The Halifax is weighing in to the student bank account market with an offer that includes a GBP3,000 interest free overdraft, reduced cost card insurance and discounted AA membership.
An important aspect of this offer from the Halifax is that the overdraft is valid for up to five years, giving students a full year after graduation to find employment and be in a position to pay off the borrowing. Account holders will also find that, should they be in credit on their account the Halifax will even pay them interest of two percent.
Management of the Halifax student account can be done through branch, phone or online, making it easy for students to access and manage their finances at any time.
A new five year contract has been agreed between the Alliance and Leicester and Payzone, a 17,000 site network where consumers can pay water bills.
Estimated figures for the year are that around 6 million transactions will be processed by the Alliance and Leicester on behalf of Payzone, consumers using either a booklet or credit card style payment card. The relationship between the two companies began in 2007 so this five year deal shows the belief they have in each other now.
The commercial side of Alliance and Leicester works with around 1,500 businesses to collect payments from consumers, with most utility companies signed up as well as 8 out of 10 local authorities.
The HSBC has been looking at the different university cities to see which ones will cost the most to live in.
Totally expected was the most expensive city which is London, where the average rent for student accommodation exceeds GBP100 per week. It proved to be miles ahead of any other city in the country, with the next closest being Plymouth, with an average weekly rent of GBP63. A spokeswoman from HSBC reminded students that living costs can make a massive difference to managing as a student, and with rent such an integral part of student life it is important not to get in to an agreement that is too costly to manage.
Other cities in the list included Birmingham and Nottingham, where rents averaged GBP60, and Leeds, Manchester and Preston, with average rents of GBP50. To help manage finances the HSBC offers a student account with credit card and interest free overdraft.