The Top Regular Savers Discussion Thread

fabsaver

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82133744#Comment_82133744

hence why others have since tried to push their luck and make 3 applications (i.e. post, email & via the app)

You can see why the likes of Newcastle BS (and their other trading names) have now decided if you want one of their their normal RS accounts, you need to physically apply in their branch for it.

Tipton

I don't think it is fair to suggest that forum members were trying to push their luck and possibly open 3 accounts.

It was reasonable to assume that the app version was different to the postal/branch version and that holding both was permitted. There wasn't anything in the T&C indicating otherwise. Furthermore someone reported specifically being assured by a Tipton staff member that both accounts could be held.

It wasn't clear if applications by email for the postal/branch version would be accepted. It seems the outcome depended upon who dealt with the request. Therefore for anyone who sent their application by post, as well as email, this was almost certainly a back up in case their request by email was declined.

Kim_13

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82133959#Comment_82133959

The backup may turn out to be fortunate, if it gets to the point of anything postmarked after the date of withdrawal being refused.

I'm sure some applications have been sent backdated, but equally there will be others that were in the postbox while the account was still online and it is just that the post is slow in their area.

Pickledonionlover

Tipton

Just an update here.

My account has been open and funded for a few days now (opened on the eve) and today I received a letter to confirm this.

No further news on the postal branch version of which I sent the printed off form and cheque on Monday.

I didn't go anywhere near sending emails.

I'll be suitably disappointed if my postal branch version gets denied as it certainly wasn't clear at the time when I applied.

Let's see..

Much more importantly let's have some harmony on here and have a good weekend.

👍

Kim_13

No one was trying to get three Tipton accounts, since an application by email would, if accepted, open a branch/post version. The terms of which were explicit about only one, even if post/branch and app might be a grey area.

I think it’s fair to say that anyone who did try emailing wouldn’t also have sent it in the post if the account hadn’t been withdrawn before they’d heard back from them. Saving postage would have been the reason for emailing. If they waited to hear only to be refused, it would definitely be too late. If anyone heard back and was told email not acceptable then they were only complying with the terms by posting in the form they had already filled out.

Personally I only send digitally if it is allowed in the terms or a member of staff has given me permission to do so. Being someone who never wins when products are branch only, I don’t have a problem with paying for the occasional stamp.

alfred64

It seems apparent to me that Tipton offered either the app version or the branch version of the 6.5% account but not both to the same person. So people who tried it or succeeded should expect forthcoming disappointment.

Tipton have opted in to the Strong and Simple scheme for small domestic deposit takers (SDDT) and have stated that they intend to grow and open more branches. The Codsall branch opened last Nov has been a huge success -( perhaps the upmarket area of Codsall helped) It was their first new branch for 30 years.

Funding requirements by the Prudential Regulation Authority change. They increase. Although Tipton are already well ahead of the requirement.

It may be the trend of increases in the money market rates and the fact that other local societies (Dudley and West Brom) have attractive accounts that has prompted Tipton to offer such account so that it does not lose ground.

They asked me how I came to hear of this account, so I told them, MSE forum. They will be familiar with the goings on here.

kermchem

If you visit the website of Tipton and Coseley Building Society, then their Savings accounts are listed under various titles, including one of "Fixed Rate Savings". The current fixed rate accounts are a fixed rate bond until 31.08.2027, a fixed rate bond until 31.08.2027 (mobile app account) and a fixed rate bond until 29.02.2028, plus its mobile version and a pair of bonds until 31.08.2031. These are what might otherwise be called 12-month, 18-month and 5-year bonds. The terms and conditions for these do not exclude opening more than one bond, and I can see that plenty of people might want both a 12-month and 5-year bond. Not sure there is merit in the branch and the app version of the same bond, unless you want to save more than the FSCS limit with the society. None of the terms exclude opening multiple bonds.

When I applied for both the app and the branch/postal versions of the Save & Grow Regular Saver, these two accounts were listed in exactly the same format under a "Regular Saver" heading. There was nothing that excluded applying for both accounts.

Now, if Tipton decline to open my postal account when they get to my envelope in their mail room sometime next week, then I guess I can either point out their inconsistency, or roll over and do nothing. I for one will not seek financial compensation from a small mutual society owned by its members.

Meanwhile, Beverley BS, one branch, 22 staff (wikipedia), offered a £500/month, 5.5% variable account earlier this summer with terms that people disliked, and it lasted barely a day. Teachers with 39 staff at one branch fared barely better with their 6.00% offering; Ecology's 25 staff also offered 6.00% for more blink and you'll miss it fun; Tipton have 83 staff and actually have more branches than the outdated wikipedia table and offered 6.5%. Ok, if the Progressive rumours of 7.0% are true then I don't think I will be waiting for the maturity options on my Rainy Day RS issue 4 in October; I doubt this account will last a week.

These small building societies all seem to require some human input at their offices for opening an online account; staff numbers are limited and they do not want, or need, thousands of applications. By contrast I somehow doubt any human checked my application for a Bank of Scotland Monthly Saver at 8%, the larger organisation is probably more automated.

Speculator

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82133759#Comment_82133759

I called them this morning about the overpayment. First she reassured me that their procedure is to keep £200 and return the £100.

However, when she checked my account, she was surprised to see all £300 was returned via bacs on Friday!

It was from my nominated account so she couldn't understand why all £300 was returned.

She said the £300 should land in my account on Tuesday.

clairec666

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82134562#Comment_82134562

From my recollection, previous Progressive Rainy Day Savers were available for a little while and didn't get pulled super-quickly. And I don't remember any backlog with account opening and other teething problems. (I do recall a lot of complaints about not being able to open one if you held an earlier issue.) Maybe their system is a bit better equipped to deal with applications than some of the other small building societies you mentioned?

I'm not taking any chances though and if this new account materialises I will open it ASAP.

If its terms are similar to the rainy day saver, then I would expect 1) maturity date to be counted from date of opening and not date of first deposit, and 2) no account closure allowed. So if anyone wants to mess around with getting an end-of-month maturity date then they would have to delay opening and risk missing out altogether. Not for me - I'd rather just take the good rate on offer and not fret about maturity dates.

Of course, T&Cs may be completely different this time as it's a new account with a new name.

I anticipate a lot of activity on this thread if/when it opens!

Bridlington1

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82134733#Comment_82134733

Tipton & Coseley:

I take a different approach, to my mind it doesn't matter whether you're a big bank or a small building society, you should (and the FCA requires you to) provide terms that are clear, fair and not misleading, as a customer of any bank or building society, when applying for accounts you can only go off the terms available to you at the time, the bank/building society creates the account terms, if you agree to them then both you and the bank/building society are reasonably expected to follow them, this works both ways.

If Tipton did indeed regard the branch/post and the app versions of their account to be the same account and you can only hold either the branch/post or the app version but not both, they should've stated this in the account terms. As they did not then it's reasonable for the customer to assume that they can hold both.

On that basis, if I was in the position where I'd opened the app version and Tipton denied my application for the branch/post version on the grounds you can only hold one or the other, then I would be complaining and asking for either the account to be opened or compensation for the loss of interest.

Kim_13

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82134748#Comment_82134748

I will also open ASAP, a lot of unexpected things have happened in Regular Saver land over the last year (with this Tipton RS and the Manchester Issue 2 going branch only being recent examples; it was only available online to those with an existing login so it wasn’t as broad as Issue 1 anyway.) I do tend to try to go somewhere in the middle as regards to ideal maturity dates/open straight away and I don’t want anything else maturing on 30th September 2027 given I have a maxed out Melton Adcock with a year still to run.