BM fixed rate ISA 4.2%

[Deleted User]

10_66 wrote: »

If I ever get time, I'm going to complain to HMRC about the stupid situation, though I know it won't make any difference. Surely the staff at HMRC have to go through the same rigmarole as the rest of us, so you'd think they'd make an effort to make them speed up the process. After having been told by a bank once that it's HMRC who insist on transfers being carried out by cheque, I asked HMRC about this, and they assurred me that the banks can do transfers by BACS if they wish, they just choose not to. It gets to the point where you start to wonder whether ISAs are worth all the stress that comes with the transfers doesn't it?

Anyone out there fancy knocking up a TEMPLATE LETTER to send to HMRC, saying how pi**ed off we are about the time it takes to transfer ISA's?

Strength in numbers and all that....

10_66

Do you think Martin would be willing to highlight the ISA transfer fiasco to "the powers that be"?

magpiesaver

I was told by one of the banks that it's Inland Revenue rules that prevent them from carrying out the transactions electronically. I'm not saying this makes it true, but it's widely believed and acted on. There also appear to be some rules that prevent them contacting each other to chase up "lost" cheques or forms ("data protection" they plead). This is compounded by some sort of built-in inefficiency that prevents them from initiating any communication by telephone or e-mail either with customers or with other banks, in order to solve a problem.
Oh, and most of them don't have freephone or even geographical telephone numbers for customers whose money or transfer forms have disappeared.
With communications like that, is it any wonder we're all driven to depair every time we want to transfer ISAs?

Yes, is there some way we can ask Martin to make some sort of representation about this issue? How do we ask?

[Deleted User]

10_66 wrote: »

Do you think Martin would be willing to highlight the ISA transfer fiasco to "the powers that be"?

Attention Martin Lewis.......


Well, people who transfer ISA's anyway!:money:

Lokolo

Ok completed on 13th Feb

magpiesaver

Just a quick update; I was transferring some money into the BM ISA from A&L, who said they'd sent a cheque, but BM kept insisting they hadn't received it and it must have got lost. Neither bank was prepared to chase it up - each one said the other must do so.
Eventually I got through, on one of my calls to BM, to someone called Lisa who told me that they were more than a week behind in dealing with incoming mail. (Previous helpline people had denied this and said that if the cheque had arrived, it would have been processsed straight away.) This meant, Lisa said, that the cheque posted on 3 Feb would probably be in my account by the 17th (yesterday). So I phoned again yesterday, and it was in!
So there may be hope for anyone still waiting for a transfer to be completed.

10_66

The idiots have finally found my transfer cheque, but opening date of my account is effective from the date they processed it, rather than the day they received cheque! After yet another call, they said they'd pass it on to another department who "hopefully" would adjust the date to that of the cheque (which is what he said should've happened). I HATE ISAs!!