Should you choose Natwest for your business bank account? Let’s assess the pros and cons of what Natwest offers and whether it’s the right choice for your company?
Natwest Business Account: Overview
Current Accounts
Natwest offer several current account choices: one for businesses in their first year, one for older businesses, and the third for Community Enterprises or not for profits. None of these have a monthly fixed charge: Startups get free banking for 18 months, and for older businesses there’s a charge per transaction. As you would expect from a bigger bank, there’s the possibility to have overdrafts, credit cards and you get a dedicated relationship manager.
Savings
Natwest offers 3 business savings account options, with interest advertised at between 0.01-0.05%. Choose from Business Reserve, Liquidity Manager or Treasury Reserve accounts, depending on your requirements.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- A range of options for different types and stages of businesss
- Access to 960 branches in the UK
- Dedicated Relationship Manager
- Overdraft and Credit Card Options
- No Minimum monthly charge
- Free Access to ‘Free Agent’ Accounting Software
Cons
- International banking comes with fees
- Customer Reviews fairly mixed
About Natwest Business Banking
Natwest is one of the 4 biggest UK banks, and reputedly has 850,000 business cutomers, as well as 7.5 million personal account holders. Part of a group that owns Royal Bank of Scotland and Ireland’s Ulster Bank, the British government owns some 48% of the group after a bailout in 2008.
Rates and Fees
| Account Name | Natwest Business Account |
|---|---|
| Account Application Fee | Free |
| Account Charges | No Monthly Fee but almost everything comes with charges. Automated payments – £0.35 per item Cash payments – £0.70 per £100 Manual payments – £0.70 per item |
| BACS Useage | £0.18 per item |
| Overseas card transaction fees | 2.75% of the transaction |
| FSCS protected | Yes |
| ATM Use (UK) | £0.35 |
| Requires credit check | Yes |
| Overdraft | No |
| Interest (AER) | 0% AER |
Contact Number
You can contact Natwest Business Banking on:
0345 711 4477
Call centres are open 24/7 and you can also use live chat from their website.
Natwest Business Bank Account Reviews and Ratings
Natwest has an average of 1.4 stars out of 5 on Trustpilot, with a rating of ‘Bad’.
Smart Money People rates them 2.52 out of 5 with a rating of ‘Good,’ based on 94 reviews.
They have a 1.6 star rating out of 5 on Reviews.Io, based on 376 reviews. That means only 13% of reviewers recommend them.
FAQ’s
How Long does NatWest take to Approve a Business Account?
Natwest claim the process of opening a business account takes 10-12 works days
Do you Have to Pay for a Business Account with NatWest?
While Natwest business accounts don’t come with monthly fees, the standard business current acccount carries charges for deposits, transfers, paying in cheques, automated or manual payments etc. You can find their list of charges here.
