Coventry BS launches competitive regular savings account

Coventry Building Society has launched a new highly competitive regular savings account today offering a rate of 2.5% AER for the first 12 months.

According to Coventry Building Society, its new Regular Saver has been designed to make saving easier and more accessible for consumers. It allows savers to make as many deposits as they like up to £500 per month for 12 months, meaning that a maximum of £6,000 can be saved in the first year. After 12 months, the account matures to an Easy Access Saver, which pays an interest rate of 1.05%. The account is available to existing and new customers and can be opened in branch, over the phone, online or by post.

Matthew Carter, head of savings and mortgages at Coventry Building Society, said: “We want to encourage people to take up a savings habit but most of all we want to make saving money as straightforward as possible.

“Excessive terms and conditions are a big turn-off for savers and yet we know there’s a big appetite across the UK for building up savings pots. Our members tell us they sometimes don’t even need a reason to save, they just like to be thrifty. We believe thrift should be encouraged.

“The Regular Saver offers an attractive rate that will encourage people to start saving, along with simple terms and conditions that make it straightforward to put money aside.

“This account has all the features our members have been asking us for and we’ve tried to be as flexible as we can to cater for people who want to build up their savings in different ways.

“Some want to save every week, not once a month. And it’s not uncommon for people to have a break from saving – particularly around Christmas. So the minimum balance is just £1 and there’s no limit on the number of times savers can put money in, so long as it doesn’t exceed £500 in a month.

“To help keep this as an account for building a savings pot, there is a penalty charge of thirty days’ worth of interest for any withdrawals in the first 12 months. However, it is relatively small – the equivalent of around 21p for every £100 withdrawn. After a year, savers can take money out of the account as often as they like without charge.”

A regular savings account can be a good option for savers looking to deposit a small amount each month and are particularly useful for those wanting to save for a specific reason, such as Christmas or a holiday. Savers should be aware, however, that rates on regular savings accounts are calculated slightly differently to other types of savings accounts – savers can find out more about this by reading our guide Why do regular savings accounts seem to pay the highest rates?.  While the account just released by Coventry Building Society is offering a highly competitive rate, it is not the top rate currently available in the chart, with the top rate that does not have any opening restrictions currently paying 3.00%. To see all the regular savings account rates available, visit our regular savings chart.

Rachel Springall, financial expert at Moneyfactscompare.co.uk, commented: “It’s a great move by Coventry Building Society to launch a competitive regular savings account to encourage the savings habit in a market that doesn’t see much movement.

“As it stands, the top rates of 5% remain to be with providers that require customers to have an existing relationship with them. There may be rates of 3% offered elsewhere but many cannot be opened online or are only available to local customers.

“As a trusted brand it wouldn’t be too surprising to see a flock of savers turn to Coventry Building Society to make their savings work harder for them.”