A Premium Bonds saver was left baffled as they could not cash in their Bonds due to a peculiar error message.
The confused customer contacted NS&I over X to ask for clarity. They said: “What does the error message mean ‘This operation cannot be completed due to a reservation on a Bond’. I’m trying to cash in bonds and close the account.”
They confirmed in another message they were referring to Premium Bonds, with NS&I then asking them if they had previously requested to withdraw from their Bonds.
The savings giant also told them they could work this out if their available balance was different from their holding balance.
In response, the customer said: “No the balance available is the same amount that I’m trying to withdraw. Hence reducing the balance to zero and closing the account.
“I did purchase some new Premium Bonds at the end of September but not sure why this should be an issue.”
The customer support team replied to say they were unsure what was causing the issue. NS&I said: “We’re unsure what could be resulting in this error without access to view your account information.
“To assist you, we’d advise you please call us and ask to speak to an agent.” They pointed them to the helpline 08085 007 007, which is available Monday to Friday from 8am to 8pm.
But the saver said this would be difficult for them to do, as they were currently travelling in Vietname, so a call to a UK number would be very expensive.
Given their situation, NS&I then suggested another solution, saying: “You can also call +44 1772 329 880 using Skype. You may still have to use credit to make the call if overseas – however, it is possible that Skype will charge less than your phone service provider.”
One key benefit of Premium Bonds is you can cash them in at any time. People sometimes keep their Bonds as an emergency pot of savings for this reason.
Premium Bonds also offer an exciting way of building up your savings, as rather than getting an interest rate, the Bonds go into a monthly prize draw.
Taking place at the start of the month, each £1 Bond has an equal chance of winning one of the prizes, which range from £25 up to £1million.
You can win several prizes in a single draw although it’s purely a matter of luck which Bonds are winners, so you can months or even years without winning anything.
Each saver can hold up to £50,000 in Bonds, and customers often set up their account so any winnings are used to buy more Bonds, meaning you have a better chance of taking home a prize in future draws.
