{"id":61517,"date":"2015-09-15T23:15:00","date_gmt":"2015-09-15T23:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?guid=2dff16708096d4e735363dc401ca9ca3"},"modified":"2016-09-15T23:15:01","modified_gmt":"2016-09-15T23:15:01","slug":"news-story-7-ways-banking-has-been-made-easier","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?p=61517","title":{"rendered":"News story: 8 ways banking has been made easier"},"content":{"rendered":"

Updated:<\/em> Updating entries to include fee caps and fee-free banking. Further updates to dates and statistics.<\/p>\n

\n

1. You can now switch your current account in 7 days<\/h3>\n

We set up the Current Account Switch Service in September 2013.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a quick and easy way to switch your current account in 7 days \u2013 your direct debits and standing orders are transferred automatically, and there\u2019s a switch guarantee, so you\u2019re protected against financial loss if anything goes wrong when you switch. Over 3.2 million switches have taken place since 2013. And it\u2019s also available to 99% of small businesses.<\/p>\n

2. It\u2019s now really easy for you to pay someone using your mobile phone<\/h3>\n

Services like Paym and Pingit let you pay somebody just through using your mobile phone number \u2013 so paying your share of the taxi ride home when your friend is the only one with cash is a lot less hassle.<\/p>\n

The Payment Systems Regulator<\/a> (which we set-up last year) is working with payment systems to improve how you pay for things.<\/p>\n

3. Capping bank fees for processing card transactions<\/h3>\n

In December 2015 we introduced a cap on the charges paid by a business to your bank when you pay for something using a debit or credit card.<\/p>\n

Industry has estimated that this could save UK consumers and businesses up to \u00a3700 million a year.<\/p>\n

4. You\u2019ll soon be able to deposit a cheque using your smart phone<\/h3>\n

A change in legislation passed in the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill on 26 March 2015 means that from 2018, banks will process all cheques as images. This not only means quicker clearing times, but greater convenience and choice in how you deposit cheques.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll still be able to deposit cheques at branches, cash machines, Post Offices or by post, but banks will also be able to offer the option of paying in cheques via smartphone, tablets or other technology.<\/p>\n

5. Taking out a mortgage is becoming simpler<\/h3>\n

We asked Which? and the Council of Mortgage Lenders to look at how the fees you\u2019re charged when you take out a mortgage can be made clearer \u2013 like better explanations of whether fees are compulsory or avoidable and when they will be charged.<\/p>\n

Their report<\/a> contained commitments from industry to deliver a standardised fee tariff and to use the same terms so consumers can understand them.<\/p>\n

6. You\u2019ve now got more banks to choose from<\/h3>\n

We lowered the regulatory barriers preventing banks from entering the sector. 8 completely new UK banks have been authorised since May 2015, and several more are in the pipeline.<\/p>\n

This includes digital-only banks like Atom, Monzo and Tandem which are all competing hard for new customers.<\/p>\n

7. If you\u2019re a small business we\u2019re making it easier for you to access finance<\/h3>\n

If you apply for a small business loan and it\u2019s rejected, we\u2019re changing the law so the lender you applied to has to offer to share your details with finance platforms so that you can be linked-up with alternative lending opportunities<\/a>. You can also appeal a rejected application direct to your bank through the Appeals Process<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Business Banking Insight<\/a> provides a ranking of the best banking institutions, products and services, as rated by the UK\u2019s small businesses themselves. This makes it easier to choose the right bank and products for your business.<\/p>\n

8. It is easier to get a fee-free basic bank account<\/h3>\n

If you don\u2019t have or can\u2019t get a standard current account you can apply for a fee-free basic bank account from any of the UK\u2019s 9 largest banks. There isn\u2019t an overdraft or fees for failed payments so you can manage your money without fear of running up an overdraft or being locked out of your account by unexpected charges.<\/p>\n

These accounts have features including:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • access to ATMs and online payments<\/li>\n
  • direct debit and standing orders<\/li>\n
  • over the counter services in bank branches and the Post Office<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Working with the banking industry we\u2019re improving how you bank. Here\u2019s how:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61517"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=61517"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61517\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":74224,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61517\/revisions\/74224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=61517"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=61517"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=61517"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}