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

earlgrey_3

StuHolmes wrote: »

Not once did he describe the passport scheme as "dodgy", did he really say that tonight?

Yes, that was what he said when he was interviewed on Ch4 news and asked by Jon Snow why he had continued to include it as a 'best buy' on a site read by millions.

Assuming he did constantly make clear the compensation system was "dodgy" in his best buy list, as he claims, then I find it astounding that so many ignored his warning.

monkeynut74

If I'd read that getting compensation was at best "dodgy", then I would never have invested in such a bank or scheme. In fact, I was under the impression that the passport scheme had greater benefits than the UK FSCS, because money was pooled in preparation for such a problem - therefore your money could in effect be returned to you more quickly.

I obviously need 'reading between the lines' reading lessons

FraudBuster

almost like they were plants from Icesave.

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ed123_2

...my impression re the Iceland compensation scheme re Martins site was that it was as good as the FSCS and not that "it was a dodgy scheme"...if I had known that I would not have put money in Icesave...

BarryPseudonym

ed123 wrote: »

...my impression re the Iceland compensation scheme re Martins site was that it was as good as the FSCS and not that "it was a dodgy scheme"...if I had known that I would not have put money in Icesave...

Yep, same here. And I stand by my earlier post that the (full) warnings weren't actually there when I applied- certainly not the ones that were in place when I checked a couple of days ago.

loisamelia

When I read ages ago about Icesave and the passport scheme on this site i definately got the impression that the scheme wasnt as good as full FSA coverage. Which is why I didnt open an account with them as I was wary about the scheme following the advice given by Martin

jayesh_2

You can see guilt all over his face :money:

Backed into a corner, trying to make out he was warning everyone, but really making money out of every person who clicked onto the Icesave website from his site.

He needs to put his hands up and admit he f*cked up, instead of sitting on his high horse!

isofa

The problem is, although more sensible people knew about the slightly different compensation scheme, no one (or most) didn't think they'd ever have to use it, a year ago, such a situation taking place would have been extraordinary, yet at the moment, we have banks collapsing, asking for government funding - it's totally unprecedented.

I still can't believe some people here are blaming Martin, he listed details along with many other accounts, just like newspapers and other websites - everyone has a free choice. Take responsibility for your own actions.

I have money tied up and stuck in an Icesave fixed term - and that's not Martin's fault - it's mine!

TehJumpingJawa

While I would never dare blame anyone (Martin or any other) for advice freely given, claiming to have warned Icesave's compensation scheme was "dodgy" is simply not true.

Having said that, I believe Martin et al did everything in their power to give accurate advice in the icesave safety blog, which is still available :-

http://blog.moneysavingexpert.com/2008/04/01/icesave-how-safe-are-your-savings-facts-and-myths/

In hindsight, seeing the way the banking bailouts have unfolded I suppose one important but overlooked consideration in the banking safety article would have been "How likely would a bailout by a banks respective government be?"

Lance_Botelle

I registered to say that I thought that Ch4 were unfair in the comments made towards Martin Lewis. I believe his advise has been very good and quite clear ever since I have been receiving his regular updates (for quite a few months now) and was the reason I did not invest any monies with IceSave.

The only bank I invested money that used a passport scheme are the Anglo-Irish, as they are closer to home.

I wanted to say that I believe Martin Lewis has been a great source of advise and CH4 (Jon Snow) have gone down a bit in my estimation because of their rather harsh (unfair comments) treatment of Martin Lewis.

EDIT: It was because of reading Martin Lewis' website that I learned of the £35000 (now £50000) in the first place. From his advice, I moved money around from some of my HBOS accounts to others. I did not know (at the time) that Halifax, BM and others were of the same institution until he posted it. Martin has helped me reduce many risks and I think CH4 should have recognised Martin's help in advising the public in these matters, which no other person has so openly done before.

EDIT: Furthermore, with respect to "recommending accounts", Martin has always made it clear which banks were offering the best rates of interest. He also made it clear how the banks operated as far as their compensation schemes worked. He may have said the chance of a bank collapse is highly unlikely, but he never advised which of the accounts to open. He simply gave the information as it was and left it for the consumer to decide. He may have made it clear which accounts offered the best interest rates, but he also made it clear which banks gave a 100% guarantee.

Well done Martin Lewis!

Lance.