Martin told you Icesave had a "dodgy compensation scheme"... his comment on 4 News

meester

The_Baroness wrote: »

I don't often post now as I am busy looking after my family, but I feel so strongly after what I saw on the Channel 4 news today that I felt compelled to show my support for Martin.
I have always admired Jon Snow as an impartial interviewer.

Really?

I always thought he was a typical media sneering lefty.

twokcc

I am not a regular poster on the site, but have followed many of the discussions of postings regarding security of deposits with Icelandic Banks.
I agree that Martins site has put an enormous amount of financial information onto one site that has would have been more difficult to find withiout a lot of time an effort with internet searches.
However, my opinion is that on this accasion he has been less than diligent in the advice given, for the following reasons
1) The site is called - moneysavingexpert, this implies that the advise is from an expert. This should be better than the advice gained from general public posts on forums
2) He is given information direct by both the FSA and more importantly from ICESAVE. This is not something that is available to the general public. He has a duty to ensure that this is thoroughly checked before it is posted to the website. If ICESAVE aren't prepared to accept information being posted without Martins right to give editorial comment on it, they should not be given access to the site.
3) There has been information in other news media(Times first warned I think in Feb 08) about ability of Icelandic banks to meet there obligations, just based on the likely amount of the total liability and what this would mean to the government if compensation had to be paid. I appreciate Martin cannot personally read every possible news item but as an expert he has a responsibility to bring these to the forums attention with any necessary comment. In my opinion this has been seriously lacking.
4)I have also read comment that the FSA scheme MAY only pay out if the scheme with first responsibility makes payment in full- again this would have been thoroughly checked out and noted by Martin in his comments on the saving with Icesave. Appreciate he may not be able to get a definitive answer from for example the FSA, but if so he should say so. Then pursue them ruthlessly until he gets an answer, if he can't get an answer what chance has the ordinary Joe Bloggs got.
Trust this will be taken as constructive critism, Moneysaving expert is the best of the moneyadvise site that I am aware of, but it should be better.
Hope Martin/forum accepts this in the spirit it is given, after reading some of the recent posts re KE terms and conditions think an uptodate editorial comment is required asap.

DocMartin

savlad wrote: »

but for him to seemingly alter his opinion with regards to something so serious on a national and hugely well respected news channel is fairly dismaying.

Well it bloody well shouldn't be after that farce!

nicholbb

Nick_C wrote: »

For a truly unbiased non-profit making website listing the best available savings accounts, see https://www.fsa.gov.uk/tables

Cheers, just found a really good saving account here, sort by AER and number three is:
Icesave 2 Year Fixed Rate Savings Account 7.06%

guess nothing is perfect.

EDIT:Wasn't a digg, just found it funny

twokcc

These figure in tomorrows Guardian
'The fear now is that Iceland, whose entire annual economic output is only £8bn a year, will be unable to fund its compensation scheme.

A £4.9bn bill to compensate UK account holders of Icesave would far exceed the country's dwindling foreign reserves.'

The £4.9bn is for UK account holders ONLY, so total compensation could be more more than one years output.
I know that other Nordic countries are supposed to help out but do you think that would be likely when (nearly) all banks are suffering from credit crunch

nicholbb

twokcc wrote: »

These figure in tomorrows Guardian
'The fear now is that Iceland, whose entire annual economic output is only £8bn a year, will be unable to fund its compensation scheme.

A £4.9bn bill to compensate UK account holders of Icesave would far exceed the country's dwindling foreign reserves.'

The £4.9bn is for UK account holders ONLY, so total compensation could be more more than one years output.
I know that other Nordic countries are supposed to help out but do you think that would be likely when (nearly) all banks are suffering from credit crunch

Where is the facts about the fact that the compensations is also backed by the Nordic block who are far from bankrupt and obliged to prop it up in such an event - more rubbish published by our poor media (even the broadsheets should tabloid now)

derbyjon

Me and my wife both have substantial (sub-FSCS limit) funds in Icesave. We removed the stuff that was completely liquid last week and left the rest (fixed rates + ISAs) in. This was done to reduce the risk level we had with one organisation which seemed to have suddenly become a higher risk (although impossible to quantify how much), whilst taking the stance to not panic as basically we are no more capable of second guessing the global banking system as anyone else. As it turned out it was a much higher risk than anyone expected.

I read all the details before I opened the accounts, I read the reports, claims and counter-claims back in January and I continued to read the news articles / rumours / analysis from then until now. I was aware of all the facts and so the responsibility lies with me. However, no-one knew that IceSave would definitely go down, just as no-one now knows whether HBOS, ING, RBS or even Northern Rock might fail tomorrow / next month / next year.

What galls me is a whole bunch of self-appointed experts turning up after the event claiming that anyone who deposited cash with Iceland was loony. Let's say National Savings had an obscure clause in the T&Cs which allowed the Government to take control of the cash in extreme circumstances and use it for the good of the nation. If such a clause was ever triggered would the know-it-alls suddenly turn up claiming they knew this would happen all along? The fact is *any* bank going bust was unthinkable 14 months ago, just as *any* bank going bust now is quite possible. It's easy to be an expert of hindsight.

AQAddict

I agree with a lot of what's been said here. From Martin's 'warnings' (I only use quotation marks because everyone seems to have such differing ideas about whether they even constituted a warning) I gained the impression that the only snag of the passport scheme was that it might involve a greater level of bureaucracy, i.e. a bit more faff, before getting one's money back. To me, that was the only explicit negative, but in hindsight there might have been other underlying implications I should have investigated more thoroughly.

I hold my hands up utterly to my own responsibilities; I do not blame Martin in the slightest. I belive he does his darndest in as transparent a way as is humanly possible in a sphere that is beset by loopholes, inconsistencies and inherent risks.

However, it does seem that many have picked up the same overtones as myself from these 'warnings' in the past, and it is unavoidable that some readers might take what is essentially collated information as infallible advice. No matter the disclaimers, there are bound to be worried savers who want a communal focal point for their frustrations.

The greatest irony is that the main 'warning' seemed to be about increased bureaucracy, and with the FSCS announcing its 'one form for both schemes' plan, that seems to be the one thing we savers won't be plagued with! As for what we will have to deal with...

Anyone else in the same boat (/shipwreck?!), it's good to know I'm not alone, and it looks like we'll just have to sit this one out

Elektra63

twokcc wrote: »

These figure in tomorrows Guardian
'The fear now is that Iceland, whose entire annual economic output is only £8bn a year, will be unable to fund its compensation scheme.

A £4.9bn bill to compensate UK account holders of Icesave would far exceed the country's dwindling foreign reserves.'

The £4.9bn is for UK account holders ONLY, so total compensation could be more more than one years output.
I know that other Nordic countries are supposed to help out but do you think that would be likely when (nearly) all banks are suffering from credit crunch

Great, now I'm really depressed!

I received some compensation money for an accident I had last year and put £3,500 of it into an ISA with Icesave. The money was supposed to buy me a new(er) car in a couple of years time, when my old one finally gives up the ghost.

If I lose all that money it will be a massive loss, as I have no other savings - I just wanted to get the maximum interest on what little I had.

I don't blame Martin, but when I was reading all the blurb on the site it def. looked like Icesave was the one to go with. If only I'd left it in my own bank instead.

I just hope this compensation scheme works, or I'm bu**ered!

Elektra

Swindy

as for the guy in the wheelchair on the channel 4 website, what a naive plonker putting 150K into sodding Icesave!!! Did this guy not need the warnings?! In my opinion, it serves himself right....