I've trawled through previous posts but cannot find how an existing state savings customer can purchase additional bonds. I have previously carried out this process without any hassle - just form filling and attaching a cheque. I've searched on state savings website but the only application forms available are for new costumers. I thought I could do it online but ptsb bank only allows limited online transfers per day and I don't want multiple accounts. I plan to call into the post office tomorrow with a cheque but would appreciate if anyone knows an easier way. Apologies if I'm missing something obvious here & thanks in advance.
State savings 3yr bond for existing customer
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If you register for state savings online you can buy any of the products online up to the value of daily/transaction limit of your debit card. Otherwise you are using an application form and a cheque. There is no facility to purchase using a bank transfer.
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Des Pondent
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You used to be able to download the form and post it or bring it to a post office. But downloading the form does not seem to be available anymore.
Now it looks like if you don’t want to buy online you have to go to a post office and buy formlessly. I always found going to the post office with a cheque the simplest anyway if buying above the debit cards limit.
It also says you can buy by phone but presumably that would also be subject to your debit cards daily limit.
State Savings products can be purchased as follows:
- Online www.StateSavings.ie
- Formlessly in any Post Office
- Telephone: State Savings 0818 20 50 60 / 01 705 7200
- Prize Bonds can also be purchased via Monthly Direct Debit (from a personal bank account located within the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA)) form available here. Print the form, complete it and post it to: The Prize Bond Company, Floor 3B, GPO, FREEPOST, O'Connell St. Lower, Dublin 1, D01 F5P2.
Des Pondent
Registered User
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Does anyone know why State Savings, who hold €25 billion of customers' money don’t accept credit cards or EFT’s ?
They did accept credit cards at one time but stopped, probably 8/10 years ago. No reason was given at the time. I’m guessing it could be because of the problems encountered if a transaction was subsequently stopped, unwound or repudiated, especially where Prize Bonds are concerned.
Regarding EFTs, it may be the difficulty encountered in matching the payment to the purchase. State Savings systems are pretty basic and putting in a system allowing orders to be placed with deferred payment would take a bit of work.
Regarding EFTs, it may be the difficulty encountered in matching the payment to the purchase. State Savings systems are pretty basic and putting in a system allowing orders to be placed with deferred payment would take a bit of work.
Would that be much different to dealing with direct debit/standing order purchases? Or maybe the DD/SO infrastructure takes care of the matching whereas they would need their own system to match EFTs?
EFT is an umbrella term encompassing everything from ATM transactions, Debit Card transactions, Bank Transfers and more. In this context I’d interpret it to mean one of the following:
1. Single Debit Instruction - Similar to a DD but non recurring. Revenue use this to handle Annual LPT payments (one of a number of payment options) and other one off payments. Disadvantage for State Savings (SS) is that it’s not realtime. So the product order is place, bank details are entered, SS then send the debit to the bank, bank send the funds, funds have to be matched to the order. SS are left sorting out the incomplete order if the bank reject the debit (e.g. no funds available etc). It could certainly be done, and State Savings already have the framework given that they have recurring DD capabilities in place for Prize Bonds and Installment Savings, but you’d need initiative and effort, scarce commodities where State Savings are concerned.
2. You place the order for the product on the SS Online System. Separately, you initiate a payment from your bank account to SS. SS match the incoming payment to your order. This is similar to the way in which Raisin accept orders and payments. Requires additional infrastructure, and leaves SS matching payments to orders, and dealing with orders that have been placed but for which no payment has been received. Again, it could be done, however In this case, the transaction would still be subject to any daily/transaction limits imposed by your bank (which may or may not be the same as debit card transaction limits) so there may not be any real benefit.
Frankly, it is not beyond the wit of man (but may well be beyond the wit of State Savings) to devise and implement a system which allows higher value online/electronic purchases - but given their track record I can’t see State Savings doing anything about it in the short term. It's pretty ridiculous that they have watch the demise of cheque payments and haven't come up with a comprehensive solution to address the issue. The current Online system is quite cumbersome and traipsing off to the Post Office with your stack of documentation is a bit 1900. Easily known that they are in the cosseted part of the State Sector.
regarding Debit cards, there is a huge disparity in the daily/transaction limits between the Irish Banks and it's difficult to understand why. Although most of my day to day banking since the demise of UB is with AIB, their transaction limits are so low they make transactions above a few thousand euro a nightmare. I’ve got a BOI debit card specifically for the purpose of transactions such as this, and while their daily limit of €25k is still on the low side (UB was €50k), it's manageable for most transactions I have to deal with. For example, with my BOI Debit Card a €100k purchase can be broken into four Debit Card transactions on consecutive days, whereas with an AIB Debit Card it would take 20 x €5k transactions, all on separate days so a month. And PTSB, our other “Pillar” would require 40 x €2,500......
1. Single Debit Instruction - Similar to a DD but non recurring. Revenue use this to handle Annual LPT payments (one of a number of payment options) and other one off payments. Disadvantage for State Savings (SS) is that it’s not realtime. So the product order is place, bank details are entered, SS then send the debit to the bank, bank send the funds, funds have to be matched to the order. SS are left sorting out the incomplete order if the bank reject the debit (e.g. no funds available etc). It could certainly be done, and State Savings already have the framework given that they have recurring DD capabilities in place for Prize Bonds and Installment Savings, but you’d need initiative and effort, scarce commodities where State Savings are concerned.
2. You place the order for the product on the SS Online System. Separately, you initiate a payment from your bank account to SS. SS match the incoming payment to your order. This is similar to the way in which Raisin accept orders and payments. Requires additional infrastructure, and leaves SS matching payments to orders, and dealing with orders that have been placed but for which no payment has been received. Again, it could be done, however In this case, the transaction would still be subject to any daily/transaction limits imposed by your bank (which may or may not be the same as debit card transaction limits) so there may not be any real benefit.
Frankly, it is not beyond the wit of man (but may well be beyond the wit of State Savings) to devise and implement a system which allows higher value online/electronic purchases - but given their track record I can’t see State Savings doing anything about it in the short term. It's pretty ridiculous that they have watch the demise of cheque payments and haven't come up with a comprehensive solution to address the issue. The current Online system is quite cumbersome and traipsing off to the Post Office with your stack of documentation is a bit 1900. Easily known that they are in the cosseted part of the State Sector.
regarding Debit cards, there is a huge disparity in the daily/transaction limits between the Irish Banks and it's difficult to understand why. Although most of my day to day banking since the demise of UB is with AIB, their transaction limits are so low they make transactions above a few thousand euro a nightmare. I’ve got a BOI debit card specifically for the purpose of transactions such as this, and while their daily limit of €25k is still on the low side (UB was €50k), it's manageable for most transactions I have to deal with. For example, with my BOI Debit Card a €100k purchase can be broken into four Debit Card transactions on consecutive days, whereas with an AIB Debit Card it would take 20 x €5k transactions, all on separate days so a month. And PTSB, our other “Pillar” would require 40 x €2,500......
I appreciate the helpful feedback. I was able to lodge funds at my local rural post office today. However, after providing documentation of current savings bonds and pps number I was asked to complete another security form. This requested to provide details of my pps number, my address, date of birth, source of income and my current monthly income. I'd have assumed that the majority of this information was already on file, but I was requested to fill in this form at the counter.
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