Business bank accounts

There are two main reasons you might benefit from either switching bank account or opening an additional account. First – and most obviously – you might be able to find a better deal that will save you money. For example, you might find a bank that will offer you a cheaper overdraft or lower fees. Some of the newer digital accounts have no monthly fee (digital – i.e. you can’t use cheques) and some banks will have introductory offers such as an interest-free overdraft, no monthly charges for a limited period, or free accounting software – though you might still need to pay for things like cash deposits or ATM withdrawals.

Switching banks is comparable to switching energy or broadband, or business insurance providers – sometimes the best deals are only offered to new customers! Second, your business might have grown and your existing provider might not be able to offer the services that you require, for example a larger overdraft facility, specialist support services or better customer services. Whatever your reasons, there is nothing stopping you from switching business bank accounts at any time.

Multi-banking can certainly save you money if, for example, you open an additional account and move the most expensive transactions to it. Some banks, for example, have specialist benefits for businesses that are more digital.

It takes a maximum of seven working days to switch if you’re a small business covered by the Current Account Switch Guarantee. In other words, your new bank account should be up-and-running fewer than seven days after you notify your bank account provider.

Yes, any new bank will run a credit check before offering you banking services.

Yes, you can. Some providers (e.g. app-based providers) will let you open a new account if you’ve had credit problems in the past, though it’s unlikely the big, high street banks will accept you. Use our comparison tool to see bank accounts that require no credit check to apply.

Yes. Look at the summary information for the different business bank accounts in our comparison table above. Click on the bank account that most appeals – and the new bank will do almost all the work and walk you through the process. You’d continue to use your old bank account for up to seven days, by which time you’ll have received your new debit card for the new account. Switching business bank accounts is covered by the Current Account Switch Guarantee, which was introduced by the government in 2013 onto help people switch their bank accounts quickly and easily.

During the seven day ‘handover’, your old bank and your new bank will work together to make sure that any direct debits, standing orders and other transfers are ported over seamlessly to your new current account.

Rest assured this wouldn’t happen. Your previous bank would redirect any payments linked to your current account to your new bank account – this ensures you don’t miss any payments.

If you look at the summary details Swoop has given above for each of our current account banking partners, you’ll be able to see what works for you.

There’s only one we can think of but it doesn’t apply if you switch banks via Swoop - some banks might not offer new customer all offers immediately, so do your due diligence.

Business bank accounts are aimed at both startups and established businesses. As with personal bank accounts, you can make deposits and withdrawals, use a debit card for purchases, and apply for an overdraft. The main difference is that for business bank accounts, in addition to monthly or annual fees, most banks will charge you fees per business transaction – so you may have to pay a small fee every time you deposit cash, write a cheque, set up a direct debit or standing order, or make a bank transfer.

First, have a look below at the list of services that business bank accounts usually offer – and see which apply to you:

• Cash in/out
• Paying bills
• Writing and receiving cheques
• Direct debits and standing orders
• Online and telephone banking
• Mobile banking
• Overdraft (limit vary according to provider and your business)
• Links to accounting software (e.g. FreeAgent, QuickBooks or Xero) or proprietary book-keeping software
• Access to support services and business finance. Second, make sure that the services you want are actually offered by any potential new account before you make the switch or open an additional bank account.

There should be no penalty for switching, but make sure you pay off any debts you have with your existing account provider before you switch (e.g. your overdraft balance or any unpaid bills). It’s also worth double-checking with your provider that there aren’t any circumstances where switches incur a penalty.