|
Branch locations and contact details: Central | ||
| Barclays | 54 Cornmarket St | 0845 755 5555 |
| 37 Little Clarendon St | 0845 755 5555 | |
| 95 High St | 0845 755 5555 | |
| HSBC (né Midland) | 65 Cornmarket St | 08457 404 404 |
| Lloyds TSB | 1-5 High St, Carfax | 0845 300 0000 |
| Nationwide | 19 Queen Street | 01865 440900 |
| NatWest | 32 Cornmarket St | 0845 301 9797 |
| 121 High St | 0845 301 9799 | |
| Royal Bank of Scotland | 32 St. Giles | 01865 310200 |
| Headington & Cowley (East) | ||
| Barclays | 105 London Road, Headington | 0845 755 5555 |
| 4 Pound Way, Cowley | 0845 755 5555 | |
| HSBC (né Midland) | 108 London Road, Headington | 08457 404 404 |
| Lloyds TSB | 103 London Road, Headington | 0845 300 0000 |
| 87 London Road, Headington | 0845 300 0000 | |
| NatWest | Brookes - sub branch, students only | 01865 742162 |
| Summertown (North) | ||
| Barclays | 211- 213 Banbury Road | 0845 755 5555 |
| HSBC (né Midland) | Prama House, Banbury Rd | 08457 404 404 |
| Lloyds TSB | 203 Banbury Road | 0165 741400 |
| NatWest | 249 Banbury Road | 0845 308 7758 |
| Botley (West) | ||
| Barclays | Hinksey Court, Botley | 0845 755 5555 |
| HSBC (né Midland) | Midland House, West Way | 08457 404 404 |
| Lloyds TSB | 19 The Square, Botley | 01865 242917 |
| NatWest | Elms Court, Botley | 0845 300 7804 |
Getting The Best Deal
Visit www.moneysupermarket.com and be amazed by the amount of hard
work they've done in order to enable you to compare the merits of various
financial services. Insurance, banking, credit cards, pensions, all have been
examined to help you make an informed choice. Recommended. A similar service is
offered by www.moneyextra.com, should you wish to delve even deeper.
And for cheerful and clear investment advice, do consider
the nice people at Motley Fool (www.fool.co.uk). They began by suggesting that one ignore all
financial advisors and invest early and often in market-linked deals which show
a steady 12% a year (although at the time of updating - late 2009 - that might
be somewhat difficult). They seem now to have diversified into another
many-tentacled creature like the two immediately above, but are likely to have
kept their no-nonsense style.
www.easy-quote.co.uk: compare credit cards, loans and
mortgages.
Reclaiming Bank Charges
Some people have recently been successful in claiming back
penalty charges from banks on the grounds that these are illegal. Details on the
process can be found on the Which
website. Please note that not having tried this ourselves, we do not necessarily
recommend this course of action, but merely suggest that further investigation
may be fruitful.
Checking your credit rating
If you need to establish your credit rating www.checkmyfile.com can help
you so to do. Their "free stuff" is relatively unhelpful, but for a fee you can
establish how you are likely to be thought of by large financial institutions. A
similar service (among others) is provided by www.experian.co.uk, who will
supply your credit reference file for free.
Finding an ATM - wherever you are
Link provides a locator to find your nearest ATM.
Investigate on a map or enter a postcode to find your nearest: www.link.co.uk
Interactive Calculations
Visit www.Thisismoney.co.uk to conveniently calculate every kind of
financial equation: VAT, currency exchange, tax, interest rates, the effects of
inflation, and how to cut bills. You can even get a set of lottery numbers
generated for you!
Conversion
Enter any sort of a value at www.onlineconversion.com and with one click all the
complicated formulae are done for you. Lots of fun stuff too.
When it comes to meatspace conversion of actual physical
money, we are told that Senli Cash & Go in the Tourist Information Centre on
Broad Street has 'the best exchange rates in town', and operates on a no fee, no
commission basis. It has a helpful website at www.cash2go.senli.co.uk
and can be reached by phone on 01865 203319 or fax on 01865 245901.
For advice about taking money abroad, the Lonely Planet
guide is most informative about arrangements in different countries. Go to www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide and select the area you're
visiting.
