1. Definitions
- account means your co-operative members’ savings account operated and maintained by us and may include any additional benefits or services we provide from time to time.
- account charges means the account charges set out in the leaflet made available to you in respect of the account from time to time.
- available money means funds which have cleared on your account. Please refer to Welcome Letter for further information.
- card means any cash card supplied by us to you from time to time to use with your account.
- cardholder means the person to whom or for whose use a card is issued.
- card transactions means the obtaining of cash with use of the card from ATMs.
- customer security details means your security code and secure personal information registered with us for use when you become a customer.
- group means us, The Co-operative Group Limited (The Co-operative Group), The Co-operative Insurance Society Limited (CIS) and any companies or organisations the bank, The Co-operative Group or CIS wholly or partly own or are owned by at any time and any other independent Co-operative Societies.
- group member means an individual member of The Co-operative Group Limited. Individual Membership is as defined by the current rules of The Co-operative Group Limited.
- information means any information about you or anyone associated with you, which we or the group hold now or in the future as a result of the application process or your other dealings with us or the group, searches or checks at credit reference or fraud prevention agencies, products and services you hold within the group and any transactions for goods or services arising out of your account (including the supplier and the type of goods or services)
- and this may include sensitive information as defined in the Data Protection Act 1998.
- PIN means the personal identification number issued to the cardholder.
- we, us, our or the bank means The Co-operative Bank plc, P.O. Box 101,
- 1 Balloon Street, Manchester M60 4EP and its successors and assigns.
- Working day means any day other than Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays in England and Wales.
- you, your or the accountholder means the customer in whose name the account is opened and maintained.
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2. Account basics
2.1 To open and maintain an account you must:
- be a UK resident and over 16
- be a group member
- make an initial payment of £1 into your account
- maintain a minimum balance of £1
2.2 Any money you put in to the account must be:
- in sterling; or
- a recognised UK cheque
2.3 The maximum balance you can keep in your account is £1,000,000.
2.4 If you cease to be a group member we will write to you and you can:
- request the full balance (including interest accrued) by cheque
- request the full balance (including interest accrued) to be transferred to another existing The Co-operative Bank Account
- convert your account to The Co-operative Bank Instant Access Savings Account or such other account as determined by us from time to time.
2.5 The account must not be used for business purposes or by clubs or unincorporated associations.
2.6 You must not overdraw your account. In the event that the account becomes overdrawn, you must immediately pay into or transfer enough money to bring the account into credit. The unauthorised overdraft charges (including interest, a monthly service charge and daily fee) detailed in the account charges published by the bank from time to time will apply for the month in which the account is overdrawn
2.7 You can take money out of your account if you:
- have enough available money in your account
- comply with these conditions
2.8 We will provide statements to you on a quarterly basis, showing the balance of your account. You may request additional or copy statements for a small charge. Please refer to account charges.
2.9 You must inform us as soon as possible of any incorrect item on your statement.
2.10 We may decide not to accept a deposit or application from you.
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3. Joint Accounts
3.1 You may open an account jointly with one other person
3.2 Where the account is opened in joint names, you will be jointly and severally liable to the bank under the terms of this agreement. This means that in the event these conditions and/or this agreement are not complied with you can be liable to joint action against all, as well as a separate action against each of you.
3.3 If either of you issues an instruction to the bank about any matter relating to the account then the bank may act on that instruction even if the other disagrees.
3.4 In the event of the death of any of you, the account will remain open in the name of the remaining accountholder(s).
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4. Credit Interest and charges
4.1 We will calculate interest on a daily basis on available money in your account.
4.2 We will pay interest to your account once a year at the rates we set from time to time.
4.3 Details of the rates of interest we will pay together with any charges we may make or introduce for running your account are set out in the account charges. We may change the rate of interest or charges or introduce new charges from time to time but we will let you know if we do so (see condition 9.2).
4.4 Interest on such balances is subject to HM Revenue & Customs regulations as published from time to time.
4.5 If during the term of your account you leave the UK to reside in another EU member state, we will, in accordance with the EU Savings Directive inform H M Revenue & Customs of your name, address and interest credited to your account and in turn H M Revenue & Customs will pass this information to the tax authorities in the country in which you reside.
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5. Use of the Card
5.1 The card must be signed by you immediately on receipt and may only be used:
- by the cardholder.
- subject to the terms of this agreement current at the time of use.
- within the available money on your account
- as a deposit card to be used at selected The Co-operative Group Store tills for the purpose of depositing money by cash or by cheque into the account.
- to obtain the facilities and benefits from time to time made available in respect of the use of the card, all of which are made available at the discretion of the bank and may be withdrawn at any time. The cardholder will be notified of any such withdrawal.
- from the validity period on the card.
5.2 Subject to the rights of the bank, in its absolute discretion and without prior notice, at any time to withdraw the right to use the card and to refuse any request for authorisation of any particular card transaction, and to publish such withdrawal or refusal. The cardholder hereby agrees that the account may be debited with all the amounts withdrawn by use of the card and PIN. The bank is under no liability if the card cannot be used at any ATM at any time.
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6. Withdrawal and safeguarding of the card and PIN
6.1 The bank may if a cardholder is in breach of this agreement without notice cancel or suspend the right to use the card entirely or in respect of specific facilities or refuse to reissue, renew or replace any card without in any case affecting the cardholder’s obligations under this agreement which shall continue in force.
6.2 The card remains the property of the bank at all times. On request all or any cards issued on an account must be returned immediately to the bank or to any person acting for the bank.
6.3 The cardholder will exercise all possible care to ensure the safety of the card and will prevent the PIN becoming known to any other person. The cardholder will destroy the advice of the PIN immediately after receipt and will ensure that any record of the PIN is unidentifiable as such and is kept entirely separate from the card. The cardholder will not disclose the card number to any third party except for the purpose of a card transaction or when reporting the actual loss or theft of the card.
6.4 If the card is lost, stolen or for any reason liable to misuse or if the PIN is disclosed in breach of this condition or if the cardholder has reason to believe that the PIN may have become known to another party the cardholder must immediately notify The Co-operative Bank plc, P.O. Box 150, Delf House, Skelmersdale, Lancashire,WN8 6GG (telephone 0845 600 6000). If this notification is given orally it shall not take effect unless confirmed in writing to the bank at the above address within 7 days. Until the bank receives effective notification the cardholder will be liable (subject to any statutory limitations) in respect of any use of the card. Provided that the card has not been used by a person who acquired possession of it with the cardholder’s consent and provided that notification is given by the cardholder in accordance with the above provisions, the cardholder’s liability shall not exceed £50. After the bank has been effectively notified the cardholder’s subsequent use of the card other than by the cardholder will cease.
6.5 The cardholder will give the bank all the information in the cardholder’s possession as to the circumstances of loss, theft or misuse of the card or disclosure of the PIN and take all steps deemed necessary by the bank to assist in the recovery of a missing card. In the event of any such loss, theft misuse or disclosure being suspected, the bank may provide the Police with any information it considers relevant. If a card is reported lost, stolen or liable to misuse, the card must not subsequently be used but must be cut in half and returned immediately to The Cooperative Bank plc, P.O. Box 101, 1 Balloon Street, Manchester, M60 4EP.
6.6 If the card is used by someone with your permission or as a result of you acting fraudulently or without reasonable care then you may have to repay us all our reasonably foreseeable losses.
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7. Customer security details
7.1 As part of this agreement, you (in the case of joint accounts each of you) must register a separate customer security code and secure personal information ("customer security details") for use when you become a customer.
7.2 When you use your customer security details you are authorising us to carry out all your instructions given over the telephone or in branch including instructions to make payments from your account whether or not given or confirmed by you.
7.3 We will only accept instructions if your customer security details are used as requested and accepted. Any failure or error in relation to the use of your customer security details will result in access to your account being blocked. If this happens, you must immediately contact us on 08457 212 212.
7.4 You must do all you can to stop anyone else using your customer security details and must not:
- write them down
- tell them to anyone even to a joint account holder.
7.5 If you suspect that someone knows your customer security details, you must immediately contact us on 08457 212 212.
7.6 The maximum you will have to pay us for our losses if your customer security details are used by someone else without your permission is £50.
7.7 If the customer security details are used by someone with your permission or as a result of you acting fraudulently or without reasonable care you may have to repay us for all our losses.
7.8 We may ask and you agree to assist us in our efforts to recover any loss as a result of unauthorised use of your customer security details.
7.9 For your protection, we reserve the right to suspend access if:
- incorrect customer security details are used to attempt to access your account
- we suspect an unauthorised person is attempting to access your account.
The services available to you using customer security details may vary over time and we may suspend or terminate any services available but will inform you of any changes in accordance with condition 9.2.
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8. Using and sharing your information
Your information may be held by us in any form and on any group database and used by us and the group for the purposes set out in below.
8.1 We and the group may use, analyse and assess your information to maintain and develop our relationships with you. This may include the following purposes:
- to consider any applications made by you
- helping us to make credit decisions about you and anyone to whom you are linked financially or other members of your household
- to deal with your account(s) or run any other services we provide to you
- to consider and implement business, product and technology developments
- to undertake statistical analysis, financial risk assessment, money laundering checks (which may include telephoning you), compliance and regulatory reporting, fraud prevention and debt tracing
- to help us or our insurance underwriters to make decisions on insurance proposals and claims such as motor, household, credit and life and other insurance proposals and insurance claims for you and anyone else linked to your insurance proposal or claim
- to help us identify products and services which may be of interest to you (unless you have asked us not to)
- meeting any obligations we may have under the card scheme your card is issued under
8.2 We may link your information between your account(s) and other products and services you have with us or the group and with information about others with whom you have a financial link.
8.3 We and the group may identify and tell you by letter, telephone, fax including automated dialling, e-mail or any other means or communication about products and services which may be of interest to you and which are offered by us, the group or other carefully selected organisations or companies (if you do not wish to receive such information please write to us at Customer Services, The Co-operative Bank p.l.c., P.O. Box 200, Skelmersdale, WN8 6NY for more details, but please note this may mean you will not receive information about business, product or service developments which may be of benefit to you). You do agree that we can forward any newsletter, statement message, new terms and conditions or information about any changes to the way your account(s) operate or provide information on card carriers.
8.4 We will disclose information outside the group only:
- where you have provided your agreement
- to our agents or subcontractors for operational reasons
- to our affinity partner(s) if you have an affinity product(s)
- to any persons, including, but not limited to, insurers, who provide a service or benefits to you or for us in connection with your account(s)
- to licensed credit reference agencies as set out below
- to fraud prevention and other agencies to help prevent crime or where we suspect fraud
- if compelled to do so by law
- for the purpose of compliance and regulatory reporting (for example to the Banking Code Standards Board) and to confirm your identity for money
- laundering purposes, which may include checking the electoral register
- to any person to whom we will or intend to transfer our rights or obligations
- if your card or PIN are lost or stolen, or to meet any obligation we may have under any card scheme your card is issued under.
8.5 We may disclose your information to licensed credit reference and/or fraud prevention agencies to help make financial or insurance proposals and claims decisions (which will be during the application process and on an ongoing basis to decide whether to continue to make products or services available to you or adjust any level of credit) for you and anyone with whom you are linked financially or other members of your household – our enquiries or searches may be recorded – and credit reference agencies may supply us with financial information.
8.6 We may also disclose information to licensed credit reference agencies about how you conduct your account(s) and this information may be shared with other financial institutions to help make financial decisions about you and anyone with whom you are linked financially or other members of your household. If you borrow and do not repay in full and on time, we may tell credit reference agencies who will record the outstanding debt.
8.7 A link between joint applicants and/or any individual identified as your financial partner will be created at credit reference agencies, which will link your financial records. You and anyone else with whom you have a financial link understand that each other’s information will be taken into account in all future applications by either or both of you. This linking will continue until one of you successfully files a disassociation at the credit reference agencies.
8.8 You agree that your information may be transmitted to, from and/or through any country as a result of your use of your account(s) and any services which form part of your account(s) irrespective of the levels of data protection provided in any particular country and at your own risk. If we transfer your information to an agent or subcontractor who provides a service to us in another country outside the European Economic Area we will ensure they agree to treat your information with the same level of protection as us.
8.9 If you write to us and pay a fee you have a right of access to your information held by us. Write to us at Customer Care, The Co-operative Bank plc, P.O. Box 101, 1 Balloon Street, Manchester M60 4EP.
8.10 You have a right of access to your information held by credit reference agencies on payment of a fee. If you ask we will tell you the name and address of the credit reference agencies we may use.
8.11 We may record and/or monitor telephone calls to enhance security, sort out complaints, improve our customer service and for staff training purposes.
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9. Ending this agreement
9.1 You can close your account and end this agreement by writing to us at The Co-operative Bank p.l.c. P.O. Box 200, Delf House, Skelmersdale, WN8 6GH or calling us on 0845 600 6000. We may end this agreement for any reason but we will give you 30 days’ notice before we do so (except in exceptional circumstances e.g. fraud investigation or misuse of the account).
9.2 If you have a card you must return it to us.
9.3 You must repay to us any amounts owing to us on the account before we can end the agreement.
9.4 Any termination will not affect your obligation under this agreement with us which have arisen before termination including transactions charged to your account after the return of any card.
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10. Changes
10.1 We may make changes to this agreement including but not limited to charges or introduce any other fees or charges in relation to your use of our administration of the account at any time.
10.2 We will give you 30 days’ notice in writing before we make changes (except changes in interest rates which may be applied immediately or by notification in the national press). We will, however, let you know about any interest rate changes within 30 days of the change.
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11. General
11.1 We will not be liable if we are unable to perform our obligations under this agreement due (whether directly or indirectly) to:
- the failure of machine, data processing system or transmission link
- any period of essential maintenance, critical change, repair, alteration or failure of computer systems
- any industrial dispute
- anything outside our reasonable control or that of our agents or sub-contractors.
11.2 You must phone us on 08457 414414 or write to us at The Co-operative Bank plc, Delf House, Skelmersdale, WN8 6GH immediately on any change of name or address. If you do not do this we may charge your account with the cost of locating you.
11.3 To assist us in improving our service, we may record or monitor telephone calls.
11.4 We may transfer our rights and/or duties under this agreement to any person. You may not transfer any of your rights or duties under this agreement to any person.
11.5 Any terms and conditions of your account will be in English, governed in English Law and we will communicate with you in English.
11.6 Income tax Savings Rate will be deducted via the Bank but if you are a higher rate taxpayer you may be liable for additional tax charged at the difference between Higher Rate and Savings Rate.
11.7 You have a right to cancel your account 14 days from our receipt of your signed agreement or you have started to transact on the account. You can cancel by writing to us at Customer Services, The Co-operative Bank plc, PO Box 200, Skelmersdale,WN8 6NY. You will have to re-pay us any amount you owe us including any interest and charges and if appropriate cut up any card. If you choose not to cancel, the terms and conditions including any interest and account charges will apply.
11.8 There is no minimum duration for this account.
11.9 If you have a complaint please telephone us on 08457 212 212 or write to the Customer Services Manager, The Co-operative Bank plc Delf House, Skelmersdale WN8 6GH.
11.10 The Co-operative Bank is a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme established under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. In respect of deposits with a UK office, payments under the Scheme are limited to 100% of the first £50,000 of a depositor’s total deposits with the Bank. Visit fscs.org.uk for details.
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Last Updated December 2006