lloyds monthly saver seems poor deal

maggie99

i opened a monthly saver last sept 06 after reading about it on this website. i was under the impression that it would earn me £280 before tax on interest, if i paid in the max amount £3500. i have just received £125 after interest, which seems pretty pathetic. wish i hadn't bothered. did i misunderstand the maths??
thanks if you can clarify for me
first time on here!
maggie

arjar

Maggie: I suspect you've applied the APR to the whole £3500. But as your money has only been drip fed month by month, you've only built up to that gradually through the year. So the interest you got (after tax) is probably right for the gradually accumulating sum.

These monthly savers do pay the higher rate they advertise but the relatively small amounts on deposit limit the benefit. Personally, I think they're worth using (every penny counts....) if they're simple to administer - but it is very important to keep an eye on the date that they are transferred into lower rated accounts. Some institutions use them as a 'come on' - requiring that you open a current account. I would steer clear of these, as the minor benefit isn't worth the trouble of administering a seperate current account.

Hope this helps.