ISA savers could take back thousands of pounds in fees by changing provider, new analysis has found. For those investing in Stocks and Shares ISAs the provider you choose will determine how much you pay in fees. According to Scottish financial services advisers The Lang Cat, swerving the most expensive fees could be worth more than £110,000 over a 20-year period.
The research found that with some providers, if you invested £1m you would pay £3,000 a year in fees. Over the course of two decades, assuming returns were 6%, that £3,000 wasted on fees could have been turned into £110,000.
Therefore, the researchers argue, minimising fees is the best way to ensure you maximise your returns, whether you’re a millionaire investor or a smaller ISA saver.
For those investing £50,000 or more, Hargreaves Lansdown is the most expensive provider across the board with £3,000 fees, according to the Lang Cat. The cheapest provider, with fees of just £60, is iWeb. However, there are plenty of providers in between, each with their attractions.
A spokesman for Hargreaves Lansdown said: “Our clients tell us they highly value the full-service offering: the security of a trusted brand, the breadth of proposition and wide range of investment choices as well as access to our quality and personal client service.”
The research comes with Cash ISA savers anxiously waiting for Rachel Reeves’ Spring Statement, where she is tipped to reduce the the tax free investment cap from £20,000 to £4,000.
The move, if it goes ahead, is likely to be heavily criticised by financial experts.
Harriet Guevara, chief savings officer at Nottingham Building Society, said: “Cash ISAs are an essential tool for millions of savers across the UK, allowing them to save for key life moments like buying a house or planning for retirement.
“With economic uncertainty high and the appetite for these products strong, limiting people’s ability to save towards their goals and to build a financial safety net would be the wrong step at the wrong time.”
