🔔 Channel 4 Dispatches - Savings Champion’s savings data gives valuable insight into the savings market

I hope you saw our recent involvement in Channel 4’s Dispatches programme ‘Where to Save Your Money’. If not you can catch it here. The programme included Anna Bowes, one of the founders of Savings Champion, as the industry expert and highlighted the crisis facing many of Britain’s 40 million savers, with interest rates at their lowest for 300 years.

Research supplied by Savings Champion gave valuable insight into the current state of the savings market and how some savings providers are not playing fair. We believe we were chosen to help, because of our independent and uncompromised approach, along with our comprehensive data. We want to help savers get the best rates and stay on the best rates.

At Savings Champion, we’re passionate about helping savers, like you, improve your interest, protection and saving you time, as sometimes this can seem the most valuable aspect of them all.  If you’re one of the many savers sitting in a poor paying account or have seen your rates cut in recent years, there are things you can do to improve your savings situation.

Even in the current low interest rate environment, an extra 0.50% can sometimes make a big difference. We’ve improved our clients' financial situation from hundreds to thousands of extra pounds in interest, in many cases improving returns by over 1%, which only goes to highlight that it is worth switching. Here are our top tips on how we can help improve your savings situation today:

1. Loyalty doesn’t pay. If you’ve had the same savings account for many years then it’s likely you’re being paid a paltry rate of interest. You need to shop around regularly to ensure you’re getting the best rates. Bonuses expire, bonds mature and rates are sadly being reduced week in, week out, so you need to keep track of what you’re earning and switch. Check out our uncompromised, independent Best Buy Tables for more information. Or you can sign up for our Best Buy delivery services, so that we can email you the best rates when you need them. 
2. Use Rate Tracker. It’s free. We believe that every saver in the UK should be signed up to this easy to use tool. It costs nothing and we’ll keep you fully informed of any changes to your savings rates, including when it’s time to switch and what the best rates available are. What have you got to lose? Learn more about Rate Tracker here. 
3. High Interest Paying Current Accounts. The pseudo savings accounts. They have grown in popularity in recent years, as interest rates on savings accounts have dwindled and providers look to lure in lucrative current account customers with tempting high rates of interest. Many accounts come with strict terms and conditions, but used carefully you can more than double the interest you could earn on standard savings accounts. Some rates on offer beat Cash ISA rates, even after tax has been deducted. The best high interest current account rate by far for larger balances is the Santander 123 account paying 3% on balances between £3,000 and £20,000. Alternatively Nationwide and TSB are paying 5% but on much lower balances. Find out more here or call one of our advisers on 0800 321 3581 to help find the best account.
4. Keep your money protected. Even in the current low interest rate environment, nothing beats the safety and security of a simple savings account. The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) protects savers up to £85,000 per person, per banking licence. This means that unlike many alternative savings products' offering eye watering rates of interest, your money is safe, should the worst happen. See our FSCS Guide to check if your money is fully protected. 
5. Managed Savings Service. For those who want to ensure your money is working hard and don’t want to take risks, our Concierge Service offers a personal approach. We will identify the bank or building society accounts paying the best rates of interest; maximising protection under FSCS, build a bespoke portfolio and manage the onerous administration tasks. We can do this because at Savings Champion, we research the whole of the cash savings market. Learn more by downloading our guide. 

If you have any queries regarding savings accounts or would like a FREE review of your existing savings accounts please call us on 0800 321 3581.