27 Jun 2013 Get something back from the taxman Finance
As your career develops and you begin to get salary increases you may decide it is time to put a little something away for the future. Similarly if you are at the point when your mortgage payments are minimal and you have a surplus of money each month then you may be looking at what you can do with the surplus.
If you are interested in saving but not paying tax on your growth the way to do it is to investigate the idea of an individual savings account (ISA) which has defined limits on what you as an individual can put in during a single tax year.
ISA limits
There is a cash limit but that can be doubled to include stocks and shares. The cash limit in the current tax year is £5,760 and of course a married couple can invest twice that individual amount. If you have less than the maximum cash then you can still invest up to £11,520 by increasing the value of stocks and shares.
You will still have access to the money at any time; it is not locked in.
It is well worth spending some time looking at the best offers. Sometimes there are headline rates towards the end of a tax year as companies seek more investors. The detail behind the headlines is always worth reading and understanding. Likewise the terms and conditions of the account itself should be looked at closely.
GE Capital Direct ISA accounts are products from a company with a good reputation in the financial sector. You can open an account if you are a UK resident for tax purposes, aged 18 and over with a national insurance number and a bank account. There is likely to be a minimum cash amount that you have to deposit in order to open an ISA But that figure is unlikely to be prohibitive. Interest is calculated daily and handed over monthly or annually. It can go into any account which is in exactly the same name as the ISA account itself.
Caution
There are always issues when money is concerned and it cannot be stressed too strongly that you need to be certain you are investing your money with a reputable company. A fancy name similar to a well known company is a tactic that should never succeed.
You should double check that you are being covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) and confirmation of this is a guarantee of the integrity of the account. The scheme covers the first £85,000 which should be more than sufficient.
Companies have increasingly used the Internet to market their products. It means that within their websites there is all the information you need to know. However that does not mean that a good company does not want to talk. Staff will always be on hand to explain anything to a potential investor. It is all part of the service that a reputable company will see as an integral part of its responsibilities to consumers.