Premium Bonds & mini isa questions

mking007

Are these a good idea; few questions

Can you check the amount of bonds you have saved online on their website ?

Do you make any interest on the bonds saved up ? and is it monthly or yearly ?

Is it worth doing, have you ever won anything on it ?

Can you widthdraw your money at any time with mini isa or premium bonds bank to your bank account ?

I see on the site there they mini isa too at around 4.85% max of £3k per year to put in. So i get monthly interest as normaly and tax payable and after a year i get all the tax refunded ?

http://www.nsandi.com/

Kazza242

mking007 wrote:

Are these a good idea; few questions

Can you check the amount of bonds you have saved online on their website ?

No, I don't believe this is possible. As far as I know you can only check whether your bond has won anything in the last six draws. If you wrote or telephoned NS&I, they should be able to help.

Do you make any interest on the bonds saved up ? and is it monthly or yearly ?

No, you do not receive interest. The interest (as such) is used to make up the prizes that are won each month.

Is it worth doing, have you ever won anything on it ?

It is up to you. I suppose it depends on your situation i.e what level of income tax you pay, level of savings elsewhere etc...

Please see this thread for more details on winnings:http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=81778

Can you widthdraw your money at any time with mini isa or premium bonds bank to your bank account ?

Most mini cash isa's allow withdrawals without penalty, but it's best to check the terms and conditions of your individual account. Regarding premium bonds, you must fill in a form from NS&I to cash in your bonds. Allow at least 14 days for funds to appear in your bank account.

I see on the site there they mini isa too at around 4.85% max of £3k per year to put in. So i get monthly interest as normaly and tax payable and after a year i get all the tax refunded ?

Mini cash isa's pay interest gross as they are not taxable accounts.

http://www.nsandi.com/

I hope the above answers help.

slowen

I have upto £1,000 of spare cash and was looking at putting them into a premium bond but is the only plus side of the bonds that you may win more if your bonds come in or are there other benefits that I am missing?

mking007

thanks for the help, slowen its just really like a expenisve lottery ticket but u can take your money out again and not get charged any tax on the money.

Is the £100 - 100 single bonds (£1 each) or just 1 bond ?

Greycrow

Isa's are an investment.
Premium bonds are a gamble. Your capital is safe but you gamble with the interest that it would produce if you had invested it in a savings account or something similar. You might win something but on the other hand you probably wont.

ManAtHome

Also, ISAs vanish at the end of each tax year - I'd go for a cash ISA before PBs. I do have PBs - last year they worked out around the same as savings accounts (after higher-rate tax) but quite a bit less than the cash ISAs.

mking007

ManAtHome wrote:

Also, ISAs vanish at the end of each tax year - I'd go for a cash ISA before PBs. I do have PBs - last year they worked out around the same as savings accounts (after higher-rate tax) but quite a bit less than the cash ISAs.

did you acutally win anything ?

ManAtHome

mking007 wrote:

did you acutally win anything ?

Yes, wasn't comparing it with a bank current account...LOL. Worked out a smidge over 3%, just over 5% pre-tax (around 4% for a basic rate taxpayer). Mind you, I'm sure someone with a fivers-worth (obviously held for a long time) won the big one sometime last year.