manageable because the leak only happens if we use the sink or bath...so weve stopped using them.

Question is can I ask the insurance company if they'll cover it and if I decide not to (due to the excess, losing NCB etc meaning it's no worth doing)? And instead get a plumber and a plasterer to do their thing on my dime rather than the insurance company?

Can anyone offer any advice how to go about this?
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I would get a quote from a tradesman first and then go from there. See how much it would cost and compare it to your excess.

However, most insurance companies tend to have their own approved contractors. The benefit being that should there be any problem with the repair/reinstatement it won't come back to bite you. In addition to that you haven't got the buggeration factor of sourcing a cimoetent contractor, hoping they will turn up and complete on time, etc. Is there any water damage to other items such as decorations, furnishing, floor coverings, etc. These would usually be covered under the policy.
 
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I mean whilst I hate scammers, he received a call and just assumed it was Revolut. That’s just stupidity in this day and age.
 
Deutsch Wolf said:
Conveyancing solicitors are pretty much uniformly wank. It's just a matter of the scale of how fucking lazy and unreliable they turn out to be. Be prepared for emails to go unanswered, them never to be in the office when you call and a regular failure to do the most very basic of tasks.

Because they know you can't deal without them because of our stupid system, and it's too much of a pain in the arse (and expensive) for you to change once you've started.

It's an absolute racket. So good luck my friend but if there are good ones, I don't know about them and nor does anyone I know.
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Well this still appears to be partially true, I went with the recommended one and it's helped a little plus I can use the agency to chase them given it was their recommendation. They actually seem good at what they do, but are awful communicators. Mind you I believe it's because the seller's solicitors are the one's not giving timely info back to them.

Anyway - the next few weeks will be interesting as probate has just been granted on the property, so the sale *should* go through quite soon - it's getting real now. Still a minefield at every corner, needing an indemnity policy on a tiny extension if they can't find the paperwork, and a restrictive covenant has been broken with the fencing put in place - nothing too sinister and it's been in place for around 15 years, but it would be a shame to ever find it needed to come down as it's a corner property that has a little walkthrough space around it (fencing doesn't block any of this). Does anyone have experience of those type of issues and if the insurance to cover them is sufficient? Google'ing around does reassure but keen to hear of first hand experiences too. Thanks (again)!
 
Our house (in the middle of...)...has a restrictive covenant that the previous owners broke by building an extension.
Thought that might have been flagged during planning but nope...
Our solicitor got them to take out an insurance policy that covers anything should the council say "hold on a minute you crafty buggers".
I think the council have a time limit of 20 years to raise an objection to it. Half way through that.
 
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