smile is a trading name of The Co-operative Bank, a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) established under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, which would pay compensation to eligible customers in the unlikely event of the Bank becoming insolvent. Ordinarily payments under the Scheme are limited to a maximum of £50,000 of an eligible depositor’s total deposits held with the Bank.

Although the vast majority of our customers will be covered by the FSCS, in line with the maximum amount per person, certain customers are not covered. The exclusions include large companies, large mutual associations and local authorities. Further details of the cover provided by the FSCS are available at www.fscs.org.uk or by phoning the FSCS on 020 7892 7300.

Depositors are generally restricted to one maximum amount of £50,000 across an organisation, irrespective of the number of accounts held with that organisation. The Co-operative Bank also operates under the trading names of smile and Britannia. As such, protection provided to depositors by the FSCS is limited to a total of £50,000 for the combined amount of deposits held with The Co-operative Bank, smile and Britannia. However, if you held accounts, which were covered by the FSCS, with both The Co-operative Bank (including smile) and with Britannia immediately prior to the date of merger of the two organisations on 1st August 2009, then until 30th December 2010 those accounts with each of the Bank and Britannia are covered for up to £50,000 each i.e. £50,000 for your Co-operative Bank account(s) and £50,000 for your Britannia account(s).

What is the position for customers who have accounts with both The Co-operative Bank and smile?

smile is a trading name of The Co-operative Bank p.l.c.. Therefore if a customer has accounts with smile and The Co-operative Bank, the £50,000 applies once overall to all the accounts.

What is the position for customers who have accounts with both The Co-operative Bank (including smile) and Britannia?

smile and Britannia are trading names used by The Co-operative Bank p.l.c.. Therefore if a customer has accounts with smile and/or The Co-operative Bank and/or Britannia, the FSCS protection is limited to a total of £50,000 for the combined amount of deposits held with The Co-operative Bank, smile and Britannia.

However, if you held accounts, which were covered by the FSCS, with both The Co-operative Bank (including smile) and with Britannia Building Society immediately prior to the date of merger of the two organisations on 1st August 2009, then until 30th December 2010 those accounts with each of the Bank and Britannia are covered for up to £50,000 each i.e. £50,000 for your Co-operative Bank account(s) and £50,000 for your Britannia account(s).

What about joint accounts?

For joint accounts each account holder is treated as having a claim in respect of their share so, for a joint account held by two eligible depositors, the maximum amount that could be claimed would be £50,000 each (making a total of £100,000). The £50,000 limit relates to the combined amount in all the eligible depositor’s accounts with the Bank, including their share of any joint account, and not to each separate account.

Do the compensation limits apply to each bank account I have with The Co-operative Bank p.l.c.?

No. The limit applies once to all products of the same type – for example, all bank accounts – a person has with the same bank.

I have savings held in an account with The Co-operative Bank in Guernsey. Is my money covered under the FSCS?

Deposits held in our Guernsey branch are deemed to be offshore accounts and not UK accounts, and are therefore not covered under the FSCS. However the account may be covered by the Guernsey Banking Deposit Guarantee Scheme.

What about the account used for my business?

The FSCS was set up mainly to assist private individuals, although smaller businesses and, in certain circumstances, larger businesses may be covered.

The deposits of smaller companies (as defined below) are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. The maximum level of compensation is 100% of the first £50,000 deposited with the bank. This is the same level of protection that individuals receive.

As an indicative guide, a smaller company must meet two of the following criteria (as set out in section 382 of the Companies Act 2006):

• Turnover: not more than £6.5 million
• Balance sheet total: not more than £3.26 million
• Total number of employees: not more than 50.

Specific types of depositor that are usually covered:

• Unincorporated bodies (certain charities, clubs etc): an unincorporated association with net assets not more than £1.4 million
• Limited companies (this includes Registered Charities): a limited company which falls into the definition of a small company (as above)
• Sole Traders

As a guide, those not eligible to claim under the scheme include:

• Large mutual associations: a mutual association or unincorporated body with net assets of more than £1.4 million
• Large companies
• Local authorities
• Collective investment schemes and some types of pension funds
• Overseas authorised firms and, in certain circumstances, certain types of FSA-authorised firms

Please be aware that the decision on whether any claim is eligible if the bank goes into default ultimately lies with the FSCS.

For details of the extent of cover provided by the FSCS, and of those types of depositor not eligible to claim under the scheme, visit www.FSCS.org.uk or call the FSCS on 020 7892 7300.