ING new HIGHER rate for new customers

savetilibleed

A bit of good news for anyone looking for a new home for variable rate savings - ING have increased their bonus to new customers so they can earn 3.0% AER for a year. see http://www.ingdirect.co.uk/savings/our_savings/about_our_savings/aboutoursavingsaccount.asp

G_M

It's good but there are still better rates around, depending on the conditions you'll accept. 3 months notice gets you 3.41 from investec, + £50 on opening.

JimLad

I opened my ING saver a month ago when the £20 deal was on. Does that mean im only getting 2.5% still?

Robbed!

savetilibleed

JimLad wrote: »

I opened my ING saver a month ago when the £20 deal was on. Does that mean im only getting 2.5% still?

Robbed!

Yeh think so. Whatever the bonus rate is when you sign up new stays for the year. So it's bonus (now 2%) + whatever the variable rate is, presently 1%. Example - I signed in January when bonus was 2.17% gross so now I'm getting 3.17% gross until Jan 2010. Your bonus will have been 1.5% when you signed.

It was some time before I realised this. They send a letter after a change to tell you what your rate is. The letter says "The preferential rate you currently enjoy on your oldest ING Direct Savings Account will change to....." giving a date already gone about 2 weeks before.

I only have one ING account - I wonder if that means I could open another at a different rate (not that I need to now of course) but maybe you can?? Dunno - probably not At least you got your £20, which is equiv to about a month's interest with £10,000 invested.

antispam246

Currently 3.21% aer on my ING account

FungusFighter

antispam246 wrote: »

Currently 3.21% aer on my ING account

Wow, I'll have to look into that, thanks!

Francesanne

Shame they're not so generous to their loyal customers. I just keep getting letters telling me their rates have dropped.

savetilibleed

FungusFighter wrote: »

Wow, I'll have to look into that, thanks!

Best you'll do is 3% right now when/if you open an new account. The next drop, usually mid month, to their std variable rate will prob be to 0.5%. So now 2.0% bonus + 1.0% variable but by about mid next month it'll be 2.0 + 0.5. Goodness knows what after that. Can BoE rate possibly go to 0%? :eek:

bikeman

I opened my ING Direct account about 6-8 weeks ago, attracted by a rate offered to 'new customers' - since then they have written to me almost weekly reducing the rate.

Granted everyone's reducing their rates but have you see those tv adverts from the nationwide - 'new customers only' - that's what it's like being a customer of ING Direct.

I called them and said that it wasn't acceptable that new customers got offered better rates and I wanted the same rate - their customer services said 'nothing we can do' which is patently not true, so I am going to move my money elsewhere.

My advice would be don't get seduced by ING Direct's advertised rates, they change them as soon as they've got your money.

PD1

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]'Following the reduction in the Bank of England base rate by 0.5% on 5 February 2009, we are writing to confirm our new rates. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]For your savings account, recently transferred from Kaupthing Edge, the rate will be 2.02% AER (3.02% gross p.a. variable for 6 months. This includes a 2.02% gross p.a. fixed bonus). Please note that after 6 months, the interest rate will revert to our standard ING Direct Savings Account rate, currently 1% AER variable (1.00% gross p.a.). [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The changes to your rate will be effective from 16 March 2009.'[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]They say chamges will take effect from 16th March....but send it to me on 31st March! I think I'll stick the money I have with them in premium bonds, at least they don't keep moving the goal posts at their leisure, plus I'd probably get a better return.
[/FONT]

Stephen_Leak

Everyone changed their rates after each of the recent changes in Base Rate.

The problem with the latest e-mail is the way it doesn't quote an annual AER for the 6 month bonus. And the fact that ING clearly think so little of their new customers that we wouldn't notice.