Credit Crisis FAQ

Reaper

See the FAQ - question 11!

runciblespoon

Reaper wrote: »

Q7: My savings are in an offshore account on the Isle of Man/Channel Islands. Are they covered under the UK scheme?
A: No. You will be covered by the local scheme. The compensation of the Isle of Man is 75% of the first £20,000. More details here.

Jersey and Guernsey do not have a scheme at present but their websites say they are considering introducing one. It is not clear whether there has been any progress on this.

Q8: My savings are with a European bank - do I get the same protection?
A: You get the compensation of the home country, which may be more or less. However even if less many have joined the FSCS scheme which will "top up" any difference up to the usual £50,000 limit. Click here to find out if your particular bank has.

You might want to clarify the difference between a European bank operating in the UK (eg Bank of Ireland) and an account completely based and operated in another EU country (eg Banque National de Paris).

Q11: My savings are with the Icelandic bank Icesave. Are they covered?
A: Yes, but under a "Passport Exemption". That means the first €20,887 (approx £16,000) is covered by a similar Icelandic scheme, and the rest is topped up by the UK scheme.

Guernsey FSC on administration of Landsbanki Guernsey.

Reaper

Thanks, I've updated 2 of the answers. I'll leave Landsbanki Guernsey to the discussion in the forum unless lots of similar questions start apearing about it.

scifibabe

Hi

I am a Landsbanki Guernsey offshore customer. I am a Briton living in Cyprus. Will I be covered by the Governments compensation scheme?

Thanks

runciblespoon

No, it's under Guernsey's rules which AFAIK has no compensation scheme. See today's statement from the Guernsey FSC (linked in my post above).

However I'd wait and see what happens, as it may be they can provide some compensation after the event or you may get some of your balance back from Landsbanki. Keep your eyes on the Guernsey FSC website.

Ah, Landsbanki Guernsey have a statement on their website.

scifibabe

So - not good news then?

julio69

Reaper wrote: »

For more details I suggest you read Martin's "Are your savings safe?" article.

Q7: My savings are in an offshore account on the Isle of Man/Channel Islands. Are they covered under the UK scheme?
A: No. You will be covered by the local scheme. The compensation of the Isle of Man is 75% of the first £20,000. More details here.
Jersey and Guernsey do not have a scheme at present but their websites say they are considering introducing one.

Thanks for the FAQ. I understand how the compensation scheme in the IOM works, but have tried to find out if there is any likelihood of the banks there going bust (really sorry if this is a completely stupid and impossible question to answer), and in turn have to rely on the weaker compensation scheme of IOM. I have 35k in Anglo Irish Bank International. Anyone know?

occamsrazor

We are still waiting to find out whether Anglo-Irish Bank's Isle of Man subsidiary is covered by the Irish Govt 100% guarantee or not, and should know anytime soon. This is the thread for you to watch for that:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1188077

And maybe this too re: Isle of Man compensation scheme:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1203227

MalcolmPreen

chris1 wrote: »

I would have hoped this was the case, and logically it ought to be, but when I asked the FSCS they said that wouldn't necessarily be the case, and wrote "The compensation will be based on the amount that is held in the account at the time of default."

Does anyone know what the state of Fixed Rate accounts is ? I'm assuming the rules above with regards to interest will also apply (when it is determine what they are..).

Also, if I have, for example, a 1 year old, 3 year fixed rate... then will that fixed rate account continue with the bank that takes over ?

If the compensation kicks in, I'm assuming all the refunded money will be lumped together... and all fixed rates will be cancelled?

Finally... if the interest is not paid.... will I be able to claim for "non paid interest" on next years tax return ?

Thanks, Malcolm

Reaper

Sorry Malcolm, I don't think anybody knows the answer to this yet. When I find out I'll add it to the FAQ because other people have been asking the same.

UPDATE: See the updated answer to Q4 in the general section..