iWeb announce post RDR charges (I think)

jamesd

Knee wrote: »

I have no idea why they wouldn't allow them in an ISA as they are available on most other platforms (H&L, Charles Stanley etc).

Don't necessarily trust other places. I found HL offering in an ISA a fund that had been specifically identified as prohibited in a HMRC bulletin to ISA managers. I told them and they removed it.

Porcupine

iWeb say this:

We are aware that a number of the funds that we currently offer have not been reviewed for tradability within an ISA. We are currently reviewing all of these funds in a effort to make as many available from within our ISAs as possible. As such, many more funds will become available to you over the next few working days.

If there is a particular fund that you wish to trade and is not available please let me know and we can review
this separately.

cloud_dog

rusty69 wrote: »

TCA, Thanks for that. This seems to be different information from the e-mail I have received from IWeb. I am keen to open an account with them, but would require the regular investment facility, which it now seems will no longer be available.

Rusty, I can confirm that the removal of a Regular Investment option is being removed from iWeb from 31st March. See the bottom of my thread here.

As per the thread, I had rang iWeb yesterday and discussed through what I was looking to achieve, i.e. regular investing in Investment Trusts and possibly ETFs. I also wanted specific confirmation if there was anny restriction on the ITs or ETFs you could buy using the RI option. Based on all good info coming back from the their helpful (!!!) Customer Services I opened an account. Only to find out as soon as I accessed the account the advisory message regarding cessation of the RI option. Wasn't happy!

Am in the process of closing the account. I have logged a complaint with iWeb, not to obtain financial recompense but to ensure that they do not take their £25 opening fee etc.

Knee

It looks like there has been some movement at iWeb with these ineligible funds. Three of the funds I asked them about can now be bought although only the Acc units in the case of one of them. I'd suggest if anyone is after a particular fund it might be worth sending them an e-mail and then waiting a few days.

For those asking about the Vanguard funds, it looks like they've added most of them but quite a few are ISA ineligible . Under "Vanguard Investments UK Ltd" you can now see the following -

FTSE Developed Europe ex-U.K. Equity Index Fund Dis & Acc (Ineligible)
FTSE Developed World ex-U.K. Equity Index Fund Dis & Acc (Ineligible)
FTSE U.K. Equity Income Index Fund A Acc & Inc (Ineligible)
FTSE U.K. Equity Index Fund A Inc & Acc (Ineligible)
LifeStrategy 100% Equity Acc & Inc (Can be bought)
LifeStrategy 80% Equity Acc (Can be bought) & Inc (Ineligible)
LifeStrategy 60% Equity Acc & Inc (Can be bought)
LifeStrategy 40% Equity Acc & Inc (Can be bought)
LifeStrategy 20% Equity Acc & inc (Ineligible)
Long Duration Gilt Index A Acc & Inc (Ineligible)
Inflation-Linked Gilt Index Acc (Ineligible) & Inc (Can be bought)
U.S. Equity Index A Acc & Dis (Ineligible)

Clear as mud, no? Hopefully you can decipher how I've written that. It'll take someone cleverer than me to work out why the LifeStrategy 80% Inc and 20% fund's can't be bought. Maybe it's still a work in progress?

cloud_dog

rusty69 wrote: »

Halifax would be my next choice, I was hoping to avoid the annual charge, which I web don't have, but Halifax do, although Iweb have an account opening fee.

Rusty..... Not sure if my situation is similar but......

I've just spoken with Halifax and they have confirmed (as much as a Client Service person can) that there are 'currently' no plans to remove the Regular Investment Plan and that pretty much anything you can hold in a dealing account (normal / ISA) can be obtained by the RI option.

He also confirmed that the £12.50 Admin Fee is not charged on a standard dealing account.

So my plan.....

....As we don't have loads of spare cash to play with
....and as my main aim ATM is to continue RIs
....and based on the fact that me and the OH already have S&S ISA accounts which don't incur AMC (TD Direct and X-O)

....Will open a standard (non-ISA) S&S dealing account with Halifax
....If necessary (growth of investments / profits) will periodically sell and transfer cash in to said S&S ISA accounts.

Thats me I'm done..... What a palaver :rotfl:

cloud_dog

Very quickly done.

Dealing account set up.... Initial payment taken.... Regular Subscription set up.... Regular Investment set up.

BIG :T for Halifax.

Porcupine

I wonder... iWeb claim 'low demand' as the reason for removing the regular investment option. If that's really true (rather than an excuse), and their post-RDR pricing causes a whole slew of new customers, whether it's something they'll reconsider in future?

cloud_dog

In my 'complain' to them I added a side comment that generally iWeb were coming out well in RDR reviews on message boards etc and that I thought it was a mistake them removing the RI option.

Funnily enough when I was speaking with Cleint Services person at Halifax I mentioned that I was going to go with iWeb and, that I knew iWeb is a Halifax company, and that I didn't because of the RI aspect and he said that the decision to cease RI at iWeb was a business one insofar as the price difference between £5 and £2 probably greatly reduced the need for people to use RI as opposed to a single payment (£5).

Who knows. I think they would attract a completely different investor if they retained the RI option.

TCA

I had to send in documents to IWeb for proof of i.d and address as I guess the electronic checks didn't work out. One thing to note for anyone who ends up doing this, is that nowhere before, during or after the application process, does it mention that docs need certified. Granted it says originals required (and I know fine well certification is usual) but as I wasn't going to send my actual passport or driving licence in the post, I took the gamble with a copy seeing as no mention of certification. No joy as was confirmed today when I used the chat facility to find out why the account was still inactive 8 days after sending the docs.

Anyway, I enquired as to whether my usual manner of certification was acceptable (my friend the accountant) and was told no, but I can go to a Halifax branch for free certification. Great, except that there isn't one for 120 miles. The only alternative offered was to get an authorised solicitor to perform the deed, which didn't fill me with glee either. In the end he said they'd accept certification from a Bank of Scotland branch, but it was like pulling teeth.

Now I have to see whether BoS will charge me for the privilege, seeing as I'm not a customer.

Porcupine

Just tell BoS that you're applying for a Halifax account and hopefully they should be OK - it's all the same group.

I've done the rounds of certification before - most banks are happy to certify their own customers for free, so going to your own bank(s) is usually the way to go. Some banks are more relaxed about it than others, so this is one time it pays to have multiple accounts lying around.