I have had a FD account for about 15 years and since then i have seen some changes to the way they operate. I am only leaving on the regards that i do not need the account anymore and as you DONT EARN INTEREST on the account it is pointless keeping it open. I have requested to close the said account more than once and all i get is aggro over security questions and the information is wrong etc etc. They are not as good overall as they think they are and i would suggest to find an bank account / bank that is more reliable !!!

Wish someone had told me about this so called bank! Took out current accounts for my wife and myself....took ages to set up and reams of paper and pamphlets. Security process when telephoning was laughable...I never seemed to get it right....but was it just me? Paying in £1500 per month was a pain and my wife decided it was not worth the effort and tried to close her account. She wrote a letter,they phoned, and it took three hours to close. They immediately denied her Internet access, so when they transferred her monies to HSBC she could not check the amount or recent transactions. They also omitted to transfer the direct debits, and when she rang they said they held no details and to contact HSBC. They had no details either. Back to first direct and Lo, they found the details and said they had just cancelled them! Now she is setting up new DDs and will have to pay direct herself due to the delay. She was refused the £100 service guarantee payment due to one months payment in of only £1000, not the £1500! As soon as I transfer my ISA I will close my account also. Steer well clear of this shambles, they are not as good at service as they profess to be, not by a long chalk!

If you like being treated like an utter muppet, then I would highly recommend 1st Direct. I have banked with them since 1996, but not anymore. My experience of late has been the pits and I have closed my account due to the insulting and patronizing way I was treated as a so called loyal customer. I wanted to try them for a car loan as they more competitive than the car dealer...Big mistake, I was experienced to a 40 mins phone interrogation by some half- wit picking over ever area of my finances. All for 7k! The car was worth 3 times that. Ironic as they gave me a First Direct credit card with a limit of 7k without one single question about my finances.... Anyway after a stupefying 40 mins of being treated like a dummy, justifying why I thought I could afford £300 a month, my loan was reluctantly authorized... Get lost 1st Direct. You’d think after 16 yrs of loyal banking, never being over-drawn and depositing £100,000s

One day I was a valued customer the next day they closed my account with no explanation. I didn't overdraw and had a very generouse salary going into the account? Ohh yes they closed it a day before pay day and left me totally stranded. BE WARNED they appear nice but they make up their own rules as I go along.

It appears despite First Direct'ss 'we're so friendly, we're so lovely, aren't we a great bank to be with, not like the other nasty horrible banks out there' holier than thou brand image that they must spend millions of £s on to make sure we all believe the hype - well sadly it appears to be all hype and no substance. What a surprise coming from a bank! Its the time of month to pay my First Direct visa card, my statment tells me I need to pay £1000 in order to clear it and not receive anyfinancial penalties. No problem. I realise I had returned 2 items of clothing to Monsoon who had put a credit of £100 back onto the account a few days ago. Great, I now only owe £900 to make my balance zero. However the money grabbing schemers at First Direct need to make some money out of me somehow so they can pay for the costly 'Aren't we a lovely bank' advertising campaign and have therefore decided I must still pay the full £1000 even though the Monsoon credit is sitting on the account for everyone to see. How bizare, must be some sort of mistake I think, thats not like my friendly bank who's been looking after me all these years (and mafe some money out me too!) I ring them up, query how can I possibly have to pay £1000 when there is already a credit of £100 on the account? Its in out terms and conditions is the response so please pay up or else you get interest penalty payments on the full £1000! Talk about sharp practice, time to move banks I guess and to remember that all banks, whatever their enormous advertising and brand budgets arefrom the same family of wolves in sheeps clothing! Silly me to forget that!

DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE! First Direct offer a great service if you don't need anything. However, the minute you have one query or miss one payment, even by a day, they change their attitude completely. After 14 years of banking with them, they are now being completely unreasonable. We paid our mortgage money, in cash, in to our account on the day our mortgage goes out and yet they returned the DD as unpaid and charged us £25 for doing so! You call to sort things out and each time you get a different person, repeat yourself 200 times and they verbally shrug. They don't get care. Because its all call centre based, they don't have to care, they can hide behind their phones and pass you pillar to post and never resolve anything. BEWARE. Go to a bank that has branches and people who you can actually build a rapport with and can think for themselves! I have moved all of my accounts away from First Direct and would never recommend them to anyone!

I closed my account 2 days ago. I did not want to be associated with a bank that trail-blazed charging. I remember they were the first bank started to give cash rewards if you switched to bank with them, now First Direct are also the first one to charge customers. Shame! I did not dislike banking with them.

I switched to a First Direct Current Account two years ago, just after I started a new job.

I am very disappointed with the whole experience, and I feel First Direct are confusing and difficult to work with, and frankly rubbish.

Just a few of the problems I encountered:

1) First Direct debit cards have the longest number EVER. 18 numbers vs. 12 on most cards.

2) Your account number is inconveniently hidden in the card number (not to be confused with a second card number, also written on the front of the card). It took me ages to work this out, and no-one ever explained it to me.

3) After hooking you with a £50 freebie, unless you specifically asked for it at the beginning, you are not entitled to any overdraft. I had to put down a deposit for a flat at this time, despite the fact I had a £1500 overdraft on the Barclays account I had just closed, First Direct refused me any overdraft. They did however cynically offer me a credit card instead. I would imagine this happens a lot.

4) I now have a large balance c. £2000. However, First Direct is inconveniently routinely rejected for no apparent reason. Probably something to do with the ridiculous card numbers.

5) You are not as welcome at HSBC branches as you would think. Every time you go there you have to telephone the First Direct call centre to get authorisation. This becomes a real drag, unless you happen to like call centres.

6) When you call the First Direct call centre. There are about 80 levels of security: passwords, mothers maiden names, memorable addresses etc, etc ad finitum. It is as if you were trying to get into Fort Knox. I have genuinely never experienced anything like it. And remember, if you EVER forget or get one of these codes slightly wrong, you enter call centre hell.

7) If you ever order a statement it takes AGES. They say 5 to 8 days, but don't count on it.

8) The internet banking, like everything else at First Direct is difficult to get used to and confusing. In fact, I believe it is worse than the system at Barclays, which was not exactly user friendly.

First Direct claim to be a modern efficient e-bank. In fact, it is a call centre masquerading as a bank. I do not rate the service! In fact, I think it is pretty poor, and I also found their practices very odd and difficult to get to grips with.

I can see no reason for moving to First Direct, as all banks now have an internet service. The only difference being, First Direct does not have a high street bank (although they could easily afford one given the amount of fees you pay), and if you naively think you are an HSBC customer like I did, you are wrong. You are about as welcome as a fart.

If you must take the plunge, make sure they give you an overdraft, because once they have their claws into you, your old account is but a memory, and if you do need an overdraft you will only have recourse to an FD credit card.