Originally Posted by bridie

I will do, meant to do it yesterday just never got round to it

Must admit I wasnt impressed with their customer service in the branch either, 30 minutes I stood there in the heat (no aircon it seems...) and she just tapped away, no conversation, nothing, and when she did ask me something I struggled to hear what she was saying as she was mumbling - but they had time for staff to chat to each other about god knows what.

Sorry, bit of a rant there

Originally Posted by Sooty and Sweep

A tad disappointed maybe, i was hoping for more options than Westpac. Put a considerable amount of work into my original post and your reply seems to have stopped me in my tracks, so ummmmmmmmmm?

Originally Posted by Swerv-o

I've said it before and I will no doubt say it again, but I don't think you can beat the HSBC Online Savings account. Look at all these features:

*$0 monthly account keeping fee#
*A high interest rate of 5.35%p.a *
*A high 6.40%p.a.* interest rate for deposits $500,000 or more
*Unlimited free HSBC ATM transactions^
*Five free ATM transactions per month at any bank ATM~
*Free BPAY®, EFTPOS and Bank@PostTM
*Free automated phone and Internet Banking
*24/7 online access

You can open an account from the UK, and it is immediately active with telephone and online banking. No faffing around having to 'activate' it.


S

Originally Posted by midwife2be

I did look into this one but the fact of having only one branch in perth put me off! Is it possible for family to deposit money in the account from the uk?

Originally Posted by midwife2be

Do you get your cards before you go or do you still have to go into the branch in aus for them?

Originally Posted by Swerv-o

No they send them to your UK address, along with PIN numbers (not in the same envelope), a cheque book and an ID PIN number device.

You can use them as soon as they arrive.


S

Originally Posted by midwife2be

That does sound appealing thanks for your help!!

Originally Posted by Swerv-o

I've said it before and I will no doubt say it again, but I don't think you can beat the HSBC Online Savings account. Look at all these features:

*$0 monthly account keeping fee#
*A high interest rate of 5.35%p.a *
*A high 6.40%p.a.* interest rate for deposits $500,000 or more
*Unlimited free HSBC ATM transactions^
*Five free ATM transactions per month at any bank ATM~
*Free BPAY®, EFTPOS and Bank@PostTM
*Free automated phone and Internet Banking
*24/7 online access

You can open an account from the UK, and it is immediately active with telephone and online banking. No faffing around having to 'activate' it.


S

Originally Posted by Sooty and Sweep

http://www.hsbc.com.au/1/2/personal/...online-account

Interest rates are effective 27-Nov-07and are subject to change.

Online Savings Account - Key Features
No monthly account keeping fee
A high 5.10% p.a1 interest rate on amounts between $5,000 to $499,999
6.15% p.a on deposits greater than $500,0001
Fee-free banking options within Australia
Unlimited free HSBC ATM transactions
Five free ATM transactions per month, at any bank ATM2
Free BPAY®, EFTPOS and Bank@Post™


They seem to have dropped the headline interest rates recently?

Originally Posted by Swerv-o

The rates I quoted were Emailed to me about 10 mins before I posted them, which is what prompted me to post them. So it may be that they are raising them instead


S

Originally Posted by midwife2be

How did you manage to open the hsbc account from the uk, you cant do it online - do you just phone or go into a uk branch?

We already bank with first direct and thought it would be pretty straightforward but doesnt seem to be They also mentioned a £100 set up fee

Originally Posted by Sooty and Sweep

Hi,
I understand you can open a current account from this side of the pond, a good thread outlines this process!

Here's how to open a Westpac account from the UK.
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=452418

My question relates to Bankwest really.

Has anyone opened this account while in the UK.
BankWest Hero Transaction Account - A current account.
http://www.bankwest.com.au/Personal/...ero/index.aspx

It looks quite good, do you agree?

I ask because i want to ask has anyone opened this account while in the UK?

BankWest TeleNet Saver 7.20%
http://www.abetterdeal.com.au/index.asp

The reason for my post is to summarise the situation prior to leaving the UK, but making your funds work harder?

I want to transfer X amount of money to a newly opened BankWest TeleNet Saver while in the UK, is this a possibility, or is it impossible due to the rules?

I understand you must first transfer the funds to a current account in Australia. Can the current account be a BankWest Hero Transaction Account, or does the current account have to be an external account away from Bankwest, so maybe a Westpac account?

Once the funds are in your current account, for example i am still in the UK, i want to transfer my funds from my Australian current account to my BankWest TeleNet Saver. Now if my current account is a BankWest Hero Transaction Account, then it is in the same institution as my BankWest TeleNet Saver, so would there be a problem moving the funds even though i have not activated my BankWest Hero Transaction Account in Australia. I know i must activate a Westpac current account in Australia prior to moving funds so would not be feasible if i had a Westpac current account.

This leads me to my next question, if the problem in moving funds to my BankWest TeleNet Saver is activating my current account while in the UK, then is there a way to activate either my Westpac current account or BankWest Hero Transaction Account while in the UK. I understand there is a Westpac branch in London where you can activate your current account, but there is no point if i cannot open my BankWest TeleNet Saver while in the UK.

Is there a BankWest branch in the UK, where i can activate my BankWest Hero Transaction Account, then move funds to my BankWest TeleNet Saver while in the UK.

I know its all complicated, but an important question, if you are moving funds weeks or months before you plan to arrive in Australia, and do not want your funds sitting in your current account in Australia.

Appologies for the complicated nature of my post, but it could help many in the future, so well worth the trouble i feel?