Base rate hasn’t moved for almost a year, but that has not stopped savers being penalised, writes Kathryn Cooper
BANKS and building societies have been accused of profiteering by slashing their savings rates even though the Bank of England base rate — the yardstick for all UK interest rates — has not moved for nearly a year. NatWest, Lloyds TSB, Alliance & Leicester, HSBC and Birmingham Midshires have all chopped their rates over the past six weeks while the Bank of England has kept base rate at 4.75% since August last year.
HSBC is another big offender, having slashed its rates on June 6. Rates on the bank’s Instant Access Savings account have been chopped by 0.25 points, and customers with more than £3,000 in its Isa have suffered a cut of 0.24 points. Hannums said: “HSBC recently launched a headline- grabbing current account and it seems that savers may be paying the price.” “Customers have been paying a high price for years under Household International which is now HSBC Finance Corporation” said US-based consumer watchdogs Household - HSBC Watch.
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