Alliance & Leicester is nothing but trouble

[filthiestfis]

Some 8 weeks ago I made an application to switch my current account with Barclays to the A&L premier account for that 100 Pounds Brucie Bonus. I received an email confirming my application was succesful.
Oh how I have regretted the switch ever since.
After 2 weeks of not hearing anything after getting that email I decided to visit my local A&L branch to ask about it. It turns out that they had sent my details to a different floor flat where I live and as the neighbours were not there, they hadnt dropped the mail to me.
I requested an address change then waited some more and more yet nothing. Went back to the local branch, spoke on the phone to an advisor, turns out they hadnt sent me the welcome pack yet!
I eventually got a letter for online banking pin and chequebook but no card.
Rang them again and turns out someone had forgotten to send out the card!
Finally got the card and tried the online banking but had not received the 8 digit pin for it. Tried my account number on the online banking which got rejected!
I am so sick of A&L already, and this switch is such a hassle. Today my neighbour left me a couple of letters from them which they have once again posted to the wrong flat! I still dont know if the switching process has been complete so I dont if the upcoming direct debits will come out of the A&L account or th Barclays account so I shall have to keep enough money on both accounts just in case.
To anyone who is thinking of switching their account to A&L for 100 pounds, I urge you to reconsider as A&L are absolutely awful.

[craft1948]

Oh dear it all sounds a bit of a mess........I must say I have banked with A&L. from when it was Girobank for 35 years and never had a problem so you do seem to have been very unlucky.

[filthiestfis]

craft1948: you never experienced their incompetence?

[craft1948]

No honestly.............I started off in the 1970's with just a current account......I now have 2 on-line accounts, had these about 10 years.....no problems.
Always very helpful etc..............I don't know if their working practices have changed since Santander took them over...........

[Mr Veritas]

The trouble is that Alliance & Leicester are now part of the (enormous) Santander group,and from your problems we can see just what happens when this occurs.

[bushbaby_de]

Now I'm with A & L they seem fine, but I too found the change over process tortuous. They also got a bit confused about sending out cards and cheque books when I got married and changed my name. However having had similar niggles with other banks I have come to the conclusion they are all crap LOL

[Twenty20]

We use A&L for home banking and for business and have had no problems at all. I think with any switch over between banks I would keep both the new and the old accounts running together for a few months until I could see that everything was set up ok and working with my new bank. Letting the banks do the switch over might not be the best idea. I'd transfer all the direct debits etc to the new bank myself and cancel the old ones to make sure it was done properly. Takes a bit more time but at least you know it's done properly then. But doing it that way I guess you wouldn't get the £100 bonus?

Personally, I wouldn't go through the hassle of switching banks for £100 unless there was something very wrong with my original bank.

[daffy654]

I have banked with A&L for over 20 years now and have had no problems. I think you have just been particularly unlucky in your experience.

[Dodger666]

I have been with National Girobank/A&L since 1969. Like all the other banks A&L was offering next to nothing in interest for existing customers but £100 and 6% interest to new customers who switched to them. This pxxxxd me off so I opened an Reward Account with Halifax Bank to get the £5.00/month bonus. As far as that went all is OK.

However, the problems I have had using what the Halifax call their "Great Transfer Service" in changing my DDs have been enormous. Two months after opening the account I am still have to phone round different companies to find out why the DDs haven't been changed over yet. All this the Halifax said they would do easily. It appears that after the write to the various companies that's it. If they don't respond they tell you to sort it out yourself.

Whilst with A&L I had no problems, I moved due to lack of current account interest.

I have come to the conclusion all banks are as bad as one another. Unless you know differently.