Do I NEED a student account?

Original post by Gapyearstudent54

So, I've been looking at student bank accounts and I'm wondering if I actually NEED one? I shouldn't go into my overdraft, mainly because I don't go out clubbing so will only really be spending money on rent and food. I also just don't do overdrafts; it's not my money so I don't want to be in debt, just a way I think. Are there any pros and cons of having one? I won't go with santander for reasons, and already have a railcard and whatnot so don't care about the freebies. What are the other perks?

Basically if you're a student then you're not allowed to get a ' normal ' bank account which means you have to get a student one I'm afraid.... My bank recently sent me a letter all about this so you're just gonna have to open a student account as how else will you get your student loan ect ?

Reply 2

Original post by Gapyearstudent54

So, I've been looking at student bank accounts and I'm wondering if I actually NEED one? I shouldn't go into my overdraft, mainly because I don't go out clubbing so will only really be spending money on rent and food. I also just don't do overdrafts; it's not my money so I don't want to be in debt, just a way I think. Are there any pros and cons of having one? I won't go with santander for reasons, and already have a railcard and whatnot so don't care about the freebies. What are the other perks?

No, you don't need one, but it's highly recommended as if your budgeting does fail, then there's less worry about high charges, with a 0% overdraft.
There's more "bribes" than a rail card so do your research.
Some offer money off on a range of items throughout the year, and some even give you interest on your money.
HSBC give you an amazon voucher for going with them.

So no, it's not the law, and you don't have to, but it is good to have one, and comes with some nice perks!

Reply 3

OP

Original post by fefssdf

Basically if you're a student then you're not allowed to get a ' normal ' bank account which means you have to get a student one I'm afraid.... My bank recently sent me a letter all about this so you're just gonna have to open a student account as how else will you get your student loan ect ?

I currently have two current accounts, I got a letter from my bank saying they'll change it unless I contact them but not saying I have to have a student account specifically. I'll still have 2 accounts during uni, if not 3, so I just don't see the point in opening one that doesn't offer me much more :/

Student loan can just go into normal account; it'll just be a BACS transfer I assume

Reply 4

Devify

19

Original post by fefssdf

Basically if you're a student then you're not allowed to get a ' normal ' bank account which means you have to get a student one I'm afraid.... My bank recently sent me a letter all about this so you're just gonna have to open a student account as how else will you get your student loan ect ?

That's bs. It has always been that you can use any bank account for your student loans. Student bank accounts are just suggested for the free overdraft. If you want, you can keep a simple current account. The only reason for your bank to say so I can think of is that they specifically only allow you to have a student account if you go to uni while with them. Or you understood it wrong

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 5

Original post by fefssdf

Basically if you're a student then you're not allowed to get a ' normal ' bank account which means you have to get a student one I'm afraid.... My bank recently sent me a letter all about this so you're just gonna have to open a student account as how else will you get your student loan ect ?

Your bank did? I've received no such letter, what bank are you with? I'm with NatWest, and am keeping my basic account an my ISA with them, while I plan to get a student bank account with HSBC, as their perks are best suited to me.

Reply 6

OP

Original post by omfgalib

No, you don't need one, but it's highly recommended as if your budgeting does fail, then there's less worry about high charges, with a 0% overdraft.
There's more "bribes" than a rail card so do your research.
Some offer money off on a range of items throughout the year, and some even give you interest on your money.
HSBC give you an amazon voucher for going with them.

So no, it's not the law, and you don't have to, but it is good to have one, and comes with some nice perks!

So there's not anything much other than an overdraft compared to a normal account? All the comparisons I saw mainly talked about overdraft rather than interest rates..

Reply 7

Original post by Gapyearstudent54

So there's not anything much other than an overdraft compared to a normal account? All the comparisons I saw mainly talked about overdraft rather than interest rates..

That's because most students are bad at budgeting, and tend to go into their overdraft by the 3rd year!

Reply 8

Devify

19

Original post by Gapyearstudent54

So, I've been looking at student bank accounts and I'm wondering if I actually NEED one? I shouldn't go into my overdraft, mainly because I don't go out clubbing so will only really be spending money on rent and food. I also just don't do overdrafts; it's not my money so I don't want to be in debt, just a way I think. Are there any pros and cons of having one? I won't go with santander for reasons, and already have a railcard and whatnot so don't care about the freebies. What are the other perks?

You don't specifically need one but there are other perks but it depends on the specific bank. You may also want to look at graduate accounts. Banks offer different account for when you graduate that you can continue to use after and it also has different perks. So basically you need to compare them all and see what is best for you. Maybe having a student account won't matter much but the graduate one could be way better than regular one.

Reply 9

OP

Original post by omfgalib

That's because most students are bad at budgeting, and tend to go into their overdraft by the 3rd year!

Or first term :laugh:

My brother is constantly in his overdraft, I just hate the idea of it, and I'm quite good at saving; I have two accounts, one thats spending, the other is saving, as well as a pot of dreams that could have anything from £50-£300+ in it..

But yeah, overdrafts just seem a bit of a bad habit to have in my opinion :/

Reply 10

TrojanH

21

Original post by omfgalib

No, you don't need one, but it's highly recommended as if your budgeting does fail, then there's less worry about high charges, with a 0% overdraft.
There's more "bribes" than a rail card so do your research.
Some offer money off on a range of items throughout the year, and some even give you interest on your money.
HSBC give you an amazon voucher for going with them.

So no, it's not the law, and you don't have to, but it is good to have one, and comes with some nice perks!

I don't think HSBC offer their amazon voucher any more. It's not listed on their site.

Original post by Gapyearstudent54

Or first term :laugh:

My brother is constantly in his overdraft, I just hate the idea of it, and I'm quite good at saving; I have two accounts, one thats spending, the other is saving, as well as a pot of dreams that could have anything from £50-£300+ in it..But yeah, overdrafts just seem a bit of a bad habit to have in my opinion :/

That's stupid. The only thing that's a bad habit in that scenario, is yourself. Having a fall back system is never a bad thing. Especially considering you would save money over a single O.D. fine.

Reply 11

Devify

19

Read this:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/students/Student-bank-account

Reply 12

Original post by omfgalib

Your bank did? I've received no such letter, what bank are you with? I'm with NatWest, and am keeping my basic account an my ISA with them, while I plan to get a student bank account with HSBC, as their perks are best suited to me.

I'm with Barclays and they told me I'm not allowed a normal current adult and that I have to switch from my current young person's account to a student account

Reply 13

Original post by Gapyearstudent54

Or first term :laugh:

My brother is constantly in his overdraft, I just hate the idea of it, and I'm quite good at saving; I have two accounts, one thats spending, the other is saving, as well as a pot of dreams that could have anything from £50-£300+ in it..

But yeah, overdrafts just seem a bit of a bad habit to have in my opinion :/

Overdrafts are a bad habit, and can get you in a lot of financial trouble! If you've ever had bayliffs knocking on the door you'll know!
But it is a cushion, since a lot of people will be new to budgeting and looking after themselves, depending on how sheltered they are at home.

Reply 14

OP

Original post by TrojanH

That's stupid. The only thing that's a bad habit in that scenario, is yourself. Having a fall back system is never a bad thing. Especially considering you would save money over a single O.D. fine.

I just don't like overdrafts. A lot of people I know treat them as if thats the money left in their account, and I know someone who was in the red for nearly a year after finishing uni. It's just personal preference :smile:

Reply 15

Original post by Devify

That's bs. It has always been that you can use any bank account for your student loans. Student bank accounts are just suggested for the free overdraft. If you want, you can keep a simple current account. The only reason for your bank to say so I can think of is that they specifically only allow you to have a student account if you go to uni while with them. Or you understood it wrong

Posted from TSR Mobile

I'm quite confused now because I even contacted customer services at Barclays about this and they made it sound as if I can't have a normal ' adult ' account and the letter even says that it's time for a new account because my current account is only meant for like 16-18 I think . I guess I'll have to ask again like idk

Reply 16

TrojanH

21

Original post by fefssdf

I'm with Barclays and they told me I'm not allowed a normal current adult and that I have to switch from my current young person's account to a student account

I literally went into Barclays yesterday and requested that my Young Person's account is changed to a Current Account and not a Student Account. You didn't understand what the email was asking you to do.

Reply 17