Premium bonds have been a great way to save money in Great Britain and in Northern Ireland. There is speculation amongst the Irish citizens that most of the prize money is allocated to the British Isle and they are shortchanged on the winning. The cash prizes given out to premium bond holders are based on the bond number. The more bonds you buy the more chances you have to win a cash prize. The population of Britain far exceeds the population of Northern Island so statistically the winnings would be less frequent. The salary range for the average citizen in Northern Ireland is less so there are not as many individuals able to invest the cap of thirty thousand bonds. It is just simple math not a conspiracy.

Over a million prizes are given out each month that range from fifty pounds to two one million pound prizes. The ERNIE random number generator puts out the winning numbers each month and the winners are notified about their winnings. This does not stop conspiracy theories though, either in Northern Ireland or in Great Britain. A lady in Northern Ireland reported that she had inherited premium bonds from her dead husband and the National Savings and Investments refused to acknowledge her rewards. She even claimed that it was because she was Irish.

Knowledge can give you a real advantage. To make sure you’re fully informed about Premium Bonds, keep reading.

A local radio station took up the woman’s problems and called the National Savings and Investment. They found out that only the original owner can claim the prizes and that nobody can inherit the premium bonds. This means if your spouse dies and has the maximum thirty thousand pound investment, the surviving spouse will not see a penny of it. There was no conspiracy against the Irish widow, but there was a loophole in the premium bond contract that let the money be kept by the government. The bonds cannot be transferred to another name after a death, but they can be cashed in for new bonds. There is more than three hundred thousand pounds unclaimed in Northern Ireland alone. So instead of looking at the conspiracies of the National Savings and Investments, they should be looking to see if they have a winning bond.

The Nations Savings and Investments agency has a free tracing service that can track down your numbers for you and see if you have a cash prize waiting for you. Even if the bond is forty years old the agency can track it down for you. If you have a claim you can fill out the payment order and about seven days you will receive your cash prize.

So next time you feel that the National Savings and Investments are trying to swindle you out of your money or that there is a huge conspiracy against you, contact the agency and ask. They are always willing to help you with your particular problem and will gladly provide the tracing service for you. You can contact the National Savings and Investments online or call their toll free number. You can find contractual information about premium bonds at your post office or you can get the contract information directly from the National Savings and Investments online.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

The British have found a unique way to invest their money. By buying premium bonds the citizens of Britain can enter their bond numbers into a lottery each month and have a chance to win over a million pounds. There are millions of other cash prizes that awarded to the bond numbers drawn and this cash prize is seen to be better than interest generated from traditional savings program. The system is so popular more than a third of the country invests this way. The investor can pull out their money at any time and there is not penalty or cost to do so. The money invested is used by the government to fund projects and at the same time give their citizens a chance to be millionaires.

What would happen if this system was used in the United States? Premium bonds would be a welcome financial opportunity for American citizens. The current lottery system is taking in millions of dollars across the country but there are few winners. Once you buy a lottery ticket you don’t get your money back and you lose that dollar. This is gambling and not investing. The odds of winning an American lottery are astronomical. One person in Florida in 1999 bought ten thousand lottery tickets. After the numbers were pulled, the person only won eight hundred and sixty three dollars. The investor lost over nine thousand dollars in taking a huge chance of winning the twenty three million dollar prize.

The more authentic information about Premium Bonds you know, the more likely people are to consider you a Premium Bonds expert. Read on for even more Premium Bonds facts that you can share.

This would not happen with premium bonds. Thought the prize money is not as huge as the American lottery, the British investor would have twelve chances to win a million pounds over the course of a year. The chances of winning less amounts are even greater. The British citizen is allowed to invest up to thirty thousand pounds into the system and if they don’t win they can take their money out anytime they want. They lose nothing for their investment. This way the premium bond market is not considered gambling and the investor can be assured that their nest egg will remain in place.

The problem with premium bonds coming to America is that the government will have to restructure their thinking of how to save and distribute the funds. They are making millions now without having to do anything but have the weekly lottery and pay off the winners. They pocket out the cash without having the responsibility of letting people have the opportunity to save. Church groups and other anti-gambling groups will win a victory as they will look at the investment opportunity as a savings plan and not a gambling operation.

Unlike the British system where the investors purchase their bonds from the post office the postal service in the United States would probably be overwhelmed if they had to take responsibility for the program. The United States would probably benefit by selling premium bonds online and have an agency that deposits and awards the prizes. This would take a lot of planning but the American population would definitely embrace it.

Don’t limit yourself by refusing to learn the details about Premium Bonds. The more you know, the easier it will be to focus on what’s important.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

The following paragraphs summarize the work of Premium Bonds experts who are completely familiar with all the aspects of Premium Bonds. Heed their advice to avoid any Premium Bonds surprises.

Premium bonds are becoming more popular everyday. Millions of people are investing in these bonds and some are questioning if they are really worth it. Premium bonds were introduced in 1956 as a way to get the public to invest into the British Government. This was set up like a lottery so that the common man could save and at the same time have a chance to winning millions of pounds. Nearly twenty million people, a third of the population now owns at least one premium bond. Investors can buy these bonds directly from the post office or they can purchase from the National Savings and Investment firms.

Since interest rates are falling, premium bonds are seen as a safe way to invest and at the same time have the thrill of winning one of the over million and a half cash prizes awarded each month. Fifteen percent of the prize money is used for high cash prizes and another fifteen percent is used for medium cash prizes. The remaining seventy percent of the money was used to award lower prizes that are as high as fifty pounds. A fifty pound prize on a one bond is almost a 500 percent return. Right now you have a 1 in 21,000 chance to win, but with the bonds becoming more popular, those odds may be greater in the future.

You may not consider everything you just read to be crucial information about Premium Bonds. But don’t be surprised if you find yourself recalling and using this very information in the next few days.

You have to buy at least one hundred pounds to invest in premium bonds and you can only have thirty thousand pounds in an account. The bonds are backed and protected by the national treasury. Anyone who invests can be assured that when they decide to pull out their funds, the money will be there. Anyone can invest as long as you are sixteen. Many parents buy premium bonds as a way to pay for their children’s college. Young investors can learn the value of savings and at the same time get the chance to win enough money to set them up for life.

Unlike lottery tickets, the same bond can win over and over. The more you invest, the more times you will have a chance to win. The winnings are tax-free and you can even reinvest the money you win until you reach the thirty thousand pound limit. It has been reported that the odds in winning has declined in the last ten years. It is a matter of statistics that the more bonds that are bought the lower the chance that your bond number will be picked.

The odds are still better than the American lottery because you don’t have to buy a different ticket each time. You can find out if your bond number is picked by looking at the National Saving and Invest website. Here they list all the winning numbers and all you have to do is call or contact them for you to claim your prize. It is recorded that the National Saving and Invest firm has over five hundred thousand unclaimed prizes that they are holding for claimers.

Don’t limit yourself by refusing to learn the details about Premium Bonds. The more you know, the easier it will be to focus on what’s important.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

Do you ever feel like you know just enough about Premium Bonds to be dangerous? Let’s see if we can fill in some of the gaps with the latest info from Premium Bonds experts.

Premium bonds are a great way to save money and at the same time have a chance to winning up to a million pounds. Each one pond bond has a unique number on it that is put into an automatic number generator machine that produces numbers for a monthly lottery. If your number is picked you and a million and a half other investors have a chance to win a cash prize from fifty to a million pounds. If you have premium bonds you have twelve chances a year to receive a significant amount of money in lieu of the percentages from a regular savings account.

Some people have won a cash prize for the premium bonds and don’t even know that they have won. They could have moved and their new address wasn’t registered with the National Savings and Investments agency. A notice of their win would have gone out and the recipient would have never known. The National Savings and Investments agency will keep the money until someone claims it. You just have to step up to the plate and claim it. But like many investors, you don’t know how. There may be money out there you just have to ask.

So far, we’ve uncovered some interesting facts about Premium Bonds. You may decide that the following information is even more interesting.

There are online services that will search the National Savings and Investments unclaimed prize list and let you know that if you have a payment or prize pending. The great thing about this service is that it is free. You just give them the bond numbers and they will tell you if you have won. They cannot do anything with the bond numbers themselves. The bond itself is the proof that you won when you present it for the prize. The bond number itself is useless to anyone trying to scam the system.

The investor must remember that the bondholder number is a unique code given to each holder. The bondholder number will allow the finding service to search all premium bond numbers you have in your account. If you don’t know your number, it is the number tat was given to you when you bought your first premium bonds. The numbers are arranged in eight digits and a letter at the end. The premium bond numbers will have letters throughout the number sequences and will be distinct from any other sequence. This way you can discern between your bond holder number and your actual bond identification number.

With most online bondholder checking services, the list of prizes is updated on a regular basis. Again, just your book holder number is needed and not the individual numbers from your individual premium bonds. The service will match the numbers and give you the results, either positive or negative, by email. You don’t have to worry about moving and having the notice sent to the wrong address. You can even be out of the country and be able to be notified. Both recent and past numbers will be matched and you will have an answer within a few days.

I hope that reading the above information was both enjoyable and educational for you. Your learning process should be ongoing–the more you understand about any subject, the more you will be able to share with others.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Premium bonds have been debated for decades over their ability to actually beat out interest bearing savings plans and conventional banking practices. Premium bonds allow the bond buyer to participate in a monthly lottery that picks out individual bond numbers. If your bond number is picked you are awarded a cash prize that can range from fifty pounds to a million pounds. Your investment is safe and the government uses the money to fund public projects. There have been conspiracy theories and other grumblings about the premium bond system and now there are religious concerns.

A recent ruling in the Islamic world has made premium bonds ownership against Islamic law. Muhammad Adam al-Kawthari has interpreted the Koran in stating that contrary to shares, premium bonds are a loan instead of a partial owning of a company as in shares. The act of making money off of your own money in the form of interest is considered usury and takes away from the pillar of faith that represents being charitable. Islamic scholars have declared all bonds that produce interest as unlawful. Even a premium bond cash prize is considered apart of interest and cannot be allowed.

If you base what you do on inaccurate information, you might be unpleasantly surprised by the consequences. Make sure you get the whole Premium Bonds story from informed sources.

Is the Islamic religion is against premium bonds, imagine what the sales with be like if it was suddenly made lawful. The sale of bonds would go up and the odds would be skewed a little. The Moslem population in Britain might bring many millions of pounds into the government coffers. The funds generated could help Britain pay its war debt and at the same time finance British troops occupying Islamic countries. The Cleric might have made the decision to degree premium bonds unlawful for this very reason. It might be a good idea for the National Savings and Investments or the government to issue a statement that the funds will not be used for military or war funding.

The government is working on a way for the Islamic citizens to be able to participate in the premium bond programs. The Islamic financial systems work on investing on a fixed asset and even Pakistan has Islamic bonds issues to finance its roadways. If the British government figures out a way to do this then they will be able to be the first Europeans ever who are able to allow the Islamic world to participate in the premium bond market. This will boost sales and allow the British Islamic citizen to have fun and save their money in a secure way.

The National Savings and Investments are running against other investing firms that are trying to secure financial relationships with the Muslim communities. Lloyds TSB, one of the largest banks in the country, announced that they have structured Islamic accounts that will be offered to Muslim investors. The account will remain respectful to the Islamic law and at the same time give the investor a secure way to keep their money in a bank and earn money without the idea of interest. Premium bonds may not be the allowed in the Islamic world, but new plans are on the way.

Those who only know one or two facts about Premium Bonds can be confused by misleading information. The best way to help those who are misled is to gently correct them with the truths you’re learning here.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

If you have even a passing interest in the topic of Premium Bonds, then you should take a look at the following information. This enlightening article presents some of the latest news on the subject of Premium Bonds.

Premium bonds were conceived in 1861. It was set up so that ordinary people could save and invest their money if case of accident or death. The original name of the program was called the Post Office Saving Bank. It popularity spread an soon the Chancellor was borrowing money from the funds so that he could support public projects. This gave the premium bonds a duel purpose. First the bond where considered a source of a secure investment that could not go bankrupt or could not loose value. Second the bonds were seen as a way to give the government a source of funds when taxes and other monies were not enough.

The Post Office Bank sold saving certificates that did offer a lottery system to go with them. In 1957 a lottery was issued once a month to persuade British citizens to invest more money. In 1967 the Post Office management changed hands and the Treasury Department took over. The program was renamed the National Savings and the Post Office became the major supplier of premium bonds. The National Savings part of it became a source of other investments besides premium bonds. In 1996 the post office became the store of the agency and the National Savings and Investment became more aligned with the Chancellor. All a citizen had to do was to go to the post office and make a hundred pound investment toward a bond purchase. They could invest until they reached the cap of thirty thousand pounds.

How can you put a limit on learning more? The next section may contain that one little bit of wisdom that changes everything.

Siemens Corp became apart of the operation in 1999. In an attempt to modernize the agency over 4000 agency employees were sent to Siemens schools for business to learn new investing techniques. Since then the employees have become more professional in the delivery of investment services. New call centers were added and more technology was used in the handling of investment portfolios. Siemens will end its contract with the National Savings and Investments in 2014 and the agency will be self-sufficient in its own affairs.

Through their training, the employees of the National Savings and Investment have met goals of improved customer care and the professional implication of investment opportunities. The use of the internet has made the communication between provider and customer easier to facilitate and information about the company can be found at the stroke of a keyboard. As the popularity of premium bonds grows so will the commitment of National Savings and Investment to provide their customers with professional, friendly service.

The growth of premium bonds has skyrocketed in the past decade. The negative impact of the growth is that the chances of having your bond picked by the random number generator is widening. Statistically the bigger the population of numbers the gap grows wider for the individual investor to be selected. Many people are pulling their premium bonds investment and putting them into traditional low interest savings accounts. This pull back from impatient investors may reverse the numbers so the chances of winning will grow.

When word gets around about your command of Premium Bonds facts, others who need to know about Premium Bonds will start to actively seek you out.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

The following article lists some simple, informative tips that will help you have a better experience with Premium Bonds.

A premium bond is a savings plan developed by the British government to give the common man a chance to be able to save money and at the same time is able to win money in a lottery instead of interest. The program is very popular and almost a third of have bought premium bonds to add to their savings portfolio. There are several tiers to the prizes and the odds to figure out your chances of winning a certain prize is often difficult. It would take a person several hours to figure out their odds by doing the statistics and many people do not have the math skills to perform the operations. Now there are odds calculators that figure out the odds of winning in comparison to how many premium bonds purchased.

The odds calculator will allow you to put in the number of premium bonds that you have saved and through an online connection to the National Savings and Interest agency you can find out exactly the odds that you will win a big prize, the two million pounds, or a smaller prize, fifty pounds. You can even figure out the odds for the multitude of prizes between the higher and lower amount. The odds can change as more and more people buy bonds. They can go up if a lot of people suddenly purchase bonds, and they can go down if people cash in their bonds. Whenever you are in a gambling arrangement, especially with your savings, it is nice to know what kind of odds you have for winning.

Hopefully the information presented so far has been applicable. You might also want to consider the following:

The National Savings and Investments does offer your odds based on the average number of premium bonds that have been bought in the past. This table is a good way to figure around what you might earn off of one bond. If you have multiple bonds, again you would have to do the math to figure out the system. The more bonds you buy the more chances you will have to win and the odds will be closer in your favor. There is speculation that with the newfound interest in premium bonds, the odds will get so far out of reality that many people will opt for a traditional savings plan that will bear them interest. The ebb and flow of bond owners will dictate to changing of the odds and with the calculator you can see what month you will be more likely to win.

Remember that you can pull out of the premium bond program at any time. You will have the same amount of cash that you started with. Life changes and the way you invest also changes. You may decide to opt out of the program if you have a family emergency or have a dire need for cash. The government secures your money so you do not have to worry about it being there when you are ready to cash in. Three may even be a better investment down the road and your nest egg in premium bonds will give you the opportunity to reinvest.

The day will come when you can use something you read about here to have a beneficial impact. Then you’ll be glad you took the time to learn more about Premium Bonds.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

The only way to keep up with the latest about Premium Bonds is to constantly stay on the lookout for new information. If you read everything you find about Premium Bonds, it won’t take long for you to become an influential authority.

Most people invest their money in savings bond or the stock market. Premium bonds are a good way to invest your money and have fun at the same time. Most savings plans give you set interest rates overtime and unless you have a lot of money invested, it really doesn’t make that much money for you. The meager interest on a money market account or a savings account will only give you a few cents and maybe dollars a month. Some of the investment plans will not even allow you to take the money out of the bank without losing the interest.

In stock market accounts you have the chance to make big money, but most of the time you will even out as the stocks drop and rise. A premium bond does not give you an interest rate, but they give you something better. A premium bond gives you the chance to win a monthly lottery that is well over a million dollars. The prize is not just for one person. There is actually two grand prizes and over a million and a half others. If you have $10,000 pounds invested, you have a 19% chance of winning some sort of cash prize. In other words, the chance or winning is 1 in 21,000. Not only is the possibility of winning exciting, it is more fun to look for a win than watch your money sit in a bank when you know what the final out come will be. The premium bond is like money in the bank and each bond has a unique number. Each bond costs one pound, and you have to have a minimum of one hundred pounds to make an order.

Most of this information comes straight from the Premium Bonds pros. Careful reading to the end virtually guarantees that you’ll know what they know.

The premium bond is so popular in the United Kingdom, that over one third of the population has saved money in this fashion. Savings accounts and government bonds are stagnant. You agree to the interest upfront and that interest will not go up or down. No matter how much money the bank or the government makes on the bond, you will only get that percentage your agreed to. Even if the bank makes a twenty percent profit on your investment, you will only get the three to five percent you agreed on. If you need the money and take it out of the investment program, you will lose the interest that was promised you. You would have had the money invested for maybe years and you get back only what you put in.

With premium bonds you can get your money back anytime you want. Since you really didn’t agree on a interest rate, you are not losing anything. The only thing you are missing out on is the chance of winning one of the prizes. Premium bond advocates are not promising you anything but a chance, a chance that has better odds and more chances to win then any lottery in existence. Even a small reward will out pay any interest on American bank accounts or government bonds.

That’s how things stand right now. Keep in mind that any subject can change over time, so be sure you keep up with the latest news.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

Premium bonds marked their fiftieth anniversary in November 2006. They have been the most popular form of investment in British history. Premium bonds are bought and kept by over 40% of Great Britain’s populations. Where traditional investments yield a small return over time, premium bonds yield no return at all but give the investor a chance to win a monthly lottery. This popular investment strategy have made millionaires out many British citizens and at the same time provided the investors that didn’t win a secure place to save their money and help out the national treasury. They have the option of pulling out the money at any time without loss. Here are some bizarre facts that surround these popular bonds.

From its conception until the late eighties there was even a beauty contest to celebrate the premium bonds program. The National Saving and Investment agency, the department in charge of the bond program, held an annual Miss Premium Bond competition in which employees of the agency entered during the annual Civil Service Sports and Social Club Day held in Lytham St. Annes. Just like regular beauty pageants, the competitors would walk down the catwalk flaunting their looks and style. They would smile politely to the judges and then answer questions related to the pageant. No other investment company has ever sponsored such an event.

Similar to the American lottery there has been some weird stats derived from the program. Similarities from the statistics include that Hannah is the most frequent name that has won a premium bonds lottery and Sean was the most frequent male name. The ten top readers were all female except for one. Some winners don’t even claim their prizes. There is an unclaimed prize for twenty five thousand pounds waiting patiently for the owner to claim. There are also more than five hundred thousand pounds stored at the agency just waiting for somebody to come and take it home.

The best time to learn about Premium Bonds is before you’re in the thick of things. Wise readers will keep reading to earn some valuable Premium Bonds experience while it’s still free.

There are even conspiracy theories that call the premium bonds program a scam. There are people who will cash in their bonds and then buy new them so that they will have modern numbers. The first bond ever bought is still in the system, but these people believe that only new numbers will be generated from ERNIE the famous number generating machine.

Other conspiracy theorists have come up with ideas that the machine is prejudiced to what region of Great Britain the winners will be chose from. One man in Wales even has said that the bonds were rigged because Wales had the fewest amount of winners. What he failed to realize was that fewer people in Wales bought premium bonds and that naturally the statistics would favor a larger buying population.

As there is winners there are also losers. You can’t really loose because the bonds are cashed in at the same amount they were bought at. One gentleman reported that he had never won in twenty years. He states he has even stopped looking at the monthly numbers. He could be one of the people who has never claimed the over five hundred thousand pounds that have never claimed.

When word gets around about your command of Premium Bonds facts, others who need to know about Premium Bonds will start to actively seek you out.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

When you think about Premium Bonds, what do you think of first? Which aspects of Premium Bonds are important, which are essential, and which ones can you take or leave? You be the judge.

As with most things that are concerned with the government, conspiracy theories are generated to prove or disprove unfairness between two parties or plots to hurt the population. Premium bonds are not isolated from these kinds of attacks. Conspiracy theorists have accused the National Savings and Investments agency of defrauding the public and being bias in the way they hand out the prizes and pick out the numbers of the bonds. These conspiracy theories are meant to hurt the agency and they are being reported in blogs and other methods to bring the idea of premium bonds to a halt.

The National Savings and Investment agency has issued statements that debunk these theories and preserve their integrity. Their number generating machine, ERNIE, creates random numbers that correspond with the numbers on the bonds. Large drawings are held each month and some people believe that the number generating is fixed. One of the most bizarre theories is that some people believe that ERNIE is a super computer that knows how a person thinks. People have even sent ERNIE Christmas and Valentine Day cards to the computer in hopes that it will sway its picks. This is totally untrue; the machine is totally random and does not have the capacity to know anything.

Psychologists have made the assumption that even the employees of the National Savings and Invest agency does not even know how the numbers are picked by ERNIE. The people that make the theories have a intrinsic need to know how a process works and when they do not know, they will come up with ideas that make them feel more comforted. Ironically, most of the conspiracy theories come from people who have never won any of the cash prizes and they feel that they are not in control of the situation.

If you find yourself confused by what you’ve read to this point, don’t despair. Everything should be crystal clear by the time you finish.

The maximum holding for premium bonds is thirty thousand pounds. A theory exists that only the maximum amount in the system will generate winners for those people only. If you do the statistics thirty thousand pounds has a better chance of winning than if you have just two or three thousand pounds invested in bonds. Again people with the lower amount of money invested are perpetrating the theory. With over a third of the population of Great Britain investing the premium bonds system, so people may never win a cash prize nor see their investment grow.

There is a theory that only new premium bonds are winning. This may be true. Though the program has been going on for decades, there has been a surge of new buying since the one million pound prize was introduced. Again the numbers come into play, the more that people play, the less chance you will win a cash prize. As with any lottery system, the more people that play and save, the more people will lose.

The good thing is larger prizes and more money can be put into the system where people who win will make a larger profit. By doing the simple math, most of these theories are debunking themselves.

Of course, it’s impossible to put everything about Premium Bonds into just one article. But you can’t deny that you’ve just added to your understanding about Premium Bonds, and that’s time well spent.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO