A MAJOR high street bank has extended its cost of living help to thousands of customers.
HSBC has extended the deadline for customers to boost the amount that they can borrow without being charged.
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Since November 2022, thousands of the bank’s 14 million customers have been able to extend their interest-free overdraft limit from £25 to £500.
The interest-free extension is available to use for a 12-month period.
To get the support, customers had to apply through their bank account by Friday, March 31.
However, The Sun can now reveal that the deadline to apply for the support has been extended to Wednesday, May 10.
The overdraft support is available for thousands of customers holding any of the following accounts with HSBC:
- Bank account
- Advance account
- Bank account pay monthly
- Current account
HSBC Premier customers are excluded from the support.
Only those who currently hold an overdraft with the bank can apply for an interest-free extension.
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Without the support, HSBC charges interest on any overdraft balances above £25.
So if you’re overdrawn by more than £25 you’ll start paying interest at 39.9% EAR.
The support on offer raises this £25 interest-free limit by £475 so that customers only start paying interest at 39.9% EAR on balances above £500.
Without this support, anybody overdrawn by £500 across the year would end up paying close to £200 in interest when paying off their overdraft after 12 months.
To get the support customers will need to complete a short on the bank’s website before May 10, 2023.
Customers who aren’t registered for online banking can still complete the form.
You’ll need your:
- Account sort code
- Account number
You can find these details on your debit card, statements or the account summary screen in online and mobile banking.
If your overdraft is on a joint account, only one account holder needs to complete the form.
Once the 12-month period of support is up interest-free overdraft limits will fall back to £25 and customers will once again be charged interest at 39.9% EAR on any amount above this.
It means anyone who is overdrawn by more than £25 at the end of the 12 month extension period will start being charged interest.
HSBC also made a change to savings accounts that could help cash-strapped customers late last year.
It axed early closure penalties on fixed-rate saving accounts.
This means that customers can access their cash early without charge.
With fixed savings accounts you usually have to lock away your money for a certain period.
If you take the money out before the fix ends then you can lose the rate of interest or be charged a penalty, or both.
HSBC normally charges customers a fee that’s worth 90 days’ gross interest on their balance.
But the bank has removed its early closure fees on fixed rate saver accounts from November 1.
It remains unclear how long the support on this will last.
Customers needing to access their cash locked-in to a fixed saver should contact HSBC through its online chat, via telephone banking or by visiting a branch.
