The Top Regular Savers Discussion Thread

surreysaver

Nick_C said:

Personally, I ensure that my taxable interest from savings is always just below £1k.  I am losing out on some potential income, but it is worth it to avoid the hassle of dealing with HMRC, whose systems and processes (and many of their staff) are not fit for purpose. 

They could still get it wrong though, and charge you tax if they get their sums wrong, or are fed with wrong information.
And the limit is £500 for higher rate tax payers 

Kim_13

nomorekids said:

friolento said:

Theleak250 said:

So the conclusion is if you are a higher rate tax payer the savers are not much worth it??

Any account that pays, after any tax, more interest than another one, is much worth it for me as an HR tax payer.

exactly this, just adjust the spreadsheet to net once the PSA is blown, or rather nearly blown in our case, with this in mind, I'm late to the close and reopen to following tax year "renew" party is there a list of easily renewable regular savers? Looking to renew Santander 5%, Progressive 5.5% and Co op 7% for sure and wish I could for TSB, Cambridge and Market Harborough but the latter two are fixed no withdrawals and I expect TSB is like Halifax and only one per year. 

Cambridge can be closed with the payment of a 90 day interest penalty, which might make it advantageous for a HR taxpayer. You lose circa 25% of the interest instead of 40% in tax and get another year’s fixed rate open while available. You’d have to factor in the penalty interest still being reported as earned though, and if the PSA would be blown year after year then maybe it doesn’t make sense.

masonic

Nick_C said:

Personally, I ensure that my taxable interest from savings is always just below £1k.  I am losing out on some potential income, but it is worth it to avoid the hassle of dealing with HMRC, whose systems and processes (and many of their staff) are not fit for purpose. 

The only reason you'd need to have any contact with HMRC is if they got things wrong. Banks and building societies send interest figures to them and they collate them. If a mistake is made, it's far more likely it would be due to an account not being reported, resulting in HMRC underestimating tax due. There is unlikely to be any back and forth if you are declaring more income than they believe you've earned. A simple letter outlining a breakdown of interest from each account would suffice for an underpayment situation.

Turning down income entirely, to avoid giving a slice of it to HMRC, isn't very MSE.

surreysaver

I would prefer it if HMRC actually provided a breakdown of what information they've received from whom. It's probably not so bad for people who've only one or two accounts, but for those of us on here who have accounts into the hundreds, many of which may produce interest of only pennies, is impossible for us to reconcile where only one figure is produced from HMRC

subjecttocontract

I keep detailed records of interest payments for the many accounts I have and update throughout the year. I accept that there may be small errors on my part or on the part of HMRC. So, when I calculate my tax bill due at the end of the year I allow for a small difference between mine and HMRC figures and just accept it. I just don't see it worth my effort for what is to me sometimes a small amount. Not very MSE, I know, others will want it correct to the last penny, I'm not to bothered.

allegro120

nomorekids said:

friolento said:

Theleak250 said:

So the conclusion is if you are a higher rate tax payer the savers are not much worth it??

Any account that pays, after any tax, more interest than another one, is much worth it for me as an HR tax payer.

exactly this, just adjust the spreadsheet to net once the PSA is blown, or rather nearly blown in our case, with this in mind, I'm late to the close and reopen to following tax year "renew" party is there a list of easily renewable regular savers? Looking to renew Santander 5%, Progressive 5.5% and Co op 7% for sure and wish I could for TSB, Cambridge and Market Harborough but the latter two are fixed no withdrawals and I expect TSB is like Halifax and only one per year. 

Santander.  If you have standing order set up your account will renew automatically.
Progressive. Very easy to renew in my experience.
Co-op.  It takes a couple of days to renew, but worth it for 7%.
TSB allows unlimited withdrawals.

Hattie627

I have to do a self-assessment return every year due to receiving rental income. I keep a detailed record of all income received, including (obviously) bank/building society interest paid on approximately 35 accounts (the number of accounts does vary). I enter details of interest in my records as the income is paid/credited throughout the tax year. This makes it much easier at the end of the tax year when preparing my return as I don't have to wade through dozens of online accounts to check the details. The total figure for untaxed interest which I have received in the tax year goes into the automatic tax calculation produced at the end of the online self-assessment return process. I have not (so far) had the figure challenged by HMRC. As someone has pointed out, I would expect that HMRC's own figure from reported interest paid to me given to them by banks etc is probably lower. I keep meticulous records, so I would be able to defend myself against any challenge on the basis that my own figure is under-declared. In a way, I am quite glad that I have to do a SA return as I need to be very disciplined with my record keeping and I am confident (as far as it is ever possible to be) that my figures are correct.

csw5780

https://www.monbs.com/savings/app-exclusive-regular-saver/

Balance now showing in both the app and online access at monbs.com 👍🏻

mhoc

If your savings interest exceeds your personal savings allowance then HMRC will write to you with an adjustment of your tax code if the amount is under £3k - this is what happened to my OH last year 
I do his self assessment - its just his state and work pension and the savings interest and this year when I submitted it was just under £200 underpayment so another tax code adjustment is expected - not sure if it will be 2024 or in the new tax year.
For this small amount of mither I dont think its worth keeping your savings interest strictly under the £1000 limit - if you are a higher rate tax payer though its an entirely other ball game.

I suppose really it all depends on how much effort regular savers take and if you feel its worth the bother for you and your lifestyle- the easiest thing would be just to have an easy access ISA, plus a few one year and 2 year bonds that mature in another tax year and the rest in premium bonds and then not have to worry about maturity dates, interest rates, HMRC etc

masonic

mhoc said:

If your savings interest exceeds your personal savings allowance then HMRC will write to you with an adjustment of your tax code if the amount is under £3k - this is what happened to my OH last year 
I do his self assessment - its just his state and work pension and the savings interest and this year when I submitted it was just under £200 underpayment so another tax code adjustment is expected - not sure if it will be 2024 or in the new tax year.

In my case, my savings interest is above £1000, but below £3000. I submit my tax return, normally in late November/December. Pay the tax owed in January by debit card. HMRC never writes to me and I retain a "normal" tax code. No questions asked over several years, even though I know what I am declaring won't be consistent with the information HMRC received.

I'm lucky to have been left on self-assessment after needing to register for 1 year to claim VCT tax relief. If I was taken off self-assessment, I'd seriously consider submitting a voluntary tax return.