Many of us spend hours researching the best savings account and feel very chuffed as we invest our money believing we have the best interest rate. The problem is we then don’t actively manage our savings and often over time these once best savings accounts end up with low interest rates. Help is available though.
The whole issue of managing savings can be a nightmare.
It’s bad enough getting money into savings accounts, having to research the markets, perhaps transfer money from one account to another, manage the logon to multiple accounts (and yes that does mean keeping track of multiple passwords, never keep using a password across multiple services) and generally store the information on accounts, from rates to when they mature and that’s not to mention filing tax returns.
Having done all this, the provider banks on our inertia to then leave the money in place.
After all we tend to think they continue to pay that best interest rate. What we forget though is that such an interest rate probably included a bonus payment after a period of time. However, once that period has finished the rate will inevitably have been greatly reduced.
Help is at last at hand as you can now simplify your savings through an innovative account, a Governor account, an online savings platform.
The account can be easily opened and managed online for free. In a nut shell it helps you to manage your savings, assisting you to get a better return from a single, secure account.
Who are Governor you might ask?
Family Investments are behind Governor, a trading name of Family Assurance Friendly Society Limited. They manage £3.2 billion of money for 1.75 million people in the UK.
You can’t get advice on the products on offer so as with any personal finance decisions, if in any doubt about what you need you should seek financial advice.
So How does it work?
Quite simply with the account it means you can manage your savings and Cash ISA products from a range of UK providers in one account. Through this you have consolidated online statements, tax summaries and charts to help you keep track of your savings.
You get alerts to help you manage your savings accounts, for example to let you know when an account is due to mature or when perhaps your money could be getting a better return for you.
Brilliant I’m sure you’re thinking. But where’s the catch? How much does it cost for example?
It doesn’t actually cost you anything to use, Governor are paid by each deposit taker every time you invest money through your account into one of their products.
Currently there are around 4 savings providers on Governor, however, this is expected to increase significantly over time. Clearly the more that are added the better choices you will have in terms of getting the best deals to meet your needs.
Just to be clear, it’s not a price comparison site, neither is it a bank or building society. Equally it won’t actually manage your money for you. Rather it seeks to make it as easy as possible for you to manage your savings yourself. Three simple steps to follow:
- Open an account
- Move in your money
- Invest and start earning
All in all this seems a no brainer to at least try if you’re looking to simplify your savings and make sure you get the best return you can – in fact we’ve suggested one of the team here at MoneyHighStreet do exactly that as she’s still trying to sort out savings accounts for her children and for herself!
Don’t forget though if you’re in any doubt as what you should do with your financial matters, get help from an independent financial advisor (IFA).