Britain’s largest investment platform has entered ISA season facing mounting criticism, with fee changes, strong competition and a system outage denting confidence.
Hargreaves Lansdown has been under scrutiny since rolling out a new pricing structure in March. While headline charges were cut, around 400,000 customers are worse off, largely due to the ISA fee cap on shares rising from £45 to £150 and new charges on general investment accounts.
The changes have frustrated long-standing clients, particularly after selective fee exemptions were offered to certain “valued” customers, prompting others to move their money to rival platforms.
The backlash was compounded by a recent outage that left investors unable to access accounts during a period of high market volatility, with some reporting missed trading opportunities.
At the core of the issue is pricing complexity. Investors in shares benefit from a £150 annual cap, but those holding funds face uncapped fees, which can rise sharply with portfolio size.
Competition is intensifying, with lower-cost platforms offering cheaper trading and, in some cases, zero fees—putting pressure on Hargreaves Lansdown’s long-standing model built around service and research.
Despite this, the company maintains that many customers are paying less under the new structure and continues to emphasise its service quality, investment choice and platform experience.
Ultimately, whether to stay or leave depends on investor behaviour. Passive investors may still find value, while more active or cost-conscious users may find better deals elsewhere.
