first direct
Read all reviews for first direct →
A Brilliant Bank With Perks That Don’t Perk
I’m honestly baffled by First Direct’s wisdom in launching First Direct Perks. The name is promising, but the delivery… less so. It’s run through a third-party company called Marketing Lounge Partnership, which already feels a bit detached. I’ve banked with First Direct for decades and, until now, they’ve been brilliant. So when I got an email out of the blue announcing this shiny new perks programme, I thought, “Well, this should be interesting.” The message promised “amazing perks” and directed me to a website to register. That’s when the confusion began. Why, I wondered, does my bank need me to register for perks? I’m already a customer — a loyal one, at that. Still, curiosity won. I clicked the link and was immediately asked for chunks of personal information. Alarm bells rang — it looked every inch like a phishing scam. I rang First Direct, expecting reassurance, but even their own team didn’t seem to know this programme existed. After a merry round of transfers, someone finally confirmed it was genuine. Reassured, I registered and waited for the magic to happen. Weeks later, another email arrived, urging me to “check my perks.” I clicked in with the excitement of a child at Christmas. The reality? Nine perks. Seven were bog-standard discount codes, and two were competitions. Out of sheer stubbornness, I tried the Cineworld offer: two tickets for £10, Monday to Thursday, 2D only. After jumping through more hoops than a circus poodle, I discovered the code didn’t even work. On closer inspection, two tickets were actually £11 anyway, so all this drama was to save a grand total of £1 — assuming the code had worked in the first place. So let me get this straight: First Direct is sending out fanfares and glossy emails about perks that are little more than a pound-off coupon you could beat with a quick Google search? Either the marketing team never bothered to test this, or someone high up trusted them a little too much. This isn’t perks — it’s an insult dressed as a perk. Save the money, fix it properly, or scrap it altogether. For the record, I ended up booking my Cineworld tickets using a different discount code I found elsewhere. First Direct is still an excellent bank. But when it comes to perks, they’ve scored an own goal.