It’s time to money in your NS&I financial savings and transfer your cash right here… however there’s one kind of account you SHOULD cling on to: SYLVIA MORRIS

I’d think about ditching your NS&I savings accounts at the end of this week.

On Friday, the rate on the National Savings & Investment popular easy-access account, Direct Saver, falls to 3.5 pc. It’s a big drop meted out by the Government’s savings arm – down from 3.75 pc and 4 pc earlier this year.

Down too, goes the rate on its Income Bond, from 4.69 pc to 3.44 pc. This account has proven particularly popular with pensioners who value an income from their savings as it pays out interest each month.

The shocking cuts come close on the heels of NS&I’s cuts to its fixed rate bonds. Here, it offers just 3.95 pc to savers looking to renew their one-year bonds coming up for maturity. It’s a huge blow for savers, down from 4.35 pc on offer from mid-October until the start of this month. In July the rate on offer was a tempting 5.15 pc. On two-year bonds you can now get a lowly 3.6 pc and 3.5 pc for three years.

This flurry of cuts means you can get a better deal elsewhere. So where should you move your cash?

You can get a rate substantially better than NS&I’s Direct Saver from online bank Chetwood. It offers at 4.71 pc, which gives you £121 more interest a year on £10,000.

Atom Bank Instant Saver Reward is another good option – but only if you plan to withdraw money from your account from time to time. The account pays an impressive 4.85 pc in months you don’t make any withdrawals and 3.25 pc in those that you do.

These two accounts are also a good swap for NS&I’s Income Bond for those who prefer to receive interest monthly. They pay 4.61 pc and 4.75 pc respectively, if interest is received monthly, against NS&I’s 3.44 pc.

While I’d ditch most of NS&I’s accounts, I’m holding on to my Premium Bonds, even though the prize rate is falling for the January draw

If you would prefer an account available on the High Street, look to your local building society. For example, Kent Reliance pays 4.35 pc; Cambridge BS, 4.25 pc; and Family BS, 4.65 pc. Or Co-op Bank will pay you 4.59 pc, as long as you only make one withdrawal a year.

You could earn around £85 more interest on each £10,000 that you move from an NS&I fixed-rate bond to a more-competitive rival. For example, you can grab 4.8 pc fixed for one year with Ziraat Bank through Raisin UK savings platform, or 4.77 pc from new bank Vida Savings.

High Street rates are lower but it’s still worth the switch with the likes of Kent Reliance at 4.65 pc and Mansfield BS at 4.4 pc.

Savers with large sums sometimes prefer to stick with NS&I even when rates are lower. This is because all your cash is protected by the Government – with a bank or building society only the first £85,000 is protected under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Some savers prefer to keep a large balance with NS&I rather than taking the risk with another provider or enduring the hassle of opening several accounts to spread it out. However, for these savers there is another good option. Online savings platforms such as Hargreaves Lansdown, Flagstone, Raisin UK and Savings Champion, allow you to keep all your money on one platform and split it between several providers, each of which give you the £85,000 protection. Using a platform means you only have to enter all of your personal information once.

While I’d ditch most of NS&I’s accounts, I’m holding on to my Premium Bonds, even though the prize rate is falling for the January draw. They come with the thrill of the monthly draw where you could win a big tax-free prize.

They are also handy as a home for some easy-access money, including the amount I hand over every six months to the tax man, as you can get your money back within a few days. My winnings this year racked up a decent 4.9 pc tax free. Only time will tell if holding on to them is the right financial decision.

Protect your nest egg

When nest eggs are so hard-earned it’s such a shame when savers allow the value of theirs to fall in real terms.

If your savings rate is below 2.3 pc, you are losing value. Tomorrow, we should find out the inflation rate for the year to November. If it has risen even higher than 2.3 pc, the value of your cash is being eroded even faster.

It is the big banks who tend to pay these pitiful rates, and the worst are Lloyds and Halifax.

Halifax Everyday Saver and Isa Saver Variable Isa are at 1.15 pc up to £10,000, 1.25 pc up to £50,000 and 1.6 pc over this level.

Lloyds Easy Saver and Cash Isa Saver also pay the derisory 1.15 pc on balances up to £25,000 and 1.25 pc above this level. Even if you have £100,000 there, you earn just 1.6 pc.

Barclays will pay just 1.26 pc on its easy access Everyday Saver and its Instant Cash Isa from mid-February.

HSBC’s Flexible Saver rate will go down to 1.5 pc from January 27, while its Loyalty Cash Isa pays 3 pc at best.

NatWest Flexible Saver and Cash Isa start at 1.5 pc on balances up to £25,000, The best you can do with its Cash Isa is 2.8 pc on £25,000 or more, while is pays 2 pc between £25,000 and £100,000 on its Flexible Saver. Santander Everyday Saver and Isa Saver are at 1.2 pc

Plum deal

Plum has upped its easy access app-based cash Isa rate to 5.18 pc. Despite the higher rate, I would still go for the Trading 212 account, which now pays 4.9 pc following a rate cut from 5.17 pc.

The Plum account restricts withdrawals to three a year – if you make more the rate drops to 2.5 pc. And its rate is boosted by a 1.39 percentage point bonus for 12 months, after which it drops to 3.79 pc. And don’t bother to move any cash Isas you already have to benefit from its higher rate. Plum only pays 3.79 pc on transfers, not the headline 5.18 pc.