help with 5k savings please

cadmus

we have had an ISA mature at just over 5k. the Cheshire BS sent me a letter saying they will now put it into a fixed rate 1.79% 18 month account on the 2nd oct.. I looked into the small print and there are early exit clauses/charges if I need to make a withdrawal.
can someone kindly recommend us a savings/investment plan that pays better than the cheshires 1.79% and allows us to make a withdrawal if we needed it desparately without any charges/loss of interest etc

rb10

I don't think you'll find one that pays more than 1.79% AND gives instant access ... Cheshire do have an instant access account at 1.7% though.

http://www.thecheshire.co.uk/ISAs/ISA-saver/

If the savings are relatively short-term then it may be worth taking it out of an ISA and into a current account ... think carefully before doing this though.

DragonQ

A Vantage account with Lloyds/TSB/BoS would give you 3% on everything up to £5000 as long as your balance is between £4000 and £5000 and you transfer in £1000 per month. Assuming you have another current account elsewhere, you can just transfer £1000 out and then back in again straight away each month.

ColdIron

DragonQ wrote: »

A Vantage account with Lloyds/TSB/BoS would give you 3% on everything up to £5000 as long as your balance is between £4000 and £5000

It's 3% on balances between £3,000 and £5,000

typistretired

If you want to keep your savings within an ISA wrapping.
Tesco Bank Instant Access Cash ISA pays 2% but does not allow transfers in so you would need to withdraw from Cheshire BS. As the amount is less than the annual isa allowance, I don't think you have anything to lose. You could apply online or via telephone.

cadmus

DragonQ wrote: »

A Vantage account with Lloyds/TSB/BoS would give you 3% on everything up to £5000 as long as your balance is between £4000 and £5000 and you transfer in £1000 per month. Assuming you have another current account elsewhere, you can just transfer £1000 out and then back in again straight away each month.

thanks guys for your tips .... this VANTAGE account looks good DragonQ and I already have a llyds tsb current account so would it be advantageous to close my current Lloyds tsb current account and transfer all my DD and payments into this new "vantage account" as my wages will be going in it every month and then I can deposit the ISA savings thus getting a nice 3%.... OR is there any advantages keeping my current "current account" active as well as the vantage account but obviously I would be transferring 1K in every month then back out into my other Lloyds tsb current account

rb10

cadmus wrote: »

thanks guys for your tips .... this VANTAGE account looks good DragonQ and I already have a llyds tsb current account so would it be advantageous to close my current Lloyds tsb current account and transfer all my DD and payments into this new "vantage account" as my wages will be going in it every month and then I can deposit the ISA savings thus getting a nice 3%.... OR is there any advantages keeping my current "current account" active as well as the vantage account but obviously I would be transferring 1K in every month then back out into my other Lloyds tsb current account

Is your existing current account with Lloyds or with TSB? - you give both banks' names!

Either way, you can convert it without having to close it and open a new one.

If it's Lloyds, then just phone up and ask for them to change it to a Vantage account. If it's with TSB, then ask for an Enhance account instead.

If you do this, your sort code, account number, payments, etc will all stay the same, you'll just start earning interest.

Archi_Bald

rb10 wrote: »

If it's Lloyds, then just phone up ...

Or try doing it online. Same for TSB Enhance if the account is held at TSB.

DragonQ

cadmus wrote: »

thanks guys for your tips .... this VANTAGE account looks good DragonQ and I already have a llyds tsb current account so would it be advantageous to close my current Lloyds tsb current account and transfer all my DD and payments into this new "vantage account" as my wages will be going in it every month and then I can deposit the ISA savings thus getting a nice 3%.... OR is there any advantages keeping my current "current account" active as well as the vantage account but obviously I would be transferring 1K in every month then back out into my other Lloyds tsb current account

You can add Vantage to an existing Lloyds account (TSB calls it "Enhance" I think). The advantage to this is it's easier and quicker than opening a new account. You'll need some way of transferring £1000 in each month though. Do you have another current account elsewhere that you can use for transfers? If not, you'll need a second Lloyds/TSB account anyway.

cadmus

rb10 wrote: »

Is your existing current account with Lloyds or with TSB? - you give both banks' names!

Either way, you can convert it without having to close it and open a new one.

If it's Lloyds, then just phone up and ask for them to change it to a Vantage account. If it's with TSB, then ask for an Enhance account instead.

If you do this, your sort code, account number, payments, etc will all stay the same, you'll just start earning interest.

thank-you "rb10" that is perfect . yes Lloyds and tsb are now separate so I will be going with the tsb and the "enhance" account and I assume its exactly the same as the vantage account with Lloyds . that's brilliant too that everything stays as it is with debits and payments but I will be earning some nice interest .
you have all been most helpful and thank-you all again :beer: