Known brands best?

drallieg

Hi there - I have ~£50K that I want to put into a fixed rate savings account and I am not sure about where to put it! The best 1-year fixed rate (thought I'd go for that as not sure when I'll need the money and plus interest rates may go up in a year??) at the moment is with a bank called aldemore (according to this site) - but I have never heard of them! This worries me somewhat - even though they are covered by the FSCS. Then again I have heard of Skipton and the post office and they very close in terms of % interest so maybe I'll go with them.
What are peoples thoughts about this??? Am I worrying for nothing? At the moment it is in my regular bank (LloydsTSB) and though not earning any interest as such it just feels "safe" to me as I have banked with them for the past 20years! Aren't we funny creatures of habit!!
Ta
Allie

vulcan59

Aldermore are very good. Excellent customer service and safe up to the FSCS limit. I have used them for several years. They were known as Ruffler until a couple of years ago. Search on here for both names and you will find some other opinions.

SnowMan

Nothing wrong with Aldermore as the same protection as other savings institutions in the UK.

However Cheshire Building society (same group as Nationwide and Dunfermline) paying 3.55% for a 1 year bond now looks better. See this thread

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3527727

pqrdef

drallieg wrote: »

Then again I have heard of Skipton and the post office and they very close in terms of % interest so maybe I'll go with them.

Just goes to prove the power of branding. Would you touch the Post Office account if it were labelled Bank of Ireland? Because that's what it is. The PO doesn't back it or manage it in any way, they merely market it.

pqrdef

SnowMan wrote: »

Nothing wrong with Aldermore as the same protection as other savings institutions in the UK.

People used to think Greek bonds were as good as other eurozone bonds, but now they're being told they were idiots for investing in Greece. Snip snip.

Icelandic guarantees weren't worth much either.

I doubt if we should be so sanguine about FSCS protection. The real protection for a failing retail bank is the government's apparent willingness to inject capital in exchange for equity. But governments are unpredictable.

oldvicar

A guarantee is only as good as the guarantor.

Since the FSCS has no money to speak of, the guarantee depends on the government's willingness (and ability) to lend it enough to meet promises, and then on the general health of the remaining banking sector to repay.

Although the riskiest banks frequently offer the best rates, I would only save money with them if I thought they were secure enough not to need the FSCS. In terms of the OP, I'd probably trust Skipton, but Bank of Ireland is too spicy for my liking.

pqrdef

oldvicar wrote: »

In terms of the OP, I'd probably trust Skipton, but Bank of Ireland is too spicy for my liking.

Since they're essentially bankrupt, it just goes to show how much faith people put in the FSCS scheme and/or the Post Office brand. Maybe a lot of people feel the Post Office wouldn't let them down, but it's worrying that the Post Office would sell its reputation to something it wouldn't actually back - and is allowed to do that.

Perhaps the new regulators should address the issue of products being sold under third-party brands, with the institution backing the product hidden away in the small print.

buglawton

I was thinking of going to Aldermore for one of their MSE 'best buy' savings products.

So far I've only seen confirmation of FSCS cover applying on MSE, on Aldermore's own site (and on one or two financial sites where info could easily be inaccurate or out of date). I wanted an independent, or rather a government source of info to confirm this.

So I searched Aldermore's site for the keyword "FSCS" hoping their site would advise me how they claim to be covered.
It points me to www.fsa.gov.uk.
Well and good.

Here's the list I could find:
"UK banking and savings groups"
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/Pages/consumerinformation/uk_groups/index.shtml
...where Aldermore is NOT listed... nor is it's apparent owner, Anacap.

Reassuringly(!), on this page it goes on to say:
"This is not a complete list of deposit takers covered by the FSCS"

So can anyone point me to a govt site that actually confirms Aldermore is covered?

This would save another lengthy call to a call centre!

Sceptic001

http://www.fsa.gov.uk/register/firmBasicDetails.do?sid=58414

buglawton

Perfect thanks

badger09

vulcan59 wrote: »

Aldermore are very good. Excellent customer service and safe up to the FSCS limit. I have used them for several years. They were known as Ruffler until a couple of years ago. Search on here for both names and you will find some other opinions.

Me too. Excellent customer service.