Where to put £90,000 so it is protected under FSCS Instant Access/Current accounts only

SusanSpain

PLEASE DON’T SHOOT THE MESSENGER, I am looking for practical advice to help my elderly father!

OK – I have recently been able to have access to my father’s financial affairs as I have become his full time carer.

He has £300,000 spread mainly over;

·        Instant Access Savings Accounts

·        Current Accounts (Bank and building societies)

·        ISA’s

·        Stocks and Shares (very small portfolio, but they pay dividends regularly.)

My concern is:

I am aware of the FSCS scheme if a financial institution went bust overnight… that he would be protected up to £85,000 PER Institution/Entity. (I know that he is only protected for one amount to this sum if there are sister companies within the group and he has his money spread about and the only way to get the full £85,000 is to place a maximum of this amount with other institutions.)

So….

My question is…

Where to do move the ‘spare’ money to as there is one bank he has at least double the protection currently offered.
We are talking of at least £90,000

I know we could put a little here and a little there in his other accounts that are under the £85,000 but there is still going to be around this sum residue.

FEEDBACK PLEASE on banks, building societies etc that he could put his money in, where it is protected by the FSCS scheme…

We understand savings are pretty much zero at present, but as long as it is safe that is his primary concern.

He is 90 years old and does not want to invest in any long term products (bonds, etc)

He just wants an instant access type account.

He is already with:

Halifax, Post Office, Nat West, Nationwide

He would prefer a high street type bank where he can walk in and not online (he is suspicious of internet banking.)
We do have a Lloyds bank & an HSBC in our local town and I think there is also branches of:

Barclays, Cheltenham & Gloucester.

There is also a Santander, but he closed all his accounts with them for some reason and refuses to go back.

I guess my question is, which of the above choices might be best for him and would he get any interest at all on any of their accounts at present. (But must be Instant Access as I say.)

Thanks for any input.

NottinghamKnight

Seems a bit crazy wanting instant access for £300k. Premium bonds would seem a no brainer for £50k, rate is near unbeatable currently and full deposit protection. If he wants to remain in a limited rnage of bank then it's quite quick to review their limited instant access products, all paying nearly zero, and spread them about inside the fscs limit. C & G is part of Lloyds though.

whitesmith

I am not really sure what you are asking, but if it is where I can open another account or two to put the 'overflow' money then the answer is take your pick - they are all covered up to £85k per institution. Any building society will do, or Lloyds, TSB, Barclays - etc etc.

Or, you could open a NS&I Direct Saver and put the lot in there as you are covered for the whole £300k in one go.

colsten

Checker for what counts as a financial institution: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/safe-savings/

Comparison site for interest rates: https://moneyfacts.co.uk/

colsten

SusanSpain said:

OK – I have recently been able to have access to my father’s financial affairs as I have become his full time carer.

Being a full-time carer for someone doesn't give you the right to handle their financial affairs. For that, you need to have Power Of Attorney. Although one or two banks will also allow 'third party access' without a POA.

Zanderman

whitesmith said:

I am not really sure what you are asking, but if it is where I can open another account or two to put the 'overflow' money then the answer is take your pick - they are all covered up to £85k per institution. Any building society will do, or Lloyds, TSB, Barclays - etc etc.

Or, you could open a NS&I Direct Saver and put the lot in there as you are covered for the whole £300k in one go.

Agree completely with Whitesmith - including being not sure what you're asking because any bank or building society will do.
Just choose one or two he's not already with.  It's very easy.
You will, as Colsten says above, need PoA to open new accounts in his name. But you may have that already?  Or he may be doing this himself (as you do say he wants to be able to go to branch) in which case no PoA needed, though it would still be worthwhile getting.

xylophone

If he really wants current accounts for the £90,000  then he could simply open a current account with Lloyds and one with HSBC?

If he opened the Club Lloyds  account and put a couple of DDs on it, he would earn a little interest up to £5000 and be eligible for a "lifestyle benefit".

The HSBC account would give him access to the 2.95% regular saver.

steampowered

It is important to have a healthy attitude to risk. Don't search for zero risk- it's impossible. Inflation is eroding his capital each year, for example.

It isn't really practical to get FSCS protection for that type of amount, and it is also a bit meaningless - noone's ever had to rely on FSCS protection, even during a recession triggered by banks collapsing.

If this money is intended to be saved for the long term, I would suggest building stocks and shares.  Over the long term that presents a lower risk to capital over the long term than savings accounts - where inflation is eroding capital each year.

NottinghamKnight

colsten said:

SusanSpain said:

OK – I have recently been able to have access to my father’s financial affairs as I have become his full time carer.

Being a full-time carer for someone doesn't give you the right to handle their financial affairs. For that, you need to have Power Of Attorney. Although one or two banks will also allow 'third party access' without a POA.

Which banks allow access without PoA just curious.

NottinghamKnight

OP have you discussed with your father what his wishes aer for the money? 

badger09

steampowered said:

It is important to have a healthy attitude to risk. Don't search for zero risk- it's impossible. Inflation is eroding his capital each year, for example.

It isn't really practical to get FSCS protection for that type of amount, and it is also a bit meaningless - noone's ever had to rely on FSCS protection, even during a recession triggered by banks collapsing.

If this money is intended to be saved for the long term, I would suggest building stocks and shares.  Over the long term that presents a lower risk to capital over the long term than savings accounts - where inflation is eroding capital each year.

How much 'long term' do you think OP's 90 year old father has?