Cheapest Sipp: build yourself a low cost DIY pension article

ernie-money

chrisst170 said:

ernie-money said:

iWeb?

I've just read through the guide and searched this thread and am surprised to find so few mentions of iWeb. When i compare the charges, it seems cheaper for my circumstances to set up a new SIPP with them rather than AJ Bell (although AJ Bell is the scheme administrator of iWeb) - is there a reason not to use them, or am I missing something? Thanks in advance!

I've used them for about 6 years now. Their website looks like it is from the 90s, but I've never had a problem with my ISA with them.

Thanks for the feedback - I'd rather they don't spend money on marketing & a posh website & keep their fees low!

chrisst170

ernie-money said:

Thanks for the feedback - I'd rather they don't spend money on marketing & a posh website & keep their fees low!

That was my thinking as well. The only admin error I noticed was that it took them over 2 years to charge me the £25 account opening fee (which now looks to have increased to £100 unfortunately)!

Amateurd

I've been looking at the comparisons and Interactive Investor claims to have low flat fees. Apparently much cheaper than H&L (which I use now).

But ii charge £19.99 a month = £239.88 a year.

H&L charge 0.45% capped at £200  = £200 a year.

What am I missing? How can ii claim to be cheaper by £94,800?!

BigBlueSky

Amateurd said:

I've been looking at the comparisons and Interactive Investor claims to have low flat fees. Apparently much cheaper than H&L (which I use now).

But ii charge £19.99 a month = £239.88 a year.

H&L charge 0.45% capped at £200  = £200 a year.

What am I missing? How can ii claim to be cheaper by £94,800?!

The H&L cap of £200 a year is only for holding shares.  For any funds there is no cap and the fees are:

On the first £250,000 - 0.45%

On the value between £250,000 -£1m - 0.25%

On the value between £1m - £2m - 0.1%

On the value over £2m - No charge

See - https://www.hl.co.uk/pensions/sipp/charges-and-interest-rates

barnstar2077

Vanguard's platform fee is 0.15 and their FTSE Global All Cap tracker 0.23.  Might be worth investigating a different strategy.  I know it isn't as exciting as picking your own companies, but it is safer in the long run. 

Amateurd

BigBlueSky said:

Amateurd said:

I've been looking at the comparisons and Interactive Investor claims to have low flat fees. Apparently much cheaper than H&L (which I use now).

But ii charge £19.99 a month = £239.88 a year.

H&L charge 0.45% capped at £200  = £200 a year.

What am I missing? How can ii claim to be cheaper by £94,800?!

The H&L cap of £200 a year is only for holding shares.  For any funds there is no cap and the fees are:

On the first £250,000 - 0.45%

On the value between £250,000 -£1m - 0.25%

On the value between £1m - £2m - 0.1%

On the value over £2m - No charge

See - https://www.hl.co.uk/pensions/sipp/charges-and-interest-rates

Duh I hadn’t read it right.

I will consider switching soon - you might just have saved me a lot in fees. Thanks!

Lowtrawler

ernie-money said:

chrisst170 said:

ernie-money said:

iWeb?

I've just read through the guide and searched this thread and am surprised to find so few mentions of iWeb. When i compare the charges, it seems cheaper for my circumstances to set up a new SIPP with them rather than AJ Bell (although AJ Bell is the scheme administrator of iWeb) - is there a reason not to use them, or am I missing something? Thanks in advance!

I've used them for about 6 years now. Their website looks like it is from the 90s, but I've never had a problem with my ISA with them.

Thanks for the feedback - I'd rather they don't spend money on marketing & a posh website & keep their fees low!

I opened an ISA with iWeb a couple of years ago. As it happens, I'm currently in the middle of transferring it to Interactive Investor.

The iWeb fees are low and I haven't had any serious issues with them. It is more annoyances. When you wish to participate in voting at AGM's, there is no means to do so on the website. You have to contact them and they do it for you. The online chat is seldom available. During the current transfer process, iWeb are one of the few providers who still need everything done by paper - not even email. Everything feels clunky on the website and navigation is not intuitive.

I'm transferring to II because I already have a SIPP with them and so there are no extra fees for me to hold my ISA there. It means I can manage everything through 1 portal rather than 2. I also find the II customer support to be excellent.

wiggers

Lowtrawler said:

I'm transferring to II because I already have a SIPP with them and so there are no extra fees for me to hold my ISA there. It means I can manage everything through 1 portal rather than 2. I also find the II customer support to be excellent.

Funnily enough I did the opposite. I had both an ISA and a SIPP with II, but wanted to spread the risk a bit. I transferred the ISA to iWeb, but that turned into a fiasco as they failed repeatedly to carry out the in-specie transfers of overseas stocks. It eventually went through, but the Cost Price in the Valuation was blank or some random number. Very difficult to keep track of gains and losses. Eventually they agreed to enter them manually after I sent them the appropriate cost prices from my records.

I find II's customer support to be rather poor and the platform very difficult to use. The multi-currency side is a nightmare and some funds you buy in GBP but the divs are paid in USD. So you have to convert the currency to reinvest, but they keep the 1.5% fee carefully hidden. So you end up with less than you thought. Trying to do a simple UFPLS is a nightmare too, they treat you as if you're accessing your pension pot for the first time on every occasion, with reams of forms to fill in. They keep promising to simplify the process but I've given up hope of that ever happening. So I raise a formal complaint every year!

Michael_Nottingham

I am 3.5 months into an ISA transfer from Fidelity to iWeb of Shares / UT in specie. As you say all done by paper.

Everytime I want an update I have to phone, wait for 20-30 minutes to speak to someone who sounds completely bored and doesn't seem to care that it's taking so long. Last time they said they were waiting to hear back from Fidelity (for a couple of months). I told them Fidelity were waiting to hear from them. Turns out iWeb are meant to chase if they haven't heard after x weeks but hadn't.

Still haven't got a ETA when it will be complete. 

My wife's ISA move from Fidelity to II happened within a couple of weeks with online updates at II on status.

So clearly an iWeb issue. Time for another complaint I think

Why can't the FCA get a grip on Platform transfers. If your energy switch is delayed you get automatic compensation.

Dale72

Setting aside the differing costs, are there any advantages/disadvantages to having more than one Sipp?