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Independent, no-nonsense ratings and reviews
Nice for those who want their pension to look and feel like an ISA. The fees are OK – not the cheapest for this type of service but still OK. A questionnaire does the heavy lifting and you’ll stay in touch with a nice app, which is well laid out & designed. This group also invests in technology so you can expect them to ‘keep up with the Joneses’ in this regard. Not for those who want to choose their own and trade.
We score each provider on about 20 different criteria including cost, service, website, functionality, customer feedback and our experience of the service. All overseen by our PhD gonk!
Beginner Investor
Nice and simple
Active portfolios
Good app and slick website
Don’t want to take our word for it? We ask existing customers and investors to rate their experience with the company – based on value for money, overall service and the website. We need at least 20 customer reviews before we add anyone to our Best Buys list.
Based on 41 reviews
Company don't action requests to correct mistakes on portfolios. Charges are high considering Isa and pension performance are average.
29/01/2021
Great customer service and communication. Drawdown: Very easy ! you were advisded all the way through the process The Reviewer is Pre-retirement age.
18/11/2020
I have only withdrawn twice & the process is not as slick as I have expected. I expected online request forms but instead, I had to contact the company who sent the forms. Then I had to wait for a few days before another form arrives to sign & confirm the amount I request. Then wait for a few days before someone rings to confirm & read out a few statements which I have to agree ( otherwise no pension). Then a letter arrives stating the date when my funds would be in the bank. On the last 2 occasions, the dates were incorrect & I had to wait longer than expected. In my opinion, the process is lengthy. God help me if I needed my money quickly. The Reviewer is Post-retirement age.
13/11/2020
My FA advised to transfer my pension to TP as their fees are quite low. Being a novice investor I followed his advice. I have no complaints about how my pension funds are handled as I have done quite well since my transfer. However my biggest complaint is the difficulty in communicating with the pension team & their draw down process. The team are slow to respond to questions and their drawn down process is not straight forward. I have to ring the pension team to let them know I like to withdraw my pension then I am sent a form to complete. After a few weeks, a member of the team would contact me & verbally read out the T&C over the phone. Then I had to wait for another few weeks before the funds are in my bank. Surely there must be a better, secure & faster way for their clients to access their pension. I would have given TP five * if communication & their withdrawal process improves. The Reviewer is Post-retirement age.
16/10/2020
True potential are slow to update details on your own account and show in accurate data from past. I don't feel you get much advice about your investment.
16/10/2020
Excellent service so far (6 months). Helpful graphical displays and plenty of detail on investments. Slight delay on phone answering but once through, always able to answer queries without needing to ring back.
24/01/2020
Very easy to use. Allows me to track my investments quickly and top up when I like.
18/09/2018
Excellent customer service
27/03/2018
App and desktop login could be improved.
30/01/2018
Friendly knowledgeable staff, modern innovative company, brilliant service. No improvements required.
30/01/2018
Not been a customer for long enough to form an opinion.
30/01/2018
Extremely professional and knowledge of their products.
30/01/2018
Customer service is great.
30/01/2018
I like the ability to save spontaneously via an app.
30/01/2018
I find it does what I need.
30/01/2018
Competitive rates.
30/01/2018
I like the impulse saving.
30/01/2018
Very good customer service and very easy to use the app/website.
30/01/2018
Great service. The website could be more detailed. Like letting you know the dividends reinvested, and how much the buying price is for a unit as you make the purchase.
30/01/2018
Simplicity of options and how you're guided through the application.
30/01/2018
Overall very pleased so far. Easy account set up and I intend to invest more in the future.
30/01/2018
Easy to use.
30/01/2018
Quick response to calls, English speaking and accented customer service. Excellent and easy to use apps and website.
30/01/2018
Make charges upfront.
30/01/2018
Easy to use, the biggest problem is that it takes 3 working days for any transfer to show on your account.
30/01/2018
The website and app are easy to use and when you need to get in touch with staff they are helpful.
30/01/2018
It is so easy to use, I can't think of any faults.
30/01/2018
Ease of use.
30/01/2018
The mobile app crashes on start up, or displays badly on the occasions that it works.
30/01/2018
Its simplicity, its easy to invest and easy to monitor performance.
30/01/2018
I love the simplicity of the system. The app is a bit buggy, but I can't find any other faults.
30/01/2018
Good returns so far.
30/01/2018
No comment
30/01/2018
�50 fine for withdrawing all your money is rather off putting.
30/01/2018
Good service.
30/01/2018
Everything is very simple and easy to understand even with no prior knowledge about investing.
30/01/2018
Great ISAs, easy to withdraw funds (if willing to wait process period) and great communication.
30/01/2018
Very easy to understand app and everything in one place.
21/12/2017
Better web/app experience.
04/07/2017
Easy to use. Money is invested in accordance with risk profile without having to select individual investment holdings. Improving the website usability would be a benefit.
04/07/2017
Prompt and efficient, knowledgeable and good service.
04/07/2017
What's good about it?
On the face of it, this is still one of the most comprehensive apps available from a provider. Users are able to set up new, and add money to existing, investments, check performance of investments, and access documents and statements, amongst other features. The app uses Yodlee technology to allow users to link their current accounts within the app. However, the app can be extremely buggy at times and this has been the case for a sustained period of time.
Unlike many, what you see on the public site is mirrored largely on the secure site. It’s clear and straightforward. There are some nice additional features like ‘Impulse Save’ which enables top-ups.
Your investment portfolio will be a blended composite of different big brand investment funds and at all in costs of 1.2% ish it’s at the top end of mid range on costs. No ability to pick different fund or trade shares.
Stocks and Shares ISA
Pension
We do not currently have sufficient feedback from investors on the drawdown experience to review the service for those in retirement. Please help us by leaving your review.
True Potential Investor offers straightforward options, guiding people through a few questions to determine their risk profile and help them to choose one of five managed portfolios. You’re restricted to these portfolios – users can’t pick their own individual funds or shares. It's a good slick digital service with a decent app. We like it.
Invest your personal pension in one of True Potential’s Fully Managed Investment Portfolios meaning they are ‘actively managed’ making them a bit more expensive than others. However, if they do their job, they should return more (although that's not a certainty!).
Costs are around 1.2% all-in, so about £12 per year on each £1,000, and there are no additional drawdown charges to consider.
The parent company – True Potential – is a significant group in the advice market, offering financial advice and providing technology to financial advisers.
Provider Size: | New robo-adviser, though the parent company administers significant investments for financial advisers |
Minimum amounts: | £1 minimum initial amount |
"I have about £100,000 invested in an ISA with Investec Click and Invest. They are closing their Click and Invest accounts and I have to find somewhere else to invest the money. Which are some providers of a similar nature, i.e. a managed ISA fund, preferably ones which can be set up and monitored online? I am considering either medium risk or high risk accounts."
Michael, Surrey
10/06/2019
Read our replyI have about £100,000 invested in an ISA with Investec Click and Invest. They are closing their Click and Invest accounts and I have to find somewhere else to invest the money. Which are some providers of a similar nature, i.e. a managed ISA fund, preferably ones which can be set up and monitored online? I am considering either medium risk or high risk accounts.
Michael, Surrey
10/06/2019
Hi,
I was surprised to see Investec Click and Invest shut down. And I'm sorry you find yourself in this position, looking for a platform of a 'similar nature'.
If you'd like to make you own comparisons between the options out there, take a look our Best Buys page to get all the details on different providers.
Hope this is helpful.
We are not regulated to give personal financial advice - This isn’t full-fat regulated financial advice. Boring Money is a publisher and not regulated by the FCA.
This means we can't help with specific personal circumstances or recommend specific investment products. It also basically means that if we say something daft, you have no recourse to come back and complain.
We’re only allowed to give you a steer or share an opinion or tell you the facts - That said, we promise that our answer to you is an independent unbiased perspective with no commercial gain to make. If you need regulated financial advice, you can find a good adviser via sites such as Unbiased & Vouchedfor.
"My wife and I invested our full 2019/20 ISA allowance with Investec's Click and Invest offering and were very sad to learn recently that the service was to be closed. We're now in the position of looking for a new ISA provider. I'd prefer to stick with a managed service, such as the one offered by Click and Invest, where our portfolios would be managed by experts, but will consider the DIY option if that proves to be the best on offer. Which platforms are well regarded ISA providers? I'd rather not go with a digital start-up offering, but a more established player with a track record of good performance. I suppose this sounds like I'm asking for advice, which I'm not, just a steer in the right direction as we were not anticipating to be in this position so soon after investing this year's ISA allowance. We actually opted for the Click and Invest service in part, because of the 5 star recommendation on this site; of which we are fond and value the content."
Mr & Mrs S., Sussex
30/05/2019
Read our replyMy wife and I invested our full 2019/20 ISA allowance with Investec's Click and Invest offering and were very sad to learn recently that the service was to be closed. We're now in the position of looking for a new ISA provider. I'd prefer to stick with a managed service, such as the one offered by Click and Invest, where our portfolios would be managed by experts, but will consider the DIY option if that proves to be the best on offer. Which platforms are well regarded ISA providers? I'd rather not go with a digital start-up offering, but a more established player with a track record of good performance. I suppose this sounds like I'm asking for advice, which I'm not, just a steer in the right direction as we were not anticipating to be in this position so soon after investing this year's ISA allowance. We actually opted for the Click and Invest service in part, because of the 5 star recommendation on this site; of which we are fond and value the content.
Mr & Mrs S., Sussex
30/05/2019
Hi,
Thanks for your note.
I was surprised to see Investec Click and Invest shut down. And I'm sorry you find yourself in this position.
You said that you don't want to go to a new digital start-up and that you are looking for a more established brand. Plus you'd prefer to stick with an option where the investments are put together for you.
Investec Click and Invest was an active option. So read up on that, and see if you're happy to take the lower costs of passive, but potentially sacrifice some of the higher gains of active funds. Although of course these aren't guaranteed. Inactive funds may well end up costing more, and performing less.
Hope this is helpful.
We are not regulated to give personal financial advice - This isn’t full-fat regulated financial advice. Boring Money is a publisher and not regulated by the FCA.
This means we can't help with specific personal circumstances or recommend specific investment products. It also basically means that if we say something daft, you have no recourse to come back and complain.
We’re only allowed to give you a steer or share an opinion or tell you the facts - That said, we promise that our answer to you is an independent unbiased perspective with no commercial gain to make. If you need regulated financial advice, you can find a good adviser via sites such as Unbiased & Vouchedfor.
"I shall have £10k to invest shortly, and I want to use an actively managed portfolio in a quality company. How would you rate - Investec Click & Invest/True Potential Investor/Nutmeg on the basis of ROI/customer relationship/quality/risk factors etc? I would class myself as a mid-grade risk-taker/reasonably adventurous if appropriate, with a high quality company. I presently use Hargreaves Lansdown and Wealthify but feel the need to diversify. What do you recommend?"
Richard, Shropshire
03/10/2018
Read our replyI shall have £10k to invest shortly, and I want to use an actively managed portfolio in a quality company. How would you rate - Investec Click & Invest/True Potential Investor/Nutmeg on the basis of ROI/customer relationship/quality/risk factors etc? I would class myself as a mid-grade risk-taker/reasonably adventurous if appropriate, with a high quality company. I presently use Hargreaves Lansdown and Wealthify but feel the need to diversify. What do you recommend?
Richard, Shropshire
03/10/2018
Hi Richard,
The first thing I’d do, is challenge the need to diversify.
Diversification is really important in terms of the actual investments themselves. So we don’t just buy a few blue-chip UK shares, for example.
However this doesn’t apply to the actual service providers, platforms, ISA managers or robo advisers that we use. To put it more simply, we need a good spread of investments in our baskets but we don’t need to visit lots of different supermarkets or shops.
The risk you are presumably concerned about is any of these providers (or shops) going bust.
Investment companies need to have capital so they can cover administration costs if they stop trading. But if the administrator can’t recover fees from company assets, it’s legally allowed to do so from client assets instead. But this is just the fees for the administrator.
In this instance, from April 2019 we’re also all covered to the tune of £85,000 by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
Client money is held separately and can't be used by an investment company to pay their debts or to pay any creditors.
This link from Hargreaves Lansdown explains it well - www.hl.co.uk/security-centre/how-safe-is-your-investment
So my sense is that you are over-complicating your administration life here more than you need to.
However if that’s what you want to do, then let’s have a look at the three options you suggest...
Investec is a big global bank and assets manager - them of the zebra!
Click & Invest has a minimum of £10k, so I haven’t tested it personally. It’s actively managed as you say, so not as cheap as some but could deliver more. Costs will be about 1.4% in total every year. From Jan 17 – June 18 their middle portfolio did 10.6%. To me it looks like a good and solid option.
True Potential Investor is a firm of financial advisers which have built out tech solutions and gone direct to clients.
I have a test account there – there’s an average annual fee of 1.16%. Their mid portfolio did 4.2% from Oct 17 – Sep 18. And 7.9% the year before that. I like the app and I think it’s quite easy to use.
And Nutmeg is the oldest standing of the UK robos, which is well reviewed by clients and does well enough in performance charts.
But this is a passive choice, so the investments are managed a bit differently and it’s correspondingly cheaper with all-in costs of about 0.95%. To be honest, if you’re already with Wealthify, I'm not sure what else you’d get from coming here.
I don’t know if that’s been helpful. All three options you mention are solid, I think.
They’re also all quite new, so it’s hard to look back at long track records and make definitive calls about who runs the money best. And comparing like with like is very hard!
My sense is that if you really are keen to diversify providers, then I would pick either True Potential Investor or Investec Click & Invest depending on their customer reviews, and also which website and app you find the best.
Good luck!
We are not regulated to give personal financial advice - This isn’t full-fat regulated financial advice. Boring Money is a publisher and not regulated by the FCA.
This means we can't help with specific personal circumstances or recommend specific investment products. It also basically means that if we say something daft, you have no recourse to come back and complain.
We’re only allowed to give you a steer or share an opinion or tell you the facts - That said, we promise that our answer to you is an independent unbiased perspective with no commercial gain to make. If you need regulated financial advice, you can find a good adviser via sites such as Unbiased & Vouchedfor.
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