One personal and business bank account provider has nabbed the top spot on the 1 year fixed ISA tables, leapfrogging over its rivals to take the lead.
Northern Rock topped the best buy tables with its interest rate of 3.35 per cent on its 1-year ISA after raising its rates by 0.05 percentage points. The Rock was only recently tied with Chelsea Building Society, as the financial provider was likewise offering a 3.3 per cent deal.
Savers interested in the new offering from the Rock need only make at least a £500 deposit within the first 30 days following their application. The saver will accept ISA transfers from other providers, but what really makes this a noteworthy offering is that Northern Rock will allow savers to make withdrawals without notice and only take 60 days’ worth of interest from the withdrawal, something that is nearly unheard of for fixed-rate ISAs.
No savings product is perfect, of course, and the Northern Rock deal does have one particular catch that savers need to be made aware of: the account’s best buy rate will be reduced to only 0.1 per cent in the event if the balance ever dips below the £500 level. Still, the deal will net savers the most tax-free interest, as a full £5,340 deposit will result in £178 in accrued interest in 12 months – £2 more than Chelsea’s runner-up deal.
An online-only deal, the account has a term that will run until November 24 of next year. However, for savers looking for deals with longer terms, the Rock has also raised its two and three year offering interest rates by 0.2 percentage points, with the new figures standing at 3.75 and 4 per cent respectively, and both deals are tied for first in their individual best buy tables.