Plum Cash ISA

drjohn67

Might be worth flagging up the terms for the cash ISA. 

I understood that I would need to retain for 12 months to get the bonus interest.

At12 months I was told that the bonus would arrive at the end of the month.
that has passed - no bonus.

I contacted again and was told “at the end of the following month”.

However, if wanting to transfer / withdraw AFTER the 12 month point , but before receiving the interest, means losing the last month of interest (even if waiting until the end of that calendar month) and the losing all of the annual bonus.

So the “must keep open for 12 months to get an annual bonus” is in my case must keep open for 12 months plus another 8 weeks during which you receive the less attractive rate. 

I might be less concerned if it turned out to be 12 full calendar months but stretching it to a few days short of 14 months does not seem to be reasonable. 

masonic

If you transfer out at the start of the 13th month then all you should lose is the interest for the days the transfer is in progress. However, you'll need to wait for it to be credited a month later.

drjohn67

I am 13+ months in and have just been told by them that if I don’t keep the ISA until the end of this month then I will lose last months interest and lose the annual bonus 

masonic

Perhaps it is time to quote T&Cs at them, or even their own help pages, because that contradicts what they say. Others have been able to withdraw without penalty. Some have opted to leave £100 to meet minimum balance, but that shouldn't be necessary.

drjohn67

Thanks - I went back to them and pushed the issue - they initially stated that I needed to keep £100 in - but now they seem to have given in and will add the remaining interest to the ISA account after I have transferred the original deposit out to my new provider. Awkward process compared to the other ISAs that I have had over the years. 

In future for me a ‘fixed’ seems to be less awkward than a ‘bonus if you stay’. 

tastyfish

Thanks for sharing this, worth knowing as I was about to sign up for a Plum Cash ISA. However, if I transfer in an existing ISA AND I am a new customer do I get the bonus rate? It's not clear on their website as it only refers to rates if you meet one of those scenarios but not both.
ie New customers - get bonus rate
Transfer in an existing ISA - no bonus rate (assuming this is for existing customers but it doesn't say)
But new customer AND transfer in?

Middle_of_the_Road

All transfers in get the lower rate.