Students should choose accounts carefully
As thousands of 'A' level students prepare for university this month, many will be signing on the dotted line for a new bank account.
Banks and building societies have prepared offers to lure in the undergraduates, ranging from free railcards to cash and vouchers.
These offers, though may momentarily dazzle, do not compensate for good account rates, says a new report by moneysupermarket.com.
'The first priority for every student should be to find an account that offers an interest-free overdraft and charges no fees,' said Peter Gerrard, senior researcher at moneysupermarket.com.
'After this, consider access to money from local branches and cash machines. Freebies should be the last consideration, not the first,' he added.
He said that when taking out financial services, choices for students were limited because they generally had no credit history. Mr Gerrard suggested that with student credit cards, interest rates would normally be quite high for relatively small amounts.
Students do however have the opportunity to build a credit rating while at university, said the report. It suggested making small payments by the due date towards items bought using credit. | 
