# Move from AIB?



## acorn1984 (6 Dec 2009)

Hi all,

I have been saving for the past year (started with nothing) and now have €6000 in an AIB online personal savings plan. The thing is, with the interest rate only 2.25%, is it worth me continuing with them? Also, if I were to close my account, would I lose out on the 20% bonus interest I stand to get if I continued on saving?

I was looking into moving to Halifax flexi saver (3.75%) or even Anglo for the year. The catch is, I may need to access my money after 6 months, which I believe both plans will allow me to do.

Am I stupid to carry on with this miserable interest rate?


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## Lightning (6 Dec 2009)

acorn1984 said:


> I have been saving for the past year (started with nothing) and now have €6000 in an AIB online personal savings plan. The thing is, with the interest rate only 2.25%, is it worth me continuing with them?



You can get a better return for your money elsewhere. 



acorn1984 said:


> Also, if I were to close my account, would I lose out on the 20% bonus interest I stand to get if I continued on saving?



The bonus is tiny. See the bold print below from the best buys thread. It is 10% of the interest, which is very small. 



> *AIB: Online Personal Savings Plan*
> _*2.25%*_
> *Note 1: "Bonus interest of 10% in year 1 of interest earned" which is currently 0.225%* if you have made no more than one withdrawal. Other "bonuses" offered in later years.
> Note 2: Regular monthly lodgements required by standing order plus optional manual topup.
> ...





acorn1984 said:


> I was looking into moving to Halifax flexi saver (3.75%) or even Anglo for the year. The catch is, I may need to access my money after 6 months, which I believe both plans will allow me to do.



Halifax will let you access the money inside/after the 6 months. 

Are you looking at the Anglo Premium Saver account?



acorn1984 said:


> Am I stupid to carry on with this miserable interest rate?


You are not earning a good return for your money.


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## blass (7 Dec 2009)

I can recommend the Halifax Flexisaver account (3.75%) with instant access.
After 1 year you need to close it and re-open to continue availing of the higher rate but that is not difficult.


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## Lightning (7 Dec 2009)

Yes, if you keep your savings below 10,000 EUR then the Halifax Flexi Saver account is one of your better options.


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## acorn1984 (7 Dec 2009)

Thanks alot for the replies - my mind is made up to move now. I definitely won't need to touch my savings for the next 8 months. My only question is, will any withdrawals following this affect the interest on an Anglo Regular Annual Saver account? The extra 0.25% seems more appealing than Halifax's rate!!


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## Lightning (7 Dec 2009)

The Anglo regular saver account is not for lump sums. You cannot put your lump sum of 6,000 EUR into this account.


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## acorn1984 (7 Dec 2009)

Oh ok - knew there was something I was overlooking! 

Thanks alot for the advise.


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## tomreillly (8 Dec 2009)

What about AIB Online Notice 7 account? 3% on up to €10k
[broken link removed]


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## Lightning (8 Dec 2009)

There are at least 10 accounts in the best buys thread with better returns and less stringent T&C's than AIB's notice account. 

You can do more better with your money than AIB/BOI.


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## DrMoriarty (8 Dec 2009)

acorn1984 said:


> ...will any withdrawals following this affect the interest on an Anglo Regular Annual Saver account? The extra 0.25% seems more appealing than Halifax's rate!!


Yes, withdrawals will affect either account — you need to read the T&Cs carefully.

Bear in mind too that 4% on a Regular Saver account equates to rather less than 4% on a lump sum (anyone care to do the maths for me?), since only the first monthly instalment gets 4% over the full year. The following instalments earn 11/12*4%, 10/12*4%, 9/12*4%, etc.

The advantage is that you are guaranteed that the 4% will apply for the full 12 months, whereas (AFAIK) Halifax's 3.75% is not guaranteed to last.
The first year's 1.75% _[broken link removed]_ is, but not the underlying 2% variable rate.


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## acorn1984 (8 Dec 2009)

Yes I'm aware that withdrawals will affect the Flexisaver after 6 months, but I can't find any details in the t&cs about the time period after that. 

In general, I'll be happy once I get a favourable interest rate for the next 9 months, and be able to make a withdrawal (if needed) following this. 

Regarding the t&cs, Halifax mentions charges relating to the Flexisaver. Can anyone shed any light on this? I didn't experience any with AIB.


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