How does one compare index-tracking ISAs?

[fivemack]

The aim is, in the further reckless pursuit of responsible frugality, to put £100 monthly into an index-tracking ISA. I presume that I can do this despite having put £3000 into a mini cash ISA this tax year.

So I google for 'index-tracking ISAs', and get the impression that these are less well-catalogued by independent sources than cash ISAs; fool.co.uk has a list of index-tracking ISAs consisting entirely of sponsored links. Google is a little better, and I come up with a few fund-management companies and grovel around further.

M&G Index Tracker A	0.30% annual charge	Tracks FTSE All-Share; "dividend type: distributing"; "regular saving scheme: yes"
L&G UK Index	0.53% annual charge	Tracks FTSE All-Share; doesn't say anything about dividends
Fidelity Moneybuilder UK Index Fund	0.1% management charge	Tracks FTSE All-Share; doesn't say anything about dividends; minimum investment "500, top-up 250"

This would seem to be an easy decision, so I must be missing something. I can't work out what 'dividend type: distributing' means: obviously I want dividends to be reinvested.

On a third hand, given how the pricing of computers and cameras has historically behaved just after I finally decide to buy them, and how the pricing of equities has historically behaved just after I lose confidence and sell everything, maybe I should stay in cash until the unprecedentedly well-correlated set of handbaskets that seem to be making up the international markets proceed up the roller-coaster


to that place where all handbaskets are proverbially destined.

Comments

[aldabra]

When you find a good ISA will you tell me what it is please?

[fivemack.livejournal.com]

For cash, I have at the moment a Barclays Tax Beater Cash ISA, which pays 6.5% tax-free on £3000 but will probably automatically switch to a lousy rate on 31 March 2008. Though I gave them a cheque to fund the account three weeks ago and they haven't cashed it ... the man in the branch claimed that the account would be funded as of the date I filled in the forms and they'd cash the cheque rather later, but it still makes my current account look rather odd.

I'm still waiting for various companies to write back to me when I ask for an actual schedule of charges; M&G's advertised 0.3% turns into 0.46% (there's a Management Charge, an Administrative Fee and an Estimated Custodian Charge, of which only one appears in the adverts).