Its Premium Bond Day

[69elan+2]

I know this subject comes up fairly often, but after checking my August bonds online and only ending up with a £50 it got me thinking:

Does anyone know of anyone else that has won big time on the bonds?

I know someone that won £10,000 and I also know someone else that has got the full allowance (£25,000 worth I believe it is now) and they usually get the odd £100 and maybe a couple of £50’s each month.

I like them to be honest, but I think I’m only seeing a basic 3 to 4 % return.

[Doug86]

I have the full allowance and I usually see between £100 and £300 a month in return.

[Viper_Larry]

Strangely I'm winning less and less. Time to cash them in and get a new set I think...

[CLK-GTR]

My parents have both got the full allowance and see £100 a month each if they're lucky. I keep telling them to ditch them and invest it properly but theyre convinced they'll hit the million one day

[toastboy]

I think the general consensus is to chop them in a get a new set every couple of years.

I don't think Ernie's quite as random as they make out.

[sjg]

Have held a few hundred quid with them (invested for me when I was a kid) and I think I won £50 once.

Better than the lottery, poor as savings go.

There's a good calculator here which tells you probabilities of returns based on how much you have and how long you'll hold them, and can compare to ISAs and other savings accounts.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/premium-b...

[SidewaysSid]

69elan+2 said:

I know this subject comes up fairly often, but after checking my August bonds online and only ending up with a £50 it got me thinking:

Does anyone know of anyone else that has won big time on the bonds?

I know someone that won £10,000 and I also know someone else that has got the full allowance (£25,000 worth I believe it is now) and they usually get the odd £100 and maybe a couple of £50’s each month.

I like them to be honest, but I think I’m only seeing a basic 3 to 4 % return.

It's £30,000 and yes we've won several times. Safe way to invest your money, no risk involved. Money is easil accessible. Best of all winnings are not taxed which helps if you are paying max rate of income tax. No it hasn't changed my lifestyle.

[dan1981]

6k for the last 4 months. had 100 quid back so far.

Can't complain if it keeps up.

[Radar Love]

£50 this month only.

In total £1000 exactly since 1st Feb on the full allowance, so 3.3% in 6 months.


Still waiting for the big one!

[BoRED S2upid]

I don't check them online, I just wait for the little envelopes around the 13th of every month, a nice little top up to the wages and gets me through until pay day.

[Sciroccology]

My parents bought me some when I was a nipper. Now they can't find them anywhere; lost in several house moves, probably.

Is there any way of tracking them down?

[Maxf]

SidewaysSid said:

69elan+2 said:

I know this subject comes up fairly often, but after checking my August bonds online and only ending up with a £50 it got me thinking:

Does anyone know of anyone else that has won big time on the bonds?

I know someone that won £10,000 and I also know someone else that has got the full allowance (£25,000 worth I believe it is now) and they usually get the odd £100 and maybe a couple of £50’s each month.

I like them to be honest, but I think I’m only seeing a basic 3 to 4 % return.

It's £30,000 and yes we've won several times. Safe way to invest your money, no risk involved. Money is easil accessible. Best of all winnings are not taxed which helps if you are paying max rate of income tax. No it hasn't changed my lifestyle.

There is a risk involved. You are gambling the interest you would recieve in a normal account.

I liked premium bonds until I read how many have been issued and how many are bought each month. There are billions of bonds, and each gets entered into the £1m draw - chances of winning are marginally less than finding the Aztec City of Gold while on holiday in Spain. In your villa.

[Simpo Two]

IIRC they're calculated to return an average of 3%; down from 4% a few years ago.

However the great thing is that you can get your stake back if you want (unlike the lottery).

[V8mate]

Cashing them in and buying new ones actually reduces your chances of winning as your Bonds are not entered into the draw immediately upon purchase. I think you have to wait a month (IIRC) before your new numbers are entered.

[Maxf]

Simpo Two said:

However the great thing is that you can get your stake back if you want (unlike the lottery).

You can get your capital back, but your stake is the amount of interest you lose by not having the money in a traditional account, where interest is guaranteed. You don't get that back.

[69elan+2]

Sciroccology said:

My parents bought me some when I was a nipper. Now they can't find them anywhere; lost in several house moves, probably.

Is there any way of tracking them down?

I would have thought so - check out the website & give them a call: http://www.nsandi.com

They are pretty helpful.

[cjs]

Average return is 3-4%, that's tax free. Not bad but you could do better with £30K! They are not a good savings investment and unless your likely to need the money for something you would better off paying off your mortgage or finding a good investment, something ISA based will give a better return.

BTW the chances of winning a big payout are very,very long!

[cjs]

69elan+2 said:

Sciroccology said:

My parents bought me some when I was a nipper. Now they can't find them anywhere; lost in several house moves, probably.

Is there any way of tracking them down?

I would have thought so - check out the website & give them a call: http://www.nsandi.com

They are pretty helpful.

I managed to find some old ones from when I was young, they were very helpful when I called.

[Simpo Two]

Maxf said:

Simpo Two said:

However the great thing is that you can get your stake back if you want (unlike the lottery).

You can get your capital back, but your stake is the amount of interest you lose by not having the money in a traditional account, where interest is guaranteed. You don't get that back.

True, but your local building society won't send you random cheques for £50 or £100. I suppose it all evens out and the choice depends on your risk profile.

[RobCrezz]

Sciroccology said:

My parents bought me some when I was a nipper. Now they can't find them anywhere; lost in several house moves, probably.

Is there any way of tracking them down?

Give them a bell, im sure you will be able to claim them.