Not upheld: ISA / savings administration complaint against Castle Trust Capital PLC

Decision detail

Summary

Mr G complained that Castle Trust failed to complete his ISA transfer on the maturity date, resulting in his funds earning a lower interest rate in a holding account. Although Mr G provided a transfer request two weeks before maturity, Castle Trust could not legally process the transfer until the account matured on 7 December due to ISA regulations. Castle Trust completed the transfer on 10 December, within the required 15 working day timeframe. The ombudsman found that Castle Trust had properly advised Mr G of the holding account and its lower interest rate in the maturity notification email and attached summary document, and therefore did not uphold the complaint.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Castle Trust could not legally process the ISA transfer before the account maturity date due to ISA regulations and the risk of early closure charges. Under ISA regulations and guidelines, Castle Trust had 15 working days from maturity to complete the transfer, and completed it on the third business day (10 December), well within the required timeframe. The ombudsman considered it reasonable that funds were placed in a holding account during this period, and found that Castle Trust had adequately informed Mr G about the holding account and its lower interest rate through the maturity notification email and attached summary document.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website