Help applying for a Savings Account or Cash ISA

You need to be aged 16 or over and hold a UK bank account to save with Ford Money. To open an ISA, you’ll also need to be a UK resident taxpayer with a National Insurance number.

If you’re 18 years of age or older, and a UK resident with a National Insurance number then you’re eligible to open an ISA. If you don’t have a National Insurance number, it may still be possible for you to open an ISA. Call us on 0345 266 1231 for further details.

Applying online takes approx. 10 minutes assuming you have all the information you need to hand.

Once you’ve chosen your product on our website, click/tap on the ‘Apply Now’ button. You’ll first be taken to a pre-application screen that provides important information on what you need to know before commencing, so please ensure you read through it carefully.

Here you’ll also have the opportunity to watch a useful video that guides you through each step of the application process, so you can see what to expect before commencing.

On-screen instructions will additionally provide clear guidance through the application process as you proceed.

As part of the application process, you will be required to set up security information such as your password and memorable details.

For tips on how to protect your account further, such as using very secure passwords etc., see here.

Please give us a call on 0345 266 1231. Although we’re an online savings provider, we’re always more than happy to help.

Our UK-based support team are contactable seven days a week (excluding bank holidays).  Our normal opening times are as follows:

Monday - Friday: 8am – 6pm
Saturday: 9am - 5pm
Sunday: 10am - 4pm

You can only open another account once you’ve successfully opened your initial account and received your Customer ID. Once logged into that initial account, you can then open additional accounts by selecting ‘Open New Account’ from the main menu.

As part of the account opening process, you will be asked if you’d like to open an account singly or in joint names.

If you choose to open a joint account, both parties will need to provide the required personal information and partake in identity and residency checks. If one applicant passes and the other should fail, we will be unable to authorise the opening of the account until we have verified the identify and/or residency of the unsuccessful applicant.

These are an additional security check to help keep your account safe and secure. There are three pieces of information we ask you to provide during the application process: a date (DDMMYYYY), a place and a name memorable to you, but not easily guessable by others. Whenever you log in we ask for randomly selected individual characters or digits from one of these memorable details.

Once your account is open you can elect to change these memorable details to something more personal to you.

Never divulge a memorable detail in its entirety to anybody, including our call centre agents.  If you forget these details, just give us a call on 0345 266 1231 and we’ll do all we can to help. For security reasons we don’t issue online reminders.

We’ll send you a couple of emails within 24 hours of your application as follows:

1) Receipt of your application, which quotes your temporary application reference

2) Your Customer ID which, together with the password you will have set up as part of your application, will enable you to log into your new account.

If you don’t receive any of our emails, check your Junk Mail folder. If you find one of our emails there, add us to your address book so you don’t miss further important email communications. However, if you still fail to receive either of these emails, call us right away on 0345 266 1231.

We’ll also send you a welcome pack in the post that contains your account details, including your Ford Money account number and the Customer ID we issued you, together with other important information relating to the running of your account. This should be with you no later than five working days after applying.

In addition, you will also receive a separate letter in the post containing an authentication code which you will need to use to authenticate your Connected Bank Account.

You can request to transfer current or previous ISA savings into a Ford Money Cash ISA during the application process, or if you already have a Flexible Cash ISA with us you can request the transfer whilst logged in to your account. If you hold a Fixed Cash ISA with us you will need to download and complete the appropriate transfer form below:

Cash ISA transfer form (PDF)
Stocks and Shares ISA transfer form (PDF)

Note that if requesting a Stocks & Shares ISA transfer to fund your Ford Money Cash ISA some, or all, of these investments will need to be sold first as only cash may be deposited into a Ford Money Cash ISA. There may also be restrictions or fees applicable to these sale transactions so we would recommend speaking with your current provider first before making this type of transfer.

For Fixed Cash ISAs the transfer in must be completed within 21 calendar days from the date we receive your application. If, however, we have received notification from your current provider that funds are pending we will waive this deadline.

Transfers in for a Flexible Cash ISA can take place at any time.

Please be aware that ISA transfers may take up to 15 days to reach your account depending on your provider.

Once your application is submitted you will receive an email with your temporary application reference number. You can quote this reference when making an initial deposit into your Ford Money account before receiving your account number, as well as use it as a reference if you have any queries regarding your application.

You will only need to use this temporary application reference number for a few days until you receive your new Ford Money account number from us in your welcome pack. This will be mailed out to you in the post. From that point onwards, you should then use your Ford Money account number as your reference for all subsequent deposits and correspondence.

Your temporary application reference number will be displayed on screen on the confirmation page after successfully applying and also in the email you will receive from us shortly afterwards.

Your Customer ID is a 10-character alpha-numeric code issued at time of application that, combined with your password and elements of your memorable details, will allow you to access your account.  When you’re logged in, you can choose to personalise it.

You need to move all the money you plan to save with us into your account within the first 21 days after opening your account.

Please make sure to use the bank account that you’ll be connecting to your Ford Money account. We accept bank transfers or CHAPS payments using the details below (your bank may charge you for using CHAPS).

Here’s the information you’ll need to make your first payment:

• Account Holder: FCE Bank plc (Ford Money is a trading name of FCE Bank plc) 
• Our Sort Code: 20-32-53 
• Our Bank Account Number: 63604551
• Account Type: Business Account
• Payment Reference: If you haven’t received your account number from us yet, this will be your temporary application reference. Once your account is fully opened, you’ll receive your account number which will then be your new payment reference.

If you’ve already requested to move an existing ISA when you applied, then you don’t need to move any additional money into your account as this will be your first deposit if it’s received in the first 21 days.

You’ll need to make your initial deposit within 21 calendar days from the date we receive your application. Unfortunately, if we don’t receive funds in this time we’ll need to close your account and you’ll have to reapply.

If you’ve opened an ISA and are transferring in an ISA from another provider, this will count as your initial deposit as long as it is received within the 21-day window.

We will send you a letter in the post separately to your welcome pack, containing an authentication code and which should arrive in a few days.

When you first log in to your new Ford Money account, you will see a message displayed requesting you authenticate the bank account details connected to your Ford Money account. Follow the onscreen instructions to enter the code you’ve received from us and confirm the bank account details online. Once this step is complete, you will be able to make withdrawals to your Connected Bank Account (subject to the terms of your product).

If you hold a joint account, then only one of the account holders will need to perform this authentication step.

Note that apart from making deposits, you will be unable to make any withdrawals from your new Ford Money account until you have completed this authentication step.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) introduced rules in 2019 known as Strong Customer Authentication (SCA), that require banks and financial institutions to securely authenticate customers. These rules aim to make sure that the person requesting access to your account, or trying to make a payment or withdrawal, is either you or someone to whom you have given consent.

As part of your application, we need to verify your identity and address to prevent fraudulent applications being made in your name. Don’t worry if you don’t initially pass our checks - it doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t open an account with us. It’s just likely that we’ll need some further proof to verify the information you’ve provided.

To see a list of the documents we will accept as proof of identity and address, see here.

Please refer to the table below.

Note: Information provided by you to verify your identity and residency must be from different sources e.g., State Pension Statement and general correspondence from the Department of Work & Pensions (DWP) will not be acceptable.

For applicants under the age of 18 where it is not possible to provide documents from the list above:

Please send copies (unless otherwise specified). If you elect to send us originals of important documents such as passports, licences and identity documents we strongly recommend you use recorded post or special delivery. We'll send back any original documents once they've been reviewed, however note that we don’t return copies as these will be securely destroyed once our checks have been completed.

There are two methods by which you can provide us with your proof documentation.

In some cases, if we just need the one document, you have the option to use our document upload service. This will allow you to upload documents that prove your identity directly via our website. To use this method, you will need to follow the link provided on-screen at the time of application, or in your welcome email that will follow shortly after applying.

If the document upload option isn’t available to you, or if you’d prefer, you can send your documents in the post to our Freepost address:

RTUB-AAXH-UHKE
Ford Money
PO Box 871
Wallsend
NE28 5BT

We recommend that you always send us copies of your documents. However, should you choose to send us original documents, we strongly advise that you use recorded post or special delivery. All original documents received will be returned but we don’t return copies, which will be securely destroyed once we have completed our checks.

To see a list of the documents we will accept as proof of identity and address, see here.