gohenry Review

 

What is gohenry? 📖

gohenry was designed for parents who have children between the ages of 6 to 18. It gives youngsters the tools they need to learn how to manage money. As a parent you have full control over your children’s finances through an app. Here you can control, monitor and transfer money to your child’s debit card. gohenry is one of the leading money apps and bank substitutes for parents in the UK.

The company was founded in 2012 by a group of likeminded parents who had realised there was not a solution for giving kids the ability to spend using a debit card while giving a degree of control to parents. It was at this moment that gohenry was born. Since then, gohenry have acquired over 500,000 customers in the UK and beyond. This quickly made gohenry the biggest company of its kind.

The gohenry is a prepaid debit card and app that’s designed to teach children how to budget. One of the key aims of the gohenry is to help kids to understand the difference between things they want and things that they need. Over recent years, the gohenry has become one of the most popular prepaid cards for kids on the market. Parents can work with their gohenry-using kids to help them benefit from the gohenry debit card and app. What’s also great for parents is that they can see real-time updates on their kids’ latest financial behaviour and set controls to limit their spending.

Prepaid cards for kids have become incredibly popular with families across the UK and the world during recent years. These cards give children the chance to buy products and services at a range of online and offline outlets, but the controls used by parents can stop them from spending their money in an age-inappropriate manner. Kids as young as six are receiving prepaid kids and learning the benefits of spending their money carefully and responsibly. These services aim to teach kids financial skills that will serve them well throughout their lives, help them to budget and encourage them to think carefully about their spending so their cash lasts for longer and they don’t make purchases that they later come to regret.

We are living in an increasingly cashless society. Although your child may have physical cash in their kiddy bank, this isn’t going to be of much use to them when they want to make purchases online. Another big benefit of using prepaid cards is that they can be stopped by parents at any time. If a card is lost, this isn’t as catastrophic as the loss of physical cash is. When physical cash goes amiss, it is normally gone forever. Lost cards can easily be replaced, with replacements ordered via the app. If a parent ever wants to limit or stop their kids’ card from being used for any reason, they can do this in the app within just a few touches of their smartphone screen.

If your child isn’t ready to take on the responsibility of a conventional bank account, a prepaid bank account can act as a valuable stepping stone. Before kids can spend any money on their prepaid cards, their parents need to load money onto them. They cannot go overdrawn and can only spend money that has already been added to their accounts.

There are many great reasons to consider gohenry if you do require a kids’ prepaid card and app service to teach children financial skills and provide them with funds to be spent in a responsible manner. The company says its mission is to ensure every child becomes “smart with money”. It aims to promote positive spending habits, encourage kids to save, make the right investment decisions, use money for good causes, take responsibility for their financial activities and understand that when their allowance is gone, it’s gone. The gohenry team wanted to help children learn about money in a “fun, practical way” and provide tools to help parents instill positive financial habits in their kids.

gohenry believe that kids must be empowered and trusted to learn if they are to develop good money skills. They see good money management as being as important as reading, mathematics, writing and other skills that can help children lead happy, prosperous lives. gohenry say practical money experience can have a big influence on developing financial confidence and independence. Studies constantly find that it’s best to let kids learn about money from an early age. Children’s attitudes and habits start to form at around the age of seven, and parents are highly influential on the way that they are shaped.

The company says its customer network consists of people from all walks of life. These include parents who regard themselves as excellent at money management as well as mums and dads who don’t want their kids to repeat the financial errors that they made. The gohenry team firmly believes that quality tools can help kids and parents lay down the foundations for a “lifetime of financial wellbeing”.

gohenry now has more than 2 million customers. The company was formed when its founders were seeking a new way to help their own kids to learn about money in a modern setting. The service needed to be simple for parents and practical for children. Investment in the company has come from sources including its own customers as well as some of the biggest names in the worlds of technology and finance. Crowdfunding has also played a big role in making gohenry the well-established brand that it is today. Read on to find out more about how gohenry works, how much it will cost you, how safe and secure it is, how the app works and the various pros and cons offered by the service.

How Does gohenry Work? 👨‍🏫

The gohenry ‘package’ is essentially made up of 3 elements which are:

• An account for parents. From this interface you are able to control and transfer funds to your child’s account via your iPhone or Android device.
• An account for children. Here your child can spend money and see their limits/allowances.
• A VISA debit card. The debit card allows children to make online purchases, pay for goods in stores and withdraw cash from an ATM.

Although there are already an abundance of ‘bank accounts’ designed for children, most don’t offer any kind of parental control. The difference between gohenry and high street banks is that the whole idea of the app is being able to control and monitor how your children spend their money. Below we take a look at some of the parent control features.

• Notifications in real time – When your child makes a transaction of any kind, you will receive a notification in real-time. This will pop up and display on the home screen of your phone wherever you are.
• Spending limits – You have full control over how much your child can spend on a daily, monthly or weekly basis. This is a great way to show children how to budget.
• Issue rewards for tasks – You can set up predefined rewards within the app so that a fixed sum is paid to your child’s account if they have completed a task given by you. This is a perfect way to issue and track incentives.
• Age restricted transactions safeguard – the standard configuration of gohenry is set up to automatically block transactions associated with age restricted content. For example, gambling, pubs and adult content. This gives you the peace of mind that your child cannot make age restricted purchases whilst using gohenry,

The gohenry app differs from a conventional bank account for children for several reasons. One of these is that it offers much more parental control than a typical kids bank account. With gohenry, parents receive notifications each time their child uses their account. This gives them valuable clarity, transparency and peace of mind. Parents are also able to set spending limits so their kids can’t spend more than a pre-determined amount each week.

Another benefit of the gohenry app is that it allows parents to provide rewards for tasks that their children have completed. Each time a child has completed a task such as doing their homework or carrying out a household chore, they can get money paid directly into their account. Parents can also block online payments if they wish to stop money from being spent in inappropriate environments. You can also block withdrawals from cash machines if you wish. This can be particularly beneficial for worried parents as they have no way of knowing what the money has been spent on once it leaves an ATM.

Many retailers are automatically blocked from accepting gohenry as a payment method. The list of retailers includes betting shops, pubs and age-restricted websites. However, if a child does use their card at a supermarket, this won’t be blocked automatically. This means they could potentially purchase goods like alcohol with their card if they aren’t asked for ID for any reason.

The financial independence offered by gohenry is a massive draw for kids and their parents. This kind of independence simply isn’t available via physical cash. Many kids are also drawn to the idea of having their own bank account and accompanying app. You can also have the cards personalised if you wish. If you opt for a basic card, this will be included in the monthly payment, but you can have your card personalised for just £4.99. There are various colours and designs to choose from, including several themes and patterns. Your child can also have their name added to the top left corner of the card. There are many aspects of gohenry that should hopefully help your child to blossom into a financially responsible grown-up.

gohenry says it checks that your sign-up details are genuine by referencing them against public records like credit check service Experian, the electoral roll and the national database of telephone landline numbers. If you still have trouble signing up, you can get in touch with the customer service department and provide either your driving licence or two other forms of ID. These can include your Council Tax bill, a recent bank statement or your UK passport.

 

Key Features of gohenry ⚙️

Let’s take a look at some of the key features offered by the gohenry app. Once you have signed up for the service, you will get access to a parent account. You can use this to top your kid’s account up and adjust the parental controls in line with your specific needs. You can do all of this with the official gohenry app. Your child will also be able to look at their current balance in the app. They can see their spending limits in the app too so they always know how much cash they have available. The app comes with a PrePaid Visa Card. This can be used at shops as well as online. They will also be able to withdraw cash with their card at an ATM, but you can block this if you wish due to worries about what they could be spending their money on. When you block ATM withdrawals, you’ll always know where your child is spending their money.

When it comes to account balances, the most your child can hold in their account is £6,000. You can load money onto the card up to three times each day. Each load needs to be between £2 and £500. Kids can’t spend more than £4,000 per day, but you can restrict this much further by using the controls in the app. Your child can use their card up to ten times a day. There is no minimum spend per transaction, so your child is free to make incredibly small purchases with their gohenry card if they wish.

If you do permit cash withdrawals, your child will be able to withdraw up to £120 each day. They can withdraw as little as £5 at one time if they wish – though it can be hard to find an ATM in the UK that enables withdrawals of £5. Kids can make up to three withdrawals each day but no more than four over a four-day period.

How Much Does gohenry Cost? 💸

Here we will explain the costs of gohenry. The good news is, that you can try gohenry for 2 whole months for FREE. This will allow you to trial the app and see if it will work for you and your children. If you don’t want to continue after the trial simply cancel and you won’t pay for the service.

After the gohenry 2 month free trial, the service costs £2.99 per month, per child. For this price, you will get the following features at no extra cost:

• Withdraw cash from an ATM within the UK.
• No sneaky overdrafts and fees, only spend what is in the account.
• Free VISA goHenry debit card for your each child.
• Dedicated customer service via email or phone.

As with most prepaid debit cards, there are other fees involved so lets take a look at the fees below:

• gohenry account fees – After the two month free trial, the account fee per month is £2.49 per month. If you have more than one child then this fee applies for each one. This fee will come out of the parent account each month.
• Funding your gohenry account – You can top up your gohenry account for free using bank transfer however, this can take between 3-5 business days to complete and is probably the option with the longest time delay. The other option is to top up via your bank debit card which is instant but does carry a fee of 50p per top up. This fee is simply gohenry passing on the processing cost charged by the bank which we think is fair enough.
• Spending fees with gohenry debit card – All spending using the gohenry card in the UK are completely free. However, if your child was to use the debit card abroad, for instance while on holiday, then fees will apply. The fee is calculated by applying a 2.75% charge to each transaction. Also, the amount will be converted to GBP at the current interbank exchange rate and then charged in GBP rather than the currency of the country visited.
• gohenry ATM withdrawal fees – Your children won’t be charged for withdrawing cash from an ATM as long as it is within the UK. If the card is used abroad, a £2 fee per withdrawal will be applied. Obviously, there may be other fees from the vendor, so it is always best to check first before using any debit card abroad.
• Lost, damaged or stolen gohenry card – If any gohenry card is lost, stolen or damaged a £5 fee is charged to have another one sent out. This fee is primarily for fast delivery of the new card.

The gohenry App📱

The GoHenry app can be accessed by children and their parents. It can be downloaded from the Google Play and Apple stores. This means you and your child will be able to use it if you have Apple or Android smartphones or tablets. The app is designed to help kids learn valuable financial skills that will benefit them throughout life and give their parents the peace of mind that they are seeking. Experiences available in the app are tailored to the age of your child. The parents’ companion app allows mums and dads to set flexible goals and boundaries, to get spending notifications in real-time and to track the financial progress their kids are making.

The app comes complete with a range of quizzes and videos that teach your kids more about money management. There are several missions built into the app, and your kids can earn badges and points as they complete them. The card can be blocked and unblocked with ease via the app, and parents should find it very easy to set spending controls through it. The app can also be used to split bills and to donate to charity. Facial and fingerprint recognition facilities can be used to ensure the app’s only being used by authorised people, and PINs can also be recovered securely in the app. Replacement cards can be ordered via the app too. The app also has secure PIN recovery built into it.

 

gohenry Personalised Debit Card 💳

A big benefit of GoHenry is that kids can get their debit cards personalised in the same way that their parents can. Not only do these cards look cool, it also reduces the chance of cards getting lost or mistaken for another child’s debit card. You can choose from many designs and add your child’s name to the card during the sign up process. It only takes a few seconds and really makes the cards more appealing compared to the standard design which was quite plain.

Many kids find this inspiring and see it as a valuable alternative to using a bland generic card that looks just the same as millions owned by kids across the country. There are over 45 options to choose from, and images can include pictures of animals and sports players alongside many other cool, modern-looking designs. Many kids love having the opportunity to have their names featured in large letters at the top of the card.

Here is an example of a gohenry personalised card:

What Are gohenry Money Missions? 💰

The Money Missions are one of the many reasons so many families are opting for gohenry over other prepaid debit card and app options. The Money Missions see kids watching videos and taking part in quizzes to earn points and badges whilst learning money management skills that could benefit them forever. The missions cover a range of topics, and these include the basics of money and the pros and cons of borrowing alongside concepts like interest, saving and giving money to charity.

These missions are fun for kids to immerse themselves in and provide parents with valuable peace of mind. Parents get the chance to see their kids quickly build up their money management skills via a series of lessons that have been devised in collaboration with teachers and money education experts. You can expect your kids to learn about jobs and earning, the benefits of saving, the advantages of helping others, how to spend money safely, the drawbacks of borrowing and the benefits of budgeting, planning and investing.

The app’s features will adjust as your child’s knowledge grows. The missions have been developed in line with national financial education guidelines. The levels will change as your kids’ skills and confidence are built up.

gohenry For Teens 😎

Many parents are much more apprehensive about giving older children access to their own pre-paid debit card due to worries about where they will use it. However, there are many controls to take advantage of that should hopefully put your mind at rest. Your child can’t use their card at retailers that gohenry deems inappropriate, and you can stop your kids from withdrawing money at an ATM to avoid losing transparency.

gohenry is designed to help kids of all ages to develop a healthy attitude towards money. gohenry for Teens is a service that’s designed to help teenagers to save, balance their budgets, develop great spending habits and prepare themselves for an adulthood that is just a few years away. According to the company itself, 92% of parents claim that their teens are more confident with their money after using this service.

The service allows parents to set savings goals and allow teens to earn their money. The service can be linked to up Apple Pay and contactless debit cards to support instant payments.

Teens can also send and request money from family and friends without parents losing transparency, and there are more Money Missions specifically designed with teenagers in mind included in the app. You can also add money to your teenager’s account with a recurring allowance. It’s also possible to transfer money to their account so they always have financial cover, even in emergencies. Your teen or teens won’t be able to get into debt or fall into an overdraft with this service. If they don’t have enough cash in their account, the transaction will simply be declined. There are more than 45 card designs for teens to choose from too. These include cards specially designed by teen artists, eco-friendly cards and a stylish black card.

Is gohenry Safe and Secure? 🔒

Technically speaking, gohenry is not a bank. This means that accounts are not protected by the FSCS which is a scheme that most banks use to protect the money held. As gohenry is essentially just a prepaid debit card, this is the same for other similar cards. The good news is, all gohenry debit cards are regulated by the FCA meaning all funds are held in segregated accounts. This means that in the rare event that gohenry is compromised, you can rest assured that your funds are safe and secure.

If your child loses their gohenry card, it can be blocked or frozen instantly via the app meaning it can’t be used for any transactions from that point onwards.

gohenry is a market-leading pre-paid debit card and app service for families that comes with a range of robust security features. There is plenty of information on the site that kids and their parents can read to make themselves even more protected. Recent figures released by the Office for National Statistics found that people are now more likely to become victims of cybercrime than to be on the receiving end of any other offence.

As gohenry is not a bank, your deposits won’t be protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Nonetheless, your card or cards will be issued by the FCA-regulated IDT Financial Services, whose funds are held in NatWest segregated accounts. This means your money will be safe regardless of any eventuality. The card is also protected by a PIN.

The team at gohenry advise people to head to haveibeenpwned.com if they suspect that their details have been part of a data breach. They instruct people to change their passwords as soon as they can if it looks like they have become vulnerable. People are also advised to update their passwords regularly to remain one step ahead of cybercriminals.

To keep your gohenry account or accounts safe and secure, the team advise you to use a unique password and PIN that you haven’t been using somewhere else. Although it may seem easier to use passwords that are already in use elsewhere, this can be very risky. If just one online account is breached and cybercriminals find out your password, they could use it to gain access to a host of other online accounts. These can include your social media accounts and your high street bank account. They could even access your child’s online accounts. They may even be able to access your gohenry account if your password is used elsewhere and they find out what it is. This could make it easy for them to use your personal information, change your address to theirs and order a new card.

You’re also advised to use longer passwords with at least eight characters, uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols to make your password harder to guess. Avoid using a password that could be easy for someone to guess, such as the name of your pet or a close friend. It’s also incredibly wise to avoid storing your password anywhere, including on your smartphone or in a notebook. If you feel that you have too many passwords to remember, consider registering for a secure password manager provider. This will remember all your passwords and shouldn’t cost you anything.

Take advantage of biometric authentication if your device supports this. Using your fingerprint instead of or as well as a password can make it much harder for criminals to access your accounts, even it isn’t completely secure.

Your gohenry card will come with innovative chip security, and all your transactions will be protected by your PIN. The team say that they store all of your details securely and that they’re continuing to do all they can to keep their customers and their details safe. You can block cards via the app as soon as you find out they are lost or stolen. It’s best to let the gohenry team know as soon as possible if you do lose access to your card so a replacement can be sent out to you within a few days.

Some criminals have attempted to impersonate gohenry in order to con their customers and commit fraudulent acts. If you do receive a call or message and have any reason to doubt that the correspondence is genuinely from the company, get in touch with gohenry as soon as possible. You can do this by calling them or getting in touch via their LiveChat service. If a courier ever appears at your home to pick up your card, this won’t be a genuine visit. The gohenry team say they never come out to collect cards in this way as this is not company policy.

 

Advantages of gohenry 👍

• Real-time transaction notifications.
• Enforce spending limits, daily, weekly or monthly.
• Two months completely free to test out the service.
• Wide age range from 6 – 18.
• Inbuilt configurable reward system to incentivise your children.
• Teach and encourage good money management skills from an early age.
• Family members can send/receive money. For example for birthdays or christmas.
• Manage up to 4 child accounts per parent account all from one app.
• Teaches valuable financial skills
• Enables you to go cashless
• Offers transparency over child spending
• Cash withdrawals can be blocked in the app
• App available for iPhones and Android devices
• Free cash withdrawals in the UK and overseas
• Cards can be customised

Disadvantages of gohenry 👎

• There is a monthly fee involved, albeit only £2.49 per month.
• You only get one free of charge top up per month, the rest will cost 50p.
• No interest paid on balances, however the card is designed for daily spending.

Conclusion 💭

It’s no surprise to see so many families opting for gohenry when they need access to a reputable kids pre-paid debit card and app service. The service does come with a host of benefits, though there are a few drawbacks that you need to be aware of too. For instance, you’ll only be able to send money to your child’s account for free once a month in spite of the fact that kids’ pocket money is normally paid on a weekly basis. Nonetheless, kids can make ATM withdrawals for free both abroad and overseas, which isn’t offered by all of the company’s competitors.

Many parents say the best things about gohenry are the parental controls that are available. The ability to disable ATM withdrawals is very popular amongst parents, particularly the mums and dads of teens who are worried about what they could be spending their cash on. However, as your teens get older, they may demand more financial freedom and privacy, which means they may have grown out of services like gohenry and require a conventional children’s bank account.

Your child can gain access to their very own gohenry account once they reach the age of six. The account can be managed by both parents, and it won’t cost any extra to add a co-parent to the account. It’s simple to add a co-parent if you wish to do so. There is an ‘add a co-parent’ button in the app. The other parent will need to click on the invite link in the email that they receive before downloading the app and registering for the service so they can use it themselves.

One of the reasons gohenry has become so popular is that it allows parents to closely monitor their kids’ financial activities. Cards can be blocked, spending limits can be set and certain spending opportunities can be restricted by parents within just a few taps of their smartphone screens. The service has become very popular due to the way it provides incentives for children to earn money. It’s simple to add new chores via the app and decide how much they are worth. Paying kids for chores via the app teaches them about the value of work and the rewards that it brings. As society has become increasingly cashless over recent years, handing over physical pocket money isn’t as straightforward as it once was. gohenry gives you the chance to provide your kids with an allowance without having to walk or even drive to a cash machine and break into a £10 or £20 note.

If you want to familiarise your child with the concept of saving and working towards financial goals at an early age, gohenry may well be the best option for you and your family. Setting savings goals strongly incentivises work, encourages financial responsibility and can give your kids the motivation that they need to help out with household chores and avoid wasting their cash. Friends and family members can also contribute to your child’s bank balance with your approval. Rewards are available if you can encourage others to sign up as you can receive £10 for successfully referring someone to gohenry.

The service has a Trustpilot Rating of 3.8 rating at the time of writing and can be connected to Apple Pay once your child reaches 13. You can also create links that allow friends and relatives to send money as a gift, and you won’t need to pay for a replacement if a card is lost or stolen. Teens can also have their wages paid directly into their account via ACH loads, and you can also create and monitor a Junior ISA within the app. The service will cost you £35.88 per child in total. It’s also worth keeping an eye out for the family offers often made available by gohenry.

As well as you are also aware of the drawbacks involved in opening a gohenry account, there’s every reason to believe that this service could serve you and your family well over the coming years. If you can afford to pay the £2.99 per child subscription fee and don’t mind paying 50p to transfer funds to your kid or kids’ account, gohenry could be highly beneficial for your household whilst teaching your offspring skills that they can take into adulthood and feel the advantages of for the rest of their lives.