&gt; They also won&#x27;t give accounts to just anybody. You need a letter from your employer so you can&#x27;t open an account if you&#x27;re unemployed. Even with that, you have to wait a couple of weeks for an appointment to talk to somebody before they open your account. My T&amp;C even made it a requirement for my account to receive a regular minimum deposit each month.<p>Unemployed people can get what&#x27;s called a &quot;basic bank account&quot;. They need this for their benefit to be paid into. They need to prove their identity, but that can be done with driving licences or passports or utility bills or tenancy agreements.<p>The requirements for your particular account - which is not a basic account - are not generalisable across all accounts.<p>I agree that UK banks are aggressive at charging fees, often to people who can&#x27;t afford them. And that the opening times suck. And that the telephone staff can be rude and unhelpful.