The UK-based financial arm of car manufacturer Renault has emailed customers to inform them it’s changing the rate on the Freedom Savings Account to 0.57%.

The email said: “We recently decreased the rate on our Freedom Savings Account for new customers from 0.72% AER gross variable to 0.57% AER gross variable.

“As an existing customer, your current rate of 0.72% AER gross variable will be in effect until the 31st of August 2020. After this date the rate on your account will be reduced, in line with our new customer rate of 0.57% AER gross variable.

“Since the Bank of England lowered its base rate to a record low in March 2020, we made the decision to delay any rate decrease on our savings accounts as long as possible. However, in the past few months as interest rates continue to decrease, we have now had to make the difficult decision to lower the rate on the Freedom Savings Account again.”

RCI’s Freedom Savings account was a best buy account paying 1.42% a little over a year ago. But a series of rate cuts over the past year mean the current 0.57% rate is beaten by several other easy access accounts.

These include Saga’s Easy Access Savings Account which pays 0.75%, and Skipton Building Society’s Online Bonus Saver Issue 6 which pays 0.7%.

According to Moneyfacts, average savings rates have halved during the pandemic.