Regular Savings Accounts: The Best Currently Available List!

chris_the_bee

WillPS said:

I've had an awful realisation in the last few weeks that I am going to be way over the PSA for 24/25 as things stand; I didn't realised the allowance halved when I started paying the higher tax rate. Moving forward my strategy will be to for my wife to do most of the regular savers as she has the full £1000 PSA and also a large chunk of personal allowance thereafter.

Now I just need to decide how to mitigate the 24/25 PSA.

I hold the following:

• RBS Digital Reg Saver (£3k-ish held currently)
  
• Natwest Digital Reg Saver (£3k-ish held currently)
  
• Nationwide Flexclusive Regular Saver (8% version)
• Monmouthshire Exclusive Regular Saver (8%)
• Mansfield BS Kick Start Regular Saver 7th Issue (6.1%)

It's not a certainty, but I'm also mindful that there could be another payment from Nationwide if as expected they run their Fairer Share scheme and I'm eligible for it.

I have ~£200 of PSA available in 23/24, so if I act quickly I could close some of the fixed term ones and get the interest counted this tax year, and adjust the Digital Regular Savers to fill the gap. Alternatively I could draw down one or both Digital Regular Savers and keep the rolling cycle of higher rate regular savers.

My gut instinct is that 7% will likely be the max achievable on new accounts for the next financial year. I guess the other thing I need to consider is how likely that 6.17% rate on first £5k will be held by Natwest Group. My gut is that they'll seek to keep the headline rate competitive but might curtail it by dropping the max monthly deposit to £50 again... 

Tricky decision.

The Nationwide Fairer Share payment may or may not be taxed as income, but not as interest.

CuparLad

Re: the Nationwide Fairer Share Payment

The payment is taxable savings income. This means that it is treated in the same way as any interest you may earn on your savings account or current account. We are not required to deduct any tax from the payment, but we will report it to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).You may be liable to income tax on the payment, depending on whether the total amount of interest you have received in the tax year is more than your Personal Savings Allowance.

https://www.nationwide.co.uk/about-us/fairer-share/terms-and-conditions/

schiff

This just defeats me! Interest surely involves a sum of capital and an interest rate for a period of time.
Should I receive it I won't be returning it as interest.

mattojgb

CuparLad said:

Re: the Nationwide Fairer Share Payment

The payment is taxable savings income. This means that it is treated in the same way as any interest you may earn on your savings account or current account. We are not required to deduct any tax from the payment, but we will report it to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).You may be liable to income tax on the payment, depending on whether the total amount of interest you have received in the tax year is more than your Personal Savings Allowance.

https://www.nationwide.co.uk/about-us/fairer-share/terms-and-conditions/

You didn't need to even have any savings to qualify for the payment.

I was thinking I'd kept my interest earnings below the threshold, but this would take me over.

kaMelo

mattojgb said:

CuparLad said:

Re: the Nationwide Fairer Share Payment

The payment is taxable savings income. This means that it is treated in the same way as any interest you may earn on your savings account or current account. We are not required to deduct any tax from the payment, but we will report it to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).You may be liable to income tax on the payment, depending on whether the total amount of interest you have received in the tax year is more than your Personal Savings Allowance.

https://www.nationwide.co.uk/about-us/fairer-share/terms-and-conditions/

You didn't need to even have any savings to qualify for the payment.

I was thinking I'd kept my interest earnings below the threshold, but this would take me over.

Does it really matter? Surely maximising interest is more beneficial irrespective of any tax liability.

friolento

kaMelo said:

mattojgb said:

CuparLad said:

Re: the Nationwide Fairer Share Payment

The payment is taxable savings income. This means that it is treated in the same way as any interest you may earn on your savings account or current account. We are not required to deduct any tax from the payment, but we will report it to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).You may be liable to income tax on the payment, depending on whether the total amount of interest you have received in the tax year is more than your Personal Savings Allowance.

https://www.nationwide.co.uk/about-us/fairer-share/terms-and-conditions/

You didn't need to even have any savings to qualify for the payment.

I was thinking I'd kept my interest earnings below the threshold, but this would take me over.

Does it really matter? Surely maximising interest is more beneficial irrespective of any tax liability.

It may well matter for those who get catapulted into Higher Rate tax by this payment. Suddenly their tax free amount drops from £1,000 to £500, and they get to pay 40% tax on anything above £500.

bioboybill

Applied for the Co-op Regular Saver for existing customers yesterday. Every other RS for existing customers I have opened with other banks has taken minutes to open and fund. I had to fill in 5 pages of questions they should already know the answers to before being told it will take them several days to give me a decision. Totally ridiculous!

WillPS

kaMelo said:

mattojgb said:

CuparLad said:

Re: the Nationwide Fairer Share Payment

The payment is taxable savings income. This means that it is treated in the same way as any interest you may earn on your savings account or current account. We are not required to deduct any tax from the payment, but we will report it to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).You may be liable to income tax on the payment, depending on whether the total amount of interest you have received in the tax year is more than your Personal Savings Allowance.

https://www.nationwide.co.uk/about-us/fairer-share/terms-and-conditions/

You didn't need to even have any savings to qualify for the payment.

I was thinking I'd kept my interest earnings below the threshold, but this would take me over.

Does it really matter? Surely maximising interest is more beneficial irrespective of any tax liability.

... yes, because 60% of interest at 8% (i.e. a top regular saver) is less than 100% of interest at 5% (i.e. a top ISA).

allegro120

bioboybill said:

Applied for the Co-op Regular Saver for existing customers yesterday. Every other RS for existing customers I have opened with other banks has taken minutes to open and fund. I had to fill in 5 pages of questions they should already know the answers to before being told it will take them several days to give me a decision. Totally ridiculous!

They are no up to speed with modern banking protocol, but I think 7% RS with very flexible conditions is worth filling a simple form, it doesn't take very long to answer a few basic questions.  I can't see waiting for several days as a problem - it wouldn't make any difference to the timescale if they offered the product several days later and opened the account instantly. 

Stargunner

bioboybill said:

Applied for the Co-op Regular Saver for existing customers yesterday. Every other RS for existing customers I have opened with other banks has taken minutes to open and fund. I had to fill in 5 pages of questions they should already know the answers to before being told it will take them several days to give me a decision. Totally ridiculous!

Their systems are antiquated, but I didn’t mind waiting a few days, and as the 12 months term doesn’t start until the day that you fund the account, you are not losing out on any interest.