UK-based National Savings and Investments (NS&I) has announced that from April 6, 2009 its cash individual savings account (ISA) will no longer be available for new customers.
In addition, the facility to deposit into a National Savings and Investments cash individual savings account at Post Office branches or by bank giro credit is also being withdrawn. Existing cash ISA customers can continue to save with the account and can manage their cash ISA by dealing directly with NS&I — by phone, post, through electronic transfer or by standing order.
To support the changes to its cash ISA, NS&I said that it has also made changes to its direct ISA to make it more accessible to a range of customers. The minimum transaction amounts for the direct ISA, including the minimum opening deposit, are being reduced. The minimum initial investment has been lowered to GBP100 from GBP1,000 and the minimum withdrawal is now GBP50, reduced from GBP250.
According to NS&I, the changes to its ISA range are part of its five-year strategy of simplification and modernisation, designed to reduce product duplication and to simplify NS&I’s offering to customers.
Peter Cornish, director of customer offers at NS&I, said: We’ve been looking at ways to simplify our product range for some time. We currently offer two very similar ISA products — our cash ISA and our direct ISA. Although the cash ISA will be closed to new sales, existing cash ISA customers will still be able to make deposits by telephone, post, standing order or electronic funds transfer. In addition there will be no changes to the way they are able to withdraw money from their accounts.
