General Information

Principal Office

Cumberland Building Society
Cumberland House
Castle Street
Carlisle
CA3 8RX

Financial Services Authority

Cumberland Building Society and Cumberland Financial Services Limited are entered in the Financial Services Authority's Register and their Register Numbers are 106074 and 200391.

For more information you may visit http://www.moneymadeclear.org.uk

Customer Service Helplines

Customer Services Helpline 0845 601 8396

Cumberland Internet Banking Helpline 0845 121 43 53

Opening Hours:
8.00am - 8.00pm Monday to Friday
8.30am - 12.30pm Saturday

Email

customerservice@cumberland.co.uk

Branch Opening Hours

Please see the 'Branch Finder' for details of the varied opening hours of all Cumberland branches.

Telephone Calls

For your added security and to help us improve our service, telephone calls may be recorded and the recording kept secure.

The Banking Conduct Regime and Financial Ombudsman Service

We support The Banking Conduct Regime which is regulated by the FSA and are covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service. We have an internal complaints procedure to help resolve any problems you may have concerning the operation of your account. The Society also subscribes to the Lending Code; a voluntary code which outlines good practice in various types of lending including overdrafts on current accounts. A copy of the Lending Code and a list of organisations which subscribe to the code are available from the Lending Standards Board.

You can view details of the Code and Ombudsman Service by selecting the titles above, alternatively contact us for more information.

Website Information

The information contained within this site is designed to be read in conjunction with our range of leaflets, some of which you can view and download from this site. Alternatively contact us and we will arrange for you to receive printed versions of the leaflets.

The Cumberland is not responsible for the content of the external internet sites linked from this site. See the Privacy Policy for more information.

This site is intended for UK residents unless otherwise stated.

Basel 2 Pillar 3 Disclosure

You can view details of Cumberland Building Society's Basel 2 Pillar 3 Disclosure in this PDF document.

Mortgages

Payment Difficulties

We appreciate that your circumstances may, at some time in the future, change and you may experience temporary financial difficulties.

The Society follows the Building Societies Association Arrears and Possessions Guidance when handling arrears and possessions.

It is important if you find yourself in financial difficulties you let us know as soon as possible. We will be sympathetic and positive and we will do all we can to help you overcome your difficulties. Please see the following leaflets for further details of how we may be able to help you and what steps you should take to help yourself.

The sooner we discuss your problems, the easier it will be for both of us to find a solution. The more you tell us about your full financial circumstances, the more we may be able to help.

If you are in difficulties you can also get help and advice from debt counselling organisations. At your request and with your consent we will liaise, wherever possible, with debt counselling organisations that we recognise, for example:

Further information regarding difficulties in making mortgage payments can also be found on the following sites:

In some cases you may be able to get help with your mortgage payments from the Benefits Agency. You are however strongly recommended to take out Cumberland Mortgage Payment Protection, to cover your mortgage payments against sickness, accident and unemployment. Details can be found in our separate leaflet 'Mortgage Payment Protection', which is available by contacting us.

Financial Services Authority (FSA)

As you may be aware, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) regulates the sale of mortgages, to ensure that we and other mortgage lenders comply with rules and standards in all our dealings with you.

The FSA produces two very useful factsheets which you may like to read. One is called 'Introduction to the Financial Services Authority - information for consumers' and the other is called 'You can afford your mortgage now, but what if?'

Both factsheets are available by contacting the FSA. The 'Introduction to the Financial Services Authority - information for consumers' factsheet is available by calling the FSA consumer helpline on 0845 606 1234. The 'You can afford your mortgage now, but what if?' factsheet is available on the FSA Leafletline on 0845 456 1555. Or alternatively you can view these by visiting the FSA consumer website at www.fsa.gov.uk/consumer.

Where we lend

We are a strong regional building society, and lend mainly on residential properties in our branch operating area, that is Cumbria, Dumfriesshire, the Preston area of North Lancashire and the Haltwhistle area of West Northumberland. We will consider lending on properties in other parts of England, Wales and Scotland, although each product will be subject to specific restrictions.

Because of our competitively priced products, we do not accept business from financial advisors.

Interest Rate Changes

Changes to interest rates will be notified to customers by letter. If you make your monthly payment by regular 'internal transfer' from a Cumberland account, you will need to confirm your new payment instruction unless you've already given us the authority to change it automatically. If you have a variable direct debit the Cumberland will collect the new payment automatically. If you currently pay a fixed amount by Direct Debit you need to contact us to change the amount you pay to fully cover the payment required. If you pay by standing order, you will need to give new instructions to the bank or building society concerned.

Savings and Current Accounts

Financial Services Compensation Scheme

We are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. You may be entitled to compensation from the scheme if we cannot meet our liabilities. For deposits, payments under the scheme are limited to 100% of the first £50,000 of your total deposits. Details of the cover available under the scheme are outlined in our leaflet, Financial Services Compensation Scheme or can be obtained from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme at 7th Floor, Lloyds Chambers, Portsoken Street, London E1 8BN (tel: 0207 892 7300; website www.fscs.org.uk).

The information you provide on this site will be sent to us by e-mail, which is not 100% secure. We would remind you that you should never send any confidential details by e-mail (e.g. account details). By sending us a message you agree that you are sending the information by e-mail at your own risk and that we may respond using the same means.

Bank charges

See the Bank charges page for information on the bank charges test case between seven banks plus the Nationwide and the Office of Fair Trading (OFT).

Dealing with debt

Our guidance leaflet provides you with advice on how to deal with debt.

How to avoid incurring charges

Our guidance leaflet provides you with advice on how to avoid incurring charges on your accounts.

Lost & forgotten savings?

Legislation passed in November 2008 enables money from ‘dormant’ bank and building society accounts, which has sat untouched in a savings or current account for 15 years or more, to be re-invested back into the community. This scheme (The Unclaimed Assets Scheme) is due to launch in the next few months, but a definite date has not yet been confirmed.

If you think you may have a lost or forgotten account with the Society, you should visit the lost accounts website to submit an electronic account tracing form online. This is an official site set up by the British Bankers' Association (BBA), the Building Societies Association (BSA) and National Savings and Investments (NS&I) which will help you trace savings you have lost touch with. It is also possible to trace another person's lost account if you are legally empowered to do so.

Lost or stolen cards

Call Customer Services on 0845 601 8396 during opening hours or 01228 547090 at all other times

Charges for Personal Account Services

Most basic account services are free while your account remains in credit. We do, however, make a charge for transactions made when an account is overdrawn without our prior agreement. We also make a charge for other non standard services such as stopping payment of a cheque.

Full details of our charges can be viewed in our summary leaflet, alternatively contact us for more information.

New & Existing Investors

The Society requires new investors to agree to assign any possible future windfall rights, in the unlikely event of conversion to a bank or a takeover, to a charitable foundation. Full details are set out in the Society's new account application form. As we do not offer a full postal investment service, we do not accept new accounts from new customers who live outside our branch operating area. Some restrictions may also apply to new accounts available to existing customers who live outside our branch operating area. Existing customers should contact us for further information.

Interest Rates

Full details of our current and previous variable interest rates can be viewed in our summary leaflet. Alternatively contact us for more information.

Interest Rate Changes

Changes to interest rates will normally be notified to customers by letter or a combination of notices and leaflets in branches and advertisments placed in a selection of the following newspapers circulating in various parts of Cumbria, South West Scotland and West Northumberland - Evening News and Star, Annandale Observer, Annandale Herald, Dumfries and Galloway Standard, Dumfries Courier, Moffat News, North West Evening Mail, Westmorland Gazette, Eskdale and Liddesdale Advertiser and Hexham Courant.

Changing your mind

If after opening a savings or current account you find that you are not happy about your choice of current or savings account (except for a fixed rate account) you may cancel it within 14 days of:

the day the account is opened or your first deposit made; or
the day you receive your Cumberland Savings and Current Account Conditions leaflet

We will then help you switch to another one of our accounts or we will give you all of your money back with any interest you have earned. The interest we pay to you in these circumstances may be calculated at the rate advised at the time for our Instant Savings account. If your account has been overdrawn you may be required to repay any debit interest owed before the account can be closed. We will however ignore any notice period and any extra charges.

If you do not exercise your right to cancel during this period, you will be bound by these terms and conditions.