Zopa Boost Pots... seem a bit daft, am I missing something?

Sillychuckie

Zopa states:

1. You can create any number of boosted pots. (there appears to be no limit, as far as I can tell).
2. You can give notice on your pot, at any time (even on the same day you create it, to start the timer ticking down immediately).
3. You can even continue to pay into a boosted pot, AFTER notice has been served on it.

So... If I want the higher interest rate associated with a 'Boost95' option, but the shorter term access of a 'Boost 7', I can easily construct this myself by:

1. Each week, I create a Boost95 option and give immediate notice on it.
2. After 3 months, I'd have 12 Boost 95's open.
3. Simply move the funds which mature each week from the oldest Boost95 (once they become accessible, or convert into an instant access pot), to the penultimate Boost95 (which matures a week later).

Rinse and repeat.

Obviously I can also choose to open a new one bi-weeky instead (less hassle), and gain the higher rate, with a 2 week access period.

It makes no sense to me why anyone would open a 'Boost31' product.
Why would they not simply open a 'Boost95' product, each month (giving immediate 'notice' to withdraw)... then, after 3 months, once they are up and running, they would effectively always have a 1 month notice account, but with the interest rate of a 95 day notice account. This would only require 3 pots to be run along side each other ad-infinitum, to get the benefit.

Am I missing something here?
Thanks.

SC

soulsaver

Sillychuckie said:

Zopa states:

1. You can create any number of boosted pots. (there appears to be no limit, as far as I can tell).
2. You can give notice on your pot, at any time (even on the same day you create it, to start the timer ticking down immediately).
3. You can even continue to pay into a boosted pot, AFTER notice has been served on it.

 Zopa states this? Got a link?

refluxer

soulsaver said:

Sillychuckie said:

Zopa states:

1. You can create any number of boosted pots. (there appears to be no limit, as far as I can tell).
2. You can give notice on your pot, at any time (even on the same day you create it, to start the timer ticking down immediately).
3. You can even continue to pay into a boosted pot, AFTER notice has been served on it.

 Zopa states this? Got a link?

Not sure about the others, but this page address point 1... "Smart Saver offers two different ways to save, through our Boosted and Access pots. You can open as many pots of either type as you wish."

refluxer

@Sillychuckie Nice idea ! Always good to see people thinking outside the box. I can't see anything fundamentally wrong with what you're suggesting - I guess the reason why some may not want to do that is due to that initial 3 month wait or the hassle that comes along with it, for only a fairly modest gain.

There's also a chance Zopa may pick up on it and flag it as abuse/playing the system, even if it isn't technically against the T&Cs.

As Zopa's notice rates aren't particularly competitive at the moment, I think it would make more sense achieve the same thing with different providers who are currently paying higher rates. Admittedly this would be a bit more hassle, but you'd be able to open the best 90 day notice account available each month and potentially get a bigger return than sticking with the one provider.

jimexbox

I opened a boost 31 middle of July and give notice immediately,. As expect a 0.5 interest rate rise next week.

Zopa do increase rates on existing accounts, but locking away money for longer leaves you zero options. 

k_man

This is what my digging and testing discussion was related to here:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/79331220/#Comment_79331220

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/79331557/#Comment_79331557

The downside is the initial wait.
And if lots do this, Zopa may change the rules.

MisterMotivated

Good in theory, though (I assume; I haven't looked into it in depth) it would still mean you'd only be able to access 1/12 of your money each week as it matures.  If you needed to access all your money, you'd still have to wait 3 months until the most recently refreshed pot had waited out the notice period.

Sillychuckie

soulsaver said:

Sillychuckie said:

Zopa states:

1. You can create any number of boosted pots. (there appears to be no limit, as far as I can tell).
2. You can give notice on your pot, at any time (even on the same day you create it, to start the timer ticking down immediately).
3. You can even continue to pay into a boosted pot, AFTER notice has been served on it.

 Zopa states this? Got a link?

I'm summarising - but read the terms and conditions of the account and the info on how it works, and you'll find my summary is accurate.

Sillychuckie

MisterMotivated said:

Good in theory, though (I assume; I haven't looked into it in depth) it would still mean you'd only be able to access 1/12 of your money each week as it matures.  If you needed to access all your money, you'd still have to wait 3 months until the most recently refreshed pot had waited out the notice period.

You have not understood the proposal. You would in fact have access to your full pot of funds, each week.
When you open one of these pots, you do so with £0 (or £1 if forced).
You move your full balance each time it matures, into the pot which matures only a week later.
i.e. If the pot runs for 3 months, it has no money (or £1 only) in it, for all but the last week of its term.
You just repeat this, over and over.

I probably wouldn't bother doing it weekly, but doing it every 2-4 weeks would be very manageable. 

Sillychuckie

refluxer said:

@Sillychuckie Nice idea ! ... I guess the reason why some may not want to do that is due to that initial 3 month wait or the hassle that comes along with it, for only a fairly modest gain.

I agree, there would be a 3 month 'setup time' before the machine is in full swing.
If you opted to do it monthly, then really, it is no more hassle than actually just using their 'Boost30' monthly product. i.e. It requires a single login, once per month.

I want ready access to my funds, and can push my rate from 1.5% to 1.85% (at time of writing) - so if nobody is aware of any issue with it, I'll give it a go and let you know how I get on.

Thanks all for the constructive replies.

Sillychuckie

refluxer said:

@Sillychuckie
As Zopa's notice rates aren't particularly competitive at the moment, I think it would make more sense achieve the same thing with different providers who are currently paying higher rates. Admittedly this would be a bit more hassle, but you'd be able to open the best 90 day notice account available each month and potentially get a bigger return than sticking with the one provider.

Well, this is about retaining almost instant access (or close to it...) and reducing the effective notice period, whilst retaining the high rate. 
I suppose it could be achieved with another provider, by effectively 'giving them notice' each week (on your full pot), but then choosing not to act on that notice, and then repeating this exercise weekly. (but I highly doubt anywhere would let you do that).
I certainly wouldn't want to be trying to create new accounts at the rate I'm looking to create new 'Booster pots'.

I agree though, if I was genuinely happy with 90 days notice, then I'd look at alternatives (e.g. Investec @ 2.1%).
Perhaps for some of my other funds, I am already doing just that.

This post is purely about getting the best out of a product/service I already have easy access to.
Thanks again for your comments.


p.s. Let the experiment begin.

       I have now just created my first 95 day booster pot, with £1 in, and will diary on to do the same next week. I have named it based on the date in 95 days time, so I can easily see when it expires. "Boost95 - EXP 31-Oct-22".
p.p.s - Hah, I almost forgot... I have now also given 'Immediate notice' on it, which has given me my withdrawal date (which is the same one I calculated myself, when giving it the pot name). 

So far so good.