Finished my LOQBOX after 12 months. Not sure what impact it has had on my credit, but the process to withdraw the funds is a heck of a lot more complicated than I thought.
Firstly it takes three workings days for each deposit to clear. This can feel like a lifetime when you’re trying to withdraw.
You can only withdraw to one of their ‘partner banks’ for free. I emailed LOQBOX a few weeks ago to ask what the partner banks were and never had a response, disappointingly. You can also pay £30 to deposit your savings into an existing current account.
Naturally I elected to open a new bank. The choices are RBS, NatWest & TSB. I selected RBS, and the application process is painfully outdated, and now I have to wait several working days for RBS to tell me if I can have a bank account with them (no instant decision offered or given).
The exit procedure seems a bit . I get LOQBOX needs to make money, but I’m one of those people that needs access to these savings so I can get on with buying my wedding ring and didn’t really want to pay to access my savings sooner rather than later. If I had known RBS would not give a same day decision, I probably would have considered TSB/NatWest if they offered same day opening.
An update on my journey after unlocking my LOQBOX.
So RBS opened my account four days later.
I then had to wait for my card to arrive, which arrived the next day, then my PIN separately today. Once I received my card I could then register for online banking (as this would be the first time the account number and sort code would become known to me). When I got my card I was able to tell LOQBOX my account details so that they could transfer the money into my new account.
I want to transfer the money from RBS to Monzo. The online account is immediately heavily limited as I am forced to order a chip and PIN reader to unlock full features of the app. The chip and PIN reader takes 7 working days to arrive. When I receive the chip and PIN reader I’ll be able to make a payment from RBS to Monzo online.
In a bid to speed time up, I rang up, was put through immediately which was a surprise, I was asked about 7 security questions, only to be told I cannot make any payments over the phone because the account has been opened for less than 30 days, and that I must go into a branch (nearest branch over 40 miles away) with photo ID to make a bank transfer payment.
At this point I’m just going to withdraw the money at an ATM and pay it into my other current account and then transfer to Monzo. I cannot wait to close RBS. Monzo, please never be like this! Also this experience has heavily impacted my desire to go through LOQBOX again as I never wanted a new bank account, nor did I want to pay £30.00 for the privilege to access my savings directly into my existing current account, which I’m sure LOQBOX made interest on for the duration of holding my savings.
I met the guys from LOQBOX a few years ago when I was working at one of those partner banks. I thought it was an interesting concept, albeit one that I thought could prove a challenge to sell.
I’m not sure they make a lot of - or any - money from deposits. It’s all instant access (as you can cancel during the term and get everything back) and so their main income is from affiliate deals with TSB and RBS. If you choose to opt-out of that stage, the £30 fee is in lieu of them not receiving that payment.
I don’t think they’ve always communicated that very well. They do now, but I don’t know what the info was like when you opened your account. But even if the info is there, there’s a risk that people won’t remember that detail 12 months later and LOQBOX should do all they can to make that clear towards the end of the term so people can start planning accordingly.
It seems like quite an innovative product which is let down by involving legacy banks at the end of the process.
I don’t have LOQBOX myself, though I have just sent them a message through their website asking what their offerings are in terms of accounts to be opened. After all, the website says RBS, TSB and NatWest are some of the banks they work with, not all of the banks they work with; however, there is no other mention of banks they work with anywhere else on the site that I could find. I also asked what offerings they provide for each bank, but from what @anon35201645 says, it sounds like they’re just opening a current (or basic) account with these banks, not savings accounts.
I already have a current account that I’m quite happy with so I don’t see the free offering as very appealing if this is the case. Does anyone who’s used the “Premium” feature of paying into an existing account know whether you pay the £30 upon starting with LOQBOX or whenever you take the money out? I would assume you pay at the start, but you know what they say about making assumptions!
You don’t pay at the start, and if I recall well you’ll be asked at the end of your LOQBOX agreement or if you choose to ‘unlock’ earlier as you supposedly have the choice to end the agreement at any point.
It’s how they make their money. At the end of the lock period they get a referral fee from the bank you then open an account with to get your money back
Oh, I understand that that’s where their income comes from; they have costs to cover just like any other business. I wanted to know what their new account offerings were in terms of the free version and how and when the £30 fee is to be paid, not why I have to pay it
Here’s the response from LOQBOX regarding available providers:
With regards to Pockit, you can go through Pockit themselves for £9.99. Presumably this automates everything for you with regard to where the money goes so you don’t have to wait ages for the account to set up.
You also have to pay the Pockit fee of 99p to pay out every month as well as the £9.99 up front fee.
That’s about £21 total for the year.
I think the best option is to do it with Loqbox directly then when the 12 months is up, pay it out to Pockit and transfer to the account you use, which as far as I can tell would only cost you 99p. I’m not too familiar with Pockit though so I might be missing something.
Anyone tried to use LOQBOX service recently? I was curious to check it out since concept seem interesting and I had talk with friend of mine regarding credit scores.
So for the sake of testing the idea I opened account with small 25 GBP monthly payment, but now after 2 months and 2 payments passed I don’t see any activity related to their service on either of my credit reports: TransUnion, Equifax or Experian.
I know that sometimes it’s take a while for accounts to appear on report, but LOQBOX state they report to all three CRA’s and it’s seems very suspicious there is zero presence after two months have passed. So I curious whatever they actually report anything any more.
It will probably be quicker and easier if you dropped them a message to ask. All we can do is speculate as to what it could be because we don’t have access to your account
I’ll obviously do exactly this unless it’s appear on report after a bit more time. After all it’s might seriously just require more time (some of my credit cards in past only appeared after a while). In any case I’ll post update here.
I still curios whatever someone else actually seen their loan on credit reports and what CRA it was.
I have used this company and I sent to pay £20 per mouth for 12 moth now you can end it at any point but to get the money out at the end or if you cancel early then you need on if the partner banks witch can change at any point it take about days to get the Monte from them with is a long time in this a\day and age with faster payments.
You do have to pay some think for then at the end I think it was £30 when I left that over a year ago.
Thye do report the the CRA and all the tops ones it douse show as a loan and and long as you keep up paying and don’t misses it reports fine I nit use how it will help as every one has different credit scores mine is nit very good of cours it will hurt the credit report at first with is normal.
I think it helps as it show up as you can mange money and have one load payed in full that shows I would remained it but just getting the money out is a pain.
If they could add faster payments and lower the cost of getting your money out would be great.
Yeah I should’ve have checked their chat bot to begin with. It’s the first time I ever found any information from any chat bot useful, but only because it’s not on their website FAQ. It’s says they only report to CRAs on 18th of next month after a payment day and there will obviously be delay on top of it.
I have contact them in this as well as I have an account with them the banks they use change all the time but to get the money out you need to open a new bank frown them that’s how they make they money offer then that you would have to pay them £30 and they pay what’s left out to any bank.
. I get LOQBOX needs to make money, but I’m one of those people that needs access to these savings so I can get on with buying my wedding ring 
and didn’t really want to pay to access my savings sooner rather than later. If I had known RBS would not give a same day decision, I probably would have considered TSB/NatWest if they offered same day opening.
