Features

Rating: 3/6

HSBC claims to be the world's local bank, and it seems determined to keep you coming through the branch doors rather than transferring your banking online. A glance down the feature table will reveal more misses than hits, albeit that some are less important omissions than others.

Paper-free statements are one notable tick, and we're pleased to see that you can browse through the past six years' history. A big minus point is the lack of search, though, which makes digging out particular transactions a chore. At least there's support for Quicken and Microsoft Money, plus CSV, so if you're organised enough to have downloaded and kept statements the lack of search matters rather less.

There are other plus points, too. Forget fussing around with hardware devices to confirm your identity: you just need to know your user ID - in the form of IB1234567890 - and remember your eight-digit security number (your date of birth is

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also required). To protect against keyloggers, rather than type the whole number each time, you're asked for three random digits.

The interface itself is simple: if you have multiple accounts with HSBC, you'll see your current balances at a glance. It's easy to transfer money from one account to another, while paying bills couldn't be much simpler: select what type of company you're paying (gas, for example), and a drop-down list appears.

Part of the reason for the site's simplicity, though, is that there isn't much to do beyond the basics. You can stop a cheque (if you still write them), request a new PIN, send money overseas (but only from 8am to 3:30pm, Monday to Friday) and that's about it.

HSBC hasn't embraced the mobile phone revolution, either. Although you can access basic details via a WAP site, it's via a third party - Monilink - and you'll be hit by charges: 20p for a balance, 25p for a mini-statement. And, aside from topping up your mobile and that of four others, that's all you can do. It also failed to work on our Vodafone phone. If you're looking for a bank on the cutting edge of internet technology, HSBC isn't it.

Although First Direct isn't perfect, it does offer the advantages of HSBC's network of branches while boasting more features.

Next: Lloyds TSB

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