Instant Saver?

orwen

Hi,

Was wondering about opening a Post Office 'Instant Saver' account. I have a bank account but I thought a secondary account might be useful just in case? There have been the rare occasions when my banking has gone down for one reason or another, very embarrassing if you are waiting at a check out to pay and the card won't go through.

http://www.postoffice.co.uk/savings-accounts/instant-saver

Any thought please?

Thanks.

YorkshireBoy

orwen wrote: »

Hi,

Was wondering about opening a Post Office 'Instant Saver' account. I have a bank account but I thought a secondary account might be useful just in case? There have been the rare occasions when my banking has gone down for one reason or another, very embarrassing if you are waiting at a check out to pay and the card won't go through.

http://www.postoffice.co.uk/savings-accounts/instant-saver

Any thought please?

Thanks.

Wouldn't you still be embarrassed at having to leave the till (with all your shopping in the packing area) to go to the ATM outside to get your cash? And then return to face the wrath of the other customers in the queue.

orwen

That's already happened in one supermarket, but it was the supermarket card reader gone haywire. My thinking is, if I have two cards and one won't go through, then I have the option of using the second one.

But how does MSE rate 'Instant Saver' please? I heard they were reliable, but that was several years ago.

Thanks.

AnotherJoe

orwen wrote: »

Hi,

Was wondering about opening a Post Office 'Instant Saver' account. I have a bank account but I thought a secondary account might be useful just in case? There have been the rare occasions when my banking has gone down for one reason or another, very embarrassing if you are waiting at a check out to pay and the card won't go through.

http://www.postoffice.co.uk/savings-accounts/instant-saver

Any thought please?

Thanks.

Use a rewards credit card instead.

TheShape

orwen wrote: »

That's already happened in one supermarket, but it was the supermarket card reader gone haywire. My thinking is, if I have two cards and one won't go through, then I have the option of using the second one.

But how does MSE rate 'Instant Saver' please? I heard they were reliable, but that was several years ago.

Thanks.

Does the Post Office Instant Saver account offer a Debit Card?

Sceptic001

Why open a savings account paying a paltry 0.5% (with a cashcard) when you can open a current account paying a decent rate (eg 5% at Nationwide) with a proper debit card?

orwen

AnotherJoe wrote: »

Use a rewards credit card instead.

Thanks, these cards look good but wobbly in the long term.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-credit-card-rewards

I take it there are no strong views for or against the Instant Saver account on MSE then?

YorkshireBoy

orwen wrote: »

My thinking is, if I have two cards and one won't go through, then I have the option of using the second one.

My thinking is, you haven't read the product information, let alone the T&Cs, in the link you posted for others to read and comment on.

eskbanker

orwen wrote: »

Thanks, these cards look good but wobbly in the long term.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-credit-card-rewards

I take it there are no strong views for or against the Instant Saver account on MSE then?

I have no idea what you mean by credit cards looking 'wobbly' but in response to your question, I think it's fair to say that most people on here, faced with a requirement for a second method of payment when purchasing, would have a lengthy list of options more preferable than a poor-paying cashcard-only account from a notoriously awkward provider. These better options are largely covered in the link in post #6....

AnotherJoe

orwen wrote: »

Thanks, these cards look good but wobbly in the long term.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-credit-card-rewards

I take it there are no strong views for or against the Instant Saver account on MSE then?

Not "wobbly" just that the rewards may decrease. The rewards are there today. "no thanks I dont want free stuff today in case you give me less free stuff at some indeterminate point in the future" isn't the most rational argument I've ever heard

Anyway if its only for occasional use, then it doesn't matter as you wont get much free stuff anyway, though FWIW I only buy using a debit card as a last resort, why turn down free airmiles and cashback??

Finally, my "strong view" against the Instant Saver is that its utterly pointless, either get a credit card or a 10x that rate current account.

xylophone

Do you have the best current accounts for your needs?

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/savings-loophole