‘Thanks a million’ – Post Office Financial Services welcomes millionth customer
Post Office® Financial Services – a joint venture with Bank of Ireland – today confirmed its position as the fastest growing financial services provider in the UK as it welcomed its millionth customer, just over three years since launch.
Post Office® Managing Director, Alan Cook said: "Post Office® Financial Services entered the market with the aim of challenging what other financial services providers were offering, across all products: from car insurance to savings accounts and credit cards. Gaining one million customers in approximately 1,000 days confirms that we were right – people want easy to understand, good value products."
The outstanding growth of Post Office® Financial Services:
• Post Office® sells one in 50 of all car insurance policies in the UK
• One in every 25 credit cards issued last year was from Post Office®
• GBP 2 billion has been invested in the Post Office®’s savings products
• One in every 200 homes in the UK is insured with the Post Office®
This success builds on the Post Office’s position as the largest independent provider of travel insurance in the UK.
Post Office® Financial Services was launched as a joint venture with Bank of Ireland in March 2004.
Alan Cook continued, "This is a real achievement for the business against the backdrop of the challenges we are facing. The Post Office’s entry into financial services is vital to the bigger picture of providing products and services that will help create a sustainable Post Office® network."
All of Post Office®’s financial products are available by telephone and online. Information is available at all 14,000 UK Post Office® branches – more than all of the UK banks and building societies put together.
Insurance
Post Office® Car Insurance
• Save up to GBP 129
• Choice of cover, including optional breakdown cover
• Easy monthly payment option
• Foreign travel cover – 60 days per trip in any EU country
• Driving other cars extension
• Third party fire and theft includes full cover for audio equipment (if own fit, cover is set at GBP 500 – subject to terms and conditions)
• Comprehensive includes personal effects covered up to GBP 100
• From 1 May 2007, new customers can get one month’s insurance completely free, with 12 months of cover for the price of 11
Post Office® Van Insurance
• Save up to GBP 166
• Optional physiotherapy to speed up driver’s recovery in case of injury (max of eight sessions)
• Accident assistance
• 24 hour claims helpline
• Optional Motor Legal Protection which includes a replacement van in the event of accident
• Optional RAC breakdown cover
• From 1 May 2007, new customers can get one month’s insurance completely free, with 12 months of cover for the price of 11
Post Office® Home Insurance
• Using a panel approach Post Office® Home Insurance shops around on behalf of the customer and can save homeowners to up to GBP 173 on their existing home insurance
• Optional extras to supplement the policy:
• Building insurance offers a minimum cover of GBP 35,000 and a maximum cover of GBP 750,000, with a maximum no claims discount of 35%
• Contents insurance offers a minimum cover of GBP 15,000 and a maximum cover of GBP 99,000, with a maximum no claims discount of 35%. Minimum ‘all risks’ cover is GBP 2000
• From 1 May 2007, new customers can get one month’s insurance completely free, with 12 months of cover for the price of 11
Post Office® Lifestyle Protection
• Launched in June 2006, Lifestyle Protection offers one of the cheapest and most flexible alternatives to payment protection on the market – at GBP 4.50 per GBP 100 of cover
• The product covers customers’ income rather than specific debts and means they can make savings of up to 80 per cent by cancelling separate policies for their credit cards, personal loans or mortgage
• Customers are covered for accident, sickness and unemployment and payments are backdated to day one of the claim (subject to 30 day waiting period)
• Lifestyle Protection also offers cover for back and stress related conditions.
Savings
Post Office® Instant Saver
• This instant access savings account offers one of the most competitive rates on the high street at 5.50 (rising to 5.75% from June 4 2007) for balances over GBP 500 (including 1.0% introductory bonus)
• The rate is guaranteed not to drop more than 1% below Bank of England base rate for as long as the account is held
• The rate will match any increase in the Bank of England Base Rate until 2010
• Customers can make six free withdrawals a year, with a charge of just GBP 1 for each subsequent withdrawal
• Over GBP 300m in balances has been paid into Post Office® branches so far.
Post Office® Child Trust Funds
• Launched in January 2005, the Post Office® Child Trust Fund is an equity based stakeholder product with charges capped at 1.5% per annum
• The Post Office® stakeholder Child Trust Fund is offered through Family Investments – one of the UK’s leading specialists in providing straightforward investments for both families and children. The Investment Adviser is New Star Institutional Managers.
Post Office® Growth Bonds
• Growth bonds were first launched by the Post Office® in October 2004
• Customers can invest in Growth Bonds for one, three or five years:
• One, three and five year terms offer a guaranteed 5.1% gross/AER fixed
Lending
Post Office® Credit Card
• No commission charges when used abroad
• Zero per cent on balance transfers for the first eight months, 0 per cent on purchases for the first three months and a lower interest rate of 6.8 per cent APR for bigger purchases via its loan-like facility
• Post introductory interest rates of 14.9 per cent APR typical (variable)
• No annual card fee
• Accepted everywhere you see a MasterCard sign in over 200 countries worldwide – over one million ATMs and over 24.6 million acceptance locations.
• Free purchase protection insurance for all goods purchased on the card
Post Office® Personal Loans
• The Post Office® first launched personal loans in April 2004 and offering a simple and straightforward product with attractive rates of interest:
Loan Amount Typical APR
GBP 5,000-GBP 25,000 7.9%
GBP 2,000-GBP 4,999 12.5%
• The majority of customers receive a response to their application within 10 minutes and there is no upper age limit
• Customers also have the option to take two monthly payment holidays a year.
