Savings Account Help

MrsPitcher2b

Can i open a savings account for my nephew?

He is going to be One in 4 weeks, he has everything and i dont know what to get him! With xmas on top its very hard to chose - so was thinking of saving for him, because our dad did it for us and i would like to do it for him.

I would give my sister the money but she isnt very money safe, spends silly amounts and is in serious debt - although i wouldnt liek to see her suffer and i hope she wouldnt take what was my nephews, i just want to be sure he will have some sort of money when he gets older.

Is there any way i can open an account for him? Or does my sister need to open it?

Lokolo

You could open up an account in your name?

I am not sure about setting up childs savings accounts without parents present though. Sorry!

chardir

He should have a child trust fund which you can pay into but he won't have access to that until he's 18. Otherwise, you may be able to open a trust account which he can access earlier than that.

MrsPitcher2b

Thanks for your replies.

Chardir - hate to sound dumb but how do i pay into the child trust fund?

The problem is i dont just want to give my sister the money incase she spends it.

rb10

You could open a savings account as trustee for your nephew.

Therefore, only you would be able to access the money, but it would be in his name (so you wouldn't have to pay tax on interest).

To do this, you'd need to have his original birth certificate, but the parents don't need to be present when opening the account, or named on the account.

This site has a good list of kids savings accounts at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/child-savings-tax-free

chardir

Just looked and you can open a Halifax save4it account in trust for any age of child, no requirement to be a guardian. I'm sure others are similar.

Re the CTF you'd have to get the account details from his parents then arrange a BACS transfer directly.

Primrose

You can lopen a Post Office Savings Account for your nephew and hold it in trust until he is 18 or 22, and you can be the Trustee, which sounds a good idea if your sister is not reliable with money. It's also a good idea for you to keep it so that there's no temptation that he gets his hands on the money before he's mature enough to use it sensibly. You will need to ask for the appropriate application form at the Post Office and will probably have to produce a photocopy of his birth certificate as a form of identity.