HSBC, Lloyds, Halifax and more affected by Google Cloud outage: What to do if your banking app goes down

Several banking websites and apps are down due to a problem with the Google Cloud service.

Customers have reported issues logging in or sending and receiving payments on the apps of HSBC, Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland and Revolut among others.

Some even reported not being able to tap their digital cards to make payments in shops, though this seems less widespread.

Google says its engineering team is investigating the ⁠issue, which occurred at the London-based europe-west2 data center.

But that will be little comfort to customers who don't have access to their cash.

This is Money looks at what to do if you can't access your money.

Why do banks go down?

The first thing to do if you think your bank's services may be down is to check this is an issue other customers are having, and not just a problem with your own connection.

Most banks have a status service page online, so you can check whether it is a widespread issue which has been reported.

Andrew Hagger, founder of MoneyComms, says: 'IT outages can come in many forms. It may be isolated so could just be an app, online banking or ATM network that's unavailable.

'On the other hand it could be a full-blown outage which takes everything down – but that's less likely.

'All financial providers should have a duplicate of all systems that they can switch over to, as part of a wider IT disaster recovery plan, to minimise customer disruption.'

Issues with banking apps and websites can also be caused by software updates, or upgrades or faults with hardware components.

They can also be caused by problems with cloud computing, which is where companies pay providers like Google and Amazon to handle their data management, storage and networking at large data centres.

Hagger adds: 'However, all software updates should go through a strictly controlled change management system and only be put live once they have been tested on non-live or development versions of the website.

'It could even be an issue with space availability on databases, however this sort of thing should be closely monitored as part of everyday IT service management maintenance controls.

'Sometimes issues are caused by inefficient legacy IT systems, particularly where banks have merged and had different hardware and operating systems that are not as seamless as they could be.

'Cyber attacks have the potential to take down services, however security of bank IT systems is of the utmost importance and taken extremely seriously by individual banks and regulators.'

Here are our top tips for what to do if your bank goes down.

1. Have a second bank account

One of the main things to do is to have a second bank account with access to online banking. You don't need to keep a huge balance in it.

Andrew Hagger says: 'If you've got a separate account and debit card you will be able to make payments.

'Additionally, if you have a separate online savings account you should be able to switch funds to your second account while your main account is out of action.'

2. Keep a cash reserve

When your bank goes down, simple things we take for granted become a source of worry.

Keeping a cash reserve that would cover you for emergencies to use is a good way to tide yourself over in the event your bank app goes down.

Obviously you won't be able to pay the bills with cash, but it could help you out of a tight spot if you need to go to the shops or pay for parking, for example.

3. Complain to your bank

If you are not happy with the service you are receiving from your bank due to outages, you can complain.

You can make a complaint in person, on the phone or in writing by letter or email, depending on how you bank.

Keep a record of the date when you contact them to make the complaint.

It may be important if you want to take the complaint further later on, for example by going to the Financial Ombudsman Service which requires that you give your bank eight weeks to respond.

4. Keep track of the time of the outage

Certain times of the month can be more likely for banks to suffer outages, such as the end of the month when many people get paid and are trying to access their banking.

Certain banks may also schedule maintenance on their banking apps in the early hours of the weekend, and should notify you of this in advance on the app.

If your bank goes down, jot down the time the outage happened in case it comes in handy.

5. Switch current account

If you are bothered by frequent outages, you could switch current accounts to one with a bank that hasn't had a recent meltdown – or switch your secondary account to one.

Banks will even pay you to switch. Some banks are also currently offering cash bonuses for switching current accounts of up to £300.

Find the best current accounts for bonuses and other perks here.