A Premium Bonds customer was frustrated to be facing an expensive process to cash in their Bonds.
A person reached out to provider NS&I over X to explain their problem. They said: “My mum had a £1 Premium Bond she wants to cash in.
“You’ve sent a form to complete but a stamp to send the form back will cost more than the £1 Bond. Is there another way?”
NS&I responded to explain the rules for older Bonds. They said: “If your mother has a Bond which only has a Bond Serial Number and not a holder’s number she would be required to complete the postal version of our Cashing In form due to the age of the holding.
“If she does have a holder’s number, she can complete our online Cashing In form.”
The group also sent a link to a webpage with a form to ‘cash in your Premium Bonds‘.
To fill in the form, you have to provide personal details including your name, address, mobile number and email address, and details about your holdings.
A saver can cash in their Bonds at any time, making Premium Bonds an attractive option as an emergency pot of funds.
Each saver can hold up to £50,000 in Bonds. Many customers arrange their accounts so whenever they win a prize in the monthly draw, the money is reinvested in buying more Bonds, upping their chances of winning again.
The prize fund rate for Premium Bonds is currently 21,000 to one, with each £1 Bond having a 21,000 to one chance of being paired with a prize.
Another frustrated saver recently reached out to NS&I as they had been waiting seven weeks for their matured bonds to be transferred over to Premium Bonds.
They complained: “Seven weeks to transfer from matured bond to Premium Bonds, unbelievable, should’ve got cash and done myself. My money inactive for seven weeks unacceptable.”
The provider said in reply: “Your funds will not be inactive, as long as have received your request before your maturity date, we will backdate your funds to the earliest Premium Bonds draw you’re eligible for.
“To assist you with this, you’d need to give us a call on 08085 007 007 and an advisor can look into the alternative options available for you.”
