Your Virgin Essential Current Account
The Terms
July 2015
These are the Terms of your Virgin Essential Current Account. These Terms, along with our Welcome guide, make up our agreement with you. We give you a copy of both of these documents when you open your account. You can also get copies on our website or by calling us.
Some accounts and services, like the Current Account Switch Service, have additional Terms which also form part of our agreement with you. We will give you a copy of any additional Terms that apply when you take out the account or service. If there is any inconsistency between any additional Terms and these Terms, the additional Terms apply.
1 Who provides the account?
We are Virgin Money plc.
Our main office: Jubilee House, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 4PL
Website: virginmoney.com
Phone: 0845 600 6103 (or +44 191 279 4606) Our lines are open from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm on Saturdays and 10am to 3pm on Sundays. Please note, we are closed on bank holidays. Calls are charged at your service provider’s prevailing rate and may be monitored and recorded.
2 Who can have an Essential Current Account and how can it be used?
2.1 You have to be 18 or over and resident in the UK to have an account.
2.2 The account cannot be used for:
Business purposes, a club, association, charity or held in trust.
Any illegal purpose.
2.3 You can have a maximum of three Essential Current Accounts.
2.4 You can hold up to a total of £2,000,000 across all your accounts with Virgin Money plc.
2.5 You cannot arrange an overdraft on this account.
2.6 The balance will be held in pounds sterling.
2.7 Our business days are Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
3 How do I pay money into the account?
You can pay money into the account in a number of ways:
Cash, at most Virgin Money Stores (also called
‘Store(s)’ in these Terms) or at any Post Office® branch.
Cheque, in all Stores or by post.
Internal transfer from other accounts you have with us.
Electronic payment from any other bank or building society.
Our Welcome guide gives details of how and where you can make deposits; any restrictions and limits that apply; clearance times for cheques paid in and when deposits will be available for you to withdraw.
4 How do I make cash withdrawals and payments?
4.1 We will give you a debit card and Personal Identification Number (PIN).
4.2 You can withdraw cash with your card at the following locations:
Most of our Stores or at any Post Office branch.
Any cash machine displaying the LINK or VISA symbol – most are free to use, but if there is a charge, you will be told before you make a withdrawal.
Retailers offering cashback.
4.3 You can make payments by any of these methods:
Debit card.
Standing order or Direct Debit.
Continuous payment authority for regular payments with your debit card.
Internal transfer to other accounts you have with us.
Electronic payment to another UK bank or building society.
Asking for a counter cheque in Store (this is a cheque we write for you, payable to someone else).
Our Welcome guide gives you more detail on how and where you can withdraw cash and make payments; the cut-off and process times for payment instructions; any restrictions that apply and any possible charges.
Alternative format
If you require this in an alternative format such as braille, large print or audio, please call our Disability Awareness Team on 0191 279 5300 – 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday. Calls are charged at your service provider’s prevailing rate.
Alternatively our text phone number is 0191 279 8505 or you can contact us at
disability.awareness@virginmoney.com
7.3 We will post letters, statements and other material relating to the account addressed to both account holders at the address we hold.
8 What interest rates and charges apply?
8.1 You will find details of the interest rates and charges that apply to your account in the Welcome pack we give you when you open your account.
8.2 We may charge for additional information or services and we will tell you this beforehand.
9 Can the agreement or charges be changed?
9.1 We may introduce or change Terms, interest rates or charges on the account for the following reasons:
Due to the cost of providing the account.
To meet changes in law, regulation, good banking practice or other external factors.
To maintain our financial stability.
To reflect new technology and other innovations.
Due to changes to our systems or services.
To correct errors, or to bring the agreement or charges in line with other accounts and services we offer.
9.2 We will give you at least two months’ notice of any change.
9.3 If you are unhappy with a change we make, you can choose to close your account immediately. There is no charge for closing your account, but you must immediately repay any money you owe us. If you continue to use your account, then we will take this as your agreement to the change.
10 How can I safeguard my security details and debit card, and what if they are lost or stolen?
10.1 You must:
Sign any card as soon as you receive it.
Take all reasonable steps to keep the card, card details, PIN, passwords and any security information safe, including destroying anything we send you with your PIN details on it.
10.2 You must never:
Tell anyone (including us) your PIN, passwords or any security information or write them down in a way that is obvious to others.
Allow anyone to use your card or card details.
Give anyone your card details, except for when you make a payment (or when switching to another bank or building society).
10.3 You must tell us straight away if your card is lost or stolen, you think it may be misused or if someone else knows your card details, PIN, passwords or security information. You must give us all the information you have about the loss, theft or misuse and, if we ask, report the matter to the police. We may also give information to the police.
10.4 You will not be liable for any losses arising from the unauthorised use of a card or security details:
Before they come into your possession or after you tell us of the loss or theft of the card or security details.
Where the card details are used to make a payment for goods or services (except for financial services) where the buyer does not need to be present, for example over the telephone or internet, so long as you tell us without undue delay when you became aware of the misuse.
10.5 Otherwise, you may be liable for losses up to a maximum of £50 if someone carries out unauthorised or fraudulent transactions from your account using the card, card details or account details.
10.6 You may be liable for all losses where there are unauthorised or fraudulent transactions on your account in the following situations:
You act fraudulently.
You fail, intentionally or with gross negligence, to comply with the Terms relating to the issue, use and safety of a card or security details.
You authorise another person to use the account.
4.4 Please note that for an electronic payment, the sort code and account number must be correct.
If any one of these is wrong the payment may still be made and you may lose your money, even if you have provided the correct account name.
4.5 You cannot transfer money overseas from this account.
4.6 We may refuse to act on a payment or withdrawal request if we are concerned that:
It has not come from you.
The details are not clear.
The sort code is invalid for the payment method.
It might cause us to break the law or a contractual duty.
You have given us false or incomplete information.
There has been a breach of these Terms.
If we refuse to carry out a request, we will contact you to explain the reasons why (where we can legally do so) and how to correct any errors.
4.7 We may stop or cancel a card, without notice, at any time if we are concerned about its security, the risk of misuse or your ability to repay us.
4.8 We cannot guarantee you will be able to use the card at all times. We may decline to authorise a card transaction if you do not have enough money in your account to cover it. We will consider other outstanding transactions not yet debited to your account, when deciding whether you have sufficient funds for us to authorise a transaction.
4.9 If you tell us an incorrect payment may have been made from your account, we will immediately try to trace the payment for you.
5 What happens if there is not enough money in my account to make a payment?
5.1 You must have sufficient cleared funds in your account to make withdrawals and payments.
5.2 For Direct Debits and standing orders, you have until 2pm on the day the payment is due to leave your account to make sure there is enough money to make the payment. If you do not have enough money in your account, we will not allow the payment.
5.3 If your account balance goes below £0, we will not charge you for this. We do register this with credit reference agencies and this may affect your ability to obtain credit in the future.
5.4 If we allow a payment which takes your account balance below £0, this does not mean we will allow the same again in the future.
5.5 If your account balance goes below £0 you must bring your account back into credit immediately.
6 How do I check my account and how will Virgin Money communicate with me?
6.1 We will send you monthly statements showing the transactions and any charges on your account, including a breakdown where appropriate. Where a transaction is in a currency other than sterling, we will tell you how you can get details of the exchange rate used.
6.2 You should check your statements carefully.
If you think there is something wrong, you must let us know immediately by calling us on 0845 600 6103.
6.3 You can check your balance at most cash machines, in Store, at all Post Office branches, or by calling us. You can also view your balance and transaction history online at myvirginmoney.com
6.4 Unless otherwise agreed, we will send statements, communications, your debit card and PIN, and other personalised security features to the address we hold for you.
At times, we may also need to call you.
6.5 If you change any of your contact details, you must let us know straight away.
6.6 We will only communicate with you in English.
7 What happens if I have a joint account?
7.1 Where the account is held in joint names we will act on instructions given by either of you, unless one of you has advised us not to or we become aware of a dispute between you.
In this case, we will only act on the written instructions of both account holders.
7.2 Both account holders are jointly and severally responsible for any amounts which may be due to us.
16 How does Virgin Money deal with a customer’s personal records?
16.1 If you have given us permission, we may provide the information we hold about you to other companies in the Virgin Money group, so they can give you details of their products and services. If you do not want to receive details of promotions from us or our other companies, you can tell us at any time.
16.2 If we believe that you may have tax obligations in other countries, we may disclose
information about you directly to those tax authorities, or to HM Revenue & Customs, which may share the information with the other tax authorities.
16.3 You can get a copy of the information we hold about you by writing to us. There is a charge for this service. If any of the information we hold is not correct, you have the right to have it deleted or corrected.
17 Who is Virgin Money regulated by?
Virgin Money plc is a company registered in England and Wales (company number 6952311).
Our registered office is Jubilee House, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 4PL. We are authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
Our Financial Services Register number is 503963.
You can check the register on the FCA’s website:
fca.org.uk/register or by contacting the FCA on 0800 111 6768.
18 What is the governing law?
If your address is in Scotland, Scots law applies to our agreement with you and any matters will be referred to the Scottish courts. Otherwise, English law will apply and any matters will be referred to the courts of England and Wales or Northern Ireland.
19 How does Virgin Money deal with complaints?
19.1 If you have a complaint, please contact us as soon as possible so that we can investigate it. You can visit your local Store, call us on 0845 600 6103 or write to The Customer Relations Team, Virgin Money, Jubilee House, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 4PL or email us at:
customerrelations@virginmoney.com.
You can ask us for a copy of our Internal Complaints Procedures leaflet at any time.
19.2 If we are not able to resolve the complaint to your satisfaction, you have the right to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service, which provides independent adjudication of complaints.
Their address is Financial Ombudsman Service, Exchange Tower, London E14 9SR.
www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk, email them at:
complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk or call them on: 0800 023 4567.
11 What if the account is not used or Virgin Money is unable to contact me?
11.1 If no money has come in or out of your account for 13 months, we will flag it as inactive. If this happens, for your security, we may cancel any card(s) on the account and we may ask for evidence of your identity when you attempt to use the card(s) again.
11.2 If correspondence is returned to us undelivered, then we will stop sending you mail until you contact us and confirm your address.
11.3 If there have been no transactions on your account and we have had no contact from you for at least the previous 15 years, we will close your account. We will transfer the balance, plus any interest to the Unclaimed Asset Scheme set up under the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act 2008. You will still have the right to reclaim your money at any time.
12 When can the account be closed?
12.1 You may close your account at any time. Just tell us in Store, or by calling or writing to us at our main office. There is no charge for closing your account.
12.2 Virgin Money is a member of the industry- wide Current Account Switch Service. This means if you decide to move your current account to another provider, we will work together with your new bank or building society to make switching accounts as straightforward and hassle-free as possible.
12.3 We may close your account after giving you two months’ notice. If you breach the Terms of the account or we consider there to be exceptional circumstances, such as fraudulent use of the account or abusive behaviour towards a member of staff, we may close the account immediately.
12.4 If your account is closed, you must immediately pay us any money you owe us.
If your account is in credit, we will pay you any credit balance straight away.
12.5 If you tell us you are not happy with your choice of account within 14 days of opening it, we will close your account and return any money to you.
13 What is Virgin Money’s liability?
13.1 Where an unauthorised withdrawal or payment is made, as long as you tell us about this within 13 months, we will refund the amount withdrawn and, where applicable, restore your account as if the transaction had not happened.
This time limit will not apply if we have failed to provide you with the relevant information about the transaction, nor will it apply to claims made under the Direct Debit Guarantee.
13.2 We are not liable to you for any loss or damage you suffer as a result of:
Our services being unavailable through any cause beyond our control.
Any indirect loss.
Our delaying or stopping a transaction if we reasonably consider it necessary to prevent crime, or comply with law or regulation, or as a consequence of checks we carry out.
Any delay or failure to carry out an instruction, unless caused by our negligence or deliberate failure.
13.3 Where someone is authorised to take a payment from your account, but they do not specify the exact amount and it is more than you could reasonably have expected, you are entitled to a refund. You must ask for the refund within eight weeks of the payment and provide us with the information we need to consider your request.
14 Can any credit balance be used to repay other debts?
We may use any credit balance on any account you have with us to reduce or repay any debit balance on any account you have with us, either in your own name or jointly with anyone else.
15 What if Virgin Money does not enforce the agreement?
If you do not keep to the agreement and we do not take any action, this does not prevent us from taking action if you do not keep to the agreement in future.
See your Welcome guide for more details on using your new Virgin Essential
Current Account.
Virgin Money plc – Registered in England and Wales (Company No. 6952311).
Registered Office – Jubilee House, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 4PL.
Authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
VM3193V4 (valid from 09.07.15)
