Reply to: Banking Cater Allen

My philosophy is no internet - no business. I can't remember when was the last time I visited my local branch. I feel handicapped without Internet Banking!!

Wait a sec. You think these interest rates from Abbey's Reserve account is bad??

£10,000 up to £99,999 4.25% Gross

ppl tell me which is the bank which offers a business account with a decent interest rate with free banking or a less fee?

[texto]

Because the interest rate with Cater Allen is more than twice that of Abbey.

My philosophy is no internet - no business. I can't remember when was the last time I visited my local branch. I feel handicapped without Internet Banking!!

Wait a sec. You think these interest rates from Abbey's Reserve account is bad??

£10,000 up to £99,999 4.25% Gross

[Denny]

My only concern about their declining standards of service is that, on one occasion a couple of months ago, the phone rang two times before they answered it.

How long between both rings though? Was there time for Vivaldi's four seasons?

[Gonzo]

Cater Allan had good customer service, however, the lack of Online Banking was a bind, so I moved to HSBC on the offer of 18 months free banking plus internet banking. HSBC have been very responsive in sorting out queries. I even got a Business Manager, actually a spotty herbert just out of school, although he was keen and pretty effective.

I appreciate that the telephone is difficult to operate and not for everyone.

I have posted this before but it is worth saying again, there are things that I have set up that I would have done wrong if I had done them myself online, but the person on the phone at Cater Allen knew exactly what I was trying to do and steered me in the right direction.

My only concern about their declining standards of service is that, on one occasion a couple of months ago, the phone rang two times before they answered it.

Cater Allan had good customer service, however, the lack of Online Banking was a bind, so I moved to HSBC on the offer of 18 months free banking plus internet banking. HSBC have been very responsive in sorting out queries. I even got a Business Manager, actually a spotty herbert just out of school, although he was keen and pretty effective.

Out of all the banks discussed which gives a decent interest rate?

[VinnyB]

Cater Allan had good customer service, however, the lack of Online Banking was a bind, so I moved to HSBC on the offer of 18 months free banking plus internet banking. HSBC have been very responsive in sorting out queries. I even got a Business Manager, actually a spotty herbert just out of school, although he was keen and pretty effective.

[planetit]

Cater Allen is a part of Abbey Group, isn't it? Why open an account with Cater Allen when you can open a much better account with Abbey National (with internet)?

http://www.anbusiness.com

Because the interest rate with Cater Allen is more than twice that of Abbey.

[Red 7]

Cater Allen is a part of Abbey Group, isn't it? Why open an account with Cater Allen when you can open a much better account with Abbey National (with internet)?

http://www.anbusiness.com

The service @ CA is a breath of fresh air, but I opened my account with them purely for the prestige. I'm either too honest or just a narcissist and I'm not sure which.

Maybe both

[Zorba]

JogOn - good to know that you haven't thrown in the towel yet. I've been with Cater Allen for just over a year and the phone service is just superb. Yes, I'll chime in with everyone on the 'internet banking next month' thing, but it's almost sad how refreshing it is when you call them - I've gotten so used to the crappy offshore call centres of other businesses that I would almost bank with Cater Allen just to prevent decent telephone service from disappearing!

[Jog On]

I initially did it because I thought it would be quicker than a high street bank, also I was impressed with the reputation they have for good service on here. Every time I've called them up (which is a lot over the last 2 weeks) the phone hasn't rung more than once before a human has answered - you'd never get that with a high street bank, I've read that internet banking is coming to CA as well sometime soon.

Also the account is specifically catered for IT contractors so I don't have to answer stupid questions about expected turnover and write business plans or try and justify why I think I'm worthy of an account which I've had with RBS who I initially applied to.

I'm told CA have increased their staff by 300% to try and deal with all the new accounts after the budget changes, I just chose the wrong time to open a Ltd company I think - oh well, it's my first contract and I had to get out of my last perm job and the time was right so que sera sera.

It's all in hand now, I'm confident things will be in place soon, I'm used to a bumpy ride. I was absolutely livid when I got off the phone with them this morning - since then the broker has managed to turn things around.

[texto]

Cater Allen is a part of Abbey Group, isn't it? Why open an account with Cater Allen when you can open a much better account with Abbey National (with internet)?

http://www.anbusiness.com

[Jog On]

This has been dealt with very efficiently by the broker (CUK), looks like it's still going ahead, I'll put it down to bad luck. I'm sure with the deluge of new accounts and measures taken to try and process them all things like this are bound to happen - to me of course

I'm very impressed with the level of service from CUK I've had today to get this sorted out - looks like I might go with Cater Allen after all.

[philip@wellwoodhoyle]

My advice to anyone looking for a business account - go elsewhere.

Or persevere with Cater Allen but either do it directly with them or through a more efficient route (such as an accountant). By the sounds of it, it isn't Cater Allen's fault that your problem has arisen as someone must have tippexed the form before it got to them, i.e. the broker.

[Jog On]

I've made a complaint so I'll see what they say. I think the main failure is in the communication. I had someone tell me that the account should be set up before easter, I've phoned them every day since to chase up and they've only just decided to tell me that they need to start again because someone tippexed my forms..

I deal with users every day and a lot of what I do is communicating the status of issues and managing their expectations - I really go out of my way to do that so maybe that's why I'm so irked by what's happened - that and being back at square 1 after a month of waiting.

Busy is no excuse - if I used 'busy' as an excuse for screwing something up I'd be told it's not good enough.

[cykophysh39]

I really do feel for you dude, I don't like incompetence, and unfortunately the UK is full of it.

Have you tried making a complaint to a manager, about the level of service you have recieved, one thing I can assure you is that Cater Allen are really keen on sorting out any issues.

The problem with a High street bank is that "Personal Service" doesn't exist, so you'll probably get treated worse.

Best of luck with you endeavours.