Regular Saver Thread **New and Restarted**

eastofeden wrote: »

It's the drip feeding bit I'd rather use the calculator for!

Are you sure? I suspect that many don't realise that if they have regular income - including regular income from other savings products - that they put into non-regular savings accounts, then the drip-feed calculator may not be relevant.

As for what the drip-feed calculator does, is it meant to show how the feeder interest is reduced by drip feed? If so, it can be thought of as, approximately, a mirror of a regular saver. At the end of a term, an RS has a chunk that's been in for the full N months to a chunk that has only benn in for a single month. For the feeder account, one chunk has been out of the account for N months and another has only been out for 1 month.

The approximate bit is to do with how feeder account interest is deployed - compounded or extracted.

EDIT: I'm not sure either whether this calculator allows for the "make N+1 payments" trick regularly mentioned on MSE. I can't believe that it did, as it would have to ask you if the RS provider allows the extra payment, or, if they actually pay interest on a daily basis (HBSC promise this, but my experience is that they don't keep their promise!)

If it doesn't then it is a bit too elementary for those cunning MSEers.

I didn't count the days it took for the pack to arrive, but it wasn't long. I received my passbook promptly by 1st class mail, and a 'phone call to check three things, e.g., purpose of saving, source of savings etc. No request to supply ID.
My only criticism is that I would have preferred to have done it in branch, but on visiting the branch I wasn't impressed with the service so opted for snail mail.

schiff wrote: »

As the proud possessor of 6 matured store RSs plus 7 open and 6 matured online RSs plus 7 open, I've been e-mailed to supply two items of ID, online or by visiting a store. As it's only 9 days since I was producing ID in the store to open the latest one, I was surprised!!

I didn't notice that in the letter acknowledging the opening of online version 12, this was requested. And then this threat in the e-mail:

"What happens if these documents are not returned?

Unfortunately, we cannot keep an account open if we have not confirmed the identity of the customer(s) named on it. Therefore, we will arrange to close the account and return any funds and accrued interest to the account from which we received them."

This is a bit overkill, isn't it?

I had that constantly too - turned out some of my accounts had a slightly different form of my address on them. Once I changed them all to the same wording they've never asked me to do this again.

schiff wrote: »

As the proud possessor of 6 matured store RSs plus 7 open and 6 matured online RSs plus 7 open, I've been e-mailed to supply two items of ID, online or by visiting a store. As it's only 9 days since I was producing ID in the store to open the latest one, I was surprised!!
<....>
This is a bit overkill, isn't it?

liamcov wrote: »

I had that constantly too - turned out some of my accounts had a slightly different form of my address on them. Once I changed them all to the same wording they've never asked me to do this again.

I had a similar experience the first time I tried to open an additional account after they did an IT upgrade. It appears the IT upgrade 'broke' something in the electronic verification systems (a minor difference in address makes the system think you live in two different places) it also means the system 'forgets' that you've already been ID checked.

It is massive overkill.... especially as they only threaten to close the new account, not the dozen or so other ones you have with them.

After first year interest drops from 2.35% to 1.35%. Anyone closed a/c after first year and opened new one within a week or so???? You cannot have more then one open but closing first one would get round this. I have another account with them to fulfill membership requirements. Any thoughts on this much appreciated.