Banks 'yet to cut savings rates'
Updated on 17 November 2008
Banks and building societies are being slow to slash their savings rates, with many thought to fear losing business if they cut them too steeply, figures showed.
Only 20 savings providers out of a total of 120 have so far announced reductions to their rates, following the 1.5% cut in the Bank of England base rate earlier this month.
Four savings groups have cut their rates by more than the fall in the base rate, but four have also reduced them by less than this amount.
The major banks have also been slow to announce cuts, with Lloyds TSB and Bradford & Bingley the only groups that are also top 10 mortgage lenders who have so far said they will be reducing their savings rates in line with the base rate reduction.
Others, including Halifax Bank of Scotland, Abbey and Nationwide, who all said they would be passing on the 1.5% cut to borrowers on their standard variable rate, have yet to make an announcement about their savers.
Among the groups who have reduced savings rates by more than 1.5% is Capital One, which is combining the two recent base rate cuts and slashing rates on some accounts by 2%.
Darren Cook, of financial information group Moneyfacts.co.uk, said: "At the moment it looks like the market is supporting savers.
"We are not getting mortgage rates cut on standard variable rates and we are not getting savings cuts either.
"It seems that they are too scared to cut savings rates in case the business goes elsewhere."
So far only 23 lenders have announced they are passing on the base rate reduction to their standard variable rate customers. A total of 18 lenders, including most of the major players, are passing on the full 1.5% cut, with five other groups reducing their SVR by less than this.
These news feeds are provided by an independent third party and Channel 4 is not responsible or liable to you for the same.
