Managing your money

Faster Payments

A new service from Chelsea Building Society

During December we introduced a Faster Payments service. This means electronic payments from your account arrive at their destination more quickly. The service is part of new regulations to change the way payments are processed between bank accounts from 2012 onwards.

What does this mean?

Electronic payments you make from your account to a bank account elsewhere will normally arrive the next day. It won't change when the payments leave your account; just that they'll get to the receiving bank quicker.

If you manage your account online, logging in to make an electronic payment is exactly the same as before. The only difference you'll be aware of (other than the quicker arrival at the receiving bank) is what happens to payments above £100,000. There is an overall transaction limit of £100,000 under the Faster Payments scheme. So, if you request an electronic transfer above this amount, it will be sent as more than one payment.

Payment of interest

If interest is sent to your bank account at the end of the month in which it is due, it will reach your account quicker than under the previous system.

Are all bank accounts in the scheme?

A limited number of bank accounts are not part of the Faster Payments scheme. To check whether the bank accounts you make electronic payments to are covered, use the sort code checker.

More information

Call us on 0845 850 4041 with any questions about how the Faster Payments service affects your accounts. Lines are open 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 1pm Saturday.

Sort code

Not all accounts can receive payments. Please refer to your account terms and conditions before making a payment to make sure that it's possible.

For Online accounts via CHAPS or Electronic Payments

You can transfer money by telegraphic transfer (SWIFT) from overseas. To arrange this transfer, the organisation sending the payment will need to quote:

For Online accounts

Annual savings account statement and statement of deduction
of tax

This year's annual savings account statement is being despatched from 8 April to mid May. If you have any queries about the information sent to you, our frequently asked questions will help.

If you would like to know more about the way that the information is laid out, take a look below at "Your annual savings account statement explained".

Your annual savings account statement explained

The annual savings account statement is in two parts. The first part shows your account balance at 5 April 2010 and the amount of gross interest, the amount of tax deducted (if any) and the net interest paid during the tax year ended on 5 April 2010. In addition it confirms the date interest was last paid and tells you when interest is next due to be paid on your account.

The second part is a statement of deduction of tax which you may need if you have to complete a tax return or if you wish to reclaim from HM Revenue and Customs tax which has been deducted. The gross interest, tax deducted (if any) and net interest shown repeats the information shown on the statement part.

An explanation of the first part is shown below. Interest is calculated on a daily basis, and is paid on the date(s) set for your account. Depending on the type of account you have selected, interest is paid annually, or monthly. The date of the most recent interest payment is shown (note 2 below), together with the next expected payment date (note 6 below). We do not show the interest earned between 6 April 2009 and 5 April 2010, but the value of the interest paid during this period.

Note 1
This is the 'cleared' balance of your account at the close of business on 5 April 2010.

Note 2
This is the date of the most recent interest payment made for this account.

Note 3
This is the total gross value of interest paid for this account (ie before tax).

Note 4
This figure is the amount of tax we have deducted (if any) from the gross interest, and paid directly to HM Revenue and Customs.

Note 5
This is the net value of interest actually paid to you, ie after tax has been deducted.

Note 6
This shows the next expected interest payment date, and is determined by the terms of your account.

Useful forms

Download, complete and sign the form you need and send it to our office or your local branch.

You will need the free Adobe® Reader software and weblink plugin to view these documents. If you do not have this, you can download it from the Adobe website.

Dormant or lost accounts

Chelsea has always been committed to keeping our customers in touch with their savings. As part of this commitment, we can help you trace lost or forgotten accounts held with us.

What is a lost or dormant account?

A lost or dormant account is one which shows no customer initiated activity for more than 15 years. Accounts can become lost or dormant for many reasons. Some customers don't keep track of the accounts they hold and lose touch with their money. Other accounts may become dormant as a result of people moving house and not informing their bank or building society of the change of address.

How do I trace a lost or dormant Chelsea account?

If you think you have a lost or dormant savings account, we can check for you free of charge. To do this, we'll need as much information from you as possible including your full name (and any other names, e.g. maiden name), your date of birth, current and previous addresses, the estimated date of when the account was opened and your account number (if you know this).

Once you have this information, please get in contact with us by either visiting your local Chelsea branch or, calling our dedicated Customer Call Centre on 08457 446622 or by writing to us at our office.

Once we've checked our records, we'll write to you to let you know if we've been able to locate an account. If we do locate an account we'll let you know what to do next.

Tracing other accounts

You can also trace a dormant account with another bank, building society or with National Savings & Investments by visiting mylostaccount.org.uk. This is a free service provided by the Building Societies Association, the British Bankers' Association (BBA) and National Savings and Investments (NS&I).