Leedsbuildingsociety Reviews

Called Leeds for a Certificate of Loan interest for BTL mortgage as this is required for our tax returns Waited 2 days and they sent a mortgage statement only Had called 4 other lender the same day they emailed the docs and gave me the figure over the phone also Leeds said because of their new system they were unable to email

While I have had no problems in the past with depositing money online this is the first time I have wanted to make a withdrawal I had the option of transferring to another Leeds B S account or accepting a cheque They do not appear to be able to use the Faster Payments system which most financial institutions which I have dealt with do but offer a CHAPS payment after you fill in a form and make a payment of 20 In this day and age executing a withdrawal by way of a cheque is just not acceptable and i will not be placing any more money with the Leeds B S

Not quite the experience I am used to as I was given incomplete incorrect information by one adviser and when I called back to speak to a second adviser to get the correct information the adviser was a bit lacklustre and seemed reluctant to give her name I was not filled with confidence at all

I needed to move the savings I had in a cash ISA with another building society as the interest rate had fallen to a paltry amount Leeds were offering a competitive rate so I opened an account with the minimum amount 1 000 to try it out For an online ISA the technology or lack of is astounding I had to wait for them to post an activation code before I could use the account online I ve read somebody saying you need to go into a branch to reset your password Everything is so slow I decided to move my money into a more modern ISA but even that took two phone calls and three weeks before they d let the money go It s also worth bearing in mind that Leeds don t offer a flexible ISA If you take money out and put it back it counts towards your annual 20k allowance twice Another annoyance is that interest is paid annually - it s much nicer to see your savings grow every day In fact you can t see much at all without logging on as they don t have a working Open Banking API The staff I dealt with were all polite and helpful but their systems need to be brought into the 21st century I hate it when my money disappears for days on end

We had multiple letters and messages telling us we had not completed necessary documents or paid the fee after all had been completed and after cheque had been cashed Each time I called to check I was told all was ok Then I receive another letter Very very distressing and disappointing

Firstly - I am grateful that LBS accepted my mortgage application I bought a new build home in a completely new large development on ex farmland They were the only lender not so fussy Everything went smoothly online Communication account opening payments etc - all brilliant So good that I opened a savings account with them online Plus their interest rate is really good Again opening an account depositing monies communication brilliant But for a 21st century modern banking institution - to transfer your savings to another bank without charges can only be done via cheque This is extraordinary not in a good way I hasten to add for a modern financial institution I have to submit my request online then wait for old school cheque to be sent to my home Then have to trek with said cheque to my other bank to deposit In total around a week to get it credited to my other account Why can t we do all this online like all the other financial institutions do Why not have a banking app So backward That s my gripes Over and out

Leeds BS did not inform me that a better instant ISA rate was available on New Issue of essentially the same product So I had to read it in a newspaper Then open new ISA and secure message Leeds to get my balance transferred over I would prefer that LBS did this proactively by advising me by secure message Once messaged it happened OK

I am fortunate enough to have some assets in a Stocks and Shares ISA which I wanted to transfer to a Leeds Cash ISA I went all the way through the on-line application process only to find at the very last stage that Leeds will not allow only PART of the Stocks and Shares ISA to be transferred which is what I wanted Therefore I abandoned application This restriction is not clear enough from reading terms and conditions Now Leeds is badgering me to activate an on-line account which it thinks I have set despite not having a user name or password so I can t access the account to close it

Have always found our local branch and the staff to be most helpful but why do easy access interest rates continue to be deplorable Compared with other saving institutions I like the branch Im pleased with staff but someone in a grey suit in a swanky office dictates the miniscule interest Rates

On line savings - it works Just It s clunky and always reminds me of Postman Pat and classic Emmerdale with hints of Heartbeat I imagine their IT guy as a skinny 65 year old with a grey pony tail a black shirt and leather waistcoat I bet their toilet still has a pull chain I swear if you go to their contacts under mail they give a postal address and the ethos is still one of ring us or call into a branch It s 2024 fgs