Having the gumption to save £35K (now £50K) you ought to know that above that was AT RISK if IceSave had problems, just like ALL licensed deposit takers in the UK.

That the UK covers Iceland's €20,887 part of your 50K protection is admirable, above £50K is a subsidy to the 'foolish virgins'.

DT, Milton Keynes,

100% compensation for risking all in a tin pot bank based in a country with a population of 300,000. Zero compensation if you invested in British Equitable Life With-Profits fund (founded 1762)regulated by the FSA. Surely some mistake.ed!

Nicholas Salter, London, UK

The journalist is wise with hindsight. I keep up to date with the financials and didn't see any articles to suggest this years ISA I put in Icesave would be at risk. It was supposedly regulated by the FSA which didn't voice any concerns, followed the banking code etc. I wasn't reckless or greedy.

Neil, Leeds, UK

I didn't put money with this scheme, but my dad did. I think the comments of this journalist are scandolous. We are talking about a savings account, regulated by the FSA., damm right everyone shld get there money back up to the widely advertised 50k limit..

Paul, CHESTER, England

we all appreciate that you journalists all have to think of something new and fresh to say about world events, to put a different spin or reading on an event but really! should we be impressed by the 'I told you so' approach- is it helping the debate, the savers or anyone else?

nicholas boyarsky, london,

There is always a sting in the tail of a deal that seems too good to be true. Investors need to ask themselves how a bank can afford to offer higher rates than anyone else in the market. As Christine rightly says, people will now perceive that any deal is risk free and government backed.

Gareth, middlesex, England

I invested savings in Ice Save after reading a very favourable report in the Sunday Times. How can you criticise savers who seek out the best available interest rate. Like others I believed the £50K compensation covered all banks.

Ted , Wrexham, Wrexham

If the Icelandic institution and/or dont honor their obligations to UK depositors, then the UK government should nationalise the UK assets of these banks.

Failure to do so will encourage other foreign banks to dishonour their obligations in the expectation that the UK will pick up the tab.

Chris Lee, Melbourne, UK

Icesave offered a lot of fixed rate term bonds, between 6 months and 3 years. A lot of savers, including myself took these bonds out last year, when it was almost unimageable that banks would start going bankrupt. We may have read about Icesave, but could not move the cash back to the UK

Mike , derby, UK

When I opened my isa with ice save, I checked moneysaving expert, a well trusted and independent site, to make sure my money was to be secure. Please also note that I opened my account with Icesave UK. Where are you drawing the line with 'foreign'banks, HSBC? Santander?......

Carol, Leicester, UK

No Christine, you are wrong. If Icesave did not publish the proper compensation details how is Joe Public supposed to know? Icesave was regulated by the FSA, so lent an air of credibility if you had less than £35k to invest. How did the FSA let the misleading details slip past them?

Graham, Bradford, England

Not sure there was 'plenty of warning'. We don't all read The Times.., although I understand the Times / Sunday Times were happy to recommend Icesave's accounts.

From a customer's point of view it's the same as Northern Rock - little/no warning, but government guarantees once difficulties arose.

Alec Mith, Reading, Uk

If the weaknesses of the Icesave deposit protection scheme were so obvious to financial journalists, why weren't they sounding the alarm bells when Icesave first started operating 2 years ago, instead of just in the last few months when thousands had already locked money away?

ross , tonbridge,

This article is totally wrong - saving (not 'investing') in Icesave was just like saving in any other bank in the UK - I had an ISA there, ISAs are a UK saving vehicle, not Icelandic. It takes weeks/months to move them. It was NOT high-risk, and the returns were NOT high. We did NOT 'take a risk'.

Jennifer, London,

When deciding whether to save in Icesave, I searched extensively online to find any articles warning about deposit protection scheme- and found nothing; not from The Times or ANY uk paper. It's easy for people- and journalists- to be wise AFTER the event.

ross , tonbridge,

You are wrong, the Government licensed their operation in the UK and must stand behind depositors, retail depositors have to be able to trust cash deposits with banks licensed to operate in this country.

Ralph Jones, London, UK

The early warning signs were of little use to depositors who, like me, were attracted by the exceptional interest rates for a 2-year term!

Tim Grimes, Warwick, Warwickshire

Had the website not mentioned the Icelandic element of the guarantee, I should have felt excused for not spotting it. But alas, it did mention the Icelandic guarantee - I printed a copy of the terms when opening my account

Tim Grimes, Warwick, Warwickshire