Iii

koru

I guess it is still pretty competitive. I don't think any other platform gives free accounts for family members. And the £90 still covers an ISA and a trading account, so if you have both, that's £45 per account.

And that's the maximum, if you use no trading credits. Even the most inactive investors probably have to rebalance or reinvest dividends, so will use some of the credit. So, the net fee per account is probably more like £30 or £15.

The only flat fee options that are potentially cheaper would be Lloyds, iWeb, Halifax.

xylophone

I don't think any other platform gives free accounts for family members.

The facility is being removed.

koru

xylophone wrote: »

The facility is being removed.

Yes. I'm just saying that although it was nice to have benefited from this over the last few years, and it is annoying that they are withdrawing it, this in itself isn't a reason to move to another platform, as (AFAIK) there isn't one that has a similar facility.

On the other hand, being cheap was the main selling point for iii. (I don't think there's anyone who picked them because of superior service!) So, if their cost advantage is no longer as big, then perhaps it is worth moving. For instance, my mother-in-law's iii accounts are almost completely investment trusts, so they would be £30 pa at AJBell (plus dealing). Or £45 pa at HL.

cloud_dog

koru wrote: »

For instance, my mother-in-law's iii accounts are almost completely investment trusts, so they would be £30 pa at AJBell (plus dealing). Or £45 pa at HL.

or £0 at X-O or at SVS, or iWeb (+£25 opening fee)....

goRt

Well iii remains as rubbish as ever:
May/17 - as part of getting ready to take my pension at 55 I asked iii about its process for selling funds to allow me to take exactly 25% of my SIPP on my 55th birthday as a PCLS - little did I realise the can of worms that was. More lies and guess (all mathematically incorrect some putting me over 25% others under)
I was touring Europe on my 55th birthday and iii didn't want to take an instruction prior (in case I didn't turn 55?!?!?) but eventually relented and said it would "hold onto the forms pending my birthday and then release them into the SIPP queue for processing". To be fair it did this and did push the forms through.
It then sent 7 forms for signature, all of which I could have signed before leaving the UK for eastern Europe, after challenge it said only 3 were required, then only 2.
It paid my PCLS some time after my 55th birthday.
I then took my flexi-access SINGLE pension payment for 17-18, which it correctly followed HMRC rules and withheld an extra 12k of tax.
I then filled in for P55 online to recover this overpayment.
HMRC generously sent a letter (I’ll 100% online!) declining this as iii states you have ongoing payments (this is Aug/17)
Sent this to iii and it will “sort this with HMRC and get your refund”
Chased after a month “we’re discussing this”
Chased after another month asking for the full timeline of events between iii and HMRC “this is nothing to do with us and is between you and HMRC; anyway HMRC has sent us money for you and we’ve paid this to you”.
So iii has incorrectly advised HMRC that I have ongoing payments.
iii has incorrectly stated HMRC has made payments to it on my behalf – this is simply the unwinding of the over-taxation as we progress through the tax year.
iii is unable to produce its timeline of discussions with HMRC as it did absolutely nothing.
iii’s position now is that “you could take another payment in the tax year so that’s why we’ve told HMRC you have ongoing payments” – if I do choose to take a payment, THEN TAX THAT ONE AT THE TIME!

I’m awaiting the expiration of the statutory 8 weeks on the formal complaint so I can get to the FOS (again, but first time on this issue)

This is very important as I will take flexi-drawdowns at the start of each tax year and don’t want to wait 12 months for the return of the tax

No improvement in quality, more lies/guesses and inaction in the hope that clients go away and stop being awkward

le_loup

You have my sympathies but, you can't say you weren't warned.

lejog2003

I have to say I have had similar problems with ATS. Having instructed them very carefully that I wished to take a SINGLE ANNUAL withdrawal from my SIPP Drawdown Account, they have told HMRC its a one-off payment and I may take more payments during the year. So having submitted a P55, I'm still waiting on a £7k tax refund,

xylophone

https://www.investcentre.co.uk/sites/default/files/AJBIC_Taxation_of_flexible_pension_payments_QAs_0.pdf

The provider will operate PAYE.

Even if the provider has a tax code, the one off payment will be taxed PAYE - it would always be possible for another payment to be taken.

As far as I can see, unless the income is taken regularly over the tax year, it will always be necessary to use the in year reclaim.

lejog2003

xylophone wrote: »

https://www.investcentre.co.uk/sites/default/files/AJBIC_Taxation_of_flexible_pension_payments_QAs_0.pdf

The provider will operate PAYE.

Even if the provider has a tax code, the one off payment will be taxed PAYE - it would always be possible for another payment to be taken.

As far as I can see, unless the income is taken regularly over the tax year, it will always be necessary to use the in year reclaim.

I'm not arguing about that (well I could because it should be possible to tax ANNUAL payments on a month 12 basis, HMRC have certainly allowed that in the past). However in your link, the last condition applies.

Can overpaid tax be reclaimed?

If a one-off payment has been made in the tax year, it is likely that tax will have been overpaid. When this is the case the additional tax paid can be reclaimed ......

An in-year claim can be made as follows ....., if the pension has not been emptied and no further withdrawals are to be made within the tax year, by completing form P55.

I've completed my P55 three months ago, but not received my refund yet.

Its worrying since I plan to buy a house next spring and will want to take a further £45k payment in the new tax year in April. It appears that I'll be taxed as if I have any income of £540,000 a year (more than the balance of my SIPP:rotfl:), and have £19,000 tax deducted rather than £6,600. And I could end up twiddling my thumbs waiting for a £12.5k tax refund. This is what appears to have happened to goRt with his single flexi-drawdown payment (and in his case iii of course).

goRt

lejog2003 wrote: »

I'm not arguing about that (well I could because it should be possible to tax ANNUAL payments on a month 12 basis, HMRC have certainly allowed that in the past). However in your link, the last condition applies.

I've completed my P55 three months ago, but not received my refund yet.

Its worrying since I plan to buy a house next spring and will want to take a further £45k payment in the new tax year in April. It appears that I'll be taxed as if I have any income of £540,000 a year (more than the balance of my SIPP:rotfl:), and have £19,000 tax deducted rather than £6,600. And I could end up twiddling my thumbs waiting for a £12.5k tax refund. This is what appears to have happened to goRt with his single flexi-drawdown payment (and in his case iii of course).

Everything you say is correct.
If you follow iii's logic (that I may take another payment within the tax year) then there is never a usecase where p55 applies!
iii's payment request paperwork links to HMRC website you quoted.

Even if iii is correct and I subsequently decided to take another payment then the tax should be withheld from that!

iii continues (after Saturday's post) to insist it is correct without actually producing evidence to support its position (it also asked for a copy of HMRC's letter which it's had since August when stating it would sort out HMRC's error - it has done nothing on that!).