🔔 Provider Focus: Ford Money

Ford Money entered the UK savings market in April 2017 and has featured in our best buy tables on a regular basis since then.

As a fairly recent addition to the market and perhaps a name that is more synonymous with cars than savings, this is an ideal opportunity to give you some background information on the provider and get your feedback from any dealings you have with them.

Remember to submit your review to rate Ford Money and your other providers to help us provide insight for your fellow savers.

Background Information

Ford Money is a relatively new name to the UK savings market, but it is actually a trading name of an established bank, FCE Bank plc, which has been running for around 20 years in the UK. The new bank combines the well-known brand of Ford, with a long-established financial background in the form of Ford Credit Europe (licenced as FCE Bank plc).

Ford has a long history of providing financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company, founded in the USA in 1959 and in the UK four years later, in 1963.

Ford Money is based in Wallsend, in the North-East, with a UK-based call centre.

Ford Money is a trading name of FCE Bank plc, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). FCE Bank plc is a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), so funds placed with Ford Money would be covered up to £85,000 per person, should the provider go out of business.

Check the FSCS licence information for your bank or building society

Today’s Savings Market

Ford Money has a range of savings accounts covering easy access accounts, fixed rate bonds and cash ISAs.

It is also worth noting that Ford Money has its ‘Our Best Rate Guarantee’. They say “on variable rate products, we promise you’ll always receive the same rate as new customers on like-for-like products. And on our fixed rate products, you’ll receive the interest shown at the time you apply or if we increase our product before you make your initial deposit, you’ll receive the higher interest rate”.

The Flexible Saver and cash ISA can be opened with £1, whereas the fixed rate accounts can be opened with a minimum of £500. All accounts can be opened online or by telephone. The cash ISAs accept transfers in from existing ISAs.

What is also interesting about Ford Money is that it offers a ‘portfolio ISA’ arrangement – so you can open more than one type of cash ISA with the provider in the same tax year.

Ask Anna: What is meant by 'This is a portfolio ISA'

So, for example, you can split your ISA allowance between its one and two year fixed rate cash ISAs and then even include the provider’s easy access cash ISA for more access to your funds. This extra flexibility is not available from every provider and could be ideal for those looking for a mixture of different account types.

Application Process and Customer Service

You can apply for the accounts above online or by telephone and the highest minimum opening balance requirement is £500, which is fairly low compared to a number of alternatives on the market. Online-only applications are common amongst many of the top savings rates at the moment, so the option to open accounts by telephone may be attractive, although once opened the account still needs to be accessed and managed online.

The application process is straightforward and we have not been made aware of any negative experiences so far from any of our clients or from our own dealings with the provider.

Of course, as mentioned earlier, your thoughts and experiences about providers’ customer service are invaluable for us, particularly about providers that are new to us or to the savings market, so please share any feedback you have.

A final word…

It is tempting to stick the well-known brands when it comes to savings accounts, but in doing so, you may be missing ut on some of the best rates on the market.

Whilst there are some exceptions, for example Interest-paying Current Accounts, you can no longer rely on the larger brands and high street names to offer the best interest rates.

Providers like Ford Money are aiming to drive competition in the savings market and offer some of the best rates available at the moment. The best strategy is to look at all options and take each provider on its own merits, considering alternative providers to get the best returns for your money. As long as you do your research (or ask us for more information!) and are comfortable with the provider, there is no reason not to consider them.

As mentioned earlier, if there is a provider that you would like to see featured in a future article, please let us know. We are also keen to hear from you if you have any feedback about any provider’s customer service, good or bad!

Submit your review here and help us provide insight for your fellow savers.

*We are occasionally paid by some providers if you click through from our Best Buy Tables and open a savings or current account with them. We will never accept a payment that compromises in any way our independent, whole of market approach to providing information on savings products. For clarity we will indicate those companies who remunerate us with an asterisk (*).