Written on: 07/05/2013
No problem with the account at all, works great. However their site has gone down at a weekend twice in the past 12 months (these things happen) only they don't work at weekends. So you can't speak to anyone until Monday morning to transfer money anywhere. I thought I was going mad as I was sure I used to phone them at weekends, so I found some old paperwork and yes, they one were 24/7. And then the hours reduced at the weekend. And now nobody is available at all at weekends. Which seems a... (read more)
Written on: 12/04/2013
Best think we ever did was to move to a Virgin One account. We will have reduced our mortgage by 12 years by being really disciplined and using the sub folders as explained with in the account to keep track of our money. It's a real incentive to complete your mortgage as soon as possible as you see the outstanding balance drop on a monthly basis in our case. The staff are always friendly and polite whenever we have had to speak to them. The only negative is you have to pay £25.00 every... (read more)
Written on: 28/02/2013 by Angeljaye
I have been with the One account for years. Smooth application process, reasonable fee's and extremely helpful staff. Once you get your head around the style of the account it is easy to manage and i enjoy watching all 'my' money work for 'me' ! Another huge plus for me is their customer service, i call & they answer...& yes, it is a real person! I can count on one hand how many times i've actually been held in a queue, and in this day and age that is huge!! Cant recommend them enough :-) (read more)
Written on: 29/01/2013
We applied for our mortgage in october 2012, it is now january and we are still not passed the underwriting stage!!! We have enough money to pay this mortgage twice over and have proved this with bank statments and pretty much ever other document we could have possible given them. At best, they work at a glacial pace and ask stupid questions like, why is there a 40p difference on our pay slip to what was paid into our account??? We have rented our current house now which means we will soon... (read more)
Written on: 22/12/2012
I opened my account in 2000 and have never looked back. You need to keep control of finances so if you cannot do that it is not for you - you cannot treat your facility the same way as a credit card limit because they are unlikely to keep increasing it for you. However if you get ahead of your plan by spending less than you earn for a while it is a cheap way to finance large purchases like cars, holidays, etc because you are effectively borrowing at about 4 per cent compared with a credit... (read more)
Written on: 07/11/2012
I found out in April that they closed my account which I had with them since 2000. They opened a new account. All this without telling me. After complaining at the time, today I FINALLY got a response from them (other than continuous holding letters). Apparently they did this too ALL of their customers that used to have mortgage accounts but no longer had a mortgage with them, keeping the current account facilities and direct debit set up etc. Furious isn't the word for it having... (read more)
Written on: 26/10/2012
Had an account for years, finished paid the mortgage. Went to close the account, they begged me to keep it open, saying it might be useful one day. Left a few quid in it and forgot about the account for a few years, basically they stung me for a load of charges, £15 for failed £5 direct debit! Needless to say closed the account, as they wouldn't give the £15 back as a gesture of good will. Tried for 4 days to ring them, requested a call back, heard nothing for another 2 days. Eventually... (read more)
Written on: 12/03/2013
I also have an account that has just been redeemed. The account will only be kept open for 3 months to allow me to change my direct debits etc to a new account elsewhere. According to the phone call I've just had, you're not allowed to keep the account open as a regular current account.
Written on: 17/10/2012
I went to an unrelated business meeting ten years ago with a clever man who told me about the Virgin One account in passing. My husband and I were just about to get a new mortgage and I though if its good enough for this guy its good enough for us. Absolutely the best thing we ever did. We paid our mortgage off in record time and we have used the account since for larger puchases like cars all of which we at the better mortgage lending rate. Six years ago I borrowed the money to purchase a... (read more)
Written on: 02/07/2012
I've had a Virgin One Account for over 15 years. I've never had any problems with the account. Whenever I ring Virgin they are well mannered and helpful. I have drastically cut my mortgage down over the years. I particularly like the feeling that you don't have to worry about bills as you always have the money to pay them. If you need a new car or want to make home improvements then you can do is at mortgage interest rates rate as opposed to bank loan interest rates. In short I love... (read more)
Written on: 23/04/2012
When I looked at how the one account worked I decided that it was the one for me so I phoned up to make some enquiries. I was told that Virgin's solicitors would deal with everything and that it would take around 4 weeks to complete. I asked about how much I could borrow and I was told that the amount I required shouldn,t be a problem. In order to speed up my application I paid up front for a valuation and a day or two later Virgin called to say that they weren't prepared to offer me the... (read more)
Written on: 06/04/2012
STARTED WITH THE MORTGAGE APPLICATION IN JANUARY AND WAS TOLD IT WOULD TAKE 12 WEEKS. I AM NOW IN WEEK 10 AND STILL NOT EVEN THROUGH THE INITIAL STAGE OF IDENTITY CHECK. THE CUSTOMER SERVICE DOES NOT TAKE OWNERSHIP OF YOUR ACCOUNT AND EVERY TIME YOU GET TO DEAL WITH ANOTHER PERSON WHO HAS NOT REALLY GOT ANY CLUE ABOUT YOUR SITUATION. I AM NOT AN ENGLISH NATIONAL BUT EUROPEAN AND THIS "CONFUSES" THE ONE ACCOUNT PEOPLE. IF THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF OUR MORTGAGE RELATIONSHIP, I DO DESPAIR ! (read more)
Written on: 11/02/2012 by RJCW (5 reviews written)
I would definitely NOT recommend this organisation. They are owned by Royal Bank of Scotland and it seems you often pay more...as there are essentially two middle men. Also, their customer service is lousy. We were away on a two-week holiday recently and were charged fees for various "services" as we inadvertently went over our limit due to a few New Year direct debits and had forgotten to transfer enough funds from our savings account. Although this was by less that £200, the bank... (read more)
Written on: 14/02/2012
Why would you have the One account if you are potentially going over your limit- have had it for Five years and will have my mortgage paid off in about another five- it sounds like it is not the mortgage for you. You do know that you don't get money for nothing- something that appears to be lost in todays society!!!
Written on: 14/02/2012
The first comment to RJCW by "guest", written on 14/02/2012, clearly does not understand how the One Account works. We had a similar experience to RJCW. We now only use our One Account to repay the mortgage due to the charges and bad service. It has nothing to do with "getting money for nothing", a comment made by the sanctimonious "Guest". Virgin One charges a very high interest rate for going overdrawn, which is entirely legitimate, and which we happily paid. It is the extra charges - now £15 per overdrawn transaction but, until recently, £35 - which were described by the Office of Fair Trading as unreasonable and unfair. Something that appears to be lost in today's comment by "Guest"!
Written on: 09/06/2011 by Joanna1962 (2 reviews written)
I transfered to the One Account just over 4 years ago and can't praise it highly enough. As previous reviewers have noted, you do have to be confident in managing your finances (it could be very easy to spend, spend, spend!) Although not the cheapest mortgage rate on the market, if you manage the account well the overall cost is brilliant. It takes a bit of getting used to, being in what is, in effect, a huge overdraft, but once you come to terms with that, it is very easy to see the... (read more)
Written on: 03/04/2011
Our fixed rate mortgage with Abbey expired in 2007 so after hearing great things we opted for the One Account. We have been very pleased so far, the flexibility is great, in the first year we paid more off the mortgage balance which was great when in the second year our finances were tight and we could take this money back out. The online banking is great and we have set up different e-accounts to help manage our money. The staff have always been excellent and despite my concerns about... (read more)
Written on: 27/03/2011
low set up costs, simple transfer, good online facility.
If you are good at managing your finances and have money left over at the end of the month this account is fabulous. Recommend to family and friends. we thought about this account for years and wished we had just bit the bullet and signed up. Ideal for those who wish to reduce the term or the size of your mortgage quickly. the 'savings' you ahve go into offset your origional debt therefore no tax accrued on these (obv ISA's are tax...
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Written on: 25/02/2011
I have recently left "Virgin" one account in favour of a cheaper, and more importantly, transparent account when it comes to interest rates. RBS have taken over this product from Virgin and have turned it into a sham. I decided to leave having questioned them as to how they could justify their interest rates, given the basis on which the one account was originally sold, and what their interest rate policy currently is. Incredibly, they refused to tell me what their interest rate policy is. I... (read more)
Written on: 23/07/2011
you are one hundred percent correct .both my bank manager[my darling wife !!!]and I opened our one a/c in 1999 and were assured the inerest rate would follow the base rate both north and south without fail, this seems to only apply now in a northerly direction. I cant locate the marketing bumf from 1999 and guess what? Its vanished off the internet. I have also tackled them over this on the telephone without any joy at all. There must be hundreds of us in the same boat.
Written on: 16/07/2012
Absolutely correct. I am also bailing out RBS through my unfair OneAccount interest rate. When I was out of work I needed to cash in other investments including a pension plan to keep my OneAccount within its limits - where was MY bail out when I needed it? They only offer increased borrowing limits when times are good, even at lower loan-to-value levels.
When I purchased this mortgage it was a Branson / Virgin product and promised to track the Bank of England Base Rate, which it did. When RBS bought out Virgin they broke the promise: now I'm paying 3.5% above base rate which is a rip off. Having spent last 2 years back in work getting borrowing to under 60% of home value, I'm now looking at 2.14% above base rate tracker mortgage from HSBC. It would save us over £16,000 in interest over the remaining 12 years of the loan!
Written on: 15/02/2011
Like many reviewers on this site opening a One Account was one of the best financial decisions we ever made. If you are not disciplined in managing your money and outgoings, are after the cheapest headline borrowing rates or do not have the ability to pay down your mortgage regularly then look elsewhere.
It is a brilliant product if you have a fluctuating income eg bonuses, are confident in managing your money sensibly and want to pay off your mortgage early but retain access to funds for...
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Written on: 10/01/2011
We have had a virgin one mortgage account for over ten years now . IT has done everything it promised and we have found ourselves well on course for early repayment despite buying many additional itens including cars and a deposit on a second home . Because it allows you such fantastic flexibility I would not hesitate to recommend it, but only if you are reasonably money aware and quite disciplined with yourself in terms of ensuring you have the ... (read more)
Written on: 20/12/2010
Had [Virgin] One Account for over 15 years, pretty much since it was launched. If your income is erratic, e.g. self employed or receiving dividends then then this is the ONLY option you should look. All other trackers have a seperate mortgage account that you have to pay in a set monthly minimum to. One account is totally flexible as you don't have to pay anything in for as long as you like with out having to ask for payment holidays, or you can pay in large sums up to any amount when ever... (read more)
Written on: 03/12/2010
I opened out a Virgin One Account in 2000 having been told that my endowment mortgage was unlikely to yield enough to pay off my mortgage (60,000) in 2013. I was paying nearly 500 per month in interest and endowment charges.
With Virgin I paid off my mortgage in just 7 years (6 years early) and saved thousands of pounds in the process. I subsequently sold the house and bought a fabulous house in France with a swimming pool - neither of which would have been possible had I stuck with my...
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Written on: 03/12/2010
Used to be quite good and customer focused. But seems to have lost its way and these days and are generally unsympathetic, inflexible and ready to apply charges at any opportunity. Reasonable charges in reasonable circumstances would be acceptable...but Virgin seem to make a lot of their profits through unfair and over-priced fees and charges. (read more)
Written on: 20/11/2010
I'm impressed by the Virgin One account. It like the way that the monthly information is laid out in an accessible way. When you phone, staff are knowledgable and helpful.My recent dealings with Ryanair have made me appreciate good customer service even more. (read more)
Written on: 18/10/2010 by waveneygnome (1 review written)
The One Acccount is expensive compared to other offset providers.
The lowest rate someone with a 50% deposit can get is 3.65%
Compare this to First Direct Offset mortage which is 2.59%
Thats a saving of nearly 30% off the cost of you mortgage.
If you spread this saving over the life of your mortgage, most people will save thousands.
On top of that, the service levels of the One Account are poor in relation to First Direct. The One Account closes its phone lines after 10pm. First Direct...
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Written on: 01/10/2010
Have had a Virgin One Account Mortgage for about ten years, and have now paid it off and its in credit, its an amazing way of focussing your attention on reducing your debt. Even though its been paid off I intend to keep it till I'm 70 (18 years from now), just in case we need to access some money and won't have to go cap in hand to any other bank. We paid it off by letting out the house and moving abroad to Germany and used all the rent to pay into the mortgage. Its so flexible you can... (read more)
Written on: 05/10/2010
I'm fascinated to read this, because when I spoke to Virgin they specifically said that you cannot go abroad and rent your house out, as that would class as a buy to let mortgage. Did they give you permission to do this?
Written on: 25/10/2010
We had already had the mortgage for 3 years when we moved abroad in 2004. Before we let out the house we asked for permission from the one account and they said it would be Ok. Whether this is still the case I don't know
Written on: 22/09/2010
A brilliant mortgage,we are renovating a listed building and are self employed so this mortgage works well for us so that we are not paying to borrow money we don't need to use and can pay off the mortgage when we are able to. The staff at the call centre have always been excellent and it is great to be able to speak so easily to a real person. I have no complaints about this account at all. (read more)
Written on: 10/09/2010
Having had a mortgage with Abbey/Santander for the last 9yrs, we have decided to jump ship and move it across to Virgin, Heard a lot about it both good and bad....
What with giving them 9yrs of hard grafted money and only a small dink in the loan to show for it!
Time will tell, apparently should be paid off in 7.9yrs!!
Watch this space
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Written on: 03/09/2010
For anyone with variable income ( mine varies by up to 45% year on year due to bonus incentives ) the One account is a fantastic product. Money we would have diverted to savings accounts or spent on pointless luxuries helped pay off our mortgage 12 years before the due date, saving us about £120,000 in the long run. We also kept the borrowing facility open by using the account as a current account, and now are able to fund building a new house without needing to find a new lender. Best... (read more)
Written on: 04/08/2010
A friend recommended this one account to me and I am 90% very impressed - which is a good rating from someone as sceptical as me. The great thing is that you can see your net debt and set yourself targets to get rid of it and pay off your mortgage earlier than you would normally.
The downside is that I have become obsessed with reducing the mortgage - every time I log on I see how much I owe and see that every penny I spend is actually borrowed money - before, with my more standard...
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Written on: 09/04/2010 by WeeTrishB (1 review written)
I've had a Virgin One Account for over 10 years and it's saved me thousands. You basically get used to having a bank account in overdraft. If you want to pay off your mortgage as quickly as possible and are 'good' with money then this account could be for you. If you are a spender and find it hard to save, then perhaps the more standard mortgage account would suit you better. Virgin One staff have all been excellent and it's easy to get through to them on the phone. (read more)
Written on: 14/03/2010
The Virgin One account is the best i have ever had. Yes lots of complaints about non-reduction of interest rates - but this is fine by me for the total flexibility i have to overpay or not. I took a year's break from paying with no hassle whatsoever from the bank. I have now close to paying off my entire mortgage 16 years early. I am antsy about VirginOne now being controlled by RBS but so far so good. (read more)
Written on: 07/11/2009
Great if you are good at managing your finances, can save a great deal in interest payments.
Probably not recommended for those who struggle to manage their current account anyway, with a normal mortgage.
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Written on: 16/09/2009
We have remortgaged with the one account and they have been excellent, all the way through the process. Putting us on a fast track process as we had found a buy to let. Super efficient, it takes a lot to impress me, but they did.
Highly recommend them, fantastic customer service.
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Written on: 23/08/2009
Good product - flexible and convienient. The The Virgin One Account Mortgage Interest rate may not be keenest but that is the price you pay for the flexibilty & easy of use. Very few of the banks have passed on full drop in interest rates. (read more)
Written on: 30/06/2009 by mikietheb1
Have had The Virgin One Account Mortgage for 10 yrs and have noticed the difference when it was sold onto RBS. 'In credit' interest is terrible - it never used to be, and I do recall reading something in the literature that I was originally sent about how it would track the BOE base rates ( I believe it now doesn't and has not done for some time). However; in terms of real flexibiilty and a customer service team that is able to follow instructions and do what you ask then it cannot be... (read more)
Written on: 22/05/2009
I've had a Virgin One account for 11 years.
Very good product, very flexible and able to over pay or under pay when needed without having to ask bank.
I was able to over-pay and have now paid off my mortgage in half the time, saving me 1000's.
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Written on: 15/05/2009
Their interest rate policy is opaque.
Per the One Account
- the OA is still worried about the uncertainty in the market and specifically in relation to the housing market with higher default rates (...hence the widening of the interest rate in respect to libor)
- the OA (as part of RBS) has to set rates which is balance with their depositors (I don't think this is good, we're subsidising the interest RBS depositors receive?). I think more likely is that they are merely maximising profits...
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Written on: 27/03/2009
The Virgin One Account Mortgage is a very flexible mortgage and great to have in a recession. I wish all those people would stop complaining about the interest rates. Try finding a better deal in this market. Flexible, great customer service (read more)
Written on: 26/03/2009
The Virgin One Account Mortgage is a flexible product which allows you to control all your finances in one place. Great customer service - recommended! Great product, good value for money & great customer service. (read more)
Written on: 16/03/2009
Simpe to use - just one account for everything - didn't have to arrange an overdraft during a heavy month. Can easily pay off more of your mortgage. Have had this Virgin One Account Mortgage for 8 years. Was easy when we moved house and there were no extra costs for transferring account to new property. (read more)
Written on: 10/03/2009
I have had my Virgin one account for a number of years & have even moved house with it. Although I am generally happy with the way the account operates & the flexibility it offers, I am truly dissapointed in the failure to pass on rate cuts. I have considered moving my account but don't wish to incur further costs etc in these difficult times. Come on RBS - give us what we are due! (read more)
Written on: 06/03/2009
Apart from the lack of passing on rate cuts recently The Virgin One Account Mortgage best bank account I have had. Very flexible and understanding. (read more)
Written on: 28/02/2009 by rumerhall (1 review written)
The Virgin One Account Mortgage is in my opinion a brilliant product.
We have had this account since 2001, its especially useful if you are self employed and don't always get regular payments. Providing you are not up to your limit it is totally flexible. The staff are also extremely helpful and efficient
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Written on: 27/02/2009
I was particulary unimpressed to receive my latest letter from The Virgin One Account Mortgage confirming that yet again interest rate reductions have not been passed on. As a government owned bank, isn't something going to be done about this? I agree the One account team are very friendly, and the account does what it says on the tin. The flexibility issues though are being erradicated by this. This is simply not good enough & I for one have had enough. I will be moving to another offsett... (read more)
Written on: 15/02/2009
I just wanted to say thank you to all the staff at The Virgin One Account. They are always friendly and polite and I have only ever received thoughtful, well-informed advice. These comments are desperately unfair. Yes, reductions on interest rates were delayed on this account, but this was the case with most non-tracker mortgages. The big benefit of this account has always been that your savings also receive the same interest rate as your debts and that interest is in effect tax free. ... (read more)
Written on: 06/02/2009 by slog
I've had my Virgin One Account since 2002 and have nothing but praise for their customer service. In all that time I have not had dealings with staff being rude, impatient or falsely courteous - unlike the ignorance of some staff in other organisations. I don't think you can single out RBS when it comes to increasing or decreasing their interest rates. The monthly and annual statements are detailed and user friendly. The internet banking site is extensive without being complicated. As long... (read more)
Written on: 06/02/2009
I don't believe any other bank is doing the same kind of deal, an on tap loan on top of your mortgage, with no questions. Great for buying a car or boat or doing the kitchen up but be warned you have to pay it back. However looking at you debts all together makes you realise how much you owe and you can watch the total reduce, so you know if you are on track,
To the One account team, Well done!
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Written on: 06/01/2009
I think the One Account is a fantastic product. I haven't had mine long but I have never had any problems. I notice how everyone is quick to slate a product when they don't get what they want but they aren't so quick to praise it. If everybody took the time to actually read the documents that the One Account sent them when they opened the account, they would know that it is not a tracker mortgage so really they don't have any right whatsoever to complain about the interest rates! I have... (read more)
Written on: 13/12/2008
I was in the process of moving my mortgage to the one account until I read this forum, worried the failure to pass interest rate cuts might be the sign of things to come I held off sending the final paperwork to see how the dust settled.
The one account began to chase the paperwork and I iterated my worries to them and they stated that although they didnt pass on the full 1.5% cut they will be passing on the full 1% cut made by the BOE recently.
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Written on: 05/12/2008 by Oneaccountuser (1 review written)
Under RBS the rates go up quickly but down slowly and they seem to have their own small print code which lets them do what they want. Particularly annoying to us as taxpayers who have helped to bail them out.
I'm sure that Richard Branson would be very unhappy to see it being run in this way.
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Dhkangel's Response to Angeljaye's Review
Written on: 08/04/2013
The ability to increase the available facility is far too easy and although it may seem a good thing at the time it can become a huge debt when interest rates increase and becomes non affordable.
I personally now know that i will never own my house due to the easy increases and wish I had been informed better when increasing the facility.