Lloyds - Account Information, News, and Reviews

Lloyds is one of the largest UK banks, with over 18 million customers. It boasts some of the best services on the market, including the innovative Lloyds mobile app. A great selection of accounts are available, which can all be accessed 24/7 using Lloyds’ online services.

Founded in 1765, Lloyds Bank is over 250 years old with a rich history. It has been involved in multiple mergers and acquisitions, but the Lloyds name has survived the test of time and kept a strong presence in the UK. It has 1,100 branches available throughout England and Wales making it the third-largest on the high-street, just behind Barclays and NatWest.

In an era of consumers turning their backs on their long-term bank because of excessive fees, outdated policies, and with the increasing popularity of digital banks offering alternative solutions, is Lloyds a good bank to handle your money? Let’s take a look.

About Lloyds Bank

Lloyds belongs to one of the Big Four banks in the UK - Lloyds Banking Group. It merged with Trustee Savings Bank (TSB) in 1999 and traded as Lloyds TSB until 2013. Today, it simply goes by the name, Lloyds Bank.

• Who are the Big Four banks?
• The Big Four is the name given to the biggest banks in terms of size. In the UK, these are currently:
• Barclays
• HSBC
• Lloyds Banking Group
• The Royal Bank of Scotland Group

How old is Lloyds?

Its origins stretch back to the 17th century when it was founded in Birmingham, West Midlands.

• 1765 - Lloyds & Co is founded by John Taylor and Sampson Lloyd, in Birmingham.
• 1865 - Lloyds & Co converts into a joint-stock company known as Lloyds Banking Company Ltd.
• 1864 - The first branch opens in Oldbury, West Midlands.
• 1884 - Lloyds Banking Group absorbs established merchant Barnetts, Hoares, Hanbury and Lloyd, becoming Lloyds, Barnetts and Bosanquets Bank Ltd. and eventually Lloyds Bank Limited in 1889.
• 1923 - After several mergers including Capital and Counties Bank, Lloyds becomes one of the Big Four in the UK.
• 1968 - Lloyds Bank plc fails to merge with Barclays, but acquires Martins Bank the following year.
• 1972 - Lloyds Bank plc becomes a founding member of the Joint Credit Card Company, together with National Westminster Bank, Midland Bank, and the National Commercial Banking Group) which launched what is today known as MasterCard.
• 1972 - Cashpoint is introduced by the Joint Credit Card Company - the first online cash machine to use cards with a magnetic stripe (Cashpoint remains a common term for an ATM in the UK).
• 1984 - Lloyds Bank fails to acquire The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and later also fails to acquire Standard Chartered in 1986 and Midland Bank in 1992.
• 1995 - Lloyds merges with the TSB Group as part of a reverse takeover - Lloyds Bank is delisted from the London Stock Exchange, and TSB Group plc is renamed Lloyds TSB Group plc.
• 2008 - Lloyds TSB Group takes over Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS) and is renamed Lloyds Banking Group.

Why does Lloyds Bank have a black horse as its logo?

The black horse symbol can be dated back to 1677. It was the logo of a goldsmith shop that became part of the bank Barnett, Hoares & Co. After Lloyds took over that bank, it kept the black horse design. The original symbol adapted by the Lloyds Bank founders was actually a beehive. If you look closely, you can still see beehives carved into the architecture of some old Lloyds buildings.

What happened to TSB?

In 2009, as part of the UK bank rescue package, the government took a 43.4% stake in Lloyds Banking Group. It was later announced that as part of a condition imposed by the European Commission, Lloyds Banking Group was to create a standalone retail banking business using the TSB brand.

Lloyds TSB was subsequently renamed back to Lloyds Bank, and TSB began operating as a separate entity within Lloyds Banking Group. In 2014 TSB Bank was floated on the London Stock Exchange and was later acquired by the Spanish bank, Sabadell. It now operates in the UK as TSB, completely separate from Lloyds Banking Group.

What was the UK bank rescue package?In 2008 the government injected £500 billion into the UK banking market in response to the global financial crisis.

Who owns Lloyds Bank?

In 2009, whilst trading as Lloyds TSB, the bank acquired the Halifax Bank of Scotland Group (HBOS) and formed the Lloyds Banking Group, which today consists of Lloyds Bank, Halifax, and Bank of Scotland.

Are Lloyds and Lloyds of London connected?Lloyds Bank and Lloyds of London are completely separate companies and only share a name. The same goes for Lloyds Pharmacy, which is also its own business.

Is Lloyds a good bank?

This is not always a simple question to answer. Many factors can make a bank good. Customer service, range of products, fees, and quality of online banking services differ in importance from person to person. One person's idea of a good bank might be one that offers a low-interest credit card, whereas somebody else's priority might be what their debit card will look like.

If we look at customer service then Lloyds Bank receives a mixed response. It is currently rated 1.8/5 on Trustpilot, which unfortunately is about average for a traditional high street bank, with digital banks often receiving much better reviews.

For a bank that has been around since the 18th century, it must be doing something right to still be going strong.

Lloyds in the news

• 2014 - 9,000 jobs are cut and multiple branches close due to an increase in customers opting to use Lloyds online banking.
• 2014 - Lloyds Banking Group pays out £226m to settle charges from manipulating interest rates.
• 2016 - Over 3,000 jobs are cut due to the economic downturn resulting from the UK's EU membership referendum (Brexit).
• 2017 - Lloyds Bank suffers huge interruptions to its online services following a cyber attack.
• 2019 - Tesco Bank sells its mortgage business to Lloyds Bank for £3.8bn.

Share price

Lloyds is a subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group along with Halifax and Bank of Scotland. Therefore, you cannot buy or sell shares solely for Lloyds Bank. However, you can invest in stocks with Lloyds Banking Group.

Lloyds Banking Group is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. As of 2014, it had a market capitalisation of approximately £57.7 billion. It also has secondary listings on the New York Stock Exchange.

According to Macrotrends.net, the all-time highest Lloyds Banking Group closing price on the stock market was £47.37 in May 2002. It currently has an average stock price of £2.90.

Lloyds PPI

PPI (Payment Protection Insurance) was typically sold by banks and other companies as an add on to lending products such as credit cards, loans, or other financial products, for a monthly fee.

Lloyds PPI was sold to customers to protect them from falling behind on their monthly payments. The PPI would make a full or partial monthly payment towards a customer’s financial product if they could no longer keep up with repayments because of unemployment due to illness or redundancy.

Lloyds, as well as other banks and the Financial Ombudsman Service, began to receive complaints from customers, claiming that PPI had been mis-sold to them. Customers began to complain about:

• Not being properly informed about having a PPI policy.
• Not wanting PPI.
• Feeling pressured or swayed into taking out PPI.
• Being advised to take out an unsuitable policy.
• Being sold Halifax PPI when they were self-employed.
• Not being fully informed of the policy details.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ruled that if the amount of commission the bank received was over half the cost of the PPI charged to the customer and the PPI policy wasn’t made clear at the point of sale or sold unfairly, then it must pay some of this money back to the customer.

Over £36bn in PPI refunds have been paid out, of which a staggering £20bn was paid out by Lloyds Banking Group.

Contacting Lloyds Bank about PPI

If you took out Lloyds PPI and think you may be entitled to a refund, then take a look at our PPI guide for some further information. We also have a PPI calculator (Coming soon) available for you to work out how much you may be owed.

Lloyds customer service

It is very easy to get hold of Lloyds customer service. Like most banks, it has a range of contact options including:

• Phone
• Email
• Live chat
• Post
• In branch

Find the best contact information for Lloyds Bank for new and existing customers (coming soon)

Lloyds branches

Lloyds Bank has over 1,100 branches throughout England and Wales for its 10 million customers. With the popularity of online banking and the rise of digital banks, some branches have closed over the years resulting in job losses. In May 2019 it was announced that a further 26 branches were due to close.

If you do need to visit a branch, you will be able to manage the majority of your everyday banking activities, as well as open a new account.

My nearest branch

To find your nearest branch, you can use the Lloyds branch locator. You can filter your search depending on the service you need. Alternatively, you can contact Lloyds by phone to ask for your nearest branch.

Opening times

Most branches are open Monday to Friday 9am-6pm, Saturday 9am-5pm, and closed on Sundays. Opening hours can vary from branch to branch. If you need to access your account outside of normal branch opening hours, you can use Lloyds Online Banking or Telephone Banking, which are both available 24/7.

Reporting a lost card

If you have lost your Lloyds bank card or it has been stolen, you need to contact customer services and report it immediately. Lloyds will cancel your card and issue you with a replacement.

You can report cards lost or stolen 24 hours a day, seven days a week by contacting Lloyds customer service.

What Lloyds accounts are available?

With over 10 million customers it should be of no surprise that there is a Lloyds bank account available for almost everyone.

Current Account

There are 8 different current accounts to choose from depending on your requirements and eligibility.

Additional eligibility criteria may apply for some accounts or their additional features, such as overdrafts.

ISA and savings

There is a variety of ISAs available to new and existing customers, including help to buy ISAs, fixed-rate ISAs, and junior ISAs.

A wide selection of savings accounts is also available to help you reach your short or long-term savings goals.

Borrowing money

If you need a personal loan, credit card, or mortgage, then Lloyds may have a solution for you.

Lloyds Bank has loans available for up to £25,000, 5 different credit cards to choose from, and mortgage options for first-time buyers, people looking to re-mortgage their property, as well as those looking to switch mortgage providers.

Business Banking

Lloyds has a variety of solutions for businesses of all shapes and sizes. It boasts some great features and benefits, which you can read more about in our guide to Lloyds Business Banking (coming soon).

Compare the best bank accountsStill unsure if Lloyds is the right bank for you? Then why not compare the best bank accounts to see what other options are available.

How to open a new bank account

You can open a new bank account in a few different ways, depending on your preference:

• Online
• In branch
• Over the phone

Lloyds will usually give you an instant decision on your application. Although you may sometimes be asked to provide further information such as additional proof of ID or address, which you will need to take to your nearest branch.

Open a Lloyds Bank account today

Apply now

Who can open an account?

For the majority of accounts, you will need to be:

• Over 18; and
• A UK resident

The exception to this is if you are opening a Lloyds Under 19s account or a Lloyds Student Account.

You may be required to pass a credit check for certain accounts, especially if you are applying for a lending product such as a credit card or loan, or if you want an overdraft.

If you have a less than perfect credit history or if you fail a credit check, then there are alternatives, such as the Lloyds Basic Account.

What do I need to open an account?

The first step to open a new bank account is to check that you are eligible for the account you wish to apply for. You can check the eligibility criteria on the Lloyds website before you apply, or by visiting your nearest branch.

Once you have checked the eligibility criteria and have decided that you want to go ahead with an application, then you will need to provide:

• Your income details
• Your home address history for the last 3 years
• Details of any overdrafts, credit cards, or loans that you already have (if applicable)

If you are applying online, you should enter your information when prompted. Alternatively, you can visit any Lloyds branch to complete your application with an advisor.

Can I open an account online?

Yes, absolutely. You can apply for almost all Lloyds products online. You will normally receive an instant decision. However, it can sometimes take a little longer if Lloyds need to do some further checks on you, or if you are asked to provide additional information.

Managing your Lloyds account

Lloyds makes it easy for you to use your account and manage your day-to-day banking activities. There are a few options available to you to access your account, including online banking, telephone banking, and mobile banking.

All Lloyds accounts come with a Visa card so you can use your account anywhere in the world that accepts Visa payments to pay for goods or withdraw cash from an ATM. Apply Pay and Google Pay are also both supported.

Lloyds online

All Lloyds customers have access to online banking services, giving you full access to your account without the need to wait on the phone to speak with an advisor or head down to your nearest branch.

It is easy to get registered with internet banking, and we have provided you with all the information to get you started (coming soon).

Mobile banking

Mobile banking has become the go-to method for accessing your bank account out and about. With the Lloyds mobile banking app, you can:

• Manage your money.
• Check your account balances.
• Pay your bills.
• Send money.
• View your account information.
• Transfer funds between your accounts.

The Lloyds mobile banking app is rated 4.8/5 on the App Store and 4.7/5 on Google Play Store.

The app has some excellent features that almost remove the need for you to access your account in any other way. You can even use the app to pay in cheques to your account and freeze your bank card if you misplace it.

Checking your balance

There are many ways to check your balance. You can check your total and available balance at home and on the go by using:

• Any ATM
• Mobile baking
• Internet banking
• Telephone banking
• In branch

Total balance vs available balanceWhen you make a payment, it can sometimes take a while to be processed but your bank will make the amount unavailable for you to spend. Your total balance is the money in your account plus any pending transactions, your available balance is your total balance minus any pending transactions.

Can I use my account abroad?

Yes. You can use your Lloyds account anywhere that accepts Visa payments.

Some fees apply when you use your account abroad depending on the type of account you have. When you spend in a currency other than pound sterling, you will also need to factor in the current exchange rate.

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