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Britannia Guaranteed Return Capital Bond

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Whilst popping into the Britannia to pay some money into my grandsons trust fund today i got talked into a review for myself. There was not a lot i was interested in, as far as i could see their products are very mediocre and i could see no point in going any further until she showed me the

Guaranteed Return Capital Bond

The blurb on the front of the leaflet says " Benefit from Potential stock market growth with a guaranteed minimum return of 10% gross at the end of the 5 years".

Now at the moment, i have about £6,000 sitting in accounts feeding my regular savers. I have a Halifax Websaver account which i am funding my 7% regular saver and also the 10% account which is held in trust for my son.

I also have an Alliance and Leicester account which is being used to to and forth money which will go into my other regular saver paying 10%

Whilst these accounts are running smoothly, the idea of not having to fiddle around with accounts sounds really attractive to me, the idea that i will get a minimum return of 10% for all my cash also suits me as at the moment as they are either in regular savings accounts or in accounts gaining 5% or slightly less waiting to be swept into my other accounts.

Can anyone see any pitfalls in doing this? Is it best that i leave things well alone? I know i would have to tie up my money for 5 years but that idea is quite attractive at the moment.

Any comments would be appreciated.
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Comments

  • dunstonh
    dunstonh Posts: 119,686 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Hi Judi.

    Its rubbish. See the recent NS&I thread for their similar version.

    http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=194188
    I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). The comments I make are just my opinion and are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice and you should not treat them as such. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.
  • System
    System Posts: 178,348 Community Admin
    10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    Thanks i shant bother then....... shame really.:cry:
    This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com
  • Robert_Sterling
    Robert_Sterling Posts: 2,207 Forumite
    10% is not the same as 10% per annum.
    ..
  • Aark
    Aark Posts: 247 Forumite
    10% is not the same as 10% per annum.
    Exactly. From their website:

    The return will be the greater of a guaranteed 10% Gross*/1.86% AER* return or 80% of the growth in the FTSE 100 Index over the 5 year term.
  • Speculator
    Speculator Posts: 2,351 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    As a rule of thumb, I tend to ignore any product which offers a "Guaranteed Return"
  • miaxmia
    miaxmia Posts: 309 Forumite
    Speculator wrote:
    As a rule of thumb, I tend to ignore any product which offers a "Guaranteed Return"
    Out of interest, why? Portman are doing a guaranteed equity plan which pays minimum of 16% over 5 years and a maximum of 60%, which I am interested in. Okay if I only get the 16%, it's not great at all, but at least I will get 3% per annum (okay I know it's probably not 3% in real terms because of accumulation), but I may end up with 60%, which must equate to a good 10%, so why do you ignore guaranteed returns - I think I need educating?
  • dunstonh
    dunstonh Posts: 119,686 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Did you read the other thread highlighted? They are poor value.
    I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). The comments I make are just my opinion and are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice and you should not treat them as such. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.
  • Speculator
    Speculator Posts: 2,351 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    The Portman product is 16% over 6 years or 2.67% pa.
  • Debt_Free_Chick
    Debt_Free_Chick Posts: 13,276 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    miaxmia wrote:
    Out of interest, why?

    Because they have to invest your money cautiously to be sure of getting a guaranteed return. Any guarantee is only going to be low in order for them to be sure that you will get it.
    Portman are doing a guaranteed equity plan which pays minimum of 16% over 5 years and a maximum of 60%, which I am interested in. Okay if I only get the 16%, it's not great at all, but at least I will get 3% per annum (okay I know it's probably not 3% in real terms because of accumulation), but I may end up with 60%, which must equate to a good 10%, so why do you ignore guaranteed returns - I think I need educating?

    Because if you only get 16% over three years you almost certainly are probably going to be better off in a cash ISA. And if the index rises by more than that, then you are only getting 60% of the return and not all of it.

    In summary - the guarantee is generally not worth having and you don't get the full return if it's payable.
    Warning ..... I'm a peri-menopausal axe-wielding maniac ;)
  • Debt_Free_Chick
    Debt_Free_Chick Posts: 13,276 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    dunstonh wrote:
    Did you read the other thread highlighted? They are poor value.

    I hadn't when I posted, but just saw your excellent post on that thread. Clearly they use the divis on the equity investment to meet the guarantee, if they need to pay it. If not, they keep the divis and keep 40% of the growth - nice little earner for the provider, then ;)
    Warning ..... I'm a peri-menopausal axe-wielding maniac ;)
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