Premium Bonds customer alarmed as maximum holding amount shrinks - NS&I explains
The maximum amount they could invest dropped after they tried to make a transaction.
A Premium Bonds was left worrying after the maximum holding amount for their account dropped.
The concerned customer got in touch with provider NS&I over X. They said: "The amount that I can invest into Premium Bonds is less than it should be.
"The transaction failed a couple of times and each time it did the maximum I could invest went down. Is there any way to fix this?"
A representative responded to clarify how the Premium Bonds system works. They said: "Your account's 'headroom' is reduced to prevent any further deposits from being made that will take your account over the maximum holding.
"The deduction on the account's headroom is automatically reduced as soon as the amount you wish to purchase is keyed on the system, as we expect the sale to proceed successfully.
"Your headroom will return to normal after a full 24 hours since the last attempted deposit."
A person can hold up to £50,000 in Premium Bonds. When buying Bonds, you have to buy at least £25 worth of the savings option.
Rather than getting an interest rate, each Bond is entered into a monthly prize draw, with each £1 Bond having an equal chance of winning a prize.
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Each draw includes big cash prizes for £100,000 and £50,000 and two jackpot prizes for £1million.
The odds of winning a prize are currently 24,000 to one with the prize fund rate at 4.4 percent.
Another customer recently contacted NS&I to vent their frustration at winning nothing in 60 years as a customer.
NS&I told them in response: "Every number has a separate and equal chance each month of winning a prize, however the more Bonds you buy, the better your chances of winning."
The prize fund rate was slashed from the March draw, dropping from 4.65 percent to the current 4.4 percent.
Andrew Westhead, NS&I retail director, said: "These changes reflect our requirement to strike a balance between the interests of our savers, taxpayers and the stability of the broader financial services sector.
"In a dynamic savings market, it’s important that our rates are set at an appropriate position against those of our competitors as we work towards meeting our annual Net Financing target."
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