Tag: Metro Bank

Summer Savings

Metro Bank Offers Tips to Make This Summer More Affordable

Everything is more expensive this year both at home and abroad. A new report[1] has just revealed that the average price of package holidays across five top destinations is up more than 30%, with the holiday costs to some of Brits’ most favoured destinations – Spain, Turkey, Greece, Portugal and Cyprus – up by nearly 12% compared to last summer. 

Whether you are planning days out, a staycation or holidaying abroad, Metro Bank has some tips to make this summer more affordable.

“Following our top tips can help keep your summer fun filled but more affordable this year,” said Metro Bank’s consumer guru Mona Patel.

“Whether you are planning days out, a staycation, or are even off abroad, there are always ways to save money.”

Metro Bank Summer Tips:

  1. Online Deals
    Whatever your plans this summer, check out sites like Wowcher.co.uk which offers deals on UK or foreign city breaks, theatre tickets and theme parks or Groupon.com for everything from afternoon tea to spa breaks – on average you can save 30% using specialist sites.
  1. House swap for a free holiday
    Sites like LoveHomeSwap allow you to swap your home with any of 10,000 worldwide properties on their site. All these sites charge a fee – LoveHomeSwap will give you a 10-day free trial with membership costs varying from £8 – £12 per month.
  1. airbnb
    If you are planning to stay with relatives or travel this summer why not airbnb your property and offset some of the costs? airbnb not only verify guests and offer insurance protection, but they also connect you to a local Superhost to guide you through the process. Typically, fees are a flat service fee of 3% of the reservation subtotal when you get paid. airbnb also collect a fee from guests when they book. In many areas Airbnb also collects and pays sales and tourism taxes automatically on your behalf. One caveat – check that your mortgage provider has no objections. Metro Bank for example lets its residential mortgage customers rent out their properties on airbnb or similar sites for 90 days without impacting the terms and conditions of their mortgage.
  1. Foreign Transactions
    Choose your credit and debit cards wisely. Always check with your card issuer what additional charges will apply on foreign card transactions before you travel so you can plan and budget accordingly. In Europe Metro Bank’s debit and credit cards have no fees at all whether withdrawing cash, or when paying by card in shops and restaurants. 
  1. Cheap Arts
    Want to see a West End show or London attraction? Sites like todaytix  or TKTS London offer same day cut price theatre or attraction tickets. There are more than 25 free museums and 10 free art galleries in London alone. Search for free activities near me to find out what is in your area.

Check out cinema offers. For example, Vue is currently staging Mini Mornings where tickets for kids’ films cost from £2.49 for both children and adults – a fraction of the normal ticket prices.

  1. Off-Peak Travel

Public transport is much cheaper if you travel off peak. In general, off-peak hours begin at 09:30 from Monday to Friday in cities and large towns and at 09:00 everywhere else.

Don’t Be Fooled This Summer, warns Metro Bank

A Money Mule Conviction Could Lead to 14 Years in Prison

Metro Bank’s July Scam of the Month is Money Mules. The Bank is highlighting the heavy penalties that consumers will face if they are tempted by the idea of easy money.

“A recent Cifas report[1] highlighted that young people living in London and West Midlands are most at risk of being tempted by this type of crime,” warns Metro Bank’s Head of Fraud & Investigations, Baz Thompson.

“A money mule is someone who transfers money through their bank account on behalf of somebody else and is paid for doing so. “Compound this with the current cost of living crisis and we are anticipating a money mule explosion this summer – largely across social media where money mules are recruited.”

The biggest proponents of money mules are those aged under 25 – possibly because they are recruited via social media – one of the key platforms for this type of crime. It is also concerning that there has been an increase in young people aged 14-18 being approached to use their bank accounts for money muling.

They are offered money in exchange for sharing their legitimate bank account details so scammers can use their account to move money earned from illegal activity. Alternatively, money launderers use their account to begin the process of “cleaning money” to hide that it has come from illegal activity.

The Cifas report also revealed that four out of five people do not realise that, by being rewarded for sharing their personal financial information, they are committing a crime.

At worst, money muling carries fines and up to a 14-year prison sentence; but, even at its best, people who get involved can seriously damage their credit scores. This means they could struggle to get a phone contract, loan, mortgage and even negatively impact any future employment. 

They will also be added to the National Fraud Database, which means they can be denied access to a bank account in the future.

Some people are duped into this illegal activity, so knowing the warning signs can help you identify mule herders and avoid falling for their tricks. 

Look out for 

  • Contact from someone you do not know trying to befriend you – especially online or in a messaging app.
  • Someone you have met online offering deals that sound too good to be true. 
  • Job offers for quick and easy money with no experience necessary. 
  • Anyone who asks to transfer money to your bank account for you to pass on to someone else.
  • Someone who wants to buy a valuable item from you and insists on paying by bank transfer. 

How to help protect yourself

If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Here are some tips to protect yourself:

  • Never accept money into your account if you do not know where it is from.
  • Never share your bank details, contact details, or personal details with someone you do not know.
  • If you are job hunting research all job offers and investigate the company behind the offer and stick to well-known sites for job searches – do not apply for jobs that are only advertised on social media.
  • Take a look at the Take Five campaign which focuses on Stop, Challenge and Protect `
  • If you are a parent or guardian, then please raise awareness about money muling with your children to help protect them.

If you have been contacted:

  • If you think you have been contacted by a mule herder, ensure that you stop transferring money. Contact your bank who can help you. You can also contact the police or the charity Crimestoppers online or by calling them on 0800 555 111 anonymously.
  • There is a wealth of information which UK Finance and Cifas have collated and is available at www.moneymules.co.uk

Baz Thompson concludes: “Don’t be fooled this summer and risk your financial future by making some easy money that in the long run could cost you dearly, negatively impact your future, lead to problems applying for any credit and may even curtail your freedom.”

[1] Cifas Money Mule Landscape

Metro Bank Supports Take Five Week

Consumers Are Challenged – Does It Seem Legit?

Metro Bank, the UK’s community bank, supports UK Finance’s 2023 Take Five week from 17th April – 21st April 2023.  The theme is ‘Seems Legit?’ A challenge to consumers to stop and consider if something just doesn’t ring true – especially if you are being pressured to act quickly.

Take Five is delivered by UK Finance in collaboration with a range of partners including the payments industry, financial services firms and law enforcement because in 20211 over £1.3 billion was stolen by criminals – that’s nearly £2,500 every minute of the day.

Take Five is a national awareness campaign which offers straightforward and impartial advice to help everyone protect themselves from preventable financial fraud. This includes email deception and phone-based scams as well as online fraud – particularly where criminals impersonate trusted organisations.

Despite fraud being the most common type of crime in the UK – accounting for more than 40% of all reported crimes – only 2% of police funding is directed to tackling the problem – so consumers need to participate to help protect themselves.

“No-one believes they will become the victim of a scam, however in the heat of the moment, it’s easy to forget the basics around keeping yourself and your details safe from fraudsters”, warns Baz Thompson, head of fraud and investigations, Metro Bank. 

“It is human nature to trust people – especially if someone says they’re from a bank – why wouldn’t you believe them? Take Five urges everyone to stop, pause and consider whether the situation is legitimate.”

Take Five has created a punchy reminder on what to do if you’re faced with a scenario where you are asked to make some kind of payment:

Stop – Take a moment to stop and think before parting with your money – trust your gut if something doesn’t feel right, it’s probably not!

Challenge – Is this person who they say they are? It’s okay to refuse any requests for money and financial or personal details.

Protect –Follow our tips to prevent yourself falling victim to scams. If you believe you have fallen victim to a scam report it to your bank immediately.

Visit Take Five’s website for the latest advice around frauds and scams:

1.       https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/policy-and-guidance/reports-and-publications/annual-fraud-report-2022

Metro Bank helps care leavers become financially independent

This week is National Care Leavers Week and the UK’s community bank, Metro Bank, is supporting the Care Leaver Covenant – a joint promise made by the private, public and voluntary sectors to provide support for care leavers aged 16-25 to help them to live independently.

Around 11,000 young people (aged 16 – 18) leave care each year and the aim of the Care Leaver Covenant is to provide them with additional support. The Covenant centres around five key areas – independent living; education, employment and training; finance; safety and security; mental and physical health.

Since signing the Covenant, Metro Bank has started to deliver new bespoke Money Zone sessions for young adult care leavers.  Money Zone is a series of financial education lessons about budgeting, saving and banking that Metro Bank has already delivered to over 203,000 UK school children. 

Metro Bank has also introduced a special identification and verification process for care home residents and care leavers to make it easier for them to open bank accounts and become financially independent.

In addition, the Bank has worked with its recruitment team and the Care Leaver Covenant to communicate its “hire for attitude and train for skills” ethos by promoting roles that are available and suitable for young adults across the business.

“We are committed to supporting young adults leaving the care system,” explains Kat Robinson, director of customer experience at Metro Bank.  “We are helping them take their first independent steps towards managing their personal finances.”

When Someone Dies …

Metro Bank’s Bereavement Team Offers a Practical Guide to Bereavement Administration

When someone dies there is a lot of official paperwork that needs to be completed – some even comes with deadlines and fines if not processed properly and timely. As the UK’s community bank, Metro Bank has a specialist bereavement team to support anyone processing the administration at every stage through the bereavement process.

The team has created a practical guide to help everyone to understand what they need to do when dealing with the key stages of administration that surrounds a death.

“Losing someone is hard enough, without having to deal with all the official paperwork that has to be completed,” explains Dave Craggs, director of customer support, Metro Bank. “Our bereavement team has the empathy and expertise to guide and support at these difficult moments and this practical guide explains the key steps in the process that need to be taken.”

1.    The medical certificate of cause of death.

When someone dies, a doctor needs to issue a medical certificate for the cause of death. This is the first stage of managing the paperwork needed to process every aspect of bereavement administration.

The certificate needs to include the name, age, place and cause of death about the deceased.  If the cause of death is clear, this certificate can be issued straightaway, otherwise you can expect a delay until further investigations have been carried out. Once any investigations have been completed, a Coroners Certificate of fact of death will be issued and the death can then be registered.

2.    Registering the death

Every death has to be legally registered. If you’re in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, you will have five days to register a death.  In Scotland you have up to eight days.

You will need to make an appointment at the register office near to the place of death and bring the medical certificate of cause of death with some identification proof such as the deceased’s passport, driving licence or birth certificate to the appointment.  Once you have registered the death the registrar will issue you with the Death Certificate.

Full details can be found on the government website and the registrar will also explain about this government web page that enables you to tell the government about the death, so all of its agencies are simultaneously informed at once including- for example – state pension, disability benefits and council services.

3.    The Will & The Estate

If the deceased has a Will the named executor/s will deal with the estate. They will need to obtain a Grant of Probation by completing a probate form which can be found online here.as well as an inheritance tax form or by calling 0300 123 1072.

If there is no Will, a relative will be appointed as an administrator to deal with the estate. They will need to obtain Letters of Administration.

The deceased person’s property and belongings are called the estate.

Part of managing the estate includes the disposal of assets, payment of outstanding bills and debts as well as advising all the relevant organisations such as telecoms, social media, energy, financial services including insurance and banking for which there may be direct debits and standing orders as well as money and investments.

4.    The Bank

The deceased’s bank will play an integral part in the bereavement administration and each bank’s processes may vary slightly. If the deceased banked with Metro Bank, you can inform us in person by visiting your local Metro Bank store, by phone, or via post and ask for the support of the bereavement team. 

The bereavement team will take you through the process step by step.  You will need to supply them with some documentation including the original death certificate, or an interim death certificate plus proof of your identification (i.e. passport, driving licence etc.) as well as the original Will.

If there isn’t a Will the bereavement team can still help you with collecting a person’s estate, in line with Government guidelines.

Once the bereavement team has all the necessary documents, they can help organise any money, property and possessions held with us. We will then guide you through what happens with each type of account – be it current, savings, joint, loans, investment or credit cards and how any funeral invoices and inheritance tax can be paid and settled.

You’ll need to either visit us in store, email the Bereavement Team – bereavement.services@metrobank.plc.uk or via post to make these final arrangements and complete the necessary forms. We can also help with paying for the funeral – for example if there are sufficient funds belonging to the deceased in an account held with us, we can pay funeral costs directly to the funeral director. All we need is a final invoice. 

Alternatively, we can reimburse the funeral costs you have already covered. All you need to do is send us a proof of the payment and the person who made it, along with the final funeral invoice.

5.    Useful Links

Dave Craggs: “A person’s life is full of meaningful activity and interactions – each of which has to be closed off properly when they die.  Managing this entire process can take months and be complex depending on the volume of their personal contacts, possessions, property, money and investments, but help is at hand.”

There are many organisations that can help with this process including:

Metro Bank – Bereavement Team

UK Government – what to do when someone dies

Pension Tracing Service

HMRC

Citizen’s Advice

Bereavement Advice Centre