NatWest investments team APS ISA transfer from an external S&S provider

pjs493

dunstonh said:

Cost is just one bit (as mentioned above). Plus, yours wasn't personalised or had a personal service, whereas he did. In scenarios like this, you are finding the non-personalised service to be rubbish, whereas a personalised service would have sorted it.

To be fair, this the first time I’ve ran into issues and as I don’t plan to remarry and don’t envisage encountering the same issue again I see this as an isolated incident. 

My husband spent thousands over a period where I paid less than £100. 

My investments always performed better than his, even though he had someone actively managing his affairs for him. 

If my circumstances change in the future I may go for a more personalised service. Also, once I have a bit more capacity I will explore other options than just sticking with my main high street bank. I just don’t have the capacity at the moment having lost my husband unexpectedly and with two young children. At the moment I’m just trying to focus on winding up his estate. 

pjs493

xylophone said:

I’ve not transferred any of the money into the Cash ISA because I’ve already hit the £20k ISA limit for this tax year so I need the APS allowance before I can add my late husband’s money. 

The difficulties being placed in your way are hard to understand - Natwest is perfectly well aware  that the APS is an allowance

https://supportcentre.natwest.com/Searchable/913257282/What-is-the-ISA-inheritance-allowance.htm

What is the ISA inheritance allowance?

From 6th April 2015, a bereaved spouse or civil partner of anyone who died from 3rd December 2014 onwards, can apply to receive an additional ISA allowance up to the value of the deceased's ISA savings at the time of death. This is called Additional Permitted Subscription (APS).

Please note: this is not inheriting the actual money in the ISA. It is inheriting an allowance equal to the balance (including all interest) on the date of death.

Instructions to ISA managers here

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/manage-additional-permitted-subscriptions-into-an-isa

Has the old manager provided you or Natwest with an APS eligibility declaration? Could this be the source of the problem?

As I understand it, the issue lies with the fact that NatWest have a number of investment departments, none of which talk to each other and when I call on the phone I just get a customer service rep with little knowledge. Even the manager I spoke to yesterday had no clue what he was talking about and contradicted information I’d previously been given by his colleagues both over the phone and in writing. 

I believe my husband’s financial advisor/Aviva are waiting for NatWest to request the information. I’ve filled in the relevant forms that Aviva needed some time last year, and even before Probate was granted they were waiting for NatWest to do things from their side. So far, NatWest haven’t been in touch with Aviva as I understand it. NatWest don’t seem to have a clue what they’re doing. I was supposed to have a call from the complaints department yesterday and I’ve still not heard for them less than an hour before close of business today. So yet another complaint that’s been ignored. 

dunstonh

My husband spent thousands over a period where I paid less than £100. 

I am not saying his was optimal (he does seem expensive - such as charging you for taking over the investments - normally that is nil cost with most advisers).   However, Natwest is not optimal either.         I think you are looking at two weak options and you should either consider an IFA or DIY elsewhere.

My investments always performed better than his, even though he had someone actively managing his affairs for him. 

Possibly down to different risk levels.  The last one I took over from Coutts was underperforming relative to what we were using at the same risk level.   Even if you stick with DIY you can do better on the DIY front.

pjs493

dunstonh said:

My husband spent thousands over a period where I paid less than £100. 

I am not saying his was optimal (he does seem expensive - such as charging you for taking over the investments - normally that is nil cost with most advisers).   However, Natwest is not optimal either.         I think you are looking at two weak options and you should either consider an IFA or DIY elsewhere.

My investments always performed better than his, even though he had someone actively managing his affairs for him. 

Possibly down to different risk levels.  The last one I took over from Coutts was underperforming relative to what we were using at the same risk level.   Even if you stick with DIY you can do better on the DIY front.

It’s something I can look into in the future but I just don’t have the capacity right now.