ISA transfer - why glacial?

[Simpo Two]

I'm doing some tidying up by moving a few hundred £ from one ISA with a bank to an ISA with a platform provider.

I had to get a PDF form from the latter, complete and post it back to them. Then they sent it to the bank. That's week one, great. But when I rang today to see if it had been transferred - because I like loose ends tied up - they said it takes 6-8 weeks. I asked why it took so long and they said it was the 'Customer Standard' (or somesuch, I forget the exact term). No doubt it is, but it didn't answer the question of why it takes 6-8 weeks to move a few hundred £... the incumbent is hardly making a fortune by sitting on it for that long.

[bitchstewie]

I get the impressions there are still, in 2023, lots of things like faxes and paper forms involved.

Someone may know the exact technical reasons why that's the case but it just seems not to have caught up in an age of electronic/instant everything.

[InformationSuperHighway]

Anything other than instant transfer these days is a scam / taking advantage of customers... strong I know.. but there really shouldn't be any excuses.

Generally it's in their advantage to hang on to your cash as long as possible.

[p1doc]

i transferred cash isa to cash isa did online done in 3 working days,your delay likely due to paperwork being processed slowly

[Simpo Two]

p1doc said:

i transferred cash isa to cash isa did online done in 3 working days,your delay likely due to paperwork being processed slowly

This is S&S both sides, but only cash so nothing has to be sold.

I'm sure things were quicker in 1923!

[anonymous-user]

I found exactly the same when moving my children's junior ISA. And when consolidating some previous pensions. And now when I am moving my SIPP from Vanguard to a SSAS.

As an example, I contacted Vanguard, just to ask for their transfer-out pro-forma to a SSAS pension. It should take 5 minutes to forward it on, or it should be available on their website, as it is a standard document. And yet they took a month to get a proper reply, and even then it required me to raise a formal complaint, to get the document that quickly.

They just hide behind terms like "due-diligence" when all I am asking for is a copy of the correct form to use!

[Simpo Two]

EddieSteadyGo said:

They just hide behind terms like "due-diligence" when all I am asking for is a copy of the correct form to use!

Better than 'because Brexit' I suppose!

[anonymous-user]

I wonder if it is similar to how it used to be switching a bank account.... e.g. lots of lethargy and not much incentive to resource it properly. From what I've seen, it looks to be most providers (or I have been exceptionally unlucky).

[digger_R]

I think its just standard wording, I was told the same and it took 2-3 days to arrive.