14 days to change your mind

We believe in being fair to our customers which is why we give you a 14 day "cooling off" cancellation period, during which you can reconsider your decision to open an account with us.

So, if you decide your new account is not right for you for whatever reason - you can close it within 14 days of your first deposit, without penalty.

To close your account please telephone us on 0845 7665522 or write to us at Coventry Building Society, Economic House, PO Box 9, High Street, Coventry, CV1 5QN.

Membership rights

When you open your first share account with us you automatically become a member of the Society. Membership gives you certain rights, like voting on business matters and raising questions at our Annual General Meeting (AGM).

To be entitled to vote, you must be aged 18 years or over and have total savings balances of at least £100 (at the previous 31 December). For joint account holders, only the first named account holder can vote, again provided they are 18 years or over and have a balance of at least £100. As you can choose the order in which names appear on your account, it makes sense to consider this before you open your account. Every named account holder of a joint account can attend the AGM.

Charitable Assignment Scheme

On 3rd November 1998, we introduced a new condition as part of the declaration for new customers opening savings accounts. We introduced this condition to avoid disruption to our normal business caused by the actions of speculators whose main objective in opening accounts is to receive windfall conversion payments.

Every new customer opening an account that provides membership of the Society, must agree to assign any windfall conversion benefits to which they may become entitled, to the Coventry Building Society Charitable Foundation for a period of five years from the date the account is opened.

The Coventry Building Society Charitable Foundation, which was established in 1998, is a registered charity, a majority of whose trustees are independent of Coventry Building Society. It provides financial assistance in the form of grants to registered charities operating within the area served by our branch network.

If you were an existing member on 2nd November 1998, this condition does not apply to any new accounts you open after this date (as long as you remain a member).

Joint accounts

If you have a joint account and only one signature is required for withdrawals, it's possible for one account holder to withdraw the whole balance of the account.

If there is a dispute between the account holders you should tell us straightaway. We will then "freeze" the account to ensure that no further withdrawals or transfers are made without the signature of all the account holders. All debit cards (where held) should be returned to the Society until an agreement is reached regarding the future conduct of the account. If the debit cards are not returned and the Society is unable to prevent a payment from the account, all parties to the account will remain fully responsible, both together and individually.

Please remember that where your account balance is overdrawn you will each be responsible for the whole debt.

If one of the account holders dies, we'll automatically transfer the account into the surviving account holder's name. To be able to do this we will need to see the Death Certificate.

Power of Attorney

You can open or operate any of our accounts under a Power of Attorney - if that power is general, enduring or registered with the Court of Protection or Lasting and contains no restrictions. Where there are restrictions on how the power can be used then only passbook based accounts can be opened.

If you have any questions or want to arrange to manage your account under a Power of Attorney please contact us.

The Public Guardianship Office website has detailed information about enduring Power of Attorneys and the process for registering a Power of Attorney with the Court of Protection.

Keeping track of interest rate changes

There are a number of ways you can keep track of the interest rate paid on your account:

• By looking on this website.
• By phoning our free RatesLine on 0800 716672.
• By calling into one of our branches where current rates of interest are always on display.

When we change the rate of interest paid on an internet, telephone or postal account we will write or email you within 30 days.

Calculating your interest

You'll earn interest on your money from the first day that a deposit is made (unless the account is overdrawn), up to and including the day before a withdrawal is made. Interest is not earned on the day of a withdrawal.

How we pay you interest

Interest can be paid monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or annually depending on the type of account that you've opened. Please refer to your account terms and conditions.

If you open your account towards the end of a month in which interest is due we may not have time to set up all the details to make this payment to you. This interest will be paid at the next interest payment date.

If interest is added to your account, it will become part of the balance. That means it becomes subject to any withdrawal restrictions on your account. If interest is paid into your account or transferred to another account with the Coventry, then it will be available to withdraw on the first working day of the following month.

If interest is paid to an alternative bank or building society account, it can take up to four banking days to reach your account. Banking days do not include weekends or bank holidays, so allow extra time for those.

Where interest is paid away to another bank or building society account, you must provide sufficient information for this transmission. In the event that insufficient information is provided, interest will be credited to your account. Normal withdrawal conditions will then apply to the withdrawal of interest credited.

Interest and the taxman

Interest is calculated gross, which means before tax has been deducted. Interest is usually paid net of tax (after tax has been deducted at the current rate of 20%). If you are taxed at the basic rate you should have nothing more to pay. Cash ISAs allow you to save tax-free, so your interest is paid gross with no tax deducted.

If you are a UK resident and you know you don't pay tax, for example children, people on low income or you have no paid job, you can register to receive interest paid gross. You (and each account holder eligible to receive gross interest if the account is joint) must complete a form R85 for each account. Although you do not have to renew the form R85 every year, you should notify us immediately if you circumstances change and you think that you may become liable for tax. Form R85 is available from our branches or by calling the Customer Service Centre, or your local tax office.

Children are entitled to the same basic tax allowance as other single people before they need to start paying tax; the majority are eligible to receive tax-free interest on their savings, provided a form R85 has been completed. Children under the age of 16 should have a form R85 signed by a parent or guardian. For more information on how to register a child for gross interest, please ask for a copy of our ‘Children's Account Opening Guide'. It's available at any branch or by calling our Customer Service Centre.

Some companies and organisations such as charities, friendly societies and pension funds may also qualify for interest to be paid gross. Your accountant or local tax office will have more information about the tax position of these types of organisations.

If you are a higher rate taxpayer, you are likely to have to pay more tax but as we've already paid tax at 20% you'll only have to pay the additional sum.

If you are 65 or over, the interest that you receive may affect the special tax relief available to you. If in doubt you should check with your local tax office.

You are required to show the amount of interest you have received on your self-assessment tax return. Every year we will send you a statement giving you a summary of all your accounts with the Coventry, with all the details that you will need to include.

We are obliged to supply HM Revenue and Customs with details of the interest that we pay to all our investors.

Reclaiming tax

In certain circumstances you may be able to reclaim all or part of the tax paid. For example, you've forgotten to complete a form R85, or you didn't realise you needed to complete one, and your interest has been taxed. It is possible to reclaim the tax paid by completing a Repayment Claim form R40, available for your local tax office.

Normally, once you've returned a Repayment Claim form, you local tax office will then send you one automatically each year and all you have to do is fill it in, and return it. Full details on how to reclaim tax are contained in the HM Revenue & Customs leaflet IR111 – Bank and building society interest.

Gross interest is not paid to 'Overseas investors'. It may be possible to reclaim any tax deducted direct from HM Revenue & Customers at the end of each tax year.

Further advice

If you are in any doubt about your tax position, you should contact your local tax office for more advice. A useful leaflet called ‘Taxation of Building Society interest', published by the Building Societies Association, also explains the tax situation in more detail. It's available from our branches, or by calling our Customer Service Centre.

CashLink/Debit cards

CashLink/Debit cards are only available on certain accounts and the terms and conditions of your account will confirm if it is available to you. Debit cards allow you to withdraw cash at an ATM displaying the LINK or VISA logo, if you have a CashLink card you can also make withddrawals from ATMs displaying the PLUS logo. Debit cards also allow you to purchase goods and services with retailers and other suppliers who accept VISA cards. The retailer or other supplier may also allow you to obtain cash from them using your card. From time to time we may make other services available to you.

Debit cards allow you to make recurring transactions. These are regular payments (not a Direct Debit or standing order) collected from your account by a retailer or other supplier in line with your instructions. They are not covered by the Direct Debit guarantee. If you wish to cancel a recurring transaction you must tell the payee. We recommend that you keep proof of cancellation in case a query arises. It may not be possible to cancel payments if you do not give enough notice.

If you're planning a trip abroad, please phone us before you go, so that we can activate your CashLink/Debit card for the duration of your visit. Alternatively, if you have Online Services you can advise us that you are going abroad by sending a secure message. You'll need to contact us no more than two weeks before you travel, with details of your destination(s) and the dates you will be away.

This is an added security measure to safeguard your card and prevent fraudulent transactions overseas. If you do not tell us about a trip abroad, you will not be able to use your card and your transaction will be declined.

If you forget to contact us before you leave the UK, you can phone us whilst you are away using the contact number on the back of your card during normal working hours.

Please note that a charge of 2% of the transaction value will be made for purchases and withdrawals made abroad.

Overdraft facilities

Selected Coventry accounts offer overdraft facilities. If an overdraft is agreed on your account, we will tell you what it is along with details of any fees and charges, and we will give you at least 14 days' notice of how much we charge for standard account services. Overdrafts are subject to status. If we consider you for an overdraft or an increased overdraft limit we may carry out searches with licensed credit reference agencies. You must always stay within your agreed overdraft limit. We may end your overdraft limit at any time and demand that you pay any money you owe us (including any charges) immediately.

Transacting online

A limit of £5,000 per transaction will apply to all online withdrawals, other than to your nominated bank account or another Coventry account on which you are named. If you wish to make a payment over £5,000 please contact us on 0845 7665522 or call into any of our branches, as additional authorisation will be required.

We will normally carry out your instructions to make a withdrawal as follows:

Monday to Friday - instructions received by 8pm either online or by telephone will be processed on the same day (except on bank holidays).

Saturday and Sunday - instructions will be processed on the next working day.

Please allow three banking days for the money to reach the receiving account.

If you are transferring money between Coventry accounts your instructions will normally be processed immediately, or the day you have requested the payment to be made.

For more information about paying money into your account or making a withdrawal please go to the section Using Online Services.

Balance available for withdrawal

You may find that your entire balance is not available for withdrawal.

This could be because there are insufficient funds in your account, perhaps because a cheque has not yet been through the Central Clearing cycle, or because a debit card transaction you have made has been earmarked but not yet debited from your account.

Statements

In addition to any itemised statements we provide to you in line with the specific terms and conditions of your account we will also send you an annual statement in April each year, which will summarise all of your accounts with the Coventry.

If you have an internet based account, we will send you a regular email to remind you to look at your statement online.

Administration charges

For services outside the normal operation of your account we make certain charges to cover the administration costs involved.

Current charges effective June 2007

Service	Charge
Account statement for passbook accounts listing transactions	£15.00 Initial administration charge. This may increase, depending on the amount of work involved
Insufficient available funds to pay a standing order. This applies to regular and one-off standing orders, and electronic BACS transfers.	£20.00
Insufficient available funds to pay a Direct Debit	£20.00
Cheque that you have paid into your account is returned unpaid	£20.00
Telegraphic transfer within the UK (minimum transfer £5,000)	£35.00
Low balance transaction charge. Charged when the balance falls below £100 on the following accounts: BranchSave MoneyManager (passbook) BranchSave Instant (passbook) Investment Account	£1 per day for counter withdrawals 50p per day for standing orders and Direct Debits (this charge is not applied to account closures or transfers to other Coventry accounts)
Replacement section 975 Tax Statement	£15.00
Reprint of annual investment statement	£15.00
Withdrawals from LINK cash machines	Free Although we will not make a charge, you may be charged by other organisations when using their cash machines
Monthly authorised overdraft usage fee. This applies to accounts where overdrafts are permitted and will be charged if your account exceeds any interest free overdraft amount (where applicable) but remains within your overdraft limit	£5.00
Monthly unauthorised overdraft usage fee. This applies to accounts where overdrafts are permitted and will be charged if your account goes overdrawn and you do not have an agreed overdraft limit, or if your account exceeds your overdraft limit	£25.00
Withdrawals from VISA and PLUS cash machines abroad. We will convert the amount of the withdrawal to pounds sterling on the date we take it out of your account at the wholesale rate of exchange applied by VISA. We will then charge 2% of the sterling transaction value	2.00%
Debit card purchases abroad We will convert the amount of the withdrawal to pounds sterling on the date we take it out of your account at the wholesale rate of exchange applied by VISA. We will then charge 2% of the sterling transaction value	2.00%

We will let you know the charge for any other service before we provide that service to you. You can also check current charges with your local branch or by contacting us.

Please note: if a charge is to pay for an additional service e.g. Telegraphic transfer, the charge will be payable at the time the service is requested.

Where charges are made for low balance transactions, returned cheques, unpaid standing orders and Direct Debits, they will appear automatically in your passbook or statement. We will deduct the full amount of the charge from your account even if there are insufficient funds in your account to cover this charge. This may result in your account becoming overdrawn. All account holders will be responsible for any debt incurred in this way, the full amount of which must be repaid to the Society.

If we amend any of our charges, we will notify you at least 30 days before the change comes into effect. Where we make a charge as a result of our error, we will of course cancel, waive or refund the charge.

Personal information about you

We take your right to privacy very seriously. We will not disclose information about you or your accounts to anyone, other than where we have your consent, or where we are compelled or allowed by law to do so. Please read our Privacy Policy for more details.

For this reason, we believe you are entitled to know about the information we collect and what we plan to use it for. You can then decide if you are happy to provide us with this. If you do decide to provide us with details, then you expressly authorise us to use that information in accordance with this policy.

From time to time we'll tell you about new accounts or services. You can choose not to receive this information when you open your account. You can also change your instructions at any time, by writing to us with details of your savings and/or mortgage account number(s), to Customer Service Centre, Mortgage and Investment Services, Coventry Building Society, PO box 9, Coventry, CV1 5QN.

We will continue to send you statements, notice of General Meetings if you are eligible to vote, information about your branch and interest rate change information where appropriate.

Please let us know as soon as possible, when you change your name, address, phone number or email address.

Making a complaint

Firstly, contact the Customer Service Manager at your local branch or telephone our Customer Service Centre on 0845 7665522, they can normally deal with your problem straightaway, but if you're still not happy after speaking to them read our complaints procedure, which explains how we deal with any problems you may have.

The Banking Code

This is a voluntary code, which sets standards of good banking practice for financial institutions to follow when they are dealing with personal customers in the United Kingdom. The Coventry subscribes to the Banking Code and fully supports the principles of good practice outlined in the Code.

If you would like a copy of the Banking Code please contact us. Alternatively you can find out more from the Banking Code Standards Board.

Financial Services Compensation Scheme

As a customer of Coventry Building Society your account(s) with us are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to the maximum of £50,000 per person, unless you are:

• A large company, partnership or mutual association
• A local, provincial or municipal authority
• A director or manager of the Society or a close relative of a director or manager of the Society
• A credit institution or overseas financial services institution
• An operator or trustee of a collective investment scheme
• A pension and retirement fund or a trustee of such a fund
• A supranational institution
• A government, or central administrative authority
• A person holding 5% or more of the capital of the Society
• The auditors of the Society and its group
• A person considered responsible for the default of the Society which triggers the FSCS.
• A person whose claim arises from transactions relating to conviction they have received for money laundering.

For more information about the Scheme please go to www.fscs.gov.uk Further details of exclusions from FSCS cover can be found on the Financial Services Authority website at www.fsahandbook.info/FSA/html/handbook/COMP/4/2.

Identification

When opening a savings or current account we may ask you to provide identification. This is to protect you against the risk of identity fraud and also allows the Society to comply with money laundering regulations.

More information?

If you would like further details about anything relating to your account with us, please contact us on 0845 7665522, or write to us at Coventry Building Society, Economic House, PO Box 9, High Street, Coventry, CV1 5QN.