Barclays Golden ISA feedback

GiraffeMan

Hi,
If I was you I would call there complex queries team on 0845 609 0806. Register a complaint and they will be able to investigate and determine a bank fault has been made. They will then either change the type of ISA you hold or close and open a Golden ISA for you. In both circumstances I would expect them to backdate interest to the date of your application at the Golden ISA rate given they made the mistake.

chirpchirp

My account has been opened fine. I have transferred in money from my current account with Lloyds. I have been intoday and had a balance from them so I can see the transferred money has gone in.

It's a shame I can't have online banking though, as it would be useful to be able to keep a check on how much I have paid in order that I could check I haven't missed anything on my spreadsheet and I could keep an eye on the amount of interest that is being applied.

However, I've been generally impressed with the way the Golden ISA has been set up and is working for me.

GregH

chirpchirp wrote: »

My account has been opened fine. I have transferred in money from my current account with Lloyds. I have been intoday and had a balance from them so I can see the transferred money has gone in.

It's a shame I can't have online banking though, as it would be useful to be able to keep a check on how much I have paid in order that I could check I haven't missed anything on my spreadsheet and I could keep an eye on the amount of interest that is being applied.

However, I've been generally impressed with the way the Golden ISA has been set up and is working for me.

The lack of online access is disappointing for me also, when I set the account up the guy in the branch said that I could have access online, only for a letter to come through a week later saying I couldn't.

You can request to change the frequency of statements from Barclays, I think they do monthly; they definitely do quarterly as that’s what I requested.

tiff

Walked into Barclays, was told you need an appointment at that particular branch and the adviser was on holiday. They could only suggest walking into the city centre branch, but I cant be bothered as there is no parking! lol, will now look at the next available option.

Dolly12_2

Excellent streamlined process. ISA opening took 25 mins and i was given my sort code and account number straight away.
Funds started earning interest from day one!
No hassle and best rate on the market!

jimcrimp

Hi,

i have successfully opened this ISA in about six minutes. I do already have an account with Barclays.

vickylincoln

This week I tried to open a Barclays Golden ISA to use online. As I'm not an existing customer I made an appointment in branch to open this. I'm afraid I was not impressed with the customer service - after half an hour of questions to open the account it became apparent that the account that I was being signed up for was not the online account I was after, although it was like pulling teeth getting any proper explanation about exactly what I was signing up to - the employee just continued asking me questions for the application brushing aside any questions I had about the account or its suitability for my needs. As I often work away for long periods I need an account I can access in an emergency without going into a branch, and so the account they seem to have been offering me was totally unsuitable. After further questioning I was told I would be able to use the account online, but with reduced security, which really didn't sound acceptable! It also became apparent that I would only be able to open the account with a cheque which I hadn't been warned about and as I don't have a cheque book for the relevant account this was quite a problem, although the reason for this was not explained. In the end I just got totally fed up with the unhelpful attitude and cancelled the process and left, and will definitely not be going back to barclays any time soon!

MrGumby

Dolly12 wrote: »

Excellent streamlined process. ISA opening took 25 mins and i was given my sort code and account number straight away.
Funds started earning interest from day one!
No hassle and best rate on the market!

25 minutes plus the time it took to get to and from the branch, presumably, unless you have one of their current accounts. Opening via the Internet, if they allowed it, as most of their competitors do, would take a lot less time.
Be sure to keep checking that the rate remains the best on the market. My money says it won't, at least not for very long, based on the performance of last year's Tax Haven ISA.

jimbow25

The rate did drop on the tax haven ISA but so did every other savings account.

It launched at 6.5% last year and was at 2.9% (including the bonus), I think, in February. The only comparison I have is the Abbey Direct ISA (Issue 2) which was 6.25% in April 2008 and was 2.3% 10 months later - so their drop was worse.

I'm not sure exactly how much of the year Barcalysa led the market for but even though I hate the "old product goes down, new product launches" format, I suspect the falls were moving with the market, more than them being sneaky.

People without a Barclays current account looking for online access - the trick you can use with the Monthly saver (open an "e-savings reward" account) should also work for the ISA unless anyone knows differently: See here.

MrGumby

jimbow25 wrote: »

The rate did drop on the tax haven ISA but so did every other savings account...I suspect the falls were moving with the market, more than them being sneaky.

Yes, of course the rate dropped on all savings accounts. The point is that the Tax Haven rate was a market leader at launch but not for very long. Within a year, it was distinctly average. Then they launched a new market leading ISA ("Golden ISA") but would not allow customers to transfer their old ISAs to the "Golden ISA". My bet is that the "Golden ISA" will not be a market leader for very long, so keep a close eye on rates and be prepared to transfer to another ISA.

Having said that, rates are so low that it doesn't make much difference, these days.

jimbow25 wrote: »

People without a Barclays current account looking for online access - the trick you can use with the Monthly saver (open an "e-savings reward" account) should also work for the ISA unless anyone knows differently: See here.

Why go to all that trouble? Why not just open an ISA with a consistently high-rate provider with online access? Preferably one where you can open the account online instead of visiting a branch (which is most other than Barclays)?