Premium Bonds Article Discussion Area

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  • meanmachine_2
    meanmachine_2 Posts: 2,624
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    miaxmia wrote: »
    I have to disagree - did the same just over a year ago and have won every month, except one, usually multiple wins of £50/£100 and won month we won £500. We have made more in the past year than in a high interest bank/building society account.

    So you're one "winner" out of a thread of losers - including myself.

    Let's see if you're as lucky over the next 12 months.

    Personally I think they're a waste of time.
  • aurorahelios
    aurorahelios Posts: 376
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    We see them as a gamble too, we've got investments elsewhere. Premium bonds are bought with spare money, anything we get from them is a bonus. Over the past 4 years we've had returns between 2-7%.

    The winnings are also tax free and thus non-declarable for tax credits and if like our household you are on the threshold for receiving tax credits then that has to be accounted for.
  • tightwadman
    tightwadman Posts: 79 Forumite
    I have to disagree - did the same just over a year ago and have won every month, except one, usually multiple wins of £50/£100 and won month we won £500. We have made more in the past year than in a high interest bank/building society account.

    Your sums just dont add up. Assuming you had invested the full £30,000 and left it in for a year AND won £500 one month and then had multiple wins every other month ( which frankly I can barely believe) you would have HAD to have won £150 every other month except 2 to give you exactly £2000 which yes would beat a High Street rate of 6.25% producing £1875 before tax.

    If you won TWICE every other month with 2 £50 cheques that would give you just £1000 and if you had some £100s maybe £1250.

    Do the sums - PB's DONT pay!
  • I'm new to this website and forum, and I have read these posts with interest. I have had £200 invested and have had 2 x £50 returns this year.

    I have just invested to the £30k you are allowed. This is money that I didn't have before so I figured I will still have it at the end no matter what, and you never know, I might be lucky, but if nothing happens, I still have my £30k to invest elsewhere. That's my way of looking at it anyway, no doubt some others will be shaking their head, but that's okay by me....:o
  • Comper21
    Comper21 Posts: 74 Forumite
    Ive invested 25k and have it invested in one block. Only had them for six months, but have won £250 all in £50 multiples. However, ive won nothing for the last two months when I calculated that I should be winning at least 12 prizes a year (based on someone with average luck).
    Do fellow readers recommend changing numbers regularly?
  • The_Bleurk
    The_Bleurk Posts: 36
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    Further to my points in the calculator thread...

    The fundamental issue here is that Premium Bonds are a gamble not an investment for certain returns.

    It is interesting to note that professional financial advisers (with no axe to grind on the question as they get nothing from it) all recommend using premium bonds as a means of retaining a proportion of your investments in what they call 'near cash' - this is as an emergency reserve. This is so that you do not have to call on long term investments in an emergency and spoil the returns or worse encounter penalties.

    I suppose its a kind of each way bet - you have the funds if you need them reasonably accessible (penalty free) in case of bad fortune - AND you get a chance to hit the big time.

    The longer you hold the bonds the more likely you will get your fair share of prizes which will average out to the interest rate value. BUT some will tend to miss out and some will tend to benefit....

    As they say you have to be in it to win it.

    For the record I have won 54 times in 36 months with a max £30 invested and averaged £60 a time which equates to 3.07% compound - or 5.1% equivalent for higher rate tax payer.

    So I am missing out on marginal interest of about £1 a day for a 1 in 600,000 chance at a million every month. Seems like a good bet to me!!

    :beer:

    BTW putting that same money on the lottery would give about a 1 in 450,000 chance at the jackpot every month (but you might well have to share it and you get nothing back if you lose)
  • Moniker
    Moniker Posts: 626
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    I agree. I started buying premium bonds when the lottery started as I reckoned that I would not lose my 'stake' and could always take the cash elsewhere or use use it if required for an emergency. I still don't know whether I should cash them in and buy a single consecutive block though. Does it affect the odds if my numbers are next to each other?
  • The_Bleurk
    The_Bleurk Posts: 36
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    Moniker - it makes absolutely no difference if your numbers a spread out or en bloc nor if they are new or old. Its a random process.

    It never ceases to amaze me how the urban myths develop around this.

    You pays your money and you takes yours chance....
  • I found this article very interesting.

    My wife and I have had £30k each in premium bonds for the last 22 months. Neither of us look at them as the best thing we could invest in, but someone has got to win the bigger prizes and you have got to be in it to win it!

    From our perspective....

    I think they are great (£3,250 won including 3 x £500).

    My wife is less enthusiastic (£1,400 won, biggest prize = £100).
  • s66blade
    s66blade Posts: 25 Forumite
    hold about £1000 of bonds and buy £100 every month on DD.

    look on them as a gamble - not after huge interest but the CHANCE of winning something is there.

    won £100 2 months on the trot.

    happy with what I am doing with my money, good luck to all holders
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