The obligatory deposit insurance system appeared more than 30 years ago. Initially, insurance should only apply to deposits in pounds sterling on the accounts in the UK. Later, after the bankruptcy of one of the famous Banks with an ideal 200-year history and the thousands of contributors, among which the Queen of Great Britain was, the British deposit insurance implemented several changes. In particular, the British system pays the deposits in any currency, as well as guarantee deposits opened in all foreign banks located on the territory of the country. Some time ago, the depositors of bankrupt UK banks could expect a return more than 35 thousand pounds. It is very decent amount of money according to European standards. The depositor knew that he had completely protected 2 thousand pounds. The remaining amount of the contribution exceeding the threshold of 2 thousand pounds could be returned only 90%, but in general, the investor of bankrupted bank could get in hands not more than 35 thousand pounds.
Purchases made with credit cards are also protected and insured by the banks in a similar way, with visa and mastercard being the main preferred choices in the united kingdom. There are even financial institutions that offer such credit cards for people with bad credit (see www.thebadcreditsite.co.uk/credit-cards/ for more info.), so if you're making large purchases, these can be one of the safest ways, regardless of your financial situation.