Hallifax advised me their own product is crap!

YorkshireBoy

Paul_Herring wrote: »

Weird - that didn't come up for me on a search for 'savings fountain' either on the site search or google

Strange! I put 'savings fountain' in the search box top right and selected 'Main Site'.

The article is at the top of this list returned...

http://search.moneysavingexpert.com/search?q=savings+fountain&site=default_collection&client=live_front8thjune&proxystylesheet=live_front8thjune&output=xml_no_dtd&btnG=Google+Search

dunstonh

If anyone tries to sideline me into an investment ISA, I'll say I'm not into risk.

You are right in the stance with the Halifax. However, you ought to be aware that risk is not a choice of on/off. It is a sliding scale. You can get low risk investment ISAs which are very attractive for the longer term. Just not with Halifax (or any other bank).

I did already know that stockmarket stuff is necessarily risky and should be considered longterm only - and also that one should never trust 'advice' from sales reps. But I'm also easily confused by a friendly and confident manner - and this particular lady had this in spades.

Sales people have to be charming and convincing. Otherwise they wouldnt be good sales people. Thankfully, their days of flogging products under the moniker of "advice" are coming to an end.

earlgrey_3

dunstonh wrote: »

Thankfully, their days of flogging products under the moniker of "advice" are coming to an end.

Aren't the vast majority of financial products flogged under the monika of advice regardless of what the advisor calls himself?

While the commission system enjoyed by most advisors, whether tied or "independent", continues is that ever likely to change?

large_satsuma

dunstonh wrote: »

Sales people have to be charming and convincing. Otherwise they wouldnt be good sales people. Thankfully, their days of flogging products under the moniker of "advice" are coming to an end.

Funny you say this!

I just phoned my local Halifax with the sole purpose of opening their 10% regular saver - and immediately got the third degree from the lady on the phone.

She started by booking me an appointment with their "Financial Advisor" - yes, specific use of the word 'advisor' - and then launched into some aggressive questioning: What am I saving for? (I said money to pay my tax bill next year). How much would I pay in per month? (Probably the maximum, £500). Do I have ISAs? (Yes). Will the money come from income or other savings? (I was vague, saying a bit of both, but that I did have a lump sum).

This seemed to be 'case closed' for the lady on the phone, who said frankly that the 10% regular saver isn't appropriate for someone with any kind of lump sum.

QUESTION: INAPPROPRIATE FOR MY INTERESTS OR FOR THOSE OF THE HALIFAX?

At this point, I asked what exactly she was suggesting instead. She was vague, saying they had a "whole range" of products. I asked point-blank if there was anything else at the Halifax that could match the return on their 10% saver... but the lady obviously decided she'd done as much as she could. She reiterated that I'd have to attend an appointment with their "Advisor" - that word again - and THEN make ANOTHER appointment to see their "Savings Advisor" should I make the ill-advised choice of actually opening the regular saver.

Overall, I get the impression of Halifax battenening the hatches against perceived hordes of investors with scary lump sums trying to take unfair advantage of their advertised 10%. I'm not sure I'm going to be able to storm the citadel before the offer expires on the 20th.

My appointment with the super-friendly "Advisor" is tomorrow. I'm tempted to put my cards on the table and tell her I've been told to report her for pressure-selling.

... But only AFTER I've strung her along to see how far she's willing to go.

I may even take a concealed recording device with me. What fun!

jennifernil

Much easier to open the Regular Saver on-line, only takes a few minutes, my daughter did it that way.

As I had a 7% saver to close and wanted to check it all went smoothly, I opted to go to my local branch. I did have to make an appointment, but the whole process was efficiently managed, and the only thing they tried to "sell" me was an additional credit card, which I declined.

You cannot "take advantage" of the 10% RS with a "scary lump sum" as it is what it says.......a regular saving scheme with a max £500 pm deposit.
So if you have a lump sum you need to put it elsewhere. This of course does not mean that you cannot also open a RS.

large_satsuma

jennifernil wrote: »

So if you have a lump sum you need to put it elsewhere. This of course does not mean that you cannot also open a RS.

But what do you mean by "elsewhere"? This is the bit that's driving me crazy!

I'm planning to start a cash ISA in the next few days, using my full tax-year allowance. I may pay a bit into my investment ISA, but am unwilling to tie up too much in a longterm/ risky area. My partner is doing all this also.

So what do I do with the rest of my savings? I was recently made redundant, so I have a reasonable pot. If a regular saver is "inappropriate", then what?

debbie42

large_satsuma wrote: »

So what do I do with the rest of my savings? I was recently made redundant, so I have a reasonable pot. If a regular saver is "inappropriate", then what?

There are plenty of places to put easy access savings at 6% or more. These are entirely appropriate places to drip feed your regular saver from. If you were to salt away the lump sum at 0.1% to drip feed it with then that would be inappropriate. However, upping the average rate on 6K of your (say 6.5%) savings by taking advantage of the higher RS rate is canny, IMO. I reckon mine is earning in excess of 8%, at a conservative estimate, by this method.

YorkshireBoy

large_satsuma wrote: »

So what do I do with the rest of my savings? I was recently made redundant, so I have a reasonable pot. If a regular saver is "inappropriate", then what?

Click the link in my post #29 above and read up on the 'savings fountain' approach.

large_satsuma

I've just taken jennifernil's tip and signed up for the Halifax regular saver online. Like she said, it's hassle-free that way. So I won't be attending my appointment tomorrow, with or without concealed recording equipment.

I think I'm justified in mentioning that the branch I've been dealing with is Chorlton-!!!-Hardy in Manchester. Approach at your peril! Although it sounds like my experience is by no means unusual.

(I notice the name of my home town is considered a rude word here! No swearing was intended.)

debbie42

An over-zealous filter at work there. One of my friends works for a school pc network and their filter stopped pupils from visiting anything that had the words "sex" in. This ruled out rather a lot of council websites such as Sussex, Essex etc.