Oh banks...
I really, really, really dislike banks. Regardless of country, time of day, or branch, I generally have no good feelings towards such institutions. In my experience, banks are far too happy to take away your money rather than help you save it, and I continually fear I will give up with banks entirely and turn into a Great Depression-era saver, stashing all of my cash underneath my matress and between the pages of my favorite book.
That said, when I stopped by the on-campus branch of Natwest this morning to sort out yet another superfluous fee, I was incredibly surprised when the trip turned out to be very useful, and that I actually ended up saving money. I was so impressed, in fact, that I thought I'd share with you guys what it was they helped me with!
Upon arriving in the UK two years ago I had three main things on my to-do list:
1. Find out where my housing was.
2. Get a phone.
3. Get a bank account.
When it came to #3, turns out the process was quite simple. I chose one of the banks that have branches on campus - Natwest - brought in
my passport, filled out some paperwork, and bam, done! As an international student I was able to sign up for a step account - not quite as advantagous as a full student account, but as I found out today, has some really useful options. For £6.95 a month, I'm able to get £500 worth the insurance coverage on my laptop, full insurance coverage on my mobile phone, and a free National Rail card to help save me 1/3 on standard fare on all UK rail lines! I'm not sure why I was unaware of this service when I first arrived (I probably just thought I didn't need it), but two years in, having realized how useful a railcard is and having been through no less than 4 lost mobile phones, I think £6.95 is a perfect price to pay for all of the above.
All in all, it's the perfect package for me, so I signed up, and now I can call up my mobile phone company and cancel my much more expensive phone insurance plan! You'd think I'd have figured this sort of thing out before I'd been in the country two years...but hey, better late than never, and I thought I would share!
Ta for now!
Kathy
American Student Ambassador
That said, when I stopped by the on-campus branch of Natwest this morning to sort out yet another superfluous fee, I was incredibly surprised when the trip turned out to be very useful, and that I actually ended up saving money. I was so impressed, in fact, that I thought I'd share with you guys what it was they helped me with!
Upon arriving in the UK two years ago I had three main things on my to-do list:
1. Find out where my housing was.
2. Get a phone.
3. Get a bank account.
When it came to #3, turns out the process was quite simple. I chose one of the banks that have branches on campus - Natwest - brought in
my passport, filled out some paperwork, and bam, done! As an international student I was able to sign up for a step account - not quite as advantagous as a full student account, but as I found out today, has some really useful options. For £6.95 a month, I'm able to get £500 worth the insurance coverage on my laptop, full insurance coverage on my mobile phone, and a free National Rail card to help save me 1/3 on standard fare on all UK rail lines! I'm not sure why I was unaware of this service when I first arrived (I probably just thought I didn't need it), but two years in, having realized how useful a railcard is and having been through no less than 4 lost mobile phones, I think £6.95 is a perfect price to pay for all of the above.All in all, it's the perfect package for me, so I signed up, and now I can call up my mobile phone company and cancel my much more expensive phone insurance plan! You'd think I'd have figured this sort of thing out before I'd been in the country two years...but hey, better late than never, and I thought I would share!
Ta for now!
Kathy
American Student Ambassador
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