marcus.co.uk

Marcus does not allow electronic transfer out of your ISA to another ISA provider

In the 21st century, it is incredible how many banks do not allow electronic transfer of ISAs from one bank to another! Marcus is one such bank. They are very happy to accept your funds electronically when you open an ISA. This means that the entire application process is completed online electronically without having to complete a paper based form and having to post it. Once your ISA is open and you wish to move your ISA to another provider, as you complete the online application for your new provider, you will asked to provide the details of your current ISA provider and the account details. At this point you find out that Marcus is not on the list. When you contact them, they inform you that they are not part of the scheme that allows electronic transfer of ISAs. This means that you have to complete a paper form from your new provider and take it to their local branch or put it in the post. This process is a long drawn out process whereby the new provider posts your completed form to Marcus. Marcus then issues a cheque with your ISA funds and sends it by post to your new provider. Imagine all the data protection and security issues associated with such an unnecessarily lengthy process and the amount of time it takes to do an ISA transfer.I raised a complaint with Marcus to ask why they do not mention when I apply for an ISA that they will not allow it to be transferred electronically when I wish to move to a new provide. Apparently this information is there somewhere in its FAQs. I asked if they would place that information somewhere where it is easily visible at the time of application. I was told that they would only do it if they had enough complaints about it! In short, they cannot be asked to do anything about it. It is not a long stretch to imagine that such a poor process is deliberately designed to hold on to your funds for as long as possible!In summary don't waste your time opening an ISA with Marcus if you want to be able to transfer your ISA to a new provider quickly and easily!

Date of experience: Mar 31, 2023