Icesave bank or Bradfor& B for temporary high interest

happyhero

Hi My mother in law is moving and due to the fact she has sold some land at the side of her house and problems it could take a year to move. What this means is that she will have about just over £80,000 to put somewhere to get the highest interest rate for about 1 year (probably maximum). They need to be able to get it out quickly as they may suddenly be ready to move but the expectation is about 10 months to a year, so we looked at Icesave and Bradford & Bingley as they were offering 6.3% without catches ( I think). Some of the high interest accounts require that you put some money in every month, well for this situaution that would be no good, as they have no other money and just want to give this lump a good home for a while.

We looked at Icesave but it tells you so little, almost seems too simple, seems the only thing to read is the T&C, anyone got any experience of them are they ok, are they purely internet, I mean what do you do if you want to pay a cheque in for example.

Or would you better go for Bradford, if so why.

Or maybe you would pick some other bank, but why?

Need some guidance with this and would appreciate any help.

isofa

I don't know the T+Cs of the B+B account, is the rate guaranteed to be above the base rate for a certain period like Icesave?

Icesave is that simple as you describe, it's an excellent account, and works well, the account recently went up from 6.2 to 6.3% at the start of this month.

If the T+Cs are pretty much the same, and the B+B is instant access like Icesave, they pick which you feel most comfortable with using. Icesave is a good solid account, but remember it can only be operated on-line, (is that the same for the B+B account)?

If you could tie it up for 1 year, you could get a higher rate in a fixed rate bond, but you mention the money may need to be accessed swiftly, so that probably isn't the best idea.

masonic

Has she already subscribed to a cash ISA this tax year? If not, the first £3000 should probably go into one of those so that some of the interest earned is tax free. See this thread.

Icesave is a pretty popular account. It is not quite the top payer, but it does have a very good reputation. The only time you can make a deposit into the account by cheque is when it is first opened. After that, you need to link the account to a separate current account and make transfers in/out between those accounts using their online banking system.

riad_2

B&B is currently the top paying instant access at the moment at 6.4%

Moggles_2

Presumably, your mother-in-law needs an account which can be opened quickly. In these circumstances, I would look at her existing provider(s) first. If the money is in a current account, consider opening her bank's internet savings account.

If only a market-leading interest rate will do (and she's prepared for the extra effort involved), I can certainly recommend Icesave and Bradford & Bingley's Internet Saver.

Both are easy access online accounts with annual and monthly interest options. Quick and straightforward to open as well.

I hold both a/cs, but believe IceSave has the edge because of its valuable interest rate guarantee