NS&I, a word of caution about National Savings and Investments (NSandI)

dunstonh

ok, ok, it's my own fault then, but still think the rollover should be in an "easy access" kind of deal not 1 year fixed.

The whole point of fixed term deposits is that they are fixed term. However, it shouldnt come as a surprise as you are written to close to maturity to say what happens next....

The Director will write to the holder, at the last recorded address for the Bond, shortly before the end of each term to tell them of the Treasury’s decision. If a Bond is eligible for a further term the rate of interest will be applied automatically and will be guaranteed for the whole of the further term, but the holder will remain free to cash in the Bond at any time (including for reinvestment into another Issue or another NS&I product) under the normal rules for cashing in as set out in paragraphs 24, 25 and 32.

Etccarmageddon

if they write to you then there's no excuse to say you didn't know assuming of course the mail is infallible and post never gets lost!

lisyloo

assuming of course the mail is infallible and post never gets lost!

Let's say some flight tickets get lost in the post. What do you do.

1) Say oh well, never mind I didn't want the holiday anyway.
2) Get off your butt and find out where they are ?????

Yes, post fails sometimes.
If you don't get something you expected then FIND OUT where it is, or alternatively download the information from the web.

Sometimes I think people want someone to knock on their door and have someone turn up to read things out to them.

Etccarmageddon

that's a poor comparison. flight tickets is something you'd order. the NSI savings cert is something you purchase then probably forget about. if there's an auto rollover on a product it should be clearly laid out at the time of purchase not buried in umpteen T and C points.

dunstonh

if there's an auto rollover on a product it should be clearly laid out at the time of purchase not buried in umpteen T and C points.

It isnt buried. Its quite clearly written under the what happens at maturity section.

Guys_Dad

Eager_Saver wrote: »

Morning all,

Just a word of caution to anyone thinking of taking a NS&I bond (Guaranteed Growth Bond in my case) : make sure you do not miss the maturity date otherwise they will sting you with penalty fees for cashing it in after that date.

Well I, for one, am grateful to Eager Saver. I have a NS&I bond and thanks to Eager Saver's warning, I will be doubly careful upon its maturity.

This is what this forum is about - saving other members money NOT just "you should read the small print" put-down comments however accurate they may be.

So thanks, to the OP.

lisyloo

NOT just "you should read the small print" put-down comments however accurate they may be

But it is very important that people be familar with the contracts they sign up to.

I am the first to admit that I never read these documents in their entirety and doubt that anyone else does, however I do check the section heading and read in more detail the parts that are important to me, so for example I would have read the "maturity section".
If I hadn't found it in my scan, I would automatically want to know what happened at maturity.

Yes, this site is great for helping poeple and giving warnings and I applaud that.
But people aren't just scoring superiority points or being "holier than thou" when they advise reading documents.
It's impossible to be warned against everything, so everyone needs to read the salient points of the contracts they engage in.
It's generally not just loads of text, there generally are section headings which would indicate which particular bits are of interest to you.
For example I generally skip all detail on the interest rates and charges on credit cards becasue I never pay them so it's not relevant to me.
So it's not acceptable to say "oh it's too big, I can't read it" or if you do, you do so at your own risk.

lisyloo

that's a poor comparison. flight tickets is something you'd order. the NSI savings cert is something you purchase then probably forget about.

I couldn't agree that just forgetting or making assumptions about what happens is a good thing to do.

it should be clearly laid out at the time of purchase

Is it.
However actually reading and understanding it, is an active process on the part of the saver/investor, which they cannot force.
The saver/investor has to take responsibility if they go direct.

Of course if you want someone to sit and explain things to you, then that's quite possible also. You go to an advisor e.g. IFA.
Good ones should discuss options that don't make them commission.
But ultimately these are direct products so they wouldn't actually have liability in the legal sense.

jack_spratt_2

Guys_Dad wrote: »

Well I, for one, am grateful to Eager Saver. I have a NS&I bond and thanks to Eager Saver's warning, I will be doubly careful upon its maturity.

This is what this forum is about - saving other members money NOT just "you should read the small print" put-down comments however accurate they may be.

So thanks, to the OP.

I have to agree it does no service to the forums with the "you should have known better type of attitude" but I am afraid it just sums up some of the posts that are posted these days !!
If the original post helped just one person avoid the same mistake it was worth making it .

RayWolfe

I'm with lisyloo. People must take responsibility. Always read before signing; always understand before accepting. We are not children even though the world seems to embrace infantilism as being the way forward!