- 48% of UK savers don’t know what interest their cash is earning
- 29% have had the same low-interest savings accounts for 11 years or more
- 15% of adults spent just ‘minutes’ assessing their options before setting up their last savings account.
- 12% who have cash in savings rarely or never check the progress of what’s in there.
UK savers are missing out on high interest rates and tax-free profits by not saving through an ISA
£1.3 trillion of UK savings is sitting in low interest savings accounts earning less than 50% of the Bank of England base rate (currently 4.5%), according to analysis of Bank of England credit data by Flagstone, the UK’s largest savings platform. This equates to approximately three in every four pounds of UK savers’ hard-earned cash.
Claire Jones, Head of Strategic Partnerships at Flagstone said: “People are busier than ever, so it’s understandable that their savings aren’t always front of mind. But a little work goes a long way; millions of savers could be earning double what they are today. The first step is staying informed – knowing your interest rate and knowing where to look for better options.”
Jones adds: “Most people aren’t money experts. So the second step to helping millions more savers earn double what they make today lies with the experts: their advisers. Advisers have an opportunity and a duty to mobilise their clients and help them think harder about cash as an asset class in its own right – one that offers competitive risk-adjusted returns alongside their investments and pensions. As an industry dedicated to preserving and growing people’s wealth across the most diverse range of opportunities, it’s time to help more people optimise their cash opportunities.”
In a warning to Brits about their ‘sleeping savings’. Flagstone designed a ‘sleeping giant’ made up of 2,000 fake bank notes that snoozed in the centre of Canary Wharf, 11 to 13 March 2025. The fully recyclable giant weighed 1.1 tonnes, measured almost eight metres in length, and was created from recycled materials.
ISA savings near £50 billion record on interest high rates
Total money in cash individual savings accounts (ISAs) reached a record £49.8 billion last year, as the public continues to be lured by the highest interest rates since the 2008 financial crisis.
Bank of England (BoE) data released in January showed that total ISA cash savings increased by £2.7 billion in 2024 from £47.1 billion the year before. This is despite average rates falling somewhat as the Bank cut its base rate by 50 basis points to 4.75% last year.
Cash ISAs currently offer some of the highest rates on savings and investment platforms, up to or even above 5%, above the current BoE base rate. However, these may not be sustainable over the long term.
You can view our roundup of which cash ISAs offer the highest interest rates through this link. And here is a list of the platforms that offer the best interest on uninvested cash across all account types.
Hargreaves Lansdown runs a popular Active Savings service that allows customers to switch between a wide range of Cash ISA providers.
According to data from the investment platform, the largest in the UK, users overwhelmingly prefer easy access variable rate cash ISAs over fixed rate products, with 90% going to the former type of account.
Hargreaves Lansdown also noted that savings platforms dominate the Cash ISA easy access market and offer the highest interest rates. By contrast, no banks or building societies feature in the top three for rates.
The firm’s head of Active Savings Mark Hicks said that last year was an “abnormal savings market”, as easy access rates do not usually consistently outperform fixed term rates as they did in 2024.
As of the start of 2025, this dynamic still exists, but fixed rate products are still worth looking into as they offer a guaranteed return as the BoE is expected to cut rates further this year.
Providers which offer accounts with rates at or above 5% may have to cut them before the tax year ends in March, Hicks added, and are likely to be already operating them at a loss.
“Frozen income tax thresholds and no changes to the personal savings allowance have persuaded more savers to use Cash ISAs to protect their savings from tax,” he also noted.
Richard is the founder of the Good Money Guide (formerly Good Broker Guide), one of the original investment comparison sites established in 2015. With a career spanning two decades as a broker, he brings extensive expertise and knowledge to the financial landscape.
Having worked as a broker at Investors Intelligence and a multi-asset derivatives broker at MF Global (Man Financial), Richard has acquired substantial experience in the industry. His career began as a private client stockbroker at Walker Crips and Phillip Securities (now King and Shaxson), following internships on the NYMEX oil trading floor in New York and London IPE in 2001 and 2000.
Richard’s contributions and expertise have been recognized by respected publications such as The Sunday Times, BusinessInsider, Yahoo Finance, BusinessNews.org.uk, Master Investor, Wealth Briefing, iNews, and The FT, among many others.
Under Richard’s leadership, the Good Money Guide has evolved into a valuable destination for comprehensive information and expert guidance, specialising in trading, investment, and currency exchange. His commitment to delivering high-quality insights has solidified the Good Money Guide’s standing as a well-respected resource for both customers and industry colleagues.
You can contact Richard at richard@goodmoneyguide.com
