TIME FOR ACTION: Unnecessary ISA transfer delays 3 July 2005 at 4:56PM edited 30 November -1 at 1:00AM in ISAs & Tax-free Savings 5 replies 806 views

falcon21

During a typical ISA transfer, your initial provider raises a cheque from your account, *posts* it out, where it is then received and banked by the institution you are transferring to.

If you're lucky, your funds will only miss out on interest for about 5 days or so. But if you unlucky (as I'm sure many of us have been), you could end up missing out on months of interest and then have to go through all the rigmarole of making a complaint to get any recompense.

Does anyone else think this system is completely pants? I still don't understand why they can't just do a BACS transfer? (To look at it cynically they can keep the money for a few days without paying interest while the cheque is negotiating the vagaries of Royal Mail and the clearing system...)

Shouldn't we lobby someone to change this ridiculous system?

alared

First let me say I completely 100% agree with you.
But it`s hard to believe someone would miss out of "months of interest".
As far as I know under the banking code they have to act and get the transfer done within 30 days (i know it`s too long) but this is the sort of thing the greedy banks get away with.
I must also say we the customers are largely to blame.
We are apathetic,lazy,inert,don`t understand,DON`T COMPLAIN ENOUGH,etc,etc.
I am continually fighting the institutions I deal with for their lax,condescending,unhelpful attitude and if you COMPLAIN and follow their proceedure they will (sometimes)give you some compensation to shut you up if you are persistent enough.
(It costs them money to write and deal with complaints)
Also they know that you are a lone voice in the wilderness and the odd £10 or £20 to keep you happy is chickenfeed when they know 99.9% don`t complain.
The other thing is the amount you have got in your account,sometimes they don`t even reply if you`ve only got a few bob (if you know what that is)
Sadly I must say the MAJORITY of people are what I describe above.

steady__eddie

I transferred an I.S.A. 12 months ago and I only lost 3 days interest so I consider that I must have been lucky. I am transfering another one this weekend hopefully if the paperwork arrives on time. Does anyone know if it's the institution who is losing the business or the one who is gaining it that is the biggest culprit or is it a combination of the two ?

alared

One`s as bad as the other.
Whoever gaining this time will be losing another time.

realaledrinker

I can't remember the details but it's the Customs & Revenue (or whatever they call themselves these days) who insist that the transfer is done by cheque rather than electronically.

steady__eddie

I visited one of my mini I.S.A. providers today with my passbook, an application form to transfer supplied by National Counties, a business reply envelope supplied by same and a letter explaining that I wished to transfer my I.S.A.
I will not mention who the I.S.A. provider is to spare any embarassment but I am begining to feel a little scared at what I consider to be administrative inefficiency.
Due to internal reorganisation, new forms and procedures are being implimented to reflect the new name of the organisation (can you guess who it is yet ?). After a call to head office I was instructed to complete another form and my National Counties form was returned to me with the comment that it wasn't required. I quieried this on the grounds that it contained information that I considered to be relevant i.e. where I wanted my interest paid and the all important charitable assignment clause. A compromise was reached and they photocopied the first side of it and retained that and gave me my form back. Unfortunately the side containing my signature was not copied.
I have read the article on I.S.A. transfers, but can anyone explain to me what happens next please ? National Counties told me to give the transfer application form to my current provider but they wouldn't accept the form ! Could this be a ploy to !!!!!! me about and stall for time so that they can have access to my interest ? i.e. you transferred your I.S.A. on the 9th of July so we don't have to pay interest on it even though National Counties won't have the transferred funds until a longer period of time has elapsed due to our administrative shortcomings ?