Help! Spanish Banks: Minimum amount left in?/Regular transfers

Please can anyone out there help us?!  Our current bank (Lloyds TSB) says that we must leave a minimum of 600 euros in our current account at all times.  If the balance falls below this, the accont is immediately frozen, and we need to go into the bank to arrange a "thaw".  Is this a Spanish requirement, and therefore applicable to all banks in Spain?  If not, doe anyone have any recommendations from their own good experience of  Spanish banks as we are seriously thinking about moving away from Lloyds.  (The only reason we are with them is because we can transfer money regularly free of charge between Lloyds UK and Lloyds Spain, so any thoughts on transfers would also be appreciated!  Does anyone do this using Moneycorp, for example?)  NB We arein the process of getting our Residencia, if that makes any difference...  Thank you,  Donna

It is not a legal requirement in Spain at all. It must be then an internal policy of Lloyds.

Hi Donna

I use Sterling Exchange - www.sterlingexchange.co.uk - who don't charge anything for transfers.  Currency UK is also another company I used who don't charge.

Hope that helps.

 www.golfapartment.co.uk

Sounds like a load of old Tosh to me ! Typical UK bank. A bigger bunch of incompetents, thieves and sharks does not exist. I don't miss them at all. Maintain 600 Euros ? I'd tell them to take a hike. Cheapest, as in saving on transfers, may not always be the best.

We bank with Bancaja (I have no connection with them whatsoever) and they have been very good.

Direct debits you want stopped because you don't agree with the amount ? Phone the bank and it's stopped. Wife left her card in the cash till ? The machine swallows it back to prevent theft and then texts her that they have got it. In English.....   Need a new PIN - walk into the main branch and they will print you a new one, there & then. Internet banking is a breeze. Draw some cash and it will show within minutes online. None of that 3 day clearing nonsense in the UK

We use Moneycorp (again, no connection at all) to change from Sterling to Euros. We have an account so pay a flat fee. They may not be the cheapest but they have served us well, and every month for the last two years, the money has come from our UK account to our Spanish account within a few hours. yes, it CAN take up to 3 days for a transfer abroad, but we've never experienced that yet.

It's difficult to compare some of the companies as they agree a buy / sell rate on the spot which may change later. So if I get a quote from one company I may get a different one from another one, not because they are more or less expensive but purely becuase the rate has moved.

We leave a small sum of Sterling in the UK for when and if we need to go back and bring the rest over.

So I'd go with a Spanish bank. Like many things over here, in some ways they are light years ahead of the UK.

And it just goes to prove - look after your customers and they say nice things about you !

Good luck

Funnily enought the Spanish banking system better than ours in a lot of ways. Pay in a cheque, cleared nxt day. Make abank transfer in the morning, usually there later on that day, or next day at the latest.We bank with Barclays but it has a €20 per quarter fee. They have recently started a new account with no charges so long as you transfer €750 per month into it. They also offer free transfers from the UK to Spain, not sure what rates they offer though.

That said, I was thinking of moving to the Halifax as no interest is paid on current accounts and moving from current account to savings online isn't possible, only "new" money can be put in!!

Mark

Hi. We opened an account with Barclays in San Pedro del Pinatar a few months ago  and we have found them brilliant. There is no account fee, no minimum to keep in the account and they give us  cash back on our direct debit payments -  i.e. if your direct debits are say 100 euros a month you get a cash back credited to your account of 3% (it may be 2% , cant  remember without checking) Their online banking is excellent, in english and easy to navigate aroung the site. If we need to know any information, we just email our personal banker and she comes back to us usually the same day. The service we have received is second to none, probably better than you would get at barclays in the UK. ( I shouldnt really say that as I work for Barclays in the UK)

I am with CajaMurcia and seem to attract a lot of charges to the extent that I feel ripped off.  I would consider moving bank but I am confused by the two entirely contradictory impression of the charges imposed by Barclay.  Can someone clarify please.

PaddyW

I have been with the Halifax in Playa Flamenca for a year. I can't fault them on services or costs; the staff are great too. No complaints from me.

Surprisingly though, I opened the account with Halifax here because I had Halifax accounts in the UK and thought that would make transactions flawless. Not so; they are two different banks regardless of logos and the usual cheery chappie flaunting his % rates. It is all over my head but as I say, I am happy.

The Halifax in Spain are part of the HBOS group as we can transfer money from our Bank of Scotland account to our Spanish account with no charge.( although they probably adjust the rates accordingly )

All replies have been really helpful.  We have opened an account with a local Spanish Bank and look forward to taking our 600 euros "minimum" from Lloyds TSB.  How much interest is Lloyds making from all these accounts?  How sad that this British bank is unable to serve us as well as the Spanish can...  Donna