Forums › Payment cards › Barclaycard Avios › Barclays Premier: Two days to open?
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I decided to take the plunge and apply for a Barclays Premier account and see how it is pending a switch. I’ve not used really done much with legacy banks in a little while so I was surprised when they told me my account would be opened on two business days if the application was successful… is this typical or have I hit some sort of flag?
I’m not sure why, but I rather expected the account to just be opened immediately! 😅
I’ll find this out myself in time, but coming from a modern app-based bank like Monzo and Starling I’m starting to wonder if I’m going to be frustrated with the tech. Has anyone here used both as a point of comparison?
@dst87 – whether or not your account is opened immediately depends on how much information Barclays is able to check online. The bricks and mortar banks do carry out more checks than the fintechs so sometimes they find something missing or inconsistent which isn’t surprising when they can access so much more data. I wouldn’t read anything into it. In terms of tech, yes you will be disappointed vs a fintech but if anything goes wrong, you will be able to speak to someone and get it resolved vs ever growing current problems at Revolut highlighted by the BBC.
That’s generally the reason I want to move to Barclays Premier. We currently bank with Monzo and while they’ve been great and I love the app I don’t have high confidence that if something goes wrong I’ll be able to speak to someone quickly and easily.
As I’m getting older and have more money but less time (that I want to spend on boring crap) I’m probably happy to make that trade off. At least I hope that’s the trade-off I’m making! I suppose Barclays could have crap or slow service too.
I can always switch away in the future if I’m not impressed so I’m not too worried.
Your account might have been opened but unless you already bank with Barclays, you won’t be able to “use” it. In my case, got the email that the account has been open the next day but took them over 2 weeks to send me the debit card, pin, info etc for me to be able to login online.
@ds87, I had so much problems with my account and getting the bonus initially. Now that it is all sorted, I really see no difference between my Barclays account and my Monzo. I actually find the Monzo app a bit too busy for my liking.
I also feel like the Barclays Prem account has improved value for money wise since I joined 2 years or so ago. I now get: 5% rainy saver account for up to 5k, apple tv, cashback (including 1% for using the debit card). On top of the 1500 points and voucher.
I admit I have not used the cashback yet, or watched apple tv and the Monzo cashback been slightly better – more every day spending. But just the rainy day saver alone has been enough of an addition for me.
I’m also starting to get frustrating with the Monzo app because they keep advertising accounts that I can’t actually use (because all of their premium accounts don’t actually apply to the joint account) and they just don’t seem to cater as well for the joint-account-first customer. I don’t use my personal account at all.
But the app itself is quite performant and nice to use for the most part.
I have NW, HSBC and BARC prem accounts. I find NW by far the best for customer service and the app, I have been with them since I was 16! HSBC I have for the free travel insurance and access to the WE CC and BARC for the upgrade voucher/avios/Apple TV etc.
All worth having
Well this is incredibly frustrating. I applied online last Saturday and have heard absolutely nothing since. I called the Premier helpline today and was told I wasn’t showing as a Premier customer yet and to call back on the retail line. The woman I spoke to at retail this afternoon was talking about having to apply for a regular account in the app and then upgrade later… contrary to anything listed online.
This is starting to feel impossible! To be fair the guy from Premier Banking answered the phone immediately this morning and was really friendly, but I’m left a bit confused about how to actually open an account. I contemplated going into a branch but the earliest appointment is the end of November. 🤯
When I opened my Monzo and Starling accounts years ago I did it within a few minutes in the app, got a debit card in Apple Wallet immediately, and received the physical card the next working day.
If the person on the Premier Banking line hadn’t been so quick and friendly this morning I think I may be ready to abandon the whole endeavour!
@dst87 – well Starling has recently been fined £29m for its “shockingly lax” account opening procedures and Monzo always seems to be under investigation so I think you will find their account opening process slower than before. Barclays can open accounts instantly but that requires every piece of information you give to tally precisely with their internal and external checks. If the stars don’t align fully and human intervention is required, it slows things considerably. Other legacy banks are the same and inevitably slower than the in a hurry fintechs.
@JDB That’s totally fair, and I can appreciate an account taking a little while to open… what I find less acceptable is the lack of communication. Besides the initial email that they’d received the application, I have heard nothing. One of the people I spoke to by phone told me I should apply for a sole account first then upgrade to a joint account, and then upgrade to Premier… even though the website shows that is not necessary and they seem to have acknowledged by direct joint Premier account application.
I also couldn’t get a straight answer about what the status of the application was – I don’t know if she couldn’t see it (but if she couldn’t, why tell me to make another application online?) or if she saw something and couldn’t / wouldn’t tell me what she saw… but it’s left me a bit confused.
I’d pop into a branch but the next available time to make a “new account opening” appointment is a month away and I’m not even sure it’s what I need to do. Has my application just died? Will they ever actually tell me that there’s a problem?
It’s the poor communication that I find most frustrating. At this point I’m just going to forget about it and I suppose if a letter declining the application eventually turns up (or, I suppose, some debit cards) then… I guess everything will be (very very very slowly) worked as intended.
@dst87 I hope you get your account opened eventually.
When there was a promotion 1+ years ago my OH tried to sign up to Barclays Premier, long story short after 3 attempts, calls, help from branch manager who was as perplexed, we gave up. Something behind their concrete wall that even branch staff could not access didn’t like the details. Like you the worrisome part was lack of communication, there was no declined notice, nothing after ‘we’ll let you know’.
All our other bank accounts opened fine.
Good luck!
@dst87 – Barclays can be very generous with service recovery. Once the account is actually open, pop into the live chat and see if you can politely negotiate your way to enjoying a nice dinner as an apology for their shortcomings.
@dst87 I hope you get your account opened eventually.
When there was a promotion 1+ years ago my OH tried to sign up to Barclays Premier, long story short after 3 attempts, calls, help from branch manager who was as perplexed, we gave up. Something behind their concrete wall that even branch staff could not access didn’t like the details. Like you the worrisome part was lack of communication, there was no declined notice, nothing after ‘we’ll let you know’.
All our other bank accounts opened fine.
Good luck!
Thanks for sharing your experience! I’m glad I’m not the only one who’s had trouble. When you say you gave up… is that where you left things?
I’m tempted to pop into the branch and see if I can speak to someone, but given they seem to say you need an appointment I’m not sure it’ll help. May be worth a shot though, even if just to try and get some information.
It sounds like in your case nobody could even see the application, is that right? It’s a bizarre state of affairs. 😕
We are near a branch where a kind manager did her best but got no further either. She could see the application/s but they got referred to a department that branch/call staff can’t access. We chased up for a few stressful months then decided life was not worth it and let it disappear into the ether.
It was a good reminder to catch up on our credit reports and btw there wasn’t even a check so the application didn’t get past the vetting.
If you can get someone in branch to have a look why not.
@soo interesting, thanks! I might pop into a branch when I’m passing and see if anyone can give me more information. I’m away for work from Saturday for a week so I suppose I’ll see if anything arrives while I’m away and go from there.
If I look on my Clearscore report I see a soft search from Barclays on the day I applied. I applied online, and I suppose this is expected because as part of the identity verification check they asked me about things on the report (the usual “Who is your mortgage with” and “what was the opening balance of your mortgage” stuff).
I have a feeling we’re falling between the same cracks in the system as your OH. 😒. I have the Avios Barclaycard already, so it’s not like we’re completely new to them.
Many, many people on these forums had huge problems opening Premier accounts back when they ran the 100K Avios promotion. Of course, many, many other people had no problems at all. Like all legacy banks, Barclays has a befuddling number of systems and departments and if something doesn’t go right the first time, they really struggle to fix it.
To answer your original question, if and when things are set up and working, I don’t think you’ll be frustrated by the app. I can do everything I want to do in it, and although there are a couple of unintuitive elements, once you’ve learned where everything is it’s pretty efficient to use. You see transactions in the app as soon as they’re made.
Given your stated objective of avoiding crap and slow service, though, I’d question your choice of Barclays. They’re generally in the lower half of customer satisfaction surveys.
Well, I got a letter through telling me they were unable to open the account because they need more identification. I’m not sure why it took them almost 2 weeks to work that out, but OK. I’m glad I have a path forward now. We’ll make an appointment to go into the branch and open the account where hopefully it’ll be much quicker!
What’s odd is that they seem to require me to apply in full in a branch, rather than putting the application on hold and having us pop into a branch to show ID. That would be much quicker than having to make an appointment to go thought the whole account opening rigmarole!
To answer your original question, if and when things are set up and working, I don’t think you’ll be frustrated by the app. I can do everything I want to do in it, and although there are a couple of unintuitive elements, once you’ve learned where everything is it’s pretty efficient to use. You see transactions in the app as soon as they’re made.
Given your stated objective of avoiding crap and slow service, though, I’d question your choice of Barclays. They’re generally in the lower half of customer satisfaction surveys.
Good to know about the app. I rarely use the debit card anyway so I’m not too worried about about spend tracking etc. It would be nice if they offered push notifications for new transactions, but it’s not a deal-breaker. I know they have cheque imaging which I prefer (my health insurance provider still pays out by cheque) and I suspect I’ll just have to see for myself how “nice” the app feels to use.
Avoiding crap service is sort of the goal. I mostly just want to be able to pick up the phone or pop in to a branch and see a person if I ever need that. Monzo are becoming harder and harder to contact and it makes me uneasy, even though so far I’ve never actually need them for anything important.
The benefit of the Avios package is also a draw to Barclays. If I wanted to entirely prioritise service I’d probably go with Nationwide or First Direct.
I don’t wish to depress you, but when I opened an Avios+ account a couple of years ago to take advantage of the 100k Avios bonus on offer at the time, and whilst already a Barclaycard customer, it took 3 trips to my now not so local Barclays branch (having to book and appointment each time!) before it was finally opened. Even the person assisting me who could see my application on her laptop, wasn’t really sure what was going on, and had to ring up colleagues elsewhere in the organisation. Not sure ‘organisation’ is a suitable word to use!
I tried during the 100k signup and gave up. Had to wait a month for the next appointment or something stupid and they initially booked it for Boxing Day when they weren’t open…
I did sign up in the summer and that didn’t require an appointment but I did have to contact them because two account were setup. Their onboarding is far from seamless!
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