Start building your safety net today with one of these great accounts.
I read a faintly terrifying statistic about savings this week. According to a new study by Scottish Widows, 30 million Britons still have no savings safety net in place.
To put it another way, two-thirds of adults are unprepared to cope financially if we do lose our job or other main source of income. Gulp.
If you're not already in the savings habit, choose an account today and set off on the right road. The market is moving very quickly at the moment, so to make things as easy as possible, I've rounded up the best accounts in each category.
That way, you should be able to find the one that suits you perfectly.
Easy access
An easy access savings account is a good option if you think you might need to get hold of your cash at the drop of a hat. Here are some of the market-leading rates on offer:
|
Account |
Interest rate (AER) |
Minimum deposit |
Interest paid |
Withdrawal restrictions |
|
Birmingham Midshires Telephone Extra
|
3.15% (variable)
Includes a fixed 2.65% bonus rate for the first 12 months. |
£1 |
Yearly or monthly |
None |
|
3.15% (variable)
Includes a tiered variable bonus rate, for the first 12 months, dependent on the balance in the account: 2.65% bonus for balances £1-£24,999. 2.4% bonus £25k-£49,999. 2.15% bonus £50k-249,999. 1.65% bonus £250k-£2m |
£1 |
Yearly |
None |
|
|
3% (fixed for 12 months) |
£1 |
Monthly |
None |
First place goes to the Birmingham Midshires Telephone Extra account, which offers one of the highest rates on the easy access market (3.15% AER).
This rate is variable, but it includes a fixed bonus rate of 2.65% for the first year, guaranteeing your rate won't fall below this level during that time.
The only real downside is that the account can only be operated by telephone.
The easy access runner-up is the Alliance & Leicester Online Saver Issue 5. It offers the same overall rate as the Birmingham Midshires account, but does have a more complicated tiered bonus system, dependent on how much is in the account.
In addition, this bonus is variable, not fixed - so it doesn't offer the same piece of mind as that on the Telephone Extra account.
Finally, there's the ING Direct Savings Account. The rate on offer is the lowest of the three (3% AER), but a major plus is that it's fixed for 12 months. If you want an easy access account with a total rate guarantee, I think this is a great option.
Regular savings
A regular savings account is great if you can commit to saving a set amount every month, and you don't plan to touch your money for a year.
I've deliberately excluded accounts that require contributions to linked plans and products, because I think they demand too big a commitment for the relatively short-term gains involved.
Here's the best of what's left:
|
Account |
Interest rate (AER) |
Min/max deposit |
Interest paid |
Withdrawal restrictions |
|
Barclays Bank Monthly Savings
|
4.25% (fixed) |
£20/£250 |
Monthly |
The rate will drop to 3.03% for any month you make a withdrawal.
|
|
Loughborough BS Regular Savers Account + 3 |
4% (fixed) |
£10/£500 |
Yearly |
Rate includes 1% bonus payable when 11 payments have been made. One penalty-free withdrawal can be made per year. |
|
Principality BS Regular Saver Bond Issue 8 |
4% (fixed) |
£20/£500 |
Yearly |
If you miss any payments or make any withdrawals, the Instant Access lowest tier interest rate will be paid for entire term (currently 0.08%). |
Gold medal goes to the Monthly Savings account from Barclays. It pays a fixed rate of 4.25%. You don't need to take out any other Barclays products to access this rate, and the account has slightly more flexible withdrawal rules than most regular saving alternatives.
The Regular Savers Account + 3, from Loughborough Building Society, takes second spot. There's not much to choose between it and Principality Building Society's Regular Saver Bond Issue 8, but the Loughborough account has the edge because you can start saving from just £10 a month.
Principality's offering also has particularly strict rules on withdrawals; it's definitely not the account for you if you think you might need to make a withdrawal during the year.
Bonds
It looks likely that the Base Rate (and thus interest rates) will rise in the next year or so. With that in mind, I've focused on fixed-rate bonds that tie you in for no more than two years.
If you have £1,000 to stash away, here's what's on offer.
|
Account |
Interest rate (AER) |
Minimum deposit |
Interest paid |
Withdrawal restrictions |
|
4.35% (fixed) |
£1,000 |
Yearly |
No early withdrawals or additional deposits.
|
|
|
4.35% (fixed) |
£500 |
Monthly |
Withdrawals are allowed subject to a 90-day loss of interest on the amount withdrawn. |
|
|
Kent Reliance BS - 2 Year Fixed Rate Bond (Issue 7) |
4.25% (fixed) |
£100 |
Yearly |
No early withdrawals or additional deposits. |
In this category, there's a tie for top spot between the HiSAVE Fixed Rate Account (two year option) from ICICI and the Internet 2 Year Fixed Rate Bond from the AA.
When investing for a two year period, both offer a very decent fixed rate of 4.35% AER. If you have less than £1,000 to put away, the AA account is the one to go for, as it asks for a minimum deposit of just £500.
If you don't have a spare £500, consider the account in third place - the 2 Year Fixed Rate Bond (Issue 7) from Kent Reliance Building Society. You can start saving with as little as £100, but just remember that this account can only be opened and operated by post.
Good luck finding the right account for you!
More: Avoid these scandalous savings accounts! | Give your kids a £10,000 nest egg
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