Stooze pot safe in ICICI???

Rushy

Hi all,

What with all the banks having a bit of a wobble, I was wondering whether it would be prudent to pay off my C/Card balance now, rather than wait another 2 months when my 0% deal runs out.

I know the stooze pot money is safe (approx £10k) in ICICI as less than £50k...but if they went bust I imagine it would take longer than the 2 months left on my 0% deal to get claim back the money, to pay off the card. In which time I would incurr interest charges having gone past the 0% period, hence wiping out the money made in my stooze savings account.

Am I being overly nervous???

sdooley

No you are not being overly nervous. For £60-£100 worth of interest (and probably only a £20 advantage over say having your money in you could make extra by keeping your money in the savings, you are giong to risk interest of £125-£250 per month if you can't clear the balance at the end of the term. There will be people who have already been caught out by icesave on this one.

You don't have to pay off the credit card just because you've withdrawn your savings; if you find a no-notice savings account you feel is safer you might deposit the difference in there.

Susiesue

I'm having a similar wobble at the mo. But I keep reminding myself fo Martin's words "the chances of the bank going bust are really small".

How about applying for a new 0% card and transferring the balance of your old card to that? That way if the bank does go bust, you've got longer to pay it back?

sicker

Well, I have a 3 year ISA with icesave and Landsbanki have just been nationalised. If and when I get my money back I cannot repeat, cannot transfer it to a new isa. So I will have lost tax saving on 2 years isa allowance.

gowgowuk

Yep, my stoozing-pot is with Icesave. Still 7 months from the end of the 0% BT period, so I hope to have my money back on time... but quite worried now!

malcolm000

Remember hearing that ICICI bank has no involvment in the credit crunch problems - remember when ICICI & at the same time Icesave, first came out with their High Interest saving account and how there was an air of suspicion investing in a sub-continent bank!!

Trying_to_be_good

sicker wrote: »

Well, I have a 3 year ISA with icesave and Landsbanki have just been nationalised. If and when I get my money back I cannot repeat, cannot transfer it to a new isa. So I will have lost tax saving on 2 years isa allowance.

Sicker

From what I've heard and read, no-one knows what the position of the tax-free wrapper will be - fingers crossed it will be allowed to be reinvested in another ISA if you have proof it was in an ISA.

Northern Rock was different as it was nationalised not FSCS, but ISAs could be transferred.

sicker

As this is a 'first' there will have to be discussions about the existing cash re-investment. A great shame especially if max investment is involved. It appears the FSA will be advised of the account holders and it will be them (fsa) who will then contact account holders. This was gleaned from a call to the FSA help line so hopefully the info is correct. We shall just have to be patient.

lozzy12

I am also concerned about the saftey of my stooze! I have already been caught up in the great Icesave debacle and athough my 'stoozed' cash is in another savings account it's made me very nervous.

I would simply repay the debt as one less thing to worry about, but with banks and credit cards less willing to lend money, I'm in a half a mind to hang onto it in case I need some cashflow assistance when the crunch sets in.

Not sure what is best.

Anon

Remember if you have been stoozing, that more than likely you paid an upfront fee of 2.8/3% - therefore depending on how long you have had it invested you could end up paying them for the privilege of borrowing their money to put in your savings account. Unless you have more than £50k in one account, or it is ending shortly anyway, I would sit tight (and all withdrawing our savings will add to the problems, not solve them).

Anon

Captain_Mainwaring_2

Susiesue wrote: »

I'm having a similar wobble at the mo. But I keep reminding myself fo Martin's words "the chances of the bank going bust are really small".

How about applying for a new 0% card and transferring the balance of your old card to that? That way if the bank does go bust, you've got longer to pay it back?

Seems martin may have been talking out of his harris. Who is he, a new minister of finance?

That would seem to be the ultimate irony, to borrow money on a card, pay a fee to do so, the lodge the money with a bank that went pop, nt only would you lose the money, you would lose the fee too.

ICICI may be safe in India, but bet your socks, the UK operation will be the first to take a hit.