Beware Atom Instant Saver Reward!

slinger2

kdzkdz said:

Ok, so if my account was opened on the 29th of November and three months later I decide to close the account on the 1st of February. Then according to some previous posts I would only be paid the reduced 3.25% on the two final days.  But in order to achieve this I would have to close the account?

I think its really important to clarify this. 

I suppose you could reduce the account to £1 (if that's possible) for February and then put money back in March when you'd be getting the higher rate again.

liger

Is interest on this account calculated daily?  I think if you want to make a withdrawal but avoid the lower interest rate you could withdrawal everything after the monthly interest has been paided in and then wait a full month before adding it back when the higher rate will kick in again.

slinger2

Personally all this complicated stuff puts it in the "wouldn't touch with a bargepole" category for me.

jaypers

In the past I’ve really liked Atom. I like the app and everything about how their setup works. This particular account tough….I did look at it but there are many things that just put me off. Perhaps 1 withdrawal a month being allowed might have been a better approach. 

Arthur_Sleep

slinger2 said:

Personally all this complicated stuff puts it in the "wouldn't touch with a bargepole" category for me.

Why? It's a reward account with instant access and a preferential rate that's pretty decent in the market (better than some notice accounts), so of course there are going to be some strings attached - but it's hardly that complicated. For those that only want to make occasional withdrawals it's an attractive option that's probably better than the accounts that only allow a few withdrawals per year.  Anyone wanting to make regular withdrawals should look elsewhere, but then this account really isn't intended for them anyway.

Magandang_Buhay

Hello,

As I understand it, if you made a withdrawal, you'd get the lower rate *for that whole month*. So how would that affect the overall interest rate?

By my calculations, 11 months at the higher rate (4.75% currently) and 1 month at the withdrawal rate (3.19%) would equate to an annual rate of 4.62%.

((4.75% / 12) *11 months)+((3.19% / 12) *1 month)

If my maths is wrong, I apologise and will happily stand corrected.

masonic

Magandang_Buhay said:

Hello,

As I understand it, if you made a withdrawal, you'd get the lower rate *for that whole month*. So how would that affect the overall interest rate?

By my calculations, 11 months at the higher rate (4.75% currently) and 1 month at the withdrawal rate (3.19%) would equate to an annual rate of 4.62%.

((4.75% / 12) *11 months)+((3.19% / 12) *1 month)

If my maths is wrong, I apologise and will happily stand corrected.

If you were to withdraw all but £1 at the beginning of the month, and then put it back at the beginning of the next month when the interest rate returns to normal, then the effect on the rate would be negligible.

Kazza242

Magandang_Buhay said:

Hello,

As I understand it, if you made a withdrawal, you'd get the lower rate *for that whole month*. So how would that affect the overall interest rate?

By my calculations, 11 months at the higher rate (4.75% currently) and 1 month at the withdrawal rate (3.19%) would equate to an annual rate of 4.62%.

((4.75% / 12) *11 months)+((3.19% / 12) *1 month)

If my maths is wrong, I apologise and will happily stand corrected.

The best thing to do is wait until your Atom Instant Saver Reward monthly interest has been paid and then withdraw all but £1 from the account. 

The interest is paid on the monthly anniversary of account opening.  So, if you opened your account on the 15th December, then your interest would be paid on the 15th of January and the 15th of each month thereafter.  

If your interest was paid on the 15th January and on that day you withdrew all funds except £1.  Keep the surplus money in another account earning interest elsewhere and don't re-deposit it into your Atom Instant Saver Reward account until your next monthly interest period commences, which would be the 15th February in this example.  

Treellen

Hi. I'm thinking of opening a savings account with either Atom or Close Brothers. Having read some of the helpful comments I wondered if anyone on the forum has experience of Atom since the last post in December? 

refluxer

Treellen said:

Hi. I'm thinking of opening a savings account with either Atom or Close Brothers. Having read some of the helpful comments I wondered if anyone on the forum has experience of Atom since the last post in December? 

I've had a number of different easy access and fixed rate accounts with Atom in recent years and not had a single issue. Payments in and out of their accounts are instant and their banking app is slick and easy to use.

If you're thinking about opening the Instant Saver Reward account then I would just treat it a bit like a limited access savings account, because you'll want to really minimise withdrawals due to the rate hit you take in any month you take cash out. If you're likely to need to withdraw cash regularly, then there are better easy access options elsewhere.