Don’t Leave Your Life Uninsured
June 19th, 2006
If you’re planning on switching banks (maybe you’ve reclaimed fees and they’ve shut your account, or you’re simply after a better account elsewhere), it pays to make sure that all of your Direct Debits are transfered succesfully. It amazes me at the number of people who inadvertantly lose their life cover after missing a Direct Debit - often caused by changing banks.
It’s obviously something that can quite easily be overlooked (and can of course affect anything else that is paid for by direct debit), but it’s surprising how nonchalent people can be about their life insurance (”it won’t happen to me”) when the consequences could be so grave.
Switching banks
Before switching, check your bank statements for regular transactions to work out what might be affected (this might also prove to be a good method of weeding out any regular subscriptions that you no longer need). The banks in question should action all changes to Direct Debits and standing orders in five days, but it’s worth keeping your existing account open (with some money in it!) until you are sure your new account is set up.
Once you’re happy that all your Direct Debits and standing orders are being paid from the new account (also check that they’re not being duplicated and coming out of both accounts!), you can probably safely close your old account.
