Probably the single most prudent decision I've ever made, to use the One Account for my (long paid off) mortgage needs. The basis of operation suited my earning/spending world view perfectly (as far as borrowing can realistically go). This account is not for everyone. If you are a tightwad in general, this account is perfect! Sadly, it all comes to an end now. I have been notified that my account is to be closed end of term 2019. New arrangement to be sought.

We originally took out our One Account in 2000 to address a projected shortfall in an endowment policy value, and it proved to be one of the most astute decisions we have made. The account has just been closed with the mortgage paid off before time, and without the need to use any of the endowment proceeds! Along the way, we have had the flexibility to use the account to part-fund university for two sons, and to help fund their early cars. We have also been able to book holidays or carry out home improvements safe in the knowledge that funds would be available. Changing the borrowing limit, and therefore the interest rate, was as simple as making a phone call, and the call centre staff were always available and extremely helpful, speaking impeccable English. As a current account the process worked well, with the online banking providing all we ever needed. For those who have difficulty in managing their funds, this is not a form I would recommend, but for those who can apply the discipline needed to manage several accounts (mortgage, savings, loans, current) within a single account, this is highly recommended.

I've been with the One Account just shy of 10 years, and I have to say I've not had a single issue with them. The customer services can actually speak English, they are always helpful and have not had a single reason to complain. My advice to anybody is, if you're disciplined enough to know you have to pay your mortgage off, but just now and then need the flexibility (i.e. you have some tough months or even tough times), then go with an offset mortgage and I don't think you can go wrong with the One Account. I think I will clear my mortage in the next 2 to 3 years, and is some 7 years earlier than the lenght of time I originally estimated. Bottom line is I think as long as you're not stupid you can clear your mortgage a lot quicker with an offset.

We took out an RBS One Account mortgage in 2006 and can safely say it has turned out to be one of the best decisions we have ever made. The idea of having an agreed mortgage limit with the ability to overpay and withdraw at will has been invaluable. The customer services are second to none and, though the mortgage rate may not be the lowest on the market, it represents real value for money when you look at the flexibility it affords. I am happy to recommend this product to my friends.

I have had a Virgin One account mortgage since 1999 shortly after it was launched. This was initially taken out to purchase a new property. Subsequently I was able to borrow more to purchase a business, the financial transaction only took a matter of days as I recall. Even once we had repaid all our borrowing on the mortgage I maintained my one account as a fail safe just to cover any unexpected eventuality and this proved to be a god send, and doesn't cost a penny. With our next move, even though I didn't require any borrowing as we were downsizing, I applied for a virgin one account facility and was granted £75,000. The only cost incurred to do this was the valuation fee, which I felt was really worth while. I felt that as we relied on a self employed business and were getting older, you could never guarantee that nothing would go wrong in the future, (as we had already learned from experience). I now find it very comforting to know that I have £75,000 available to me at any time if required and all I need do is write a cheque from my Virgin cheque book or transfer funds on line. The best of all is that this is probably one of the cheapest forms of borrowing available as well, and you are of course only charged for it once you access the borrowing. Finally, and probably the biggest plus ever, is that they actually answer their phones without giving you the run around, they employ well informed and capable staff who always do their best to assist and if you are put on hold, they play the great music, which makes it almost enjoyable. Well done Virgin - at least someone is getting it right!

Have had a Virgin One Account since 1999 and never had a moment's problem. Interest rate is fair, not the lowest on offer, but the ability to pay in and withdraw without any problems is excellent.

Used correctly this account is brill. We took out a Virgin One account around 1997. Payed off in 13 years. Oh how lovely to have the deeds in the safe. This was the best move we made especially as it was our second time around believe me we had lots going on, still managed holidays, new car, home improvements etc. the Virgin One Account staff were exceptional, and I have to say we kept the account going after it changed to RBS, ( when Mr Branson sold it to RBS) and the RBS staff have been very good to. So use this account as it should be used and don't think you have a massive over draft to do with what you like , so there should not be any problems. I know you could find a cheaper rate mortgage, but could you pay it off when you wanted to with out additional charges all providers terms are different so read the small print. well done Mr Branson this was a great product when launched. A very pleased Virgin One Account holder.

switched to virgin one 12 years ago have now paid of my mortgage and looking to buy a new property have recomended to a friend who thinks its great just moaned at me for not telling him years ago about it looks worrying when you get a statement out of cash point saying £25000 overdrawn but you just look at that figure and think thats all i owe rather than checking in 3 diffrent bank accounts to see

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 time you want to transfer any money abroad, however i expect this is probably the norm with most banks these days!

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 card that costs more like 20 per cent. A couple of years ago I was between jobs for 6 months and because I was ahead of plan it meant I did not have to worry about paying the mortgage each month. I see someone had a problem with charges because direct debits took them over their agreed limit and they had to move some money for savings, but there is no point having savings with this sort of account - you won't be getting a better rate of return than what you will save in interest by reducing your mortgage balance. Very flexible and I would recommend it, so long as you can control your budget.

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 property in Italy against the house in the UK. We have now subsequently paid for this and all the renovations. All my dealing with this company have been excellent, my banking has never given me a moments worry. To such an extend that we keep a nominal loan of 2k outstanding so that we don't have to change the account ( Virgin One is not a bank they can only offer secured loans ). I understand that to make this work you have to be 'good' with money because I could get access to all the funds against my house if I wanted to but I am not the sort of person to rush out and spend it all anyway and my husband hasn't a clue about our financial situation so it works for us. If you can resist the temptation to borrow against your house and fritter it away, then this is for you.

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 my Virgin One account.

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 managing all our money in one account, it has been straight forward and easy to use.

Our finances fluctuate throughout the year and this account helps to ensure that we can see exactly how we spend our money and has flexibility if we are tight one month. We are looking forward to being able to pay larger sums off the mortgage once we are in a more financially secure position.

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 free too)
Those who dont like all of your money in 'one pot' as such wouldn't like this account.

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 the future. It requires a different mindset from an ordinary mortgage but if used properly the overall borrowing costs can be very substantially lower than other mortgages.

I suspect many of the negative reviews you may read about this product are from people who didn't fit one of the ideal profiles or didn't fully understand it before signing up.