Mark604

I've not spent much time in the UK for many years but still kept a UK bank as I had a house there. I've recently sold this house and end up having no address. The problem is that soon my credit card will be renewed and the bank says they will only send it to a UK address, not to me in Spain.
I have no relatives or close friends left in the UK to which it could be sent and/or an address to be registered with at the bank.

Do any other expats solve this problem with their circumstances? How?
I don't really want to transfer everything to a Spanish bank but I would like to find a way to have this and future credit cards forwarded to me in Spain or next year to another country that I happen to be long term travelling to.

lyric030250

Which bank Mark? between us four banks and cards all send replacements to Spain.

Mark604

HSBC.
I'm sure that if I had one stolen they'd get one to me in Spain, but for a normal renewal when one runs out they said they would send it to my address in the UK, which I haven't got, or I could nominate a branch in the UK and pick it up from there.

lyric030250

My wife banks with HSBC and has had no difficulty in the last seven years. Possibly you just need to talk to a different person. We have no address either and use a PO box.

mikemike

When I banked with HSBC I had no issues about CC or DC being sent overseas. Some places far higher risk than Spain!!

Mark604

I'll certainly have another word with them. I presume the bank accounts are not special expat accounts, just normal current/savings accounts?
Did they want any authentication of the address? I have a PO box here as well and I'm hoping they'll send it to that.

mikelincs

My wife had an HSBC account when we were in Spain and had no problems changing her address on line to a Spanish address and then to diffferent addresses in Spain including PO Box addresses.

Mark604

Mike, the last time I contacted them, by phone and email, I was told the same thing, i.e. must have a UK address. I have an account I can access online and funnily enough, just as I wrote the above I suddenly thought 'I wonder if I can just change the bloody address to a Spanish one on there?'
So I have done.
I'm hoping it is as simple as that and from what you all say, then probably it should be.
I don't know why I didn't think of it before. I'm probably stuck in the old ways of thinking I actually have to talk to a person.

dypcdiver

BoS is happy to send credit cards etc. to me here in Spain.
Interestingly though they picked up that I pay a UK phone bill (my father's) by DD and wrote to me to ask if I had returned to the UK.

Mark604

Thanks for that info as well.

Cabbages

I worked for HSBC up until this year. The reason they won't send it to a Spanish address is because you have to be a UK resident to qualify for a CREDIT card.
The only way to get around it would be if you had a registered UK address listed with them as your home address, and an additional Spanish correspondence address where your post could also be sent to.

madforfishing

Hi All,

This seems to be the right place to ask... Can I open a UK bank account, online, via the internet, without visiting a physical branch in the UK?

Thanks

Cabbages

Yes with either Lloyds bank or TSB. I can't remember which.

madforfishing

Thanks

snikpoh

Really? Last time I asked they said I had to be UK resident.

Are you absolutely sure?