Nottingham BS launches 6% savings account

An innovative new regular savings account has opened with a competitive rate. But is it worth opening?

The Nottingham Building Society has launched an eye-catching regular savings account paying a fixed interest rate of 6%.

The Celebration Saver is a regular savings account, but what makes it really clever is that you don’t have to deposit money into it every month.

This means savers have more flexibility to put in money when they want and the interest will remain the same.

Celebration Saver

The interest rate is fixed on this account until 30 November 2013 and you can open an account with £10. Each month savers can deposit between £10 and £100 and the amount doesn’t have to be the same each month or deposited on the same day.

If for some reason you don’t want to put money in during a month, you don’t have to and you won’t face a penalty.

This is a limited edition account so if you do want to open one you’ll need to act fast as it could be withdrawn at any point.

During the term of the account you won’t be able to withdraw any of the money so before you open one you need to make sure you won’t need access to the cash. If this is the case an instant access savings account would be more suitable.

Accessing the account

One major downfall of this product is that it must be opened and operated through one of the building society’s branches.

As these are mainly found around Nottingham, it’s great news for people living in this area, but those living further afield won’t be able to benefit.

Regular savings market

When it comes to regular savings accounts, the best rate you’ll be able to get is 8% with First Direct. You can put in between £35 and £300 to this account but to open one you need to have a current account with the bank.

HSBC and M&S Bank also offer regular savers paying 6%, but again you need to have a paid-for current account to benefit.

If you don’t qualify for these, there are still lots of accounts around, but the majority of those at the top of the tables are branch based. Therefore unless you live near to a branch, you won’t be able to apply.

The new account from Nottingham BS takes the top spot when it comes to regular savings accounts which don't require you to be an existing customer. The next best rate comes from Cheshire Building Society at 5%. This is another branch-based account and you’re allowed to miss one payment and make one withdrawal during the term of the account.

The West Brom also has a regular saver paying 4.10%, while a similar account from Kent Reliance pays slightly less at 4% – again these are both branch-based accounts.

Although these accounts pay significantly higher than most instant access or one year fixed rate accounts, there is a limit on how much you can put away. Therefore if you want to save more, such as a lump sum, another account would be more suitable.

Our comparison tables give a more extensive view of the market but here are the top regular savings accounts to choose from.

The top regular savings accounts

More on savings:

Top savings account for kids!

GE Direct launches 18-month fixed rate savings bond paying 2.9%

Is there any point opening an easy access savings account?

The top fixed rate savings bonds