Santander, Barclays, Lloyds customers urged to 'close' their bank accounts

James Rodger
·2-min read
Savers have been urged to move their money as high street banks interest rates "lag behind", according to a bombshell new personal finance report.
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


Savers have been urged to move their money out of a string of top high street banks before Christmas. Savers have been urged to move their money as high street banks interest rates "lag behind", according to a bombshell new personal finance report.

Savings interest rates have soared to historic highs in recent years but some major banks are not passing these hikes to customers, new research claims. In a new Which? study, HSBC, Barclays, and Bank of Scotland all received lacklustre customer scores of around 65 per cent.

None of the UK's biggest banks, except Nationwide, managed to secure a place in the top 20 providers. Traditional high street banks offered substantially lower rates, with HSBC at two per cent, Bank of Scotland at 1.8 per cent, and Barclays trailing at just 1.6 per cent.

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Barclays and Santander had the third lowest interest ratings with a score of 51 each. Bank of Scotland also scored drastically low at 52, and Lloyds Bank 53. Some banks which maintained satisfactory interest ratings were Nationwide and Natwest with 76 and 87 respectively.

Sam Richardson, Deputy Editor of Which? Money, said: "High street banks continue to lag behind digital banks and building societies - not just on the competitiveness of interest rates offered but also how happy their customers are."

"Some of the top-performing providers in our analysis may not be familiar to consumers, but they have been rigorously analysed and all are backed by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme," he added. Richardson advises that "loyalty is seldom rewarded and, if you're with a high street name, now could be the time to move your money."

The best ranked for interest rates came from little-known providers, with Cahoot taking the leading spot with 95. The second best interest rates came from Bank of London and Middle East with 94%.

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