Savings bond shelf life reduces so savers need to act fast

With the average shelf life on a savings bond at a new low of just 23 days, savers need to act fast to get the most competitive deals.

According to reasearch by Moneyfacts, those savers wanting to take out a fixed rate bond need to act fast as the average savings bond shelf-life has fallen from over 150 days to just 23 days.

As the Bank of England base rate has fallen so too has the average shelf life of fixed rate savings bonds.

At 23 days it is now less than half what it was even in November 2008.

There is still significant demand for fixed rate savings bonds as savers try and maximise their returns. As a result of this demand, providers end up pulling their most competitive deals and replacing them with new issues.

As Michelle Slade of Moneyfacts points out ’34% of all savings searches are for fixed rate bond’ and adds ‘savers with maturing one year bonds will have seen the maximum interest rate fall from 6.7% last year to 3.95%’.

If you are looking for a savings account, you might like to consider

• Tesco Internet Saver – minimum balance of just £1 and you can add regular monthly savings  === > Get more info
• Alliance & Leicester Online Saver Issue 7 – this has a minimum balance of £1,000 and you can pay money into your account whenever you want  === > Get more info
• Abbey’s Fixed Rate Monthly Saver – save from £20 to £250 month  === > Get more info