HSBC Serious Saver

Customer Support non-existent – Only one contact number which goes to off shore call centre full of people shouting. Staff member at the Philippine call centre was unable to assist with even basic account information. He left me on hold several times when I asked to speak to someone else, and he kept saying there was no one else available. When I was trying to give him my… Read more

details for a call back, I could hardly hear him for the shouting of people in the background. I couldn't believe that this was (what I thought) a large respected bank that I was dealing with! No one ever did ring me back. Difficult to transfer money out of the account, without downloading a mobile phone app or waiting to receive a secure key device - none of which was explained in the account set up process. I felt very insecure about dealing with this bank due to the lack of Customer Support.

Great deal – 2.85 percent for 4 months with no withdrawls and can add to balance .... Better than any term deposit rate the banks will give you at the moment my bank offered me a miserable 2 percent and for a 3 month term deposit and the other major banks were worse

Best interest rate in the country, only lose out if you're stupid – There are two conditions of this account. . You get the interest for 4 months and don't withdraw from the account. It's not hard. People giving it one star because they're stupid is hilarious. I got $50 more a month than my usual bank on a pretty modest balance. Setting up the account took all of 30 minutes. I seriously don't understand how people struggle with this stuff.

Bad Mobile app and too much process to do anything – Totally put off by their mobile banking app. I'm surprised even after such bad reviews on the App Store a large bank like HSBC haven't reacted to fix it. Banking isn't simplified as they have a lot of process to get anything done. I read the fine print so didn't fall for the zero interest if withdrawn during the month. Not sure if I would bank with them again.

Deceitful conduct by HSBC – I mistakenly withdrew $100 from my serious saver instead of my everyday account and rang immediately to reverse as I realised I would lose I interest for this month , response from overseas operator was bad luck no interest for you this month, so for a simple mistake which a lot of customers make which could have been reversed I lose $300… Read more

interest.

I had issues beforehand as their woeful website is terrible to navigate and very time consuming. Frequently I got locked out, so when I was finally able to log back in I quickly withdrew the $100 needed via internet transfer to my cba account unfortunately the 1st account that appeared was my serious saver not everyday account. I believe the site is deliberately set up this way to fool customers into mistakenly withdrawing funds from the serious saver, note there is no warning pop informing you that you will receive no interest, are you sure etc. it’s almost like HSBC are obtaining property by deception , absolutely disgusting.

I will close my account when the bank opens and deposit money in an Australian Bank not an offshore Bank set up by thieves.

Please google HSBC they receive the worst reviews all over the world for website and customer service from branches and overseas call centre. Stick with Australian Banks they are not so bad after all.

Deceptive Promotions of HSBC serious saver Beware! – The HSBC Serious Saver account is promoted as a high interest online account offering 3% interest rate for 4 months. I’m afraid this simply is a deception. You can only obtain that interest rate if you open the account on ONE specific date in a calendar month and make no withdrawals whatsoever for 4 months from that date. The 28th of a month.… Read more

Unless this is the case, you quite simply DO NOT receive 3% interest rate for 4 months. I have complained without redress to HSBC and been forced to lodge a complaint with FOS. You have been warned. Their fine print does not cut it!

Sneaky – I applied for a Serious Saver account as I was already with HSBC, and rates were good. I didn't realised there was a 'no withdrawal' rule, and did withdraw money (a very small amount) towards the end of the month (on two consecutive days). As a consequence, I didn't receive interest for those 2 months (and I still don't get whi I didn't receive… Read more

interest for the second month, as the 2 withdrawals were done on the same month). I probably should have read T&C carefully, but HSBC should make it more obvious as well. And HSBC should warn customers that they won't get interest at the time customers withdraw money.

This is a very sneaky offer, and banks shouldn't be allowed to offer such products. This is basically a one month Term Deposit, called 'Savings Accounts' to fool customers. The rate A sneaky product - something banks shouldn't be allowed to do.

Bad – I applied for the HSBC Serious Saver account upon seeing an ad online because I thought the interest was really competitive at that time. The golden rule to get the interest was not to withdraw any money in a particular month, but I could live with that because I had another transaction account with ANZ, which was my main account. Besides, this… Read more

account doesn't have any account servicing fee. I was very happy with this account, until the time when there was the global recession and the interest rate dropped. However, I still kept my money there. I became livid when I received a letter early in 2009 from HSBC regarding my Serious Saver account. According to the letter, I had to submit proof of my identity and make a statutory declaration if I wanted my account to remain active, according to the newest law by the government. I actually have already done it when I applied for this account, and besides, I really had no time to do all that considering I just started with my new job. Hence, I just withdrew all my money and cancelled the account. So, for people considering of opening this account, my advice is just be prepared for the unexpected. Not really recommended as there are many other better savings account out there. No account servicing fee, availability of internet banking Currently low interest rate, to get interest for a particular month you cannot make a withdrawal during the month

Bad – HSBC’s Serious Saver Account gives 3.25% interest if an account holder doesn’t do any withdrawal during the month, otherwise it will be zero. As comparison, at the moment Bank West’s Smart eSaver offers 4.5% interest with no withdrawal or 3% interest with any withdrawal during the month. Alternatively, an account holder can go with Raboplus or ING… Read more

Direct which offer 4.0% and 3.5% interest respectively without any restriction. With such a big difference, I’m wondering why a serious saver would stick with HSBC’s Serious Saver account. I think HSBC should be more serious with its product offering. No bank fees.

Can be linked to any transaction account with any bank in Australia. Uncompetitive interest rate.

Earn no interest if there is any withdrawal during the month.

OK – I have this account linked to my everyday HSBC account so I can easily transact between the two. This is not my primary savings account I find it is good to keep a few dollars in it for a rainy day or unexpected bill, earning slightly more interest then if I left it in my normal account, not really for the serious saver but this account is… Read more

convenient for me. This account can be linked to any account.

No card access, so you cant take the money out, forcing you to save or think twice about spending it. The interest rate is not overly competitive.

No interest if you withdraw some of the money.