Depositing money from US bank account into UK bank account via a US check

We opened an HSBC savings account in the States and used the HSBC debit card whilst in England and France with no problem.  When we move to the UK, we're hoping moving funds will be easier through HSBC.

Unfortunately, moving funds is not easier with HSBC. But it is easier to open a UK account.

I've deposited US cheques into our Barclays account and they credit the money immediately, but the fee if the cheque bounces is higher. The call the process 'Cheque Negotiation.' The admin fee for depositing a foreign cheque was only about £5 and that was based on a percentage. I felt like it was a pretty fair deal.

Check the rate they're giving you. One time I deposited dollars into my Barclay's account convinced me not to do it again cause the rate was extortionate. Maybe they charge a different rate for check deposits though.

Thank you everyone for your suggestions.  Pkanka--I will check that out on Wachovia's site. 

We are not talking loads of money here--just enought to pay back some credit card debt.

I will still check with our UK bank (The Co-operative Bank) to see what the fee is, if any, and how long a US check takes to clear.

I work for the Co-operative Bank, the fee for depositing a foreign cheque is £8. They will write to you to confirm the rate etc... Usually they do it by negotiation which means they'll give you the cash before the cheque has fully cleared. If it is a large amount they may do it by collection which means you have to wait for the cheque to fully clear which can take a month.

When I was living in the US I found it cheapest to get my bank (Zions) to write a foreign draft. The exchange rate was decent and the charge in dollars was pretty cheap. If you need the money quicker a SWIFT transfer is the best option.

For sending money to the US the cheapest banks are The Co-operative (£8) using a special inter co-op network(TIPA), A&L are cheap for transfers within Europe. RBS has a service called Royworld which is £10 to send money to the USA.

Hope that helps,

Joe

Thanks Joe and everyone else! 

I found out the fee for depositing a foreign check at the Co-operative bank when I deposited a small birthday check which instantly became much smaller due to the lousy state of the $ and the foreign check deposit fee! 

We finally went through UkForex after going through a few hoops, but it worked out in the end and was probably the best way to go, with the best exchange rate.