Background
A Tax Exempt Special Savings Account (TESSA) was a financial product introduced in the United Kingdom to encourage small savers. It allowed individuals to save a certain amount annually, with the accrued interest being free from income tax.
Historical Context
TESSAs were introduced in the UK to promote savings among the population by providing a tax-free interest benefit. The system was operational from 1991 until it was phased out in favor of Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) in 1999. TESSAs stopped accepting new investments after this date.
Definitions and Concepts
Tax Exempt Special Savings Account (TESSA): A savings account intended for small savers in the UK, providing tax-free interest on savings up to a specified limit each year. It was part of a broader governmental effort to encourage personal savings by offering tax advantages.
Major Analytical Frameworks
Classical Economics
Classical economics doesn’t specifically deal with savings accounts, but it acknowledges the role of savings and investments in economic growth. Tax incentives like TESSA are seen as mechanisms to increase personal savings rates.
Neoclassical Economics
In neoclassical thought, tax-free savings accounts like TESSAs can be analyzed through the lens of individual utility maximization, where tax exemptions create incentives for increased savings due to higher after-tax returns on investments.
Keynesian Economics
Keynesian economics would focus on the impact of tax-advantaged savings accounts on overall consumption and savings within the economy. By providing an incentive for increased saving, TESSAs could theoretically reduce immediate consumption but lead to higher future consumption potential due to increased wealth.
Marxian Economics
From a Marxian perspective, TESSAs could be seen as a tool to accumulate capital among the working and middle classes, potentially moderated by analyses of how such schemes serve broader capitalistic frameworks.
Institutional Economics
Institutional economists would be interested in the impact of TESSA on institutional behavior, particularly how building societies and financial organizations adapted to and capitalized on these products.
Behavioral Economics
Behavioral economists might explore how the framing of tax exemptions impacted individual saving behaviors, possibly analyzing whether the clearer benefits of tax-free interest prompted more people to save.
Post-Keynesian Economics
Post-Keynesians would be interested in how savings behaviors influenced by TESSA impacted economic cycles, liquidity preferences, and aggregate demand within the UK economy.
Austrian Economics
Austrian economists could see TESSA as a distortion in the saving decisions by individuals arising from governmental intervention in the market.
Development Economics
Though more typically focused on developing economies, a development economist might look at TESSA as a case study of policy interventions aimed at raising savings rates in more developed contexts.
Monetarism
Monetarists could analyze how incentivizing savings through tax-free accounts affects the money supply, inflation, and long-term economic stability.
Comparative Analysis
When comparing TESSA to its successor, the ISA, it becomes clear that ISAs offer broader investment possibilities (savings, stocks, and shares) while maintaining the tax-free interest benefit, albeit with a unified personal allowance for all forms of investment. The phased withdrawal of TESSAs sought to simplify tax-advantaged savings while expanding the flexibility of investment choices.
Case Studies
Due to the closure of TESSAs to new investors, case studies would typically analyze historical data, focusing on how efficient the scheme was in encouraging savings and its transition to the more versatile ISA framework.
Suggested Books for Further Studies
- “Savings Systems: Social or Market Solutions?” by A.A. Thompson
- “UK Tax and Savings: A Historical Perspective” by M.L. Johnson
- “Behavioral Economics and Personal Finance” by R.D. Evans
Related Terms with Definitions
- Individual Savings Account (ISA): A tax-advantaged account that allows UK residents to save cash or invest in stocks and shares without paying tax on the interest or dividends received.
- Building Society: A financial institution owned by its members that offers banking and related financial services, particularly savings and mortgage lending.
- Income Tax: A tax levied by governments directly on individual earnings, both earned income (salaries) and unearned income (dividends, interest).
- Tax Exempt: Free from any taxes imposed by the government.
