National Savings & Investments, the UK’s largest savings agency, has been accused of blocking older customers from their best accounts in order to push them online.
Caroline Abrahams of Charity Age UK said NS & I “must not exclude” older people who cannot use technology. “NS & I and other providers need to make all services and products available to everyone, regardless of their digital skills,” she added.
The government’s savings department said it hopes 85% of transactions will be online by next year. However, according to Age UK, a significant proportion of older people (40% over 75) do not use the Internet.
Currently, only 3 of the 7 NS & I accounts can be opened and managed by mail. In short, old and digitally savvy savers will find that their options are limited. According to a survey by fund shop AJ Bell, the average rate for online-only accounts is 0.91pc, and the average rate for postal-managed accounts is 0.64pc.
Comparing floating rate EasyAccess non-Isa accounts, online-only direct savers offer 50 times higher interest rates than post-only investment accounts.
NS & I launched its first online-only bond in 2017, even though the majority of pensioners’ bonds purchased in 2015 by phone or mail.
Campaigners have previously warned that many pensioners may not always be able to buy the computers and smartphones they need to move to online banking.
As the number of online-only services grows, Natalie Ceeney, Access to Cash Review of the campaign, said, “We can build a two-tier system that leaves behind some of the poorest and oldest people in society.”
According to an Age UK study, before the pandemic, about 4 million people over the age of 65 did not use the Internet at all. A series of bank closures caused by a pandemic have driven many elderly rescuers online, despite problems of dexterity and blindness.
An NS & I spokesman said:
“That’s why we’re working to make our customers who don’t have access to the Internet continue to have access to accessible ways to manage their accounts, such as by mail or phone.”
AJ Bell discovered that £ 4.4 billion of savings money was invested in NS & I between 2021 and 22. The majority was transferred to premium bonds with a net inflow of £ 10.3 billion. On the other hand, guarantee bonds and income bonds each had an outflow of £ 3.9 billion.
Broker Laura Suter said the cost-of-living crisis “raided savings” on people and led to a significant withdrawal.