Saga General Investment Account

Why invest in the Saga General Investment Account?

If you've maximised your ISA allowance for the current tax year then the Saga General Investment Account (provided by Hubwise) might be right for you. 

It offers three ready-made investment portfolios, each with a different investment objective and level of risk, making it simple to choose the one that's best aligned to your personal circumstances and goals. The portfolios give your money the opportunity to grow over the medium to long term (at least five years). 

As with any investment, the value of your investments and any income received from them can fall as well as rise. This means you may not get back the amount you invested.

You can save from a minimum of a £100 lump sum or £100 each month. You can also make lump sum payments of £100 upwards from time to time. You can also make lump sum payments of £100 upwards whenever you like

Once your account has been set up, you can take your money out at any time. It can take up to five working days for you to receive your money. And please bear in mind there may be tax to pay (see below).

See the Key Features Document for the Saga General Investment Account.

What tax do you pay with the Saga General Investment Account?

You may need to pay Capital Gains Tax (CGT) if your investments have increased in value when you sell them. You are currently able to make £3,000 in gains across all of your investments and on the sale of other assets, each tax year before you pay CGT. 

Depending on your personal tax position, you may also need to pay Income Tax on any dividend income or interest received. 

Because there are no tax benefits when investing in a General Investment Account, you’ll need to declare it on your Self-Assessment tax return. To help with this, annual reports are provided showing realised investment gains/losses and the income you’ve received.

If you've not used all of your £20,000 ISA allowance for the current tax year, even if you've already paid into one, you should consider whether the Saga Stocks & Shares ISA is a better option for you.

What you can invest in with the Saga General Investment Account

When you invest through the Saga General Investment Account, you have a choice of three ready-made investment portfolios:

Cautious Growth Portfolio – find out more

Balanced Growth Portfolio – find out more

Adventurous Growth Portfolio – find out more

Each portfolio comes with a different investment objective and level of risk. You just need to choose the one that’s best aligned to your individual circumstances and goals.

Designed by HUB Financial Solutions, the portfolios give you the opportunity to invest in a number of funds which hold a wide range of different types of assets like cash, bonds and company shares (or ‘equities’), across UK and international markets. This diverse range of assets helps spread the investment risk while giving your money the opportunity to grow over the medium to long term.

The funds in the Saga investment portfolios are managed by established fund management companies. These are shown in the portfolio fact sheets. 

The value of your investments and the income received from them can fall as well as rise. This means you may not get back the amount you invested.

Find out more about the investment portfolios.

Introducing the Glide Path feature

If you’re investing for something specific, you may have a fairly good idea when you’ll need to access your money. If this is more than five years away, you may want your investment to automatically reduce in risk as you come closer to this point in time. This helps reduce the risk of your money going down in value just when you’re planning to use it. 

That’s why we offer the Glide Path feature.

You can choose this option when you first invest, or you can switch it on at any point in the future. Your money will then automatically switch down into a lower risk-rated portfolio which aims for lower volatility and the likelihood of smaller ups and downs.

And if your needs change at any point in the future, there’s the option to switch off the Glide Path feature whenever you like.

Find out more about the Glide Path.

Different ways of investing in the Saga General Investment Account

There are a few ways you can invest: 

1. Lump sum - If you have spare money in a savings account and want the potential for it to grow over the medium to long term, you can invest a minimum of £100 as a lump sum. There's no maximum limit, so you can invest as much as you like.
2. Monthly payments - If you'd like to put some money in each month, you can start from £100 each month, with no monthly maximum.
3. Ad hoc – Invest lump sums of £100 upwards whenever you like.
4. Transfer other investments - You can transfer across the cash value of any investment accounts you hold with other providers. This makes it easier to monitor all your investments and you might save on fees when everything is in one place. Read more about combining investments.

Invest in the Saga General Investment Account now.

Things to bear in mind

Before investing, you should be aware that:

• Saga Investments is a non-advised service. This means you won’t receive advice on investment decisions or whether the products are suitable for you. If you need additional support to identify which products and investment portfolios will meet your needs, this will not be the right service for you.
• You’re making your own investment decisions. When choosing your investment portfolio, you’ll need to decide how much risk you’re prepared to take in order to reach your investment goals. It’s important to find the right balance between potential risk and potential reward, so think carefully about the impact losing money will have on you. Read more about the risks.
• This is a medium to long term investment – preferably more than five years. There can be ups and downs in any market. But the longer you’re invested, the more chance your money has to overcome falls and for it to grow again.
• It’s often a good idea to clear outstanding unsecured short term or high-interest debts, and to make sure you’ve got enough money to cover day-to-day living costs.
• It’s also worth making sure you’ve got cash available in case of emergencies rather than being forced to use your investments. You can’t always withdraw money quickly as it takes time to sell investments (up to five working days). Or the time might not be right to sell your investments, for example if there’s a downturn in the market and your money has gone down in value.
• The Saga General Investment Account doesn’t share the tax benefits of an ISA. The operation of the product will include the sale of funds, for example on rebalancing and withdrawals, which will lead to investment losses and gains. Depending on your personal tax position, this may mean that you need to pay Capital Gains Tax.  Also, income received from fund dividends and interest payments will contribute to your taxable income, so depending on your personal tax position, you may need to pay Income Tax. 

Find out more about the risks of investing. 

Fees and charges

There’s no up-front fee for opening a Saga General Investment Account, and no exit fee if you take your money out.

The total annual cost is up to 0.75% per year of the overall value held within the Saga General Investment Account (excluding transaction costs). So, if your GIA had a value of £10,000, the total cost for the whole year would be up to £75. This is made up of fees (which are deducted from the product) and fund charges (which are reflected in the value of your funds).

The fees are 0.65% per year based on the value of your investment. So, if your Saga General Investment Account had a value of £10,000, the fees for the whole year would be £65. This 0.65% is made up of:

• An Investment Service Fee of 0.52% per year
• A Platform Fee of 0.13% per year

The total fund charges will be up to 0.10% per year. So, if your Saga General Investment Account had a value of £10,000, the total fund charges for the whole year would be up to £10. The exact amount will depend on the portfolio you select and the funds your money is invested in. For more information about this, please see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) [link to relevant FAQ]. 

There will also be transaction costs for buying and selling the underlying assets in the fund, such as equities and bonds. The level of these costs depends upon the dealing activity in the fund. For more information about this, please see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

The fees and charges are collected automatically - you don't need to do anything.

You’ll receive a full up-front breakdown of the fees and charges you’ll pay in the ‘Illustration of Costs and Charges’ document when you open a Saga General Investment Account. The actual amount you pay will increase and decrease in line with the value of your assets. For further information about the fees and charges, including how they’re calculated and collected, please see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and Saga Investments Terms & Conditions. 

How do I invest in a Saga General Investment Account?

You can invest in a Saga General Investment Account in just a few clicks. Here's how:

1. Set up your online account. You just need your email address, phone number and date of birth.
2. Read the important information carefully to make sure the Saga General Investment Account is right for you and you understand the risks.
3. Once you've confirmed you want to open a Saga General Investment Account, tell us your preferred investment option.
4. Finally, let us know whether you’re investing a lump sum, setting up regular payments or transferring the cash value of other investment accounts.

Once everything has been checked and is in order, your Saga General Investment Account will be set up for you.

Please remember that Saga Investments is ‘non-advised’. This means you won’t receive advice on investment decisions or whether the products are suitable for you. If you need additional support to identify which products and investment portfolios will meet your needs, this will not be the right service for you.

Invest in the Saga General Investment Account now.

Managing your investments

Your online account offers you easy access to your investments at any time.  You have the flexibility to:

• Pay in more money – as a one-off or regular contribution
• Transfer the cash value of other General Investment Accounts to the Saga General Investment Acccount
• Check the value of your General Investment account
• Run illustrations
• Request a transfer
• View your important documents
• Make a one-off withdrawal or set up regular withdrawals.

You can also perform the following by contacting the Saga Investments team by phone on 0800 302 9755:

• Turn the Glide Path feature on and off
• Changing your account details
• Switch Investment portfolio.

Eligibility

To open a Saga General Investment Account:

• You must be over the age of 18.
• You must be resident and ordinarily resident in the UK for tax purposes. This includes Crown servants, or the spouses or civil partners of Crown servants working overseas. We are not able to provide Saga Investments to US persons.

Additional information

You can cancel your account within 14 calendar days of the date on which your account was opened by calling or emailing the Saga Investments Team. If you cancel, the value of your Saga General Investment Account will be repaid to your bank account within five working days. 

If the value has fallen between the time you invested and the time when the funds are sold following your cancellation instruction, you won’t get the full amount of your investment back. You may need to pay Capital Gains Tax (CGT) if your investments have increased in value when they’re sold. You are currently able to make £3,000 in gains across all of your investments and on the sale of other assets, each tax year before you pay CGT. This allowance is subject to change by the UK Government. Depending on your personal tax position, you may also need to pay Income Tax on any dividend income or interest received. Fees will continue to be due until your Saga General Investment Account is cancelled. 

You can find more information about the Saga General Investment Account in the Key Features Document.

Protecting your money

HUB Financial Solutions, Hubwise and the providers of the funds you hold within your Saga General Investment Account are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). This protects customers against financial services firms that have failed. 

In the unlikely event that any of these companies can’t meet their obligations, you may be entitled to compensation from the scheme up to a maximum limit of £85,000 per person, per firm.

The FSCS does not cover losses for poor investment performance - the nature of investments means their value can go down as well as up.

For more information about the FSCS, visit the FSCS website.

The information provided on this website should not be taken as a recommendation, advice or forecast. Tax depends on your personal tax position. Tax rules are subject to change by the UK Government.

Hubwise Securities Limited (FRN 502619) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, is an ISA Plan Manager (HMRC ISA Plan Manager Z1723) and a Member of the London Stock Exchange.