The Top Easy Access Savings Discussion Area

tg99

Daliah said:

10_66 said:

orange-juice said:

Just double checking I understand this HSBC online saver right.

Any month you make a withdrawal, you’ll receive the lower rate of interest for the entirety of the month, not from the date of withdrawal until the end of the month.

Also, I normally cream off the interest if it takes me above the limit and into the marginal lower rate, I assume I don’t want to do this for this account otherwise I’ll get the lower rate.

Yes, correct.  Dahlia suggested a work around of withdrawing the funds on the 1st of the month, leave the account empty until the next 1st of the month and then add to it, repeat.

To avoid the need/urge to cream off the interest on a monthly basis, only deposit £9,700, or other suitable amount <£10k. But obviously still only make any withdrawals on the 1st of a month, always empty the entire account, and leave it empty for at least the rest of the month.

The other option you could try is to close your account on the 1st. It's easy to request closure via chat, and closed accounts disappear overnight. It should then be possible to open another account. I don't know whether they'd object to this but I might give it a try.

All a bit laborious though, given that you can only make pennies more in a 3% over a 2.81% account - and 3% might well be an instant access also-run before long.

On the max £9,999.99, interest would be:
HSBC: £299.97 or ~ 82p a day
Al Rayan: £281 or ~ 77p a day

Yep that’s what I’ve done though I have gone a bit closer to £10k (£9.9k) as am anticipating that this account will be overtaken quite soon (perhaps not long after next Bank Rate hike in Nov) so all will be coming out before £10k is hit.

Snapdragon

RG2015 said:

Re HSBC Online Bonus saver account 3.00%

I have just opened a new 3.00% HSBC bonus saver and sent a nominal amount via an existing HSBC savings account. However I switched my HSBC current account a few months ago and now I have no payees in my HSBC online accounts.

Furthermore, I cannot set up a new payee from an HSBC savings account and therefore cannot transfer any money out of HSBC.

It looks like my only option is to open a new HSBC current account.

Just thought I would share this with others thinking of opening this savings account.

Damn that's annoying, wish I'd seen your post before I applied for it! I'm in the same situation, I had an old savings account left behind when I switched away from HSBC, which qualified me to apply easily enough but not much point if I can't get the money out   

Daliah

Snapdragon said:

RG2015 said:

Re HSBC Online Bonus saver account 3.00%

I have just opened a new 3.00% HSBC bonus saver and sent a nominal amount via an existing HSBC savings account. However I switched my HSBC current account a few months ago and now I have no payees in my HSBC online accounts.

Furthermore, I cannot set up a new payee from an HSBC savings account and therefore cannot transfer any money out of HSBC.

It looks like my only option is to open a new HSBC current account.

Just thought I would share this with others thinking of opening this savings account.

Damn that's annoying, wish I'd seen your post before I applied for it! I'm in the same situation, I had an old savings account left behind when I switched away from HSBC, which qualified me to apply easily enough but not much point if I can't get the money out   

Does the old savings account let you set up a payee?

oz0707

Does the interest rate on the whole amount drop if over 10k in HSBC then? Why else put 9700?

Snapdragon

Daliah said:

Snapdragon said:

RG2015 said:

Re HSBC Online Bonus saver account 3.00%

I have just opened a new 3.00% HSBC bonus saver and sent a nominal amount via an existing HSBC savings account. However I switched my HSBC current account a few months ago and now I have no payees in my HSBC online accounts.

Furthermore, I cannot set up a new payee from an HSBC savings account and therefore cannot transfer any money out of HSBC.

It looks like my only option is to open a new HSBC current account.

Just thought I would share this with others thinking of opening this savings account.

Damn that's annoying, wish I'd seen your post before I applied for it! I'm in the same situation, I had an old savings account left behind when I switched away from HSBC, which qualified me to apply easily enough but not much point if I can't get the money out   

Does the old savings account let you set up a payee?

No. I went back on after I saw RG2015s post and tried setting up payees, but you can't from any savings account, checked the old and the new one I'd just opened. I tried the chat facility but the BOT had no suitable answers and I didn't fancy having to ring up to probably be told I would need an HSBC bank account. The 3% isn't enough to warrant that faff, so annoyingly have wasted time setting up what will be another dormant HSBC account.

murphydavid

Maybe I have this wrong. Memory not so good.
I note that Cynergy instant access is at 2.75% including a small bonus and although it can't be opened directly you can become an existing customer by first opening a current account then I presume you can open one. So as an almost leading rate for instant access why has it dropped out of all the league tables? The new rule of needing to be an existing customer is surely no more onerous than other rules being applied by other banks.
Not seeing it in moneyfacts and so assuming it was out of touch I was just about to move funds when I noticed they had increased rates (their norm usually requires one to open a new issue to get a better rate if I remember it correct).
I do hate it when the pattern changes.

Daliah

oz0707 said:

Does the interest rate on the whole amount drop if over 10k in HSBC then? Why else put 9700?

You get the 3% on up to £9999.99 and 0.75% on anything above if you make no withdrawals in an entire month. If you make any withdrawal, the interest rate for the entire balance for the month of withdrawal drops to 0.5%.

£9,700 is the amount that allows for accrual of interest at 3% over an entire year. You can make it less or more, depending on how long you want to leave the money in the account, and depending on how much you care about what interest rate you get.

soulsaver

murphydavid said:

Maybe I have this wrong. Memory not so good.
I note that Cynergy instant access is at 2.75% including a small bonus and although it can't be opened directly you can become an existing customer by first opening a current account then I presume you can open one. So as an almost leading rate for instant access why has it dropped out of all the league tables? The new rule of needing to be an existing customer is surely no more onerous than other rules being applied by other banks.
Not seeing it in moneyfacts and so assuming it was out of touch I was just about to move funds when I noticed they had increased rates (their norm usually requires one to open a new issue to get a better rate if I remember it correct).
I do hate it when the pattern changes.

It's still in our ranked Top Easy Access accounts league table - now at No.3.

wiseonesomeofthetime

Daliah said:

10_66 said:

orange-juice said:

Just double checking I understand this HSBC online saver right.

Any month you make a withdrawal, you’ll receive the lower rate of interest for the entirety of the month, not from the date of withdrawal until the end of the month.

Also, I normally cream off the interest if it takes me above the limit and into the marginal lower rate, I assume I don’t want to do this for this account otherwise I’ll get the lower rate.

Yes, correct.  Dahlia suggested a work around of withdrawing the funds on the 1st of the month, leave the account empty until the next 1st of the month and then add to it, repeat.

To avoid the need/urge to cream off the interest on a monthly basis, only deposit £9,700, or other suitable amount <£10k. But obviously still only make any withdrawals on the 1st of a month, always empty the entire account, and leave it empty for at least the rest of the month.

The other option you could try is to close your account on the 1st. It's easy to request closure via chat, and closed accounts disappear overnight. It should then be possible to open another account. I don't know whether they'd object to this but I might give it a try.

All a bit laborious though, given that you can only make pennies more in a 3% over a 2.81% account - and 3% might well be an instant access also-run before long.

On the max £9,999.99, interest would be:
HSBC: £299.97 or ~ 82p a day
Al Rayan: £281 or ~ 77p a day

I too have opened, and funded, the HSBC 3% Online Saver and, I too, agree that if you need to withdraw funds then take the entire portion out for the rest of that month.

What I don't see, is the account still being a top account by the 1st of the following month (after  withdrawal) to make it worth  repopulating tbh.

I can see the 3% EA upper limit being reached/breached by end of the year. 

Daliah

wiseonesomeofthetime said:

What I don't see, is the account still being a top account by the 1st of the following month (after  withdrawal) to make it worth  repopulating tbh.

I can see the 3% EA upper limit being reached/breached by end of the year. 

Sure, there's no point in repopulating the account if the rate is no longer competitive. I think this goes without saying, for all accounts. Though I had mentioned that 3% might well be an instant access also-run before long, and you are right, before long might well be before the year is out