Editorial standards
The principles that govern every guide, review and comparison on IMZA Invest. If we ever fall short of these, tell us at hello@imzainvest.com.
Four non-negotiables
- Accuracy over speed. We'd rather be right and slow than fast and wrong.
- Affiliate commissions never influence rankings. We rank on total cost of ownership and fit, not on what pays most.
- Plain English. If a 15-year-old can't follow it, we rewrite it.
- We flag our limits. Where a topic crosses into regulated advice, we stop and signpost to a regulated adviser.
How we research a platform
Every UK investment platform we review goes through the same six-step process:
- Read the current fee schedule directly from the provider's site. Not a cached copy, not a third-party comparison — their own current page.
- Verify regulation. Look up the firm on the FCA Register and confirm the Financial Reference Number.
- Check FSCS protection. Confirm eligible deposits are covered up to £85,000 per person per authorised firm.
- Read the account terms. Look for hidden costs, exit fees, transfer fees, dormancy rules.
- Apply our scoring rubric across six dimensions (see methodology).
- Cross-reference with user reviews. Read recent Trustpilot/Reddit feedback for patterns — we don't cite anonymous reviews but they surface problems worth investigating.
How we fact-check rules and allowances
Every rules-based claim on the site (ISA allowances, CGT rates, pension access ages, tax thresholds) is cross-checked against primary UK government sources:
- ISA rules: gov.uk/individual-savings-accounts
- Junior ISA rules: gov.uk/junior-individual-savings-accounts
- Lifetime ISA: gov.uk/lifetime-isa
- Pensions: gov.uk/personal-pensions-your-rights
- Capital Gains Tax: gov.uk/capital-gains-tax
- Dividend tax: gov.uk/tax-on-dividends
- Impartial guidance: MoneyHelper
See our full sources & citations hub.
Who writes this site
IMZA Invest is written by a UK-based parent (a UK healthcare professional) together with his 15-year-old daughter. We are not financial advisers, we are not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority, and nothing on this site is personal financial advice. Where a decision is material (large sums, pensions, tax, estate planning), we tell you to speak to a regulated adviser. See About.
What we publish, and what we won't
We will publish:
- Independent reviews of UK investment platforms based on published fees and T&Cs
- Rules-based guides on ISAs, Junior ISAs, LISAs, SIPPs, CGT (cited to gov.uk)
- Head-to-head platform comparisons with worked cost examples
- Our own family portfolio as transparency, clearly flagged as not a recommendation
- Beginner education on compound interest, diversification, index funds, pound-cost averaging
We will not publish:
- Specific share tips or "buy this now" recommendations
- Advice on Defined Benefit pension transfers
- Detailed Inheritance Tax planning for specific estates
- Cryptocurrency, CFDs, spread betting or FX margin-trading strategies
- Any claim of "guaranteed returns" or "risk-free investing"
- Paid sponsored placements disguised as editorial
How we handle commissions
We earn commission on some platform sign-ups and on Amazon book links (Amazon tag imzainvest-21). Full rules:
- We disclose affiliate relationships on every page that carries them
- We rank on cost and fit, not commission. If the cheapest pick pays us nothing, it still goes at the top — see Vanguard UK in our rankings (we earn zero from Vanguard sign-ups and say so).
- We accept no paid sponsorships, no pay-to-play, no bonus clauses
- We include platforms we don't monetise (Vanguard, Fidelity, Beanstalk) whenever they're a relevant answer
How often we update
- Platform fee schedules: checked quarterly (and immediately on any announced change)
- Allowance & tax rules: checked around each UK Budget and Autumn Statement
- Full refresh of platform rankings: before every UK tax-year end (5 April)
- Every page carries a visible "last updated" date
Conflicts of interest
We hold a Trading 212 account as part of the family portfolio. We do not actively trade client recommendations — our portfolio is a learning log. We do not hold positions in the individual platforms we review (e.g. HL shares) and will disclose if that changes.
How to reach us
Email hello@imzainvest.com with:
- Factual errors — we aim to fix within 5 working days and log at corrections
- Suggestions for pages we should write
- Challenges to our rankings or methodology
- Press enquiries
Last reviewed: 11 April 2026. See also: methodology, corrections log, sources hub, affiliate disclosure.