Bradford & Bingley

sarcastically_optimistic

I recieved my share of inheritence last week (50k)
And went to open a accout with Bradford & Bingley
Concerned with the takeover of Halifax and the Derbyshire
I asked the financial addviser if they where having any problems similer to the Halifax
I..E. Takeover, and she assured me they where Not, so I invested the whole 50k

Ive just been reading some posts on this forum that B&B are having difficulties and could be taken over.

Should I be worried, this is the only money I have
And I feel slighty misled by the B&B financial addviser
Who assured me there bank was not in any difficulty
I'm confused
Advise me please

[Deleted User]

I guess it really depends on her take and your take of what's happened to HBOS et al. To be honest I very much doubt the government will let a bank go under and you'd be covered anyway up to 35k as per the FSA rule.

I can really recommend the following programme:

Link to iPlayer: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00dtfbr/

Jane Corbin looks at how the crisis facing the world's financial insitutions could impact on the nation's banks, mortgages, insurance and pensions.
Broadcast on: BBC One, 8:30pm Monday 22nd September

You don't mention what you've opened at B&B but I'd suggest the following:

1. Generally ISA's are a good place to start:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/sav...gs-without-tax
and http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/....html?t=401374

2. Regular savings accounts are good too:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/sav...vings-accounts
and http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/....html?t=608697

Regular savings accounts are generally a good place for new money e.g. monthly pay cheques, however if for example you have £3k in a 6% high-interest bank account drip-feeding into a 10% regular savings account then you're essentially getting 8% interest on average for your £3k which beats most fixed rate products - albeit with a bit more work.

3. If you want something with a little less work then fixed rate savings accounts are a good option:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/sav...interest#fixed
and http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/saving-...&in_page_id=50

4. One other thing you might like to consider is getting a decent instant access savings account:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/sav...st#topaccounts
and http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/saving-...&in_page_id=50

5. Finally if you're a higher rate tax payer then NS&I's 3 and 5 year Index Linked Savings (http://www.nsandi.com/products/ilsc/index.jsp) look good, paying 1% above the RPI inflation rate. Currently this is 4.8% so that’s a rate of 5.8% overall.

The attractiveness of these is that the savings are tax-free meaning it's better for higher-rate taxpayers. Basic rate taxpayers would need to earn 7.25% in a normal savings account to match this, while higher rate taxpayers would need 9.66%.

One thing to note is if inflation drops then so does the rate for these savings. It'll always be higher than inflation and tax free though. The cash must be left there for at least three years thought and at least £100 must be deposited (maximum is £15,000), so it's not for those who want a short term place to save.

opinions4u

The difference between Bradford & Bingley and HBOS is that somebody else thought HBOS was worth buying.

Will B&B find a willing partner?

I know where I'd rather have my cash!

chesterfield44

opinions4u wrote: »

The difference between Bradford & Bingley and HBOS is that somebody else thought HBOS was worth buying.

Will B&B find a willing partner?

I know where I'd rather have my cash!

Where ?

(I have a few bob in B&B)

Andrew64

You can get an idea of how sound a bank is by looking at its risk grade (seems to be the same as the cds). For example B&B is a risky 548.

http://investing.thisismoney.co.uk/cgi-bin/digitalcorporate/thisismoney/security.cgi?ticker=BB.&action=prices&sub_action=history&username=&ac=

HBOS is a very risky 726.

http://investing.thisismoney.co.uk/cgi-bin/digitalcorporate/thisismoney/security.cgi?ticker=HBOS&action=prices&sub_action=history&username=&ac=

And HSBC is a quite safe 269.

http://investing.thisismoney.co.uk/cgi-bin/digitalcorporate/thisismoney/security.cgi?ticker=HSBA&action=prices&sub_action=history&username=&ac=

purch

And I feel slighty misled by the B&B financial addviser

Why would you expect some woman who works in a B&B branch to have any knowledge on this matter ??

Steveorr

After the turmoil of Northern Rock Martin was asked which other Banks or Building Society could be in trouble. His response to that question was that if any influential person,such as he, were to name a specific bank the very fact of them having cause for concern could start a run on the bank which could only make things worse.

I have 3 questions

Has the Bradford & Bingley been clearly singled out by the BBC last night?

Does moneysavingexpert still recommend Bradford & Bingley as one of its "Best Saving Accounts"?

Do I take my life savings out now?

SouthCoast

Be aware that the FSCS has never been tested on a large scale.
IMO it would take take several years for any major claim to be resolved.

Stavros_3

SouthCoast wrote: »

Be aware that the FSCS has never been tested on a large scale.
IMO it would take take several years for any major claim to be resolved.

Now that could cause panic ! :eek: :eek: :eek:

vbrindle

No Bank in the uk has been allowed to collapse. I don't think it ever will.

Northern Rock was nationalised to prevent that and those northen rock customers still have their savings.

The worst that could happen is that it becomes the second nationalised bank but your savings would be safe.

fatpig_2

There's no need to move any money from B&B, anyone who says there is is just scaremongering:


From yesterday's Financial times:

Alistair Darling, chancellor of the exchequer (finance minister), said last year after the run on Northern Rock that the government would guarantee every penny of savers’ money, not just at the Newcastle lender but at every other bank.