Business

Tax Tips - 18th March 2009

Written by Staff Reporter

Wednesday, 18 March 2009

Savings and investments

Are all savings covered by the Government Guarantee Scheme?

The Government has guaranteed all savings held by depositors in the seven Irish banks and building societies – AIB, Bank of Ireland, Anglo Irish Bank, Irish Life Permanent, EBS, Irish Nationwide Building Society and Post Bank. The guarantee covers the original capital sum deposited and any interest that has since accrued and it will be in place until 29 September 2010.

Is this different to the Deposit Protection Scheme?
Yes. The protection scheme was introduced prior to the bank guarantee scheme. It covers all financial institutions that are authorised by the financial regulator to operate here. Under this scheme, deposits up to €100,000 per person, per institution are covered. .

Examples of Institutions operating in Ireland covered under the Irish Deposit Protection Scheme are as follows: .

Bank	Guarantee type	Amount
Bank of Scotland	Deposit Protection Scheme	Deposits up to a max of €100,000 per person guaranteed
ACC Bank	Deposit Protection Scheme	Deposits up to a max of €100,000 per person guaranteed
Ulster Bank	Deposit Protection Scheme	Deposits up to a max of €100,000 per person guaranteed
KBC Bank	Deposit Protection Scheme	Deposits up to a max of €100,000 per person guaranteed

What about deposits in the Post Office or the Credit Union?

Post Office	State Body – Government has always guaranteed deposits	Irish Government guarantees all deposits
Credit Union	Deposit Protection Scheme	Deposits up to a max of €100,000 per person guaranteed

What about banks not covered by the Irish Guarantee Scheme or the Irish Deposit Protection Scheme?
Some banks operating in Ireland are regulated in their home country. Deposits with these institutions are covered by guarantees and compensation schemes in their own jurisdiction, and terms of these schemes vary, for example:

Bank	Jurisdiction	Guarantee
Rabo Direct	Dutch	Deposits up to €100,000 per person
Investec Bank	UK	Deposits up £50,000 per person
Leeds Building Society	UK	Deposits up £50,000 per person
Northern Rock	UK	All deposits guaranteed by the Bank of England

The general advice for savers with large amounts of monies on deposit is to not have all your eggs in one basket and take advantage of the various protection schemes on offer. Although it is highly unlikely that any of the Irish guarantee schemes will have to be called upon, it is not, as we know from recent economic events, impossible. As a result, you may have to wait some time to be paid out. This may cause undue hardship, for example for individuals who rely on savings for day-to-day living or /and need funds quickly if they lose their job. A full list of all institutions and their coverage is at www.itsyourmoney.ie.

The above information should be treated as a guide only as individual circumstances may differ. If you have any queries on the above, please contact Rory Coll at Coll & Co Chartered Accountants, Barna. Galway. He can be contacted by phone: 091 592080 or by email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Coll & Co, specialize in Personal tax & Pensions advice and are regulated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants to provide Investment Advice.

Comments (0) »

Show/Hide comment form toggle

< Prev		Next >

[ Back ]

For a greater insight into the race, visit our image galleries

For all the latest updates on the race visit our Volvo Ocean Race section. We have compiled a great selection of videos, images, articles and official updates.