Does anybody else here find Isas a joke?

noh

opinions4u wrote: »

A lot of the idiotic procedures are laid down by the government. Banks have no choice but to comply.

Here's a couple of suggestions I would make:

1) Make the term ISA relate to cash deposit/savings accounts only.

2) Change the name of stocks and shares ISA to an innovative new name that clearly differentiates it from a cash ISA. "Personal Equity Plan" or "PEP" seems like an original idea!

3) Give cash ISA and my newly named PEP a limit that cannot be transferred from one to the other, to avoid confusion.

4) Change the cash ISA transfer procedure so that a bank customer can withdraw a cheque and receive a certificate of ISAness from their old provider. This can then be walked round to a new provider who can open the new account there and then, without having to go through the sometimes painful process that currently exists for transferring ISAs from one bank to another.

Any thoughts?

Looks like sensible suggestions to me.

I would also like to see some changes or some regulation introduced to make the transfer of stocks and shares ISAs quicker.
I'm currently moving from one provider to another. I requested the transfer in mid January it is still not completed. There is a large sum of cash sitting there, with the original provider gaining no interest.
Each party blames the other.

RayWolfe

With regard to the Cash ISA part, it might be easier to allow everyone a tax free allowance for interest each year. Make it reasonable so that the very rich can't take unreasonable advantage. That would enable people to withdraw and replace and use any type of savings account they chose. It's possible that this would not encourage non-savers to save, which was the original intention.
I like the differentiation between Cash and S&S. Stops some of the confusion.

JamesU

opinions4u wrote: »

3) Give cash ISA and my newly named PEP their own specfic limits that cannot be transferred from one to the other - to avoid confusion.

Any thoughts?

Really liked the suggestion for a certificate of ISAness.

But not so convinced on point 3. For sure, call them whatever you like to avoid confusion. However, the opportunity to transfer saved cash from a cash ISA to an S+S ISA at will, and in any amount depending on what has been saved irrespective of annual S+S ISA allowances in a given year, provides a lot of flexibility for an individual. Depending on personal circumstances there is no need to keep all your eggs in one basket (mix of cash and shares/funds), but you still have an excellent way to switch investments from cash to shares according to need and preference. It would be a pity to loose this fairly new form of flexibility and its usefullness should not be underestimated.

JamesU