Alternatives to Vanguard Lifestrategy S&S ISA?

Gerbert

I have a cash ISA of around £60K which will soon be getting interest of 0.1% pa, so am planning to transfer it into a Stock & Shares ISA despite the apparently widespread belief that the markets are likely set for a significant correction in the near future.  I do not anticipate having to access the money any time soon (certainly not within 5 years. probably not within 10 years, possibly never).

I have no interest in investment at all and would prefer to just 'file and forget'.  I had thought I would set up a low-cost online ISA with Vanguard, probably VLS 60, but have recently seen a number of very mediocre reviews about Vanguard's customer service.

My question is therefore: can anyone recommend a low-cost alternative to Vanguard VLS 60?  Alternatively: do other people have more positive experience with Vanguard than what I have seen reported?

(In case it makes a difference I may as well say that in a few years' time I intend to begin to drawdown from a DC pension pot into this ISA, £20K each year of course.  (I am 61 and presently living off my savings)

Thanks.

RacingDriver

The are a few different multi-asset funds, Vanguard LS just being one provider.  A good comparison can be found here https://monevator.com/passive-fund-of-funds-the-rivals.

You can also hold Vanguard LS on a platform other than Vanguard Investor (and therefore would be dealing with a different providers customer service team).  However the Vanguard Investor platform is usually cheaper for small-medium investments, but you can compare here https://monevator.com/compare-uk-cheapest-online-brokers.  As your S&S ISA gets bigger you may find that a fixed fee platform rather than percentage fee works out cheaper anyway.

I use Vanguard Investor and my experience has been mainly positive, I did a few ISA transfers and one did take quite a while to complete but I think you will find issues like this with any provider.  Standard buy/sell transactions can all be carried out online without needing to deal with customer service.

FaceHead

My experience of vanguard's customer server was that it wasn't necessary. 

I transferred my ISA over, held it there for five or so years and cashed it out when needed. Everything seemed to work just fine, and customer service was irrelevant, which is how things should be. 

Albermarle

Best to think clearly that there are two separate issues as explained by Racing Driver. The fund and the platform you hold the fund on.

VLS 60 is a low cost multi asset investment fund , There are a number of broadly similar competitors.
VLS and the others are all available on so called 'all of market ' investment platforms .
The fees for the multi asset funds are the same whichever platform you hold them on , but the platforms have their own charging structures, which are different for each one  

Vanguard Investor is an investment platform that only offers Vanguard funds . If you want to hold VLS60 on this platform the platform charges are competitive for the sum you mention . However if  you decide instead to invest in a competitor of VLS60, or are not confident in the Vanguard platform , then  you will have to use a different platform.

Gerbert

Thanks for your replies.  Yes, the distinction between fund and platform is one I should have made more of myself.  Looking at the options for the latter and given my current "file and forget" attitude, it looks as though iWeb might be best: just one upfront payment at the start.  If in a few years I wan to do anything more creative which might be more expensive on iWeb, I can always move it over to a different platform.

Thanks again.

ranciduk

I was pretty much in the same boat as you

i did go with the LS60 - with vanguard

never had to contact customer services as I’ve never had any issues or problems so far

Everything running smooth 

Thrugelmir

Possible to achieve higher rates on savings than 0.1%.  

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/savings-accounts-best-interest/

Stock markets are volatile places to invest. Why the sudden desire to do so in the midsts of a global pandemic.  File and forget is not advisable when it comes to investments. Why not recycle some of your cash savings into your DC pot.  At least you'd gain from the tax relief. 

[Deleted User]

I've used Vanguard for years and never had any problems with customer service. As others have mentioned, you don't usually need to use their customer service in the first place as it's all quite straightforward, but I did ask them to fix a small mistake I made once when investing and they did it without any problems.

MX5huggy

Thrugelmir said:
File and forget is not advisable when it comes to investments.

File and forget is a recognised strategy “the best investors are dead investors” ie the ones that did nothing. 

[Deleted User]

Thrugelmir said:

Possible to achieve higher rates on savings than 0.1%.  

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/savings-accounts-best-interest/

Stock markets are volatile places to invest. Why the sudden desire to do so in the midsts of a global pandemic.  File and forget is not advisable when it comes to investments. Why not recycle some of your cash savings into your DC pot.  At least you'd gain from the tax relief. 

The OP is proposing to invest in a blended 60-40 fund rather than just stocks. It doesn't matter if we're in the midst of a pandemic, it's quite likely in the scenario they describe of not intending to touch the money for a decade or more that this will give better returns than a savings account (where even the best rates are currently substantially below inflation).

Holding off investing because markets are volatile, "about to crash", or any other random reason that people come up with has historically been an extremely misguided strategy. Markets tend to rise in the long run and guessing whether today, next week or next year is going to be the perfect time to buy is essentially a gamble with the odds stacked against you for that reason.

Thrugelmir

MX5huggy said:

Thrugelmir said:
File and forget is not advisable when it comes to investments.

File and forget is a recognised strategy “the best investors are dead investors” ie the ones that did nothing. 

Enlightment me further.  What is the strategy ? Which markets should I invest in and never ever touch.