Yorkshire Building Society ready for ISA change

Yorkshire Building Society has pledged that it is ready for the 70% of its customers who are over 50 and will be able to top up their ISA savings when the new limits come into affect in a few weeks time. The Society has also confirmed that all of its ISA savers over 50 will be able to add to their existing accounts, including those with fixed rate ISA accounts.

From 6th October ISA limits will be raised from £7,200 to £10,200 with the annual amount that can be put into cash ISAs increasing from £3,600 to £5,100. The change was announced by Chancellor Alistair Darling in his 2009 budget and is due to come into effect from October 6th this year for anyone who turns 50 on or before April 5, 2010. Those aged below 50 will have to wait until the beginning of the next tax year on April 6, 2010 to benefit from the increased allowance.

The Treasury said the move to increase the ISA limit would eventually benefit around 5 million savers who currently use their full Isa allowance. Alistair Darling said when the new limit was announced that it will "enable those who have retired or are beginning to prepare for retirement to move taxed savings into a tax-advantaged ISA, rewarding those who have saved by improving their returns".

Sarah Lawrence, Senior Product Manager for Savings at Yorkshire Building Society, says: "It's great news for anyone in this age category. With 70% of our ISA savers set to gain from this new limit in this tax year we expect to be very busy and wanted to make sure we were ready in plenty of time so that everyone can benefit from this timely savings incentive from the Chancellor.

"We also thought it was important to ensure all our ISA accounts could accept the increased allowance as soon as it came into effect, which is why we are taking the unusual step of allowing top-ups into fixed rate accounts. Some savers in other providers' fixed rate ISAs may not be so lucky and may have to wait until the next tax year to benefit from the additional tax-free savings limit."

Yorkshire has a wide range of fixed and variable rate ISAs to suit the differing needs of its savers. The Society has this week launched a new 3% fixed rate ISA and its instant access Monthly Reward ISA, paying 2.25%, has proved popular with savers of all ages.

Recognising that many of its members, particularly those over the age of 50, rely on their ISA savings to boost their income, a monthly interest option is available on all Yorkshire Building Society ISA accounts.