Annual Equivalent Rate (AER) is designed to make savings accounts easier to compare and assumes you keep your funds in a savings account for a year. It shows you what the earnings would be on your account if the interest earned were reinvested in the account each year.

Base rate usually refers to the Bank of England base interest rate, which building societies and banks use to calculate interest rates on some mortgage and savings products.

A branch-based account is an account where all withdrawals, deposits and account openings are made in person at a branch. You can find your nearest branch here.

A Cash ISA is a savings account which pays interest tax-free. There is a limit on what you can put in each year (£20,000 for the current tax year) but it doesn't affect your Personal Savings Allowance. See 'What is the Personal Savings Allowance' below. Take a look at our range of Cash ISAs here.

A charitable assignment means that all new savers opening share accounts (as above) must sign a declaration saying that they agree to pay over any future windfall rights to Charities Aid Foundation.

CHAPS is a computer system that allows payments to be made electronically. The money goes from the paying bank to the receiving bank on the same day, guaranteed. There is usually a charge for this.

The DPA controls how your personal information is used. It also gives individuals certain rights to access regarding information held about them.

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a regulation in EU law on data protection and privacy for all individual citizens of the European Union and the European Economic Area. It also addresses the transfer of personal data outside the EU and EEA areas.

A deposit is the amount that you pay into a savings account. An 'initial' or 'opening' deposit would be the first amount of money that you put into a savings account once it's opened. All sums of money after this going into your savings account will be called deposits also.

Easy access accounts, also known as instant access accounts, allow withdrawals to be made quickly and easily without notice or immediate penalty. These accounts will usually have lower interest rates than accounts that do not allow you to withdraw your money. Check out our range of instant access savings accounts here.

Financial planning is looking at your current financial situation, what you can comfortably afford, and developing a plan that will help you achieve future goals. You can find out more about the financial planning service our trusted partner Wren Sterling offer.

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) protects your investment if a building society or bank becomes unable to repay it. Nottingham Building Society is a participant in this scheme, which is part of the Financial Services Act. The current limit is £85,000.

A fixed rate account is when the interest rate on your savings account stays the same until a specific date. You can take a look at our fixed rate savings accounts here.

Gross interest is interest paid on your savings without any deductions for income tax.

An IFA is the acronym for Independent Financial Adviser. Our selected partners, Wren Sterling can provide our members with expert independent financial advice. You can make an appointment for a free initial consultation at a Nottingham Building Society branch.

ISA stands for Individual Savings Account and is a tax free savings account.

The Lifetime ISA is an account that can be opened between the ages of 18 and 39 and is for first home or retirement savings where the Government will top up savings with a 25% bonus up to £1,000 a year. The maximum deposit each tax year is £4,000 and you can continue to save into this account until you are 50, still receiving the 25% bonus but you won’t be able to access the savings until you are 60 unless using for a first home purchase.

Instant access accounts allow withdrawals to be made quickly and easily without notice or immediate penalty, similar to the easy access accounts with the only difference being that instant access are within a branch environment and the customer will be able to instantly have physical access to their money as opposed to easy access where the access is instant, but online. See our instant access accounts.

An interest rate is what a bank or building society will pay you for saving with them, expressed as a percentage.

Maturity of a savings account is when the savings account reaches the end of its defined term.

A mutual building society is owned by its members, who have voting rights to help shape the society.

A mutual building society is owned by its members and run for their benefit. Unlike banks, there’s not a focus on driving profit to pay external shareholders.

Net interest happens when interest is paid on your savings with deductions for income tax. Net rates shown assume income tax is at the lower rate of 20%. From April 2016 all savings interest is now paid gross since the introduction of the Personal Savings Allowance. See 'What is the Personal Savings Allowance (PSA)' below for more information.

A notice account is a savings account which requires a set number of days’ notice before you can withdraw money. There is sometimes an option to take out your money immediately, but you will be charged an interest penalty for this.

The PSA or Personal Savings Allowance is the amount of interest you can earn before paying any tax. Basic rate taxpayers can earn up to £1,000 of interest on savings tax-free. Your PSA limit depends on earnings. Check out our Personal Saving Allowance guide.

A postal account is a savings account where withdrawals, deposits and account opening are done by post, rather than in a branch or online.

A regular savings account rewards savers for putting money aside every month. These accounts tend to offer higher interest rates but can impose strict rules, such as access to funds. Check out our regular savings accounts here.

Tax-free interest means that the interest on your savings is paid free of UK income and capital gains tax. Find out more about tax-free savings here.

Term means the lifespan of an account or interest rate.

Some accounts have tiered rates, depending on the amount you have deposited in an account, so when the total amount you have saved reaches the next tier, you earn a higher interest rate on the whole balance.

A transaction is the movement of money either into or out of your account.

A trustee is a person who is made the legal owner of ‘property’ (this could include funds held in a building society account) and who is under an obligation to hold it or deal with it on behalf of someone else. An example includes a parent being made trustee on a savings account for a child.

A variable rate means the interest rate of an account can change.