Virgin ISA 1 year fix - where do i stand transferring in?

gele

Hello - a bit of advice please.
I have seen that Virgin are offering a 1 yr fixed Isa at 4.25% if you are a current account holder which I am.
I am in the process of transferring an ISA from one building society to another one I have set up at the Coventry at a better rate [3.65%]
The original ISA is still within its notice period but should transfer to Coventry on 26th Jan.
The Coventry one is a 1 yr fix so when the old money goes into it, it'll be too late to move I presume.
My question is, is it too close to the end of the notice period to try to stop it now and get it transferred in to Virgin if i opened one now?
Also if so, am I right in thinking that if I've only transferred in and not paid in this tax year I could still open the Virgin one for any new monies?
Thanks

gele

Also am I right in thinking 4.25% ISA is equivalent to over 5% in a normal savings account [although fixed] ?
If so I have some cash is lower interest rate savings that I could transfer in even if it was too late to faff with the Coventry situation.

refluxer

I would imagine your best option at this stage is to try and cancel the transfer before it takes place by phoning the Coventry ASAP.

If it is too late to cancel the transfer for some reason, then Coventry's Fixed Rate ISA product pages do mention a 14 day 'cancellation period' so I would read the T&Cs to find out whether this starts on your application date or the date the Coventry account is opened and funds transferred. If it's the latter then, even if the transfer takes place, you may still have an option to close the account within the cancellation period, have the funds returned to the original building society and then open an ISA with Virgin instead.

Just obviously be careful about closing any accounts prematurely yourself online as you don't want to risk losing the ISA wrapper - I would probably play it safe and deal with this by phoning the Coventry and telling them you've changed your mind.

gele

Thanks.
 The ISA with Coventry is open and awaiting the money from the original ISA but I havent paid anything else in so thats ok. 
Presumably the original ISA once out of its notice period will stay within an ISA wrapper but in an easy access. That is with Teachers building society and I could do with checking but cant contact them til Monday.

refluxer

gele said:

Also am I right in thinking 4.25% ISA is equivalent to over 5% in a normal savings account [although fixed] ?
If so I have some cash is lower interest rate savings that I could transfer in even if it was too late to faff with the Coventry situation.

Yes, an ISA paying 4.25% is equivalent to a normal fixed rate account paying roughly 5.31% if you're expecting to pay 20% on your savings. You'd only be able to open the Virgin ISA and pay a contribution from your 2022-2023 ISA allowance into it if you haven't paid any 'new money' (from this year's allowance) into another cash ISA during the current tax year.

Make sure you're familiar with the Personal Savings Allowance and (if you're on a low income) the Savings Starter Rate to make sure you definitely will be paying tax on your savings interest.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/personal-savings-allowance/

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/tax-free-savings/

gele

Thanks again. I wouldn't have been anywhere near paying tax had it not been for the increase in interest rates over the last 4 months and me, for once, being a bit more 'on the ball'!  Ive opened 3 or 4 new better paying accounts and switched money from lower paying accounts so I do need to keep an eye on it now and at 4.25% I thought its as good as a regular fix anyway without the worry. I think i will open the Virgin anyway and speak to Teachers and Coventry on Monday and take it from there. 

refluxer

gele said:

Presumably the original ISA once out of its notice period will stay within an ISA wrapper but in an easy access. That is with Teachers building society and I could do with checking but cant contact them til Monday.

Yes, defaulting to an easy access / 'maturity' account is common when a Fixed Rate ISA matures, however there are a few banks and building societies who will automatically re-invest the funds in an equivalent Fixed Rate product instead (if they don't hear from you) so you would need to make sure that the Teachers BS isn't one of those. I would check the T&Cs for that specific account ASAP because that might complicate matters if the funds were returned to the Teachers and they didn't receive the transfer request from Virgin in time.

Be aware that there have been a number of threads on this forum highlighting Virgin's poor customer service as well as their poor track record for easy and timely ISA transfers (even internal transfers !)

Eg. https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6401740/virgin-money-cash-isa-transfer/p1

gele

The Teachers is a 30 notice account but I do need to know where it will end up if it stays there and doesn't move to Coventry.  Maybe Virgins poor record on timely transfers is another reason to let Teachers go to Coventry and just open Virgin for new money [of which unfortunately there wont be much as I've tied up already most of what I was prepared to tie up.] Still have some easy access money for emergencies.
Yes I cant say I'm a fan on Virgin. Current account and linked saver works fine. Its if you need to contact them! It was the interest rate that caught my eye and possibly blurred my vision. I've a couple of days to think about it. Thanks for all your help.

refluxer

Sorry, i just spotted it's a notice ISA you've got so the comments about what can happen when a fixed rate ISA matures that I made earlier won't actually apply to you. I've never had a notice ISA so I'm not sure how they operate.

One thing I have noticed is this thread which mentions some problems that could arise if you're thinking about using the Coventry's 14 day cancellation period and the originating Teachers ISA has been closed, so just be aware going down this route could be risky and I'm not sure I'd want to rely on Virgin to act quickly and get you out of a hole, should the Teachers ISA not be available to recieve the funds back...

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6419110/fixed-isa-cancellation-within-14-day#latest

gele

Hi Refluxer,  I have decided that I am going to let the transfer from Teachers to Coventry proceed and save myself any unwanted hassle. The Coventry rate is 3.65% til 30th November. I can live with that. I am still tempted to open a Virgin ISA at 4.25% if only because I have a regular saver about to mature in early Feb so have something to fund it with. I notice that the Virgin iSA states it can be funded within 30 days of product withdrawal so that wont be an issue. Plus their easy Isa at 3% was a market leader for a long time and is still open so maybe this one may be available for a little while yet.