No account fee for new AXA Self Investor ISA savers until May 2016.
Investing your ISA allowance may be a little cheaper this year, after AXA Self Select announced that there will be no account administration fee on all new stocks & shares ISAs opened with the firm before 5th April 2015.
You can transfer over ISAs from previous tax years and take advantage of the 0% offer, which applies to your account until May 2016.
From May 2016, investors will pay an account fee of 0.35% if they have up to £250,000 invested across their AXA Self Investor accounts, or 0.20% for larger sums.
You will have to pay fund manager charges for the various funds you invest in though.
How it compares
To put this deal into context, let’s take a look at what some rival providers charge for ISAs where you get to choose what you invest in.
|
Provider |
Annual fees |
|
0.40% on balances up to £250,000 0.20% on balances between £250,000 and £1m No charge on funds above £1m |
|
|
Cavendish Online |
0.25% on the amount invested |
|
Charles Stanley Direct ISA |
0.25% on first £500,000 held in funds 0.15% on balances between £500,000 and £2m 0.05% on balances above £2m |
|
0.35% on balances up to £250,000 0.20% for larger sums |
|
|
0.45% on first £250,000 held in funds 0.25% on value of funds between £250,000 and £1m 0.1% on funds between £1m and £2m No charge on funds above £2m |
|
|
£80 (£20 quarterly charge) |
|
|
rplan |
0.35% on the amount invested |
|
£48 plus VAT (£12 fee charged monthly) |
Let’s assume you have £20,000 in your ISA. You could be facing an annual fee of anything up to £90 from these providers, so the AXA deal means a nice little saving.
Beware of exit fees
[SPOTLIGHT]One thing to establish before you rush off to sign up with AXA is whether your existing ISA provider charges an exit fee. These can be quite significant, and could dent any savings you’d make by moving.
For example, with Hargreaves Lansdown if you want to transfer your account to a rival you will be charged £25 for each holding, plus a £25 plus VAT account closure charge.
AXA Self Investor argues that the exit fees some rivals charge are preventing investors from getting a better deal.
Gordon Hull, director of AXA Self Investor, said: “We are confident investors will want to stay with us, so confident that there are no exit fees whatsoever. Any investor is free to leave without any charge or penalty.”
Will you be moving your ISA? Do you think the current fees charged by platforms are fair? Let us know your thoughts in the Comments box below.
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