Written on: 19/05/2013
I have been with them for 12 years .I have their credit card ,current account and a personal loan.It has been OK to bank with them but the service has visibly declined since Santander got their hands on it.Since I have no problems withe accounts I have I'm not worried .The £100 free overdraft has been useful and is probably something to recommend it .Also the no hassle £500 overdraft on it is good value at about 13-14% is competitive Living in a rural area the internet banking is a bonus... (read more)
Written on: 08/05/2013
Having banked with Cahoot for over a decade, it's sad to think there was a time I'd have recommended them over any other bank without any hesitation at all. Now they are truly deserving of the "terrible" rating. For an online bank, you'd assume they were a good choice for people who primarily shop online. In fact, whilst I appreciate knowing my card is secure against fraud, my husband and I have both had our cards stopped with monotonous regularity - absolutely no warning, notification or... (read more)
Written on: 26/04/2013
Been with them for years. Live a rural area, get paid by cheque so posting deposits/taking them to the post office works very well for me. Deposit envelopes, paying in books come quickly enough. I was recently very impressed when some suspicious transactions were flagged and I had a phone call within minutes to verify them. They were mine, but they did on reflection have an iffy pattern. Transfers to and from savings accounts with other banks go through quickly. What more could you want? (read more)
Written on: 25/04/2013
I was with Cahoot for about 6 or 7 years before things started going wrong. Up until that time they were fine. Once Santander started to push it's online services it seems Cahoot has been put in 'maintenance mode'. They're not accepting new customers by the looks of it and they really show no care to current customers. The specifics on my plight was to do with arranging payments. In short their system is broken. I would send two payments off one evening. One of those gets sent normally,... (read more)
Written on: 27/02/2013
Cahoot has no branches (online only) which I knew when I opened the account 5 or 6 years ago, and their customer service call centre is only open 8 til 8 on weekdays and 9 to 5 on Saturday (closed on Sunday), which I also knew. You would have thought then, that there would be some benefit to the customer of foregoing these things when choosing to bank with them. No. You need special envelopes to pay in cheques/cash etc either at the post office or by mail. I ordered some of these online... (read more)
Written on: 25/01/2013 by JerryWh (1 review written)
I have banked with Cahoot for ten years and the only thing that has kept me with them is the hassle involved in moving. They are just awful! They cannot get the simplest thing right. They send you fatuous emails which seem to be cobbled together from stock phrases. If something can be messed up or misunderstood, you can rely on them to do so. They have cost me money at various times and enough is enough. I am moving to another bank and bid them goodbye. Be warned, try First Direct - or... (read more)
Written on: 24/01/2013 by evosam (2 reviews written)
I have been with Cahoot now for 9 years. I have never had any probs with them at all so I can only give a fair review as to how I have found them. Internet banking is so easy and no visits to the high street - why would you want to? You can send off cheque deposits through the post, cash obviously has to made in person at a post office, but that's not too bad. They gave me £100 fee free overdraft, with an amount of £500 available to withdraw if I need to at a very competitive rate. I... (read more)
Written on: 24/10/2012
I've been with Cahoot for about 10 years and they've always given me great service. The nature of the beast of sites like this is that people only really report bad experiences, but tbh I've never had one with Cahoot. You can even transfer six figure sums to and from them thanks to their sensible but robust security procedures. For me it's a proper online that can deal with the needs of serious customers unlike some of the high street jokers. I hope Santander don't decide to sell or close... (read more)
Written on: 03/08/2012
I have tried to open a 1 year savings bond with Cahoot. As a teacher, one would think that the profession might feature in their occupation list - no!. Lied instead and stated retired (but in the occupation list it has to be 'not working', as 'retired' does not feature. Eventually, when form is completed, a dialogue box comes up to say the transaction is not possible, and to ring the help number. Ring it and there is no option for dealing with opening a new account. If Santander PR people... (read more)
Written on: 28/07/2012 by garethplant (1 review written)
They are the worst bank i have ever dealth with. Now owned by the equally uselss Santander. Unsympathetic, unfair and useless sums them up in three words. Take my advice go elsewhere and don't look back. (read more)
Written on: 08/07/2012
I have banked with Cahoot from the start but since they have been taken over by Santander they have become absolutely dreadful. Four out of the last five transactions have been blocked for 'security reasons'. I tried to buy £1,000 airline tickets from Delta and they blocked it. These were the last two seats on the plane so I then tried to move some money from my Cahoot account to another account to buy from there - they blocked that. My wife, with her Cahoot account, then tried to buy them... (read more)
Written on: 09/04/2012
One can only wonder how any organisation can set up such disfunctional systems? The whole excercise in trying to open a Bond with Cahoot is totally frustrating.First they lose the initial opening documents,then a second lot and so on.They manage to transcribe one of the security names incorrectly and no password! On finally trying to log in I was advised that the system was being updated and try again in 5 minutes!!What system one might ask. AVOID like the plague. (read more)
Written on: 14/12/2011 by Stuart_Mcdonagh (2 reviews written)
I'm not sure if they are still taking on new account holders, due to them being taken over by Santander, but I would stress to anybody to avoid using them, or existing customers to change bank ASAP. My reasons for this are tenfold, but apart from the fact there are no branches for you to withdraw cash in emergencies, their customer service is extremely poor. A case in point - recently I lost my wallet, and when I tried to block my debit card, I discovered their contact centre was shut as it... (read more)
Written on: 31/07/2011
I have banked with them from the start when online banks were just starting out. Never liked Abbey (worked there) but cahoot was efficient but never really a headliner for saving rates. Eventually had 400K with them after saving and selling the flat. The low rates are everywhere so can't fault them totally for that but think Santander lost interest (or never realised they got that with Abbey!) So I started pulling out 50K at at time and never had a call asking if there is a problem etc. ... (read more)
Written on: 21/06/2011
I have a Cahoot Credit card and current account which has been unused for some time. Prior to closing both accounts I logged on to transfer the small remaining balance in the current account to my present bank. The confirmation screen came up saying that the transaction had been made but two weeks later the money had not arrived. When I asked Cahoot what had happened I was told that my account had been suspended because it had not been used for 12 months, no explanation why I wasn't... (read more)
Written on: 18/05/2011
Their IT systems are worse than awful - don't expect to get on when you want. Often you will get System unavailable or sooooooo slooooow you think that time has stopped.
They have a large amount of structural debt from Spanish property ( yes there is enough excess property to last 25 years - 50 years and no one is buying ) so I would beware they could be the next Icesave !
Overall - avoid - there are much better banks
(read more)
Written on: 14/03/2011 by OldGrayOne (2 reviews written)
I noticed that Cahoot are no longer accepting applications for new accounts so I take that as notice that Santander are winding this operation down. The other indications have been the repeated and prolonged downtime on the website.
I recently had a problem, entirely of my own making I hasten to add, and rang to discuss the issue and was utterly gobsmacked when I was told by the call centre rep that they couldn't do anything (I was asking for a temporary increase on my overdraft) while...
(read more)
Written on: 11/03/2011
Recently received a 4th PIN for my cahoot credit card. This was again rejected by the machine when I tried to change my PIN. Service is currently suspended when I try to log in!! Response will anyway only be to send me yet another PIN, and no interest in discovering what's wrong at their end.
Been with cahoot at least 10 years now, great at first, awful now.
Staff in Santander branches have variously said they can't help because cahoot is not part of Santander, or have just plain never...
(read more)
Written on: 10/02/2011
I just echo everything that's already been said. I am in the process of moving my current account from Cahoot and since 31/12/10 my new bank has written three times for my direct debit details and I have contacted them twice. Information still outstanding and my new bank have cited ongoing problems with Santander group and will not enter into further correspondence. I will now have to pursue Cahoot myself for the information to be sent. Shocking way to treat customers even if they are on... (read more)
Written on: 10/02/2011
USED to be a great bank (I've been with them for about 10 years) but unfortunately it's absolutely awful now and I wouldn't recommend this bank to anyone.
In the past year or so my experience has included:
- around half the time I've tried to get into my account I've received a 'System Maintenance/Unavailable' screen instead
- I've been locked out of my account for 2 weeks
- been told I have X trillion, Y billion and something million in my account - unfortunately this wasn't true
- had...
(read more)
Written on: 30/01/2011
Cahoot used to be a good bank. Efficient staff with an excellent website and services. This has changed dramatically over the last 12 months, however.
I find it hard to believe that any Santander controlled banks will have any customers left in a couple of years time, at this rate!
Shockingly bad customer services are a theme throughout and I, like many others are taking my business elsewhere.
Avoid at all costs!
(read more)
Written on: 16/01/2011 by bails247 (1 review written)
Have had a current and savings account with Cahoot for several years but over the last twelve months or so the service has been getting steadily worse and worse. 1) My debit card wouldn't would work for the whole weekend on two occasions even with sufficient funds in my account and 2) I was unable to contact customer services as it was 'out of hours'. 3) The website has been 'unavailable' on numerous occasions, 4) Cheques paid into my account now take up to two weeks to clear. 5) The... (read more)
Written on: 30/12/2010
Had account for 9 years. Most recently cahoot send a new (unsigned) debit card through the post to a computer printed address that is not mine. Correspondence revealed no satisfactory explanation just excuses -that such mailings are contracted-out. Really cahoot -wish i'd know this before I trusted you. Account now closed by another completely dissatisfied customer. (read more)
Written on: 09/12/2010
This bank sat on a small overdraft for an account that I had thought had been closed for over 5 years and then spent 9 months responding to my attempts to sort the matter out and close the account (for the second time) with uninformative standard-form letters and unresponsive bureacracy while at the same time refusing to close the account and charging me further overdraft fees for the debt they would not let me pay off. (read more)
Written on: 11/11/2010
It is obvious that Santander want to "kill" cahoot. They no longer offer new current accounts and the savings account rates are less than the current account.
They recently returned to sender a standing order payment that i had been receiving regularly every month. Their answer to my complaint: we have recently changed systems.
(read more)
Written on: 08/11/2010 by beac0mber (2 reviews written)
Cahoot used to be great, they are now totally awful. their customer service is non existant, i paid a cheque in which showed as available a few days ago, the next day it changed over to being paid in, but not yet available. i have been trying to swap some money to my saver account from the current account as ive been assured the money is cleared now. i still cannot move the money , i have tried the internet and phone banking, i spoke to someone in their call centre who was half asleep and... (read more)
Written on: 31/10/2010 by phi181 (1 review written)
What used to be an excellent online bank has rapidly gone downhill, apparently since Santander took control.
The customer service, which used to be excellent, is now non-existant and the website has been having huge difficulties of late.
I've been happily banking with Cahoot for the last 6 years - but the last 6 months have been awful!
I'm currently in the process of taking my business elsewhere.
(read more)
Written on: 12/10/2010
I've been a happy Cahoot customer for 5 years or more. In May my Mother, who I managed a Cahot account for, died and Cahoot's customer service was truly abysmal. Their system seems to be set up to deliberatly frustrate any attempt to talk to a decision maker, with stroppy staff putting more and more obstructions in my way instead of helping.
Now they are doing the same with me after they failed to pay my council tax Direct Debit on a weekend they had a system outage. They take ages to reply...
(read more)
Written on: 05/10/2010
Same with alot of the other comments on here...seems so bad since the take over happened. Now I have had problems with them since Jul 10, made lots of phones calls and emails and the problems are still not resolved!! Frustrating. Like many others, once this latest problem is resolved, think closing the account is going to be the best thing to do. Cahoot start looking at reviews like these and make the changes happen. Otherwise I get the feeling before long you will have no customers at all!
(read more)
Written on: 29/09/2010
Used to be fine. Now horrendous. Have had no reliable access to money on line for over 3 weeks. No way to run a bank. One has to assume this can only be a deliberate policy by Santander to close the operation down. It's worked - withdrawn my money and gone elsewhere. But NOT HBOS - who I have also banked with for 30 years. They wish to charge me £5 for a month's statement from last year. I wouldn't mind if I could access it online for free (see First Direct), but there is no other way... (read more)
Written on: 24/09/2010
I agree with the oomments above - since Santander came in this service has become appalling - high charges and total incompetence with poor customer handling.
Avoid - I'm going to close my account shortly - as soon as the latest disaster is resolved.
Shame - since the user interface is so friendly.
Bye bye Cahoot.
(read more)
Written on: 20/09/2010 by sjones2939 (1 review written)
I have been with cahoot for a number of years and up until they were taken over by Santander I had no problems. I work abroad i.e. Azerbaijan and have found that the cards are frequently rejected by ATM's whilst expats with rival banks have no problems. I am also sick to death of cahoot turning off my cards for transactions that are perfectly valid and I have been left without access to money for a whole weekend due to the fact that their call centre is not available out of hours. Recently... (read more)
Written on: 15/09/2010
Saw a few reviews here all written this month. I think Carhoot is going down hill. My internet account has been locked since near midnight 13 Sept until today 15th Sept and is still locked. The system asked me for the 3rd and 6th characters of my password to log in and I got in ok, then asked me for the 'same' characters of my password to confirm a withdraws but would not recognise them this time. So I changed the password (I have to answer all the secure questions) and it still wouldn't... (read more)
Written on: 08/09/2010
I've been with Cahoot for about 10 years and have now decided to move from them (no small decision as I have about 50 direct debits). My gripes are (1) no references are provided on bank statements (2) takes about 5 days to make or receive a payment (3) Awful customer service (4) card transactions rarely work abroad despite letting them know about travel plans. (5) Website down for extended periods with little warning
All this I can live with however they've just kindly deleted all my...
(read more)
Written on: 06/09/2010
Been banking with Cahoot for several years. Until recently they've been really good. For the past few months I've had nothing but problems. Card not working (despite plenty of money in the account) not being able to pay bills with debit card. Customer service terrible. DON'T MOVE TO CAHOOT - They're terrible (read more)
Written on: 06/09/2010
Absolutely useless - failed to spot fraud when it did take place on my card, yet stopped a legitimate transaction, blocking my card for 24 hours claiming it was unusual (I had shopped there several times before and the delivery was to my registered card address.
Currently system unavailable and my card declined due to 'upgrade'. All this happened since Santander took over, before that they were fine.
(read more)
Written on: 17/08/2009
I've been a Cahoot Internet Banking customer for over 5 years. In the last few months the customer service has steadily got worse. You query something, and they don't listen to your query. You ask a question, and they don't actually READ the question. Instead they seem content to say it's your problem. Of particular note are the aggressive customer service who when faced with having to admit a mistake refuse to and simply terminate the conversation. Given their lack of ability to... (read more)
Written on: 28/03/2010
I totally agree with this comment. Apparently, Cahoot rely on the Royal Mail when transferring customer's details. They lost my new bank details so decided to apply to an old account for a direct debit. Of course, Cahoot dispute having made a mistake and claim that my new details were never sent to them. Found the same aggressive and antagonstic attitude from staff which got worse the further up the chain I went. Website / telephone banking systems are antiquated compared to others. Would not recommend this bank.
Written on: 22/07/2009
Cahoot internet bank is useless. The main problem is limited access to their customer centre. So for example, if your making a transaction in the evening or on Sunday and there's a problem with your card, then you have no way of knowing what the issue is until they open for business. All the other major banks can be contacted out of hours to deal with customer issues, why not this one. (read more)
Written on: 07/05/2009
Cahoot Internet Banking are Stuck with what seems to me like no new features, no improvements and no direction since it launched. Was a ground-breaking website once upon a time. Now appears left alone and dejected by parents Santander.
Who knows what happed to Webcard, their internet payment protection card.
Nobody knows when they will accept or receive Faster Payments (pretty much all other UK banks can now). It still takes several days for money to leave or go into my account.
In general,...
(read more)
Written on: 18/04/2009
To answer some questions about Cahoot Internet Banking, if a cheque is NOT credited to an account, but cashed, it is logical that to find it, we need all of the cheque details.
Flexible loan limits were reduced on some accounts because the full credit limit wasn't being used, and therefore banks have a responsibility to lend responsibly under the Financial Service and Markets Acot
Flexible Rates, thats exactly what they are, flexible.
The Flexible loan rates never went up, whilst...
(read more)
Written on: 30/01/2009
I paid in a large amount of cheques last week and upon checking my statement i noticed the total paid in differed to my paying in slip. On contacting the bank i was told that some of the cheques must of gone missing but they couldn't tell me which ones.
I have been told to ring each individual cheque issuer and ask them to check if it has gone throught their bank and that i need to take their sort code and account number for the banks reference. Needless to say, people are not happy!
I...
(read more)
Written on: 31/08/2008 by sdw1980
I have been with Cahoot around 5 years, not had any problems, interest rates seem better than average, especially as there is a savings account option tied to the current account, funds in which are accessible within a couple of days just by transferring back to the current account.
The webcard facility is excellent protection against internet fraud when buying online. Bank transfers can take a few days, I dont konw if that's slow but doesnt bother me.
(read more)
Written on: 18/01/2008 by Darkfearytales (1 review written)
1. Extremely slow money transfers to other accounts in comparison to other banks
2. The 'account alerts' are pointless - whats the use if they come through 2 days after the debit/credit that you were wanting to be alerted to?
3. Standing orders are not showing as going out of my account until nearly 5pm... useless when you're trying to keep track of your money in the morning
4. The staff are... to put it politely - Idiots
In summary I just wish I'd stayed with my last bank or opened account...
(read more)
Written on: 27/10/2007 by Plums (1 review written)
I've been with Cahoot for several years and have had no real complaints. Recently though, my bank account was defrauded and my debit card was cancelled. It took 2 weeks for my new card to arrive, and when it did it had exactly the same number as my old one. They'd sent me a card that was already cancelled!
I emailed and told them what had happened, letting them know I wasn't happy. 2 days later my new new card arrived. It had also been cancelled. Apparently they'd cancelled the one they'd...
(read more)
Written on: 25/10/2007 by geoffk (12 reviews written)
Cahoot Internet Bank offer a debit card that you lock away and don't use, but when you buy on the net you call up the software and it issues you with a different number and security info each time it's used, you also set a cash limit on the card each time it's used. I just keep sufficient funds in the account to cover internet expenses. You also get about 3.5% interest on the current account balance, well that's better than some high street banks. All in all its a useful device if you buy... (read more)
Written on: 09/07/2008
I thought I could lock my debit card away safely until someone intercepted my new card and went on a spending spree just before Xmas. Cahoot have not refunded the money (nearly £3000) because I didn't notify within 60 days. Their security leaves a lot to be desired. They didn't notice extremely abnormal activity of 10 transactions in 3 days when only one in previous year. Replacement card sent in post with no extra security and no activation process. I'm extremely disenchanted with them and am trying to get a refund via the Finance Ombudsman service.
Written on: 10/08/2007 by dooger (1 review written)
Had no problems with Cahoot Internet Banking over 5 years, using it on the internet. (read more)
Written on: 03/08/2007 by jaslily (3 reviews written)
It is a nightmare to cancel my current account with Cahoot. I don't use this bank much, so I decided to cancel it. I have contacted them 5 times, but they still haven't done anything yet. They have ignored me for a couple of weeks now. (read more)
Written on: 20/02/2007 by burdettr (1 review written)
I first joined them because they we offering a flexible loan at 6.9 % APR. It very quickly rose to 15.9% APR. The final nail in the coffin is that I received an email telling me that the rate is leaping up to a whopping 19.9% APR. I didn't realise the Bank of England had put he base rate up that much. I'm lucky enough to have been able to clear my balance and shut down the account. I feel for people that are unable to do that though. Cahoot do tend to prey on the poor! (read more)
Written on: 08/03/2007
I am currently in a dispute with them and will take it further. There seem to be lots of victims of unreasonable rises in interest rates and we're all flexible loan customers. Make an official complaint. I was told my original deal was a 'promotional rate' which I know it was not. There is no mention of this anywhere in the paperwork they sent me.They are treating their customers so badly. I have never heard of any bank raising rates so quickly. Mine was just raised to 14.9% from 6.9%. I expect that it would shortly have been raised to your 19.9%.
Written on: 06/02/2007 by jati
They keep increasing my APR. Now I am on 19.9% APR. They have a direct debit so no late payments. They were earning good money from me and now I am switching. It is so silly to increase the APR without any reason and losing the customer. (read more)
Written on: 19/08/2006 by venusinfurs (1 review written)
I tried Cahoot Internet Banking after seeing it in a top 10 list somewhere with excellent rates of interest with the savings account and current account. These interest rates dwindle away to just average rates incredibly quickly after joining, which is annoying when good interest rates are the main reason for joining. I was told a much needed redesign of the secure banking section was coming in a 'couple of weeks'. Needless to say, months later and there is still no sign of any update to... (read more)
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Proposalkit's Comment
Written on: 03/12/2010
Good day,
<br/>
<br/> I was compelled to write to you in regards to an Offer made by CAHOOT BANK/BID-VEST SECURITY HOUSE so therefore i advised you send me an e-mail or or Your Direct phone number for further clarifications.
<br/>
<br/>This is an Opportunity Of a Lifetime,in that case,i expect your positive response via my e-mail address : harrisonwilliams@vesthomes.com
<br/>
<br/>Best Regards,
<br/>Harrison.
<br/>