A
Account nickname
You can use Internet Banking to give any of your accounts a nickname. You can give your account a name that describes what you use it for, like 'Household Bills', 'Holiday Money' or 'Payments to Suppliers'. The nickname can be any letters or numbers you choose up to 39 characters long. If the account is a joint account and the other person is registered for Internet Banking they won't see the nickname as it's for your use only. Also, it will only show when you use Internet Banking and won't show on your normal bank details, like statements.
AER
AER stands for Annual Equivalent Rate. Whenever you see an advert for a savings account which shows an interest rate, you will see the AER. This means you can use the AER to compare accounts. It shows what the interest rate would be if your interest was paid and compounded once each year.
Antivirus software
Anti-virus software will detect and delete viruses that attempt to get on to your computer. Anti-virus is only as effective as the last update so you should update your anti-virus signatures and software regularly. If you use anti-virus software you should regularly download updates from your anti-virus software supplier.
APR
APR stands for the Annual Percentage Rate of charge. You can use it to compare different credit and loan offers. We will tell you the APR for your loan or credit card before you sign an agreement.
B
BACS
The Bankers Automated Clearing Service (BACS) is a free service for making direct credits and debits. Payments using BACS will usually take three to four working days to credit the beneficiary's account.
Balance
The amount of money you have in your account at a particular time. Sometimes a balance given by a bank will include payments that have been made to your account, but are not yet available because they haven’t cleared. This means that the money has not been received by the bank and is not available to spend. The money which has cleared and that you can spend is sometimes called your available funds or available balance.
Balance transfer
A balance transfer is when you move an existing balance from one credit card to another.
Bank of England base rate
The Bank of England 'repurchase' or 'repo' rate which is the main factor influencing interest rate charges by lenders.
Bank sort code
Your bank sort code can be found on your cheque book/paying in book or statement. It is made up of 6 digits and grouped in pairs eg. 00-00-00.
Banker's draft
A cheque written by a bank. To get a banker’s draft, you will need to transfer cleared funds from your account to your bank. The bank then gives you one of the bank’s cheques (banker's draft). The advantage to the person being paid is that a banker’s draft will not bounce, so they are often requested when making large purchases. Usually, banks will charge a fee for issuing a banker’s draft.
Banking Code
The Banking Code is a voluntary code followed by banks and building societies in their relations with personal customers in the United Kingdom. It covers current accounts, personal loans, savings (including cash ISAs) and credit cards. The Business Banking Code covers small businesses with a turnover of up to £1 million a year. The Code sets standards of good banking practice, which are followed as a minimum by banks and building societies subscribing to it. It allows competition and market forces to operate to encourage higher standards of banking practice for the benefit of customers.
Bill manager
Lloyds Bank Bill Manager is a free bill management service that allows you to view, manage and pay your bills online through Internet Banking.
Borrowing
Borrowing is a form of lending money or providing credit which can be used to buy goods or services.
Bounced cheque
Cheques bounce when there are not enough funds in the account the cheque is written from (or the account holder asked the cheque to be cancelled). The the bank will return the cheque to the account holder and not pay the beneficiary of the cheque.
Business loan
A business loan is a method for a business to obtain money and to spread the payments over an agreed period of time. You pay interest on the amount you borrow. This could be a fixed rate where your monthly repayments remain the same or a variable rate where your repayments are linked to the base rate and will vary dependent upon any changes to the base rate.
Buy-to-let mortgage
A buy-to-let mortgage is a mortgage for people who want to let their property. Buy-to-let mortgages are available for customers who are buying a new property, moving their mortgage from another lender, switching deals or borrowing more.
C
Card Payment Protection cover
Card Payment Protection Cover could take care of your credit card payments if you are unable to work due to an accident, sickness or unemployment.
Card Protection
Card Protection provides valuable protection in case you lose your credit, debit or store cards or if they are stolen.
Card Security Code
Your Card Security Code is the last three numbers that appear on the back of the card you are using to make the payment.
Cashback
This is where you use your debit card to ‘buy’ cash when you are buying other goods or services. You can use this to get extra money which will be taken from your account at the same time as your purchase. This service is widely available in supermarkets.
CHAPS payment
The Clearing House Automated Payment System (CHAPS) is used to transfer cleared sterling funds within the UK, for same day settlement. There is a £30 charge for CHAPS payments. Same day CHAPS payments can only be made if the instruction is received before 4.25pm.
Cheque
A cheque is a written request to the bank to pay the amount of money specified on the cheque to the person or organisation named on the cheque (the payee) who will pay it into their account. Once this has happened your bank will take the amount from the relevant account.
Child Trust Fund
The Child Trust Fund was a government backed savings and investment account for children. Child Trust Funds are no longer available.
CHIP and PIN
CHIP and PIN is a system which allows you to approve purchases made with your credit or debit card by entering a four-digit PIN number which only you know. This is more secure than just a signature which could be forged. For security, you shouldn’t write your PIN number down or tell it to another person.
Civil partnership
Civil partnerships are a legal relationship which can be registered by two people of the same sex and give couples legal recognition for their relationship.
Clearing time
The time it takes for the money paid into an account to clear and be available for use.
ClickSafe
Lloyds Bank ClickSafe gives cardholders with added security when purchasing over the Internet. The service allows you to choose a personal password to ensure that only you can make purchases with your card when shopping online.
Closing administration charge
The closing administration charge only applies when you repay your mortgage and may vary depending on your circumstances. In particular, it does not apply to mortgages entered into on or after 1 August 2007.
Credit card
A credit card is a plastic card that allows you to purchase goods and services on credit and pay for them later, usually with interest added to the balance.
Credit rating
Credit rating is a rating system used by financial institutions, to judge an individual or company's creditworthiness. Depending on how many points the applicant gets when his/her personal details are run through the rating system, the financial institution will either accept or reject the risk. Financial institutions rely on computerised credit rating systems, and co-operate with each other in providing details of bad credit risks.
Credit reference agency
Credit reference agencies are organisations that gather information about people and businesses across the UK. This information comes from lenders such as banks, credit card companies and fraud prevention agencies, as well as records in the public domain.
Credit report
Credit report is a report issued by a credit agency usually for a small fee which highlights someone's past purchase behaviour and credit rating.
Credit scoring
Credit scoring is a way of assessing someone’s financial status. This is used to decide which credit facilities can be offered to customers.
Credit search
A Credit search is when we carry out a search on your name and address with a credit reference agency to help us understand more about your credit history. Each time a search is done it is noted on your credit record to let other organisations know that we have asked for information about you.