Savings Week

topyam

mebu60 said:

I had another email from YBS. Title was 'UK Savings Week ends soon'. I didn't read that either.

Did it even start?

masonic

Perhaps they could rename it "Savings Weak" next year.

TheWoodler

I *am* surprised at the response and sorry to see experienced posters making jokes at Savings Week’s expense. 

It’s really left a sour taste in my mouth with the expectation that top rates would be on offer, rather than savvy MSErs being behind the concept of financial education.

How many of you were aware it was Pension Awareness last week? Would you grumble about not getting a top-up to your state pension or something? I’d have thought MSErs would have been more supportive of the idea.

I don’t have any skin in the game other than having benefited from being able to use the toolkit for the group I work with, and I was very pleased to have access to it as a resource. 

Savings Week is not a perfect concept by any means and it could have done with more publicity - but as someone who knows how press releases work and that you can write all the press releases you want but (a) media outlets can ignore them and (b) they get lost in all the awareness days and weeks - I can see why it’s not got so much traction. 

On that note, I’m also part of other awareness weeks and days and newer concepts take *years* to get off the ground. Savings Week has only been going 3/4 years. 

Given the fact that a lot of people would give their eye teeth to be able to save as some people do on this forum, count your blessings that you’re both savvy enough and have enough money to benefit and take Savings Week for what it is.  

The way some people have sneered at eg YBS’ 6% £50 saver - others can only dream of putting £50 away per month. It might be riches to some. Think on. 

Kim_13

I didn’t even realise it was a thing until last year, when YBS pulled out the 8%, HSBC temporarily increased to 7% and Melton offered a 2 year account at 6%.

Melton may offer something when their new platform launches, but aren’t at risk of losing the customers they gained in Savings Week 2024 until next year.

TheWoodler

It started in 2022.

Kim_13

TheWoodler said:

I *am* surprised at the response and sorry to see experienced posters making jokes at Savings Week’s expense. 

It’s really left a sour taste in my mouth with the expectation that top rates would be on offer, rather than savvy MSErs being behind the concept of financial education.

How many of you were aware it was Pension Awareness last week? Would you grumble about not getting a top-up to your state pension or something? I’d have thought MSErs would have been more supportive of the idea.

I don’t have any skin in the game other than having benefited from being able to use the toolkit for the group I work with, and I was very pleased to have access to it as a resource. 

Savings Week is not a perfect concept by any means and it could have done with more publicity - but as someone who knows how press releases work and that you can write all the press releases you want but (a) media outlets can ignore them and (b) they get lost in all the awareness days and weeks - I can see why it’s not got so much traction. 

On that note, I’m also part of other awareness weeks and days and newer concepts take *years* to get off the ground. Savings Week has only been going 3/4 years. 

Given the fact that a lot of people would give their eye teeth to be able to save as some people do on this forum, count your blessings that you’re both savvy enough and have enough money to benefit and take Savings Week for what it is.  

The way some people have sneered at eg YBS’ 6% £50 saver - others can only dream of putting £50 away per month. It might be riches to some. Think on. 

I think the problem with the YBS account was that it was on Moneyfacts the day before at 8% before disappearing and then launching the next day at 6%. Moneyfacts wouldn’t have been showing that if someone hadn’t made a mistake, thus creating expectation and disappointment when the actual account was paying 25% less. 

topyam

TheWoodler said:

I *am* surprised at the response and sorry to see experienced posters making jokes at Savings Week’s expense. 

It’s really left a sour taste in my mouth with the expectation that top rates would be on offer, rather than savvy MSErs being behind the concept of financial education.

How many of you were aware it was Pension Awareness last week? Would you grumble about not getting a top-up to your state pension or something? I’d have thought MSErs would have been more supportive of the idea.

I don’t have any skin in the game other than having benefited from being able to use the toolkit for the group I work with, and I was very pleased to have access to it as a resource. 

Savings Week is not a perfect concept by any means and it could have done with more publicity - but as someone who knows how press releases work and that you can write all the press releases you want but (a) media outlets can ignore them and (b) they get lost in all the awareness days and weeks - I can see why it’s not got so much traction. 

On that note, I’m also part of other awareness weeks and days and newer concepts take *years* to get off the ground. Savings Week has only been going 3/4 years. 

Given the fact that a lot of people would give their eye teeth to be able to save as some people do on this forum, count your blessings that you’re both savvy enough and have enough money to benefit and take Savings Week for what it is.  

The way some people have sneered at eg YBS’ 6% £50 saver - others can only dream of putting £50 away per month. It might be riches to some. Think on. 

The idea is great.
the issue is how it was executed, or not in this case.

TheWoodler

1. I for one wasn’t eagerly scanning Moneyfacts the night before to see what products were being released so I think people looking at Moneyfacts were already starting to build up expectations. Then those expectations got built up further by what they (temporarily) saw. 

2. So maybe someone at YBS made a boo-boo with last year’s rate or whatever on the press release sent to Moneyfacts. (We see this quite a lot in Ts&Cs and so on - it’s not unique to that instance.) In this case someone was on the ball as it was obviously quickly corrected on Moneyfacts as the third-party site before it went live on YBS’ own site the following day. 

I tend to rely on the official website for legal reasons, not third-party sites, good and useful though they may be. Moneyfacts themselves put out a disclaimer as to accuracy. 

Savings are an interesting and lucrative hobby but I prefer to keep a sense of proportion and quietly vote with my feet in moving my money - I don’t rush to snap up every savings offer possible. Life’s too short to take up one particular institution’s current high-profile offering when I recall a complaint I had, for example. And I am grateful that I am in the position I’m in. 

francoghezzi

TheWoodler said:

I *am* surprised at the response and sorry to see experienced posters making jokes at Savings Week’s expense. 

It’s really left a sour taste in my mouth with the expectation that top rates would be on offer, rather than savvy MSErs being behind the concept of financial education.

How many of you were aware it was Pension Awareness last week? Would you grumble about not getting a top-up to your state pension or something? I’d have thought MSErs would have been more supportive of the idea.

I don’t have any skin in the game other than having benefited from being able to use the toolkit for the group I work with, and I was very pleased to have access to it as a resource. 

Savings Week is not a perfect concept by any means and it could have done with more publicity - but as someone who knows how press releases work and that you can write all the press releases you want but (a) media outlets can ignore them and (b) they get lost in all the awareness days and weeks - I can see why it’s not got so much traction. 

On that note, I’m also part of other awareness weeks and days and newer concepts take *years* to get off the ground. Savings Week has only been going 3/4 years. 

Given the fact that a lot of people would give their eye teeth to be able to save as some people do on this forum, count your blessings that you’re both savvy enough and have enough money to benefit and take Savings Week for what it is.  

The way some people have sneered at eg YBS’ 6% £50 saver - others can only dream of putting £50 away per month. It might be riches to some. Think on. 

A clever post

masonic

TheWoodler said:

I *am* surprised at the response and sorry to see experienced posters making jokes at Savings Week’s expense. 

It’s really left a sour taste in my mouth with the expectation that top rates would be on offer, rather than savvy MSErs being behind the concept of financial education.

How many of you were aware it was Pension Awareness last week? Would you grumble about not getting a top-up to your state pension or something? I’d have thought MSErs would have been more supportive of the idea.

I don’t have any skin in the game other than having benefited from being able to use the toolkit for the group I work with, and I was very pleased to have access to it as a resource. 

Savings Week is not a perfect concept by any means and it could have done with more publicity - but as someone who knows how press releases work and that you can write all the press releases you want but (a) media outlets can ignore them and (b) they get lost in all the awareness days and weeks - I can see why it’s not got so much traction. 

On that note, I’m also part of other awareness weeks and days and newer concepts take *years* to get off the ground. Savings Week has only been going 3/4 years. 

Given the fact that a lot of people would give their eye teeth to be able to save as some people do on this forum, count your blessings that you’re both savvy enough and have enough money to benefit and take Savings Week for what it is.  

The way some people have sneered at eg YBS’ 6% £50 saver - others can only dream of putting £50 away per month. It might be riches to some. Think on. 

Last year, Savings Week felt like it was getting real traction. The participation of a major banking group and the launch of genuinely competitive products were what put it on many people's radars for the first time. Those specific, tangible offers are what made it stand out. The disappointment is with the lack of effort from the banking industry this year. As others have already pointed out, if it hadn't been for members mentioning on this forum, I wouldn't have known Savings Week was even happening. That suggests a step backwards in visibility and engagement from last year.

To conclude that those of us who felt disappointed don't support financial education is a misread of the community. In fact, many members on this forum are obsessed with financial education. It’s why we spend our time here, day in and day out, helping people. For many of us, it is "Savings Week" 52 weeks a year.