Information about opening your account

Opening your account

To open an account at one of our branches or by post you will need to provide:

  • A completed and signed application form
  • A deposit for the account (if you're applying by post, a personal cheque is preferred)

Verifying your identity

Under the Money Laundering Regulations and Financial Conduct Authority rules, we are required to verify the name, address and date of birth of investors. To do this, we will ordinarily use an electronic verification system.

For branch applications, you will also need to supply additional proof of your identity, preferably in the form of a full UK or EU photo driving licence or a valid UK or EU passport. For postal applications, you will need to supply a certified copy of one of the above documents and either an original or a certified copy of a bank statement or utility bill which is less than 3 months old (not a mobile phone bill). In some circumstances, it may be necessary for you to provide additional forms of identification. If this is required, we will notify you separately. For details of other forms of acceptable identification, please call or visit your local branch or call us.

Existing Customers

If you already have an open account with us, you do not ordinarily need to provide any proof of your name or address. Please ensure you write your existing account number in the space provided on the application form.

Customer Service and Protection

We hope that we provide our members with a great service, but from time to time things go wrong.

The simplest way to resolve a complaint is to visit or phone your local branch.

Find a branch


If they're unable to assist they'll give you details about who to contact. Alternatively you can:

  • call us: 03450 50 50 75* - our lines are open Mon - Fri: 8am - 8pm and Sat: 9am - 5pm
  • email us: complaints@leedsbuildingsociety.co.uk**
  • write to our Complaints Monitoring Team at the postal address:

    Complaints Monitoring Team,
    Leeds Building Society,
    26 Sovereign Street
    Leeds
    West Yorkshire
    LS1 4BJ

Ultimately, your complaint may be referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service, Exchange Tower, Harbour Exchange Square, London, E14 9SR. (www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk).

Your eligible deposits with Leeds Building Society are protected up to a total of £85,000 by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, the UK's deposit guarantee scheme. This limit applies to the total of all deposits held in a Leeds Building Society account in the UK. Any deposits you hold above the limit are unlikely to be covered. Please click here for further information or visit www.fscs.org.uk.

Leeds Building Society is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority. Leeds Building Society is registered on the Financial Services Register under number 164992. You can check this on FCA website at www.fca.org.uk or by contacting the FCA on 0800 111 6768.