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Stefanos Gkouts

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Review of the Chip, Cash ISA:

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"Flexible" ISA? Leaving costs up to six weeks’ interest

Chip markets the Smart Cash ISA with “full flexibility”, “unlimited access” and “No surprises”. The surprise comes when you try to move your money. If you transfer the ISA to another provider, or close it, Chip charges an “exit penalty consisting of any unpaid interest on your deposits”. Interest is earned daily but only paid on the tenth business day of the following month. That means at any time you leave, you lose between roughly 14 and 43 days’ interest. There is no way to avoid it. Even straight after a monthly payment, around two weeks’ interest is already unpaid. On £100,000, that’s roughly £180 to £550 gone. It never ends. The bonus rate disappears after 12 months, but the penalty stays for as long as you hold the account. So when your rate drops and you want to move, you pay to leave. Withdrawals are penalty-free, but transferring, the only way to move your savings and keep them tax-free, triggers the penalty. I made a formal complaint. Chip rejected it, and admitted in writing that the penalty “does not operate as a charge imposed to recover the administrative cost of processing an ISA transfer”. In other words, it isn’t covering any cost Chip has identified. The app works well, but in my view the marketing gives the wrong impression of how easy it is to leave. Read the Summary Box before you put your money in. Reviewed on: 9th October 2026

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