moneysupermarket.com – Halifax Cash ISA Promise

Commenting on Halifax's new Cash ISA Promise, Kevin Mountford, head of banking at moneysupermarket.com said: "Halifax has come out with an industry leading initiative that will hopefully mean a better deal for customers when transferring their cash ISA. Under the new rules, Halifax ISA customers will not only earn interest from the day their completed application is received, but are also guaranteed the rate they applied for during the transfer process.

"Halifax is also putting its money where its mouth is when it comes to products. Last week saw the launch of its cash ISA Direct Reward, paying a market leading 2.8 per cent AER for 12 months, increasing to three per cent AER for customers who hold their main current account with Halifax.

"One would hope that these moves from Halifax will stir up some competition in the market and encourage other providers to simplify their processes for transferring savings between cash ISAs, which in many cases are unnecessarily bureaucratic and inefficient.

"Earlier this year the OFT announced the introduction of new cash ISA transfer guidelines after ruling the existing process was too lengthy and all too often caused unnecessary difficulties for consumers - these will come into effect on 31 December 2010. We have been calling for the Government to take steps to speed up the ISA transfer process for some time and it's encouraging to see the banking industry and financial regulators finally taking the switching issue seriously.

"However, if the Government is truly committed to creating a savings culture in the UK, this needs to be the first of a number of changes designed to help consumers fight the effects of inflation and generate additional value from their savings pots."