Foursight savings (Cornmarket)

Limerickham

Hi,

Sorry if i'm on the wrong board - this is my first post in a long long time!!

Basically a rep from Cornmarket has been round and has explained that their foursight savings accounts are an excellent opportunity to save money with interest rates of 8% plus. There is a fee to set up the account and then a regular monthly deposit.

He told me that if i was to put in my child benefit each month i could ensure that i could get my son through college. Adding up my child benefit for 18 years comes to approx. 29,000euro which would be enough to take the sting out of it regardless of signing up to this.

I can't seem to find any opinions on these accounts, what they are, how they work etc.

Is anyone able to explain it to me, share their experience or recommend another option that i could avail of?

.....or of course direct me to a board that would be better suited to this post.

Thanks a mill

Geuze

I strongly suspect this is not a savings deposit account.

It is a regular contribution to a managed fund.

Be aware that Cornmarket are known for charging high fees, and that you could set up a similar long-term investment fund for much lower fees yourself.

Geuze

http://www.cornmarket.ie/product/savings-and-investments

Yes, it's not a deposit account.

The 8% is a forecast / prediction.

It's a managed investment fund to receive regular amounts.

Geuze

Questions to ask:

how much is the set-up fee?
what is the allocation rate, i.e. how much of your monthly premium goes into the fund?
what is the AMC on the funds?
is there a policy fee?
Is there a bid/offer fee?

Get them to list each and every fee, don't be fobbed off.

Limerickham

Thanks very much. Meeting again tomorrow so will ask those questions before making any decisions.

You've been a real help

beeno67

Limerickham wrote: »

Thanks very much. Meeting again tomorrow so will ask those questions before making any decisions.

You've been a real help

I wouldn't even meet him. He is suggesting there is a fund where you will get 8% a year over the next 18 years. I would not trust anyone making that kind of claim. The product looks like a life assurance product. Do you want life assurance or was it savings you were looking for?

In addition on the website there are no clear details of fees and charges. Avoid like the plague. Meeting him may see yourself getting suckered into something you regret. Ask him instead to e-mail you a brochure detailing the fees, charges, penalties (if any). After reading this information in your own time, only then consider risking your money. Also the payment looks to be linked to your salary and your payments will increase as your salary increase. I bet each time the payment increases you have an additional charge. These type of products were common in the 80s and a lot of people got stung on them. They used to have tax relief attached to them (30 years ago) but make little sense now.

ardmacha

beeno67 wrote: »

Meeting him may see yourself getting suckered into something you regret. Ask him instead to e-mail you a brochure detailing the fees, charges, penalties (if any). After reading this information in your own time, only then consider risking your money. .

This. Get all of the fee details and then make your assessment. These guys can sell snow to the Eskimos as if it was cocaine.

oscar2

Run away. As previous poster said these guys are experts at selling. You will not in a million years get an 8% return. You will be lucky to break even.

I had the misfortune to invest in an AVC and even with tax reliefs I've lost money.