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Savers’ guarantee may rise to £500,000
31.03.09
The current £50,000 limit on savers' guarantees by individual banks should be lifted to £500,000 for limited periods to cover people who suddenly have large amounts in their accounts from such things as selling their house or an inheritance.
The Financial Services Authority today suggested the £500,000 limit could be applied for just six months as part of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which last year made payments of £50,000 to depositors with Bradford & Bingley, Heritage and Icesave among others.
The FSA said there are increasing examples of people far exceeding that level of balance with divorce settlements, pension lump sums and redundancy payouts larger than they used to be.
Savers would still be encouraged to spread their savings between different banks up to the £50,000 limit within six months of receiving their windfall.
