HSBC warning over ‘additional checks’ for account holders | Personal Finance | Finance
HSBC has clarified its bank account rules after a customer had a frustrating experience. The customer claimed they were denied a service despite already being an account holder.
The person reached out to HSBC over social media to voice their gripe. They said: “I want to apply for a bank account but you’re making it very difficult as I already have a product so can’t do it online???”
HSBC responded to apologise had the customer’s inconvenience. The bank also explained the rules to bear in mind. The group said: “To open a secondary account, we would need to complete some additional checks.”
The bank encouraged the customer to call their customer services team on 03457 404 404 for further help. This phone line is open Monday to Sunday from 8am to 8pm.
The customer was unimpressed with this response. They asked: “I get the extra checks but why call? Can’t it all be done online like all other banks?”
HSBC replied: “I am sorry about this, but this would need to be completed with an agent.” The bank also told the customer they could send them a private message about the matter.
£500 payments
The bank is currently offering £500 if you’ll switch your current account to the HSBC Premier Account as a new customer. To get the bonus, you need to complete a full switch using the Current Account Switch Service.
You also need to have either a qualifying salary of £100,000 or more a year or to deposit and keep £100,000 or more in savings or investments with HSBC UK.
If you meet all the criteria, you will be paid the £500 into your new Premier Acount. You need to be a UK resident and be aged 18 or over to qualify.
HSBC offers a range of fixed rate and regular savings accounts, as well as fixed rate and instant access ISAs. With ISAs, your savings growth is entirely tax-free.
You can currently deposit up to £20,000 each tax year into ISAs of any type. But from April 2027, you will only be able to use up to £12,000 as you choose.
The other £8,000 will not be available for cash deposits and will only be able to be used for deposits into stocks and shares accounts. However, people aged 65 and over are being spared from the changes and will retain the current £20,000 allowance.
