What are your rights when moving your accounts from Ulster or KBC banks

Ulster Bank and KBC Bank customers will face issues in switching banks. John Hearne advises these customers on what to look out for

Ulster Bank and KBC are on the way out of the Irish market, and hundreds of thousands of current and deposit accounts must find a new home. With the clock ticking down, there have been warnings that the financial system faces chaos as consumers scramble to find new service providers.

The problem — or at least, part of the problem — is that changing current account isn’t like switching gas or electricity supplier. A bank account is a complex ecosystem of inward and outward flows. When you move provider, someone has to ensure that those flows are uninterrupted and that no one is disadvantaged by the commercial decisions of the institution.