Icesave Fixed Rate Account FSCS Option

Lemonyspencer

I took out my icesave account 6 months ago - a 3 year fixed rate.
Should i leave it there until maturity?
I rang FSA they said you get the fixed rate you took out with icesave when it matures. However after reading the posts i am confused about the 6 weeks thing. Can anyone clarify this for me in a way that an idiot could understand.
please help - a bewildered single mum

ed123_2

...I rang the fscs yesterday and they said the form would be sent out on maturity of the bond ( not soon after you elected to wait until maturity). So you could be looking up to 8 weeks ie form six weeks , two weeke to get/clear cheque. Also on the form you would be transferring your legal claim to the fscs. ( from Landsbanki>)

Lemonyspencer

Thanks ed , so it appears that i would be waiting at the end.
Is it a good idea to keep the account?

Richchad

It would appear even if we have to wait 6 weeks or so at the end with no interest that this maybe be better than getting it sometime this month when all the fixed and variable savings rates will be much lower now with the 3% bank rate.

lewianbra

I have transferred some money into a two years fixed rate account one week before Icesave went bust. I felt quite stupid at the time but now it seems to have been a very good move. I don't really feel that I deserve it but I won't complain...

ahgee2

ed123 wrote: »

...I rang the fscs yesterday and they said the form would be sent out on maturity of the bond ( not soon after you elected to wait until maturity). So you could be looking up to 8 weeks ie form six weeks , two weeke to get/clear cheque. Also on the form you would be transferring your legal claim to the fscs. ( from Landsbanki>)

Don't forget that if you take the compensation now, you will already be forfeiting around 6 weeks' interest (ie. from 7 October 2008 to whenever you receive the compensation). So, the choice is:

* lose 6 weeks of 7% interest now, deposit the money at a lower rate with another bank when you receive the compensation.

* lose 6 weeks of 3% interest (or thereabouts, whatever you can get at the time) when the bond matures, assuming the FSCS take 6 weeks from maturity to pay out. In the meantime, continue to enjoy 7% interest.

Reports on other threads say that there will not be a 6 week delay if you allow the bond to mature: instant access to your funds the day after maturity. In which case, the choice becomes even easier. That said, the one reason you might want to grab the money now is if you think you can lock it into a fixed rate deposit elsewhere at a decent rate that might no longer be available when your bond matures.

CE3JJL

Am I missing a trick here? Four weeks interest has already been lost so the “virtual” lost interest at maturity will be 6-4 weeks i.e. 2 weeks! If the money is not paid out until the 18th it will be zero. After that date, those who leave their money in the fixed interest account will be quids in.
The best reason for trading in now is to avoid painful paperwork and worrying uncertainty. I can’t see anyone else offering better, more secure rates.

bryanb

ed123 wrote: »

...I rang the fscs yesterday and they said the form would be sent out on maturity of the bond ( not soon after you elected to wait until maturity). So you could be looking up to 8 weeks ie form six weeks , two weeke to get/clear cheque. Also on the form you would be transferring your legal claim to the fscs. ( from Landsbanki>)

Just had an email from icesave customer services contradicting this, they clearly state the will send the form when you click to wait till maturity. I don't know how to post a copy of the email here, if anyone can instruct me I'm happy to do it. (web based email)

KingL

I also called them twice and had the same assurance that was given to bryan (one of them had to go and check with 'head office' first to confirm).

@ bryanb, if you can't just copy-paste it as-is, try using the browser menu option View>Source (Internet explorer, probably something similar in other browsers). This should show you a (somewhat messy) plaintext version, which you can maybe cut & paste.

bryanb

KingL wrote: »

I also called them twice and had the same assurance that was given to bryan (one of them had to go and check with 'head office' first to confirm).

@ bryanb, if you can't just copy-paste it as-is, try using the browser menu option View>Source (Internet explorer, probably something similar in other browsers). This should show you a (somewhat messy) plaintext version, which you can maybe cut & paste.

Tried, but no luck. I'll type the relevant part.

Quote-You have asked for clarification of the procedure that will be followed if you prefer to wait until the end of the term to receive the maturity proceeds of your fixed rate savings account. As explained in our previous email you should still log on to the website after receiving our invitation email and tick the appropriate box to confirm it is your wish to wait until the end of the fixed term. We will then send you a paper based application form to complete and return to us.This process will be slower, although we aim to complete this process so far as possible within 6 weeks of receipt of a completed application form. Shortly after the maturity of the account, you will receive the principal sum and interest you were contractually entitled to receive from Icesave.

This is word for word, from my email from FSCS icesave compensation team.BB