Concerns re Plums lack of transparency

wackie

I opened an account with Plum on the 6th of April using the app.

I wanted to transfer £20,000 for 2024-2025 cash ISA and had to do this in blocks of £5000 from my Chase account.

This money has only just been taken from my Chase account (12Apr), but it doesn’t show in my Plum account and when I contact them they said it takes at least four working days, which is very convenient because today is Friday. So, in effect it means that my 20,000 is lost in the ether somewhere for at least six days and I’m not earning any interest on it. Also, by default, because I didn’t agree to it, I have signed up to their “brain” savings scheme and quite autonomously they deducted what they considered I should be saving and put it into some spurious account in their app.

I’m not happy with this company at all and as soon as my money is in my Plum account I intend to close it:: everything at the moment is just pending, pending. My concern is that I will be taking out my £20,000 ISA cash to start again: am I contravening HMRC rules or do I have a cooling off period

masonic

How were the payments processed (e.g. direct debit / debit card etc)?

shmike

You can transfer isas as many times as you like

GrubbyGirl_2

You need to transfer it not "take it out" as you state

Ayr_Rage

I am pretty sure if you close the ISA in the cooling off period then as far as HMRC are concerned then that subscription never happened and you can put that money into another ISA without issue.

https://moneyfactscompare.co.uk/loans/guides/cooling-off-periods-explained/#:~:text=Cash ISAs: When you open,cancel your stocks & shares ISA.

You need to read Plum's Ts and CS.

eskbanker

wackie said:

This money has only just been taken from my Chase account (12Apr), but it doesn’t show in my Plum account and when I contact them they said it takes at least four working days, which is very convenient because today is Friday. 

[...]

I’m not happy with this company at all and as soon as my money is in my Plum account I intend to close it:: everything at the moment is just pending, pending.

The four business day cycle (for DD deposits) is documented on their website:

Cash ISA - Deposit Timeframes

It's important to understand that Cash ISA transactions are not instant. The deposit process takes 1 business day to be completed, if done via instant deposit. This delay happens because we need to send the money to our Cash ISA partner (Citibank) and kickstart the process of earning interest.  

• If you have selected to invest money from your Primary Pocket, the money should be transferred instantly to our interest provider and the deposit process should begin immediately.

• If you have selected to invest money from your bank account through the Direct Debit method, the money should take 4 business days to reach Plum. Then, the money will be transferred instantly to our interest provider and the deposit process should begin immediately.

• If you have selected to invest money from your bank account through the Instant Deposit method, the money should reach Plum at the same time. Then, the money will be transferred instantly to our interest provider and the deposit process should begin immediately.

https://help.withplum.com/en/articles/8999048-deposit-to-cash-isa

PlatinumChaos

wackie said:

Also, by default, because I didn’t agree to it, I have signed up to their “brain” savings scheme and quite autonomously they deducted what they considered I should be saving and put it into some spurious account in their app.

I also opened an ISA account with Plum via their app last week (fortunately, I only paid in the minimum £100) and intend to use the cooling off period to close it again as per their Ts&Cs: "If you are not happy with your choice of account within 14 days of making your first deposit, you can close your account and you will not lose your right to invest in another Cash ISA for that tax year. If you would like to take advantage of this 14 day rule, you must contact Plum Customer Service. When you close your account, we will make sure our reports to HM Revenue & Customs reflect the correct position. If you do cancel your account, the full amount of your investment, excluding any interest earned, will be returned to you."

I was clear in my mind from the outset that I only wanted to use their ISA offering, but the trouble with their app is that it also includes all their other offerings, so you just get so much background noise, including the "brain" savings function that you mention. I also dislike the way the app says "Get set up... 3 of 5 complete", which gives the impression that you haven't completed all the necessary steps, whereas the remaining two steps are just the optional brain and Plum Interest offerings, neither of which I'm bothered about. I think I'll opt instead for a more traditional ISA product with a slightly lower interest rate that just does what it says on the tin.

Canny_mal

I ended up aborting an application to open a Plum ISA because I didn't like the terms of how the interest was going to be paid. I can't remember the exact figures but only a proportion of the headline 5.16% was going to be paid monthly then then rest would be added 'at the end of the year'. This left me feeling uneasy because it wasn't clear if I opted to transfer away before I'd been with them a year whether I'd get the full 5.16% or just a proportion of it.

Did anyone else notice this or have I misunderstood the T&Cs?

masonic

Canny_mal said:

I ended up aborting an application to open a Plum ISA because I didn't like the terms of how the interest was going to be paid. I can't remember the exact figures but only a proportion of the headline 5.16% was going to be paid monthly then then rest would be added 'at the end of the year'. This left me feeling uneasy because it wasn't clear if I opted to transfer away before I'd been with them a year whether I'd get the full 5.16% or just a proportion of it.

Did anyone else notice this or have I misunderstood the T&Cs?

I haven't looked at the T&Cs but the asterisked part below suggests you won't get the full rate if you close within 12 months. The bonus is 0.88%.

The Summary Box section (specifically What is the Plum Cash ISA interest rate?) goes into more detail about the bonus being paid at the end of the 12 months if the conditions have been met (maintain at least £100 balance throughout the 12 months and make no more than 3 withdrawals).

[Deleted User]

I understand if you specifically tell them to close it in 14 days the subscription won’t count but may be easier to transfer either option should be fine - just don’t withdraw the money yourself as it’s not flexible 

wackie

My understanding exactly: you don’t get the bonus percentage on the ISA interest unless you hold the ISA for the full term. You also don’t get any interest at all until the account is closed or has served the full term.
also, bearing in mind that this is a variable rate, so probably within the next couple of months it’ll take a nosedive.
I think the same conditions applied to the Moneybox ISA, in as much as you have to hold it for the full year to get the bonus interest