Get £175 when you switch your current account to Barclays Premier

[Colin MacKinnon]

I would add: years ago, I made very good money on the houses I lived in – thanks to mortgages.

Now, we enjoy really nice trips thanks to points earning credit cards.

So to be put on the CIFAS register and cut off from those benefits long-term would be very very painful.

Not worth the gamble!

[cin3]

JDB wrote:

@cin3 – well, that’s a wonderfully pharisaic series of questions!

Whether there are or aren’t any consequences is not the point – moral integrity is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

I couldn’t agree more. And I feel absolutely no moral imperative to not take advantage of credit card companies to the tune of a free drink and snack or qualifying a slightly more generous card. A strange choice of organisation for your ethical concern when I see people openly advocating all sorts of morally dubious things on here on a regular basis.

You didn’t answer my question on how exactly they would check. Data credit providers have no information at all that allows them to estimate my annual income with any accuracy.

As Colin explains, many people don’t even know their own income +/- £25k at a given point in time.

[cin3]

JDB wrote:

@cin3 – well, that’s a wonderfully pharisaic series of questions!

As for how often there are consequences, hundreds, sometimes thousands of people are prosecuted for application fraud every year. Those people and many additional ones will have CIFAS markers against their names. That can have big consequences for whole families. If you would like more statistics/details read annual reports such as Fraudscape (published by CIFAS).

My understanding is almost all of these cases are people taking out credit in other people’s names, misuse of facility, actually forging documents or generic identity fraud. Are you aware of a many convictions for merely over/underestimating income on a genuine credit card application in your own name.

[cin3]

In any case, I’m sure people are perfectly capable of deciding for themselves whether any action they take would be in breach of terms or statute in reality. And deciding for themselves what course of action they wish to take 🙂

[JDB]

cin3 wrote:

In any case, I’m sure people are perfectly capable of deciding for themselves whether any action they take would be in breach of terms or statute in reality. And deciding for themselves what course of action they wish to take 🙂

@cin3 – yes, of course people are capable of making decisions for themselves, but there are inexperienced young people who could be influenced by your casual approach to lying about their income with potentially terrible consequences. It is beyond the pale to make the suggestion to the OP that they should just lie about their income to be able to open a Premier account. You have an inalienable right to make idiotic decisions or commit criminal acts and bear the consequences for yourself but on a respectable website, to encourage others to do so without caveat is outrageous. I’m sure sure that even in your universe where these sort of things are apparently acceptable, you will know of small transgressions that have snowballed into disaster. You clearly don’t know much about credit underwriting.

I grant you that it’s no so frequent, but yes hundreds of people are prosecuted every year for lying about their income or other facts to obtain credit. It’s greatly in the interests of providers to report people.

[JDB]

@ColinMacKinnon – the difference is that you sound like a very intelligent, considered person of integrity who it would be a pleasure to meet. There are other posters on this site, admittedly very rare, who make one feel one needs a shower after reading their nonsense and who are the sort of people you might see on the street and cross the road to avoid.

[strickers]

The consequences of lying on a financial application doesn’t bear thinking about. Suggesting that someone else does so is shameless. Most of the time I’m happy that moderation on this forum uses a light touch, this is one time that I wish it wasn’t.

[cin3]

According to a CIFAS survey, 17% of people don’t see it as morally wrong to exaggerate income on mortgage applications.

But I apologise for not caveating my statement. My bad.

False application fraud is a thing though much more commonly associated with motor insurance or misleading addresses. I’m still yet to hear of a single prosecution for being inaccurate in income declaration (something like putting down £75k assuming you’d get a bonus and some side hustle income to bump up your £60k salary). I stand by my claim that there any many cases where the applicant let alone the bank has no way of knowing their income precisely. And it’s worth pointing out that CIFAS markers require “strong evidence” to show that the consumer was deliberately dishonest”.

[BBbetter]

JDB wrote:

You have an inalienable right to make idiotic decisions or commit criminal acts and bear the consequences for yourself but on a respectable website, to encourage others to do so without caveat is outrageous. I’m sure sure that even in your universe where these sort of things are apparently acceptable, you will know of small transgressions that have snowballed into disaster.

Reminds me of the teen who stole a few sausage rolls during the riots. Just a few quid worth of food. What could go wrong? Who’s going to notice?
A bit late to realise actions have consequences.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwyxl9nv37lo

[RK228]

If I have a Barclaycard Avios credit card, but have never otherwise banked with Barclays, am I an existing customer or a new customer if I apply to open a bank account?

I would have presumed an existing customer, but I’ve noticed my account type in the app is Barclaycard (and not Barclays) and I can only log into the Barclaycard website (and not Barclays).

[bagand96]

RK228 wrote:

If I have a Barclaycard Avios credit card, but have never otherwise banked with Barclays, am I an existing customer or a new customer if I apply to open a bank account?

I would have presumed an existing customer, but I’ve noticed my account type in the app is Barclaycard (and not Barclays) and I can only log into the Barclaycard website (and not Barclays).

The conditions referred to being an existing Barclays Current Account customer. I think if you’ve only ever held a Barclaycard then you are fine. (Sorry this reply is too late now, but maybe you started the process this morning!)

[Matlo]

RK228 wrote:

If I have a Barclaycard Avios credit card, but have never otherwise banked with Barclays, am I an existing customer or a new customer if I apply to open a bank account?

I would have presumed an existing customer, but I’ve noticed my account type in the app is Barclaycard (and not Barclays) and I can only log into the Barclaycard website (and not Barclays).

I’ve got a Barclaycard Avios credit card and had no issues getting the £175 bonus for a new Barclays current account.

[RK228]

Thanks @bagand96 and @Matlo for the responses.

Oh, I didn’t even realise that the offer was closing earlier today. Oh well.

[JohnMassey63]

As a long standing Barclays customer I’ve tried to upgrade my account to Premier for the sake of the Avios scheme but when I pressed the button I was told that particular account couldn’t be upgraded online, I’d have to phone. Might this be because though I have over £100K in investments with Barclays my salary is < £75K? Does it mean that if I do phone I’ll be told no?

[JohnMassey63]

To give an update. I phoned the number which the website told me to call and got a recorded message saying I’d have to use the app. On going in to the app and hitting upgrade, I answered a couple of questions and suddenly found I now had Premier.