2 savings account corkers from Shawbrook Bank

Category: Savings
Date: 1/20/2012

Which savings accounts are best? It's an age old question, but one that is even more important at the moment with rates being so low.

To get the best savings rate you need to think about how much access you need to your money.

You can tie it up for longer in a fixed rate bond, but you won't necessarily be able to get at your cash (if you can you'll no doubt forfeit a fair amount of interest). Alternatively you could opt for an easy access account but at the expense of not getting the very best rates available.

Notice savings accounts strike a happy medium between access and rate. They also usually pay an interest rate that's not reliant on an introductory bonus. That means that, unlike most of the better paying easy access accounts, you've got a savings account with a solid rate that you don't need to change every 12 months.

2 corking notice savings accounts

At the moment, the moneyfacts.co.uk notice account best buys are dominated by one name – Shawbrook Bank.

	AER	Details
Shawbrook Bank 120 Day Notice Personal Savings Account Issue 1	3.45%		Minimum investment £1,000 Get at your money after giving 120 days' notice
Shawbrook Bank 95 Day Notice Personal Savings Account Issue 1	3.35%		Minimum investment £1,000 Get at your money after giving 95 days' notice

Who is Shawbrook Bank? Are they safe?

If you haven't heard of Shawbrook Bank don't worry. It might not be a high street name that you are familiar with, but it does hold a UK banking licence.

That means that you get the same depositor protection with it as you'd get with Lloyds, Barclays, etc. – up to £85,000 held with Shawbrook is protected.

Find out more about Shawbrook Bank.

Who are notice accounts good for?

Notice savings accounts can be suitable if you:

• Know the date, or period sometime in advance that you'll need to withdraw your money – such as to pay school fees, or to pay a tax bill.
• Don't want to tie up your money in a bond where you might not be able to access it (or, where if you can, you will forfeit interest).
• Want to earn a better interest rate and are prepared to not have immediate access to your savings.

To conclude…

If you're looking for a notice account, Shawbrook offers a couple of competitive accounts – with 95 and 120 day access. Both these accounts pay more than the best easy access account: Nationwide Building Society's MySave Online Plus Issue 4 (3.12% AER).

On the other hand these notice accounts don't pay quite as much as the top 1 year fixed bond from the AA at 3.60%. However, the AA bond won't let you get at your money for a year.

What next?

Disclaimer: Information is correct as of the date of publication (shown at the top of this article). Any products featured may be withdrawn by their provider or changed at anytime.