Bank of Ireland

Bank of Ireland UK is the UK banking arm of the Irish Bank of Ireland group. It offers personal current accounts and mortgages, and for many years it was the bank behind other well known names on the British high street: it provided the Post Office's own current accounts, and its record of previous names includes Bristol and West, Bristol & West Mortgages and Post Office Financial Services¹. Day to day, customers can bank through branches, online and mobile apps, phone banking, or at Post Office branches across Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK².

Two things have changed the shape of what it offers. In 2019 it sold its UK credit card portfolios, which included AA and Post Office branded cards, and those accounts moved to Jaja on 3 October 2020³. Its personal loans were also sold to a new provider⁴. What remains for personal customers in the UK is current account banking, mortgages (now for Northern Ireland customers only), and the services around them.

What Bank of Ireland offers UK customers

Bank of Ireland UK provides personal current accounts, including a Basic Cash Account, and mortgages. New mortgage products are available to Northern Ireland customers only⁸, while existing mortgage customers elsewhere in the UK are supported through a UK administration centre in Bristol⁹. The bank no longer operates a branch network in Great Britain, so customers in England, Scotland and Wales deal with it online, by phone, by post or through Post Office branches¹⁰.

Alongside the accounts themselves, the bank offers the services that sit around them: a debit card protected by Verified by Visa¹¹, Apple Pay on personal and business debit cards¹², text alerts to help customers stay in control of their money, chip and signature cards for anyone who has difficulty using a PIN pad, and cash machines with audio capability for blind and partially sighted customers². It does not offer investment services, and it warns that any correspondence claiming to offer them in its name is a scam¹³.

The product areas are covered in the sections below, each with a link to the site's wider guide: current accounts, savings, mortgages, credit cards and loans.

Current accounts and the Basic Cash Account

The Bank of Ireland UK personal current account comes with a debit card and access to online banking, which is available for day-to-day banking 24 hours a day, 365 days a year¹⁴. The account can be managed through the bank's app, online, by phone, in a branch, or at the Post Office². Customers can view their card PIN using the banking app or online banking, which removes the need to wait for a PIN reminder in the post¹⁵.

The Basic Cash Account is a stripped-down version: the account offers a Bank of Ireland UK cash card only, rather than a full debit card⁵. It is aimed at people who want a simple account for receiving money and withdrawing cash. As with any basic account, the money in it can be deposited and withdrawn over the counter at any Post Office on the same terms as other personal current account customers. If you are comparing accounts generally, the guides on current accounts explain the types available and how to choose between them.

Switching to Bank of Ireland UK uses the Current Account Switch Service. Under the service, the last 13 months of recurring incoming credit transfers and direct debit payments are collected from the old bank, and within 5 working days of receiving that information the bank sets up direct debit mandates, standing orders, online beneficiaries and future-dated payments unless the customer says otherwise¹⁶. The bank can also freeze a joint account, which matters for customers leaving a relationship who need to stop a former partner spending from a shared account¹⁷.

Savings: Bank of Ireland behind the Post Office

Bank of Ireland UK is best known in GB savings history as the bank behind other brands rather than under its own name. The Post Office's own current accounts were provided by Bank of Ireland UK, and at one point three such accounts were available in 29 branches in East Anglia¹⁸. The Post Office's own account was operated through the Bank of Ireland¹⁹. Bank of Ireland's record of previous names includes Post Office Financial Services¹, which is why older savings and banking paperwork may carry the Post Office name while the underlying bank was Bank of Ireland.

Bank of Ireland UK does not today run a high street savings range under its own brand in the way a large clearing bank does, and its UK personal banking centres on current accounts and mortgages. If you hold, or find paperwork for, an old Post Office savings product, the account terms will name the bank actually holding the money, and that is the firm to contact. For how savings accounts work generally, including how interest is paid and what protection applies, see savings accounts and ISAs.

Mortgages and the Bristol & West and Post Office connection

Bank of Ireland Group provides mortgages in the UK through "Bank of Ireland Mortgages" and "Bank of Ireland UK"⁸. The Bristol & West name is part of the same history: Bristol and West and Bristol & West Mortgages appear among the previous names on Bank of Ireland's record¹, so a mortgage taken out years ago with Bristol & West may now be administered by Bank of Ireland.

For new lending, the position is narrow: new mortgage products are available to Northern Ireland customers only⁸. The bank states it has a wide range of mortgages for people who live in Northern Ireland²⁰. Existing customers elsewhere are still served. The UK administration centre is at PO Box 3191, Bristol, BS1 9HY, reachable on 0345 300 8000 and by email at mortgage.services@boi.com⁹.

Existing customers have options as their deals end. A customer whose current deal is ending within the next four months can apply to switch to a new rate²⁰. Those moving home can port their mortgage, and the bank sets conditions for porting without paying an early repayment charge: it needs the application before the current property is sold, any early repayment charge and fees due must be paid, the customer then has three months to open the new account, and the bank automatically refunds the early repayment charge within 20 working days. Where the new mortgage starts on the same day the old property is sold, no early repayment charge is due as long as the bank has a completed waiver form²¹. How these charges work, and how a mortgage deal ending affects your payments, is explained in the mortgages guide, with the process of buying in buying a home.

Credit cards, including AA and Post Office cards

Bank of Ireland UK built a large UK credit card business partly by issuing cards for other brands. In 2015 it entered into a partnership with The AA²², and its card brands included AA and Post Office cards: the bank records that it was responsible for investigating PPI complaints from credit cards with Bank of Ireland, Bank of Ireland (UK) and Post Office Money²². Its own range included the Mastercard Matched card, a student credit card, a Queen's affinity card and an Ulster Rugby Mastercard²³.

The card terms set out how the charges work. The card can only be used for personal use, not business purposes, and no interest is charged on purchases if the full purchase balance is paid by the due date²⁷. A cash withdrawal fee may be charged if the card is used to withdraw cash, and interest is charged from the day the withdrawal is made, which is why cash withdrawals on a credit card are usually more expensive than purchases²³. A balance transfer is completed within 3 working days of the day the request is submitted²³. For how these charges compare across the market, see credit cards.

To register for the credit card app or online servicing, a customer must be the primary account holder of a Bank of Ireland UK credit card; additional cardholders cannot currently register, though they can use their own version of the app to stay on top of spending²⁸. Apple Pay is not available to Bank of Ireland UK personal and commercial credit card holders¹². The site carries no rates for these cards: today's interest rates and fees are on the provider's own site.

Selling the credit cards to Jaja: what changed for cardholders

In 2019, Bank of Ireland UK announced the sale of its existing UK credit card portfolios to Jaja²⁹. The sale was reported at £530m, in a deal covering the UK credit card business including AA and Post Office branded cards³. The provider of the cards changed from Bank of Ireland UK to Jaja on 3 October 2020²⁹.

For cardholders, the practical points were these. Bank of Ireland confirmed customers would be written to well in advance of the transfer³. It said there were no plans to change customers' terms and conditions as a result of the sale, and that it had no plans to withdraw its credit card offers³. The sale only affected credit card accounts in the UK, so Irish customers of the Bank of Ireland did not see a change³. Bank of Ireland UK also confirmed the change did not affect any other financial services products a customer held with it, such as a current account or mortgage²⁹. At the time of the announcement, a Which? customer satisfaction survey found the Bank of Ireland had one of the worst scores from its customers³.

Personal loans have also been sold

Bank of Ireland UK's personal loans were sold separately from the cards. The bank's own guidance for loan customers sets out what happened and what did not. It is not possible for a customer to opt in or out of the sale; the transfer was allowed under the terms and conditions of the loan⁴. There are no changes to the account's terms and conditions, including any COVID-19 payment break arrangement⁴.

Customers receive an email and a welcome pack in the post to confirm the account has been transferred⁴. For accounts that were already paid off, account details transferred to the new provider after 16 May, and the new provider handles any queries on those closed accounts⁴. Complaints were not impacted by the sale: unresolved complaints continue to be explored, including those that had been adjudicated by the Financial Ombudsman Service⁴. If you hold one of these loans, the welcome pack names the new provider, and that is who to contact about payments or queries. The loans guide explains how personal loans work generally.

Banking at the Post Office counter

Because Bank of Ireland UK no longer operates a branch network in Great Britain, the Post Office counter is a central part of how its customers bank in person¹⁰. The bank offers both personal and business customers access to a range of services at Post Office branches throughout the UK, though the availability of services varies between different Post Office outlet types³⁰. Customers can access bank account services at the Post Office as an everyday channel, not just a fallback¹⁴.

The services work with the bank's own cards. You can withdraw cash using a Bank of Ireland UK debit card or Cash card, and the cash is debited from your account. You can check your balance using a Bank of Ireland UK debit card or Cash card. To pay in cash you need your Bank of Ireland UK debit card, Cash card or Quick Lodge card for the account you are paying into, with Quick Lodge cards only available to business customers. Bank of Ireland UK special purpose paying-in envelopes are available at both Bank of Ireland UK branches and Post Office outlets³⁰. The Post Office's own banking pages confirm cash withdrawal is available with a card, and change giving is available with a Change Giving Card or barcoded change-giving form³¹.

This matters most in Northern Ireland and in parts of GB without a nearby branch. A parliamentary report on financial exclusion found that just over half of people surveyed in Northern Ireland were unaware that banking services could be accessed at the Post Office³², so the channel is less used than it could be. The bank's own support pages remind customers that they can deposit and withdraw cash at any Post Office¹⁵.

Customer satisfaction, complaints and extra help

Complaints start with the bank itself, and the routes depend on the product. For a personal current account, customers can fill in the online complaint form, email the customer care team, call, visit a branch, or write to the UK customer relations freepost address in Bristol³³. The account terms also give a Customer Service Centre number and a Belfast postal address⁵. Switching customers can complain in person at a branch, in writing, or by phone¹⁶. Credit card customers can use Live Chat in the app or call card customer services, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm²⁶. If a complaint cannot be settled with the bank, the customer has the right to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service²⁷.

On satisfaction, the evidence is thin and dated. A 2019 Which? survey found the Bank of Ireland had one of the worst scores from its customers³. A later Which? piece on choosing a mortgage lender reported a Bank of Ireland survey sample of just 54 responses in August and September 2025, a sample too small to draw firm conclusions from³⁴. For context, the Financial Ombudsman Service received 82,477 banking and lending complaints across the whole market between 9 July 2021 and 8 July 2022³⁵. Consumers in Northern Ireland can also contact the Consumer Council for Northern Ireland, at www.consumercouncil.org.uk³⁶.

The bank offers extra help for customers in difficult circumstances. Its extra help centre includes support for mental health¹⁵, and for customers experiencing domestic or economic abuse it provides a way to say how and when the bank should contact them safely, alongside suggested steps such as listing joint assets and accounts, checking your credit file, stopping payments that are not for your benefit, and removing third-party access³⁷. The charity Surviving Economic Abuse also records that Bank of Ireland can freeze joint accounts¹⁷. On fraud, the bank states that if it needs to contact a customer about potential fraud on their account it will do so via a secure channel including, but not limited to, SMS or email³⁸, and it warns about scam phone calls³⁹. A lost or stolen card is replaced to the address on file in 5 to 7 working days after it is reported³⁹.

How your money is protected with Bank of Ireland UK

Money held with Bank of Ireland UK is held with a bank that is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority⁶. The wider Bank of Ireland entity also appears on the Prudential Regulation Authority's list of banks incorporated outside the UK authorised to accept deposits through a branch in the UK¹. You can check the entries yourself on the FCA Register, which also lists the current trading names, Bank of Ireland Mortgages and Bank of Ireland, and the previous names including Bristol and West and Post Office Financial Services¹.

Two practical warnings follow from the bank's own guidance. First, Bank of Ireland UK does not offer investment services, and any correspondence claiming to offer them in its name is a scam¹³. Second, because the bank no longer has a branch network in Great Britain, access to cash there runs through Post Office branches and cash machines; the regulator's work on access to cash covers Bank of Ireland (UK) plc for Northern Ireland only¹⁰. If a complaint cannot be settled, the Financial Ombudsman Service is the free and independent route²⁷, and the wider rules are explained in consumer protection and scams and fraud.