While we'd never suggest buying shares in a company purely to receive any freebies the company might dish out, shareholder perks are undeniably an added bonus for investors. Discounted travel and holidays, vouchers to spend in retailers and cheaper individual savings accounts (Isas) are just a few of the many perks listed companies offer.
It's important, of course, to remember the old maxim: there is no such thing as a free lunch, and in many cases you'd have to hold a large number of shares to pick up a relatively small benefit. What's more, the number of UK companies that offer these perks is diminishing each year as companies seek to reduce the cost of administering their retail shareholder bases.
Changes to the way shares are bought and owned are also making it harder to administer shareholder benefit schemes. The rise of low-cost brokers may have been good for helping private investors reduce the perfidious impact of dealing costs, but it means that some shareholder benefits have been lost by the wayside. Not least of these is the automatic right to be sent an annual report and accounts in the company in which you have invested. In some cases, the shareholder perks are distributed with these.
In fact, some of the perks will only be given if you hold a certificated account, so if you hold your shares in a nominee account (where, although you are the beneficial owner, the shares are registered in the name of the broker), you will not receive any benefits. Other things to watch out for are that certain companies will stipulate the minimum number of shares that must be held by a shareholder before any perks/discounts are distributed, and in some cases the shares must be held for a certain length of time before you are entitled to receive the benefits.
One way around the problem of owning shares through nominee accounts is to open up a Crest personal member account. In many ways this account offers you the best of both worlds: the ability to trade shares electronically and benefit from being the registered owner of the shares. To enjoy this service you will be required to pay a £10 annual fee which may be incorporated into an annual broker's fee - a stockbroker must apply for the account on your behalf.
The charges could amount to £100-plus, but this would then allow you to apply for any shareholders' benefits. But be warned: you will be unable to include any shares held in this manner in an individual savings account (Isa) as HMRC rules require shares within Isas to be held within a nominee account.
However you hold your shares, it's always worth contacting either the company or its registrar directly to check and see if they offer any perks. In the meantime, here is a list of those that we know about, remembering that it is far from exhaustive and some companies may have changed their terms or even withdrawn the perk. If you as a shareholder have received any freebies from a company not appearing in our table, please let us know so that we may keep our data updated. We have excluded dividend reinvestment plans and scrip dividends, along with cheap or free dealing costs that some companies offer their shareholders.
Also note that some of the companies mentioned in our table are not traded on the London Stock Exchange but are widely held by UK investors and offer noteworthy discounts. These are Groupe Eurotunnel, Euro Disney and Santander. Some others trade on alternative exchanges. For example, Countrywide Farmers' shares have been traded on an auction-based market known as Sharemark since 28 April 2006. Sharemark is operated by The Share Centre, one of the UK's largest independent stockbrokers.
Four companies' shares trade on ICAP's Securities & Derivatives Exchange or ISDX, the successor to the Plus Market. They are Adnams, Hydro Hotel, Eastbourne, Shepherd Neame and Daniel Thwaites.
A selection of companies' freebies for shareholders
| Company | Minimum number of shares required | Registrar | Benefits available |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food, stores & household | |||
| Aga Rangemaster | 1,000 | Equiniti | 10 per cent discount when you spend £500 or more at Aga shops, Fired Earth, Domain, La Comue or Divertimenti, up to a maximum of £500. |
| Associated British Foods | 1 | Equiniti | Food samples up to the value of £30 given out to all those who attend the annual general meeting. |
| Beale | 2,500 | Capita | 10 per cent off purchases up to £5,000 in the stores to a maximum discount of £500 (5 per cent on electrical products). |
| Booker | 1,000 | Computershare | A store card that gives trade discounts in its branches. |
| Brown (N) | 1,000 | Capita | 20 per cent discount on purchases from the group’s mail order catalogues. Amount saved is on a sliding scale based on the number of shares held, with an overriding maximum of £1,000 a year. |
| Character Group | 1 | Neville | 20 per cent discount for products purchased online – a promotional code is required, which is obtained from the company. |
| Countrywide Farmers | 3,000 | na (Sharemark) | Privilege card offering a 5 per cent discount at its Country stores or online. |
| Inchcape | 100 | Computershare | 15 per cent discount on service, parts and accessories and £100 off the retail price of new and used cars. This excludes the Porsche marque. |
| in-Deed Online | 100 | Computershare | Holders of 10,000 or more shares are entitled to a £200 discount on the standard price quoted online for the conveyancing of a sale or purchase. The shares must have been held for at least 90 days. The maximum discount is £200 per instruction. |
| Johnson Service | 200 | Capita | 10 £5 vouchers to set against dry cleaning at their shops. |
| Laura Ashley | 1 | Computershare | Shareholder discount vouchers are issued at the company’s discretion. |
| Lookers | 5,000 | Capita | £100 discount on any new car. |
| Marks and Spencer | 1 | Equiniti | Café Revive and Spend & Save vouchers every year. |
| Moss Bros | 1 | Capita | 20 per cent discount voucher a year. |
| Mothercare | 500 | Equiniti | 10 per cent discount voucher a year on £500-worth of goods. |
| Mulberry | 500 | Computershare | 20 per cent discount card on purchases up to £10,000 (pre-discount). |
| Next | 500 | Equiniti | 25 per cent discount voucher. |
| Signet | 1 | Capita | 10 per cent discount in all H Samuel, Ernest Jones and Leslie Davis stores. |
| Stanley Gibbons | 1 | Capita | An additional 1 per cent per year return on the company's rare stamp and autograph investment contracts. Strand Saver Cards with a 10 per cent discount. |
| Tesco | 1 | Equiniti | Annual voucher to the value of £7.50. A small gift given to shareholders attending the annual general meeting. |
| Thorntons | 200 | Capita | A sheet of 12 discount vouchers. |
| Toye & Co | 250 | Capita | 15 per cent off stock items using cash or cheque and 10 per cent off credit items, but not on bespoke or made-to-order products. |
| Unilever | 1 | Computershare | A free bag of Unilever products and a lunch while attending the annual general meeting. |
| Travel & leisure | |||
| Adnams | 1 | na | 15 per cent privilege discount card. |
| Bloomsbury Publishing | 500 | Capita | 35 per cent off recommended retail price of books ordered from the publisher. |
| Carnival | 100 | Equiniti | On-board credit per stateroom from £25 (sailings of six days or less) to £125 (sailings of 14 days or longer). |
| Euro Disney SCA* | 1 | na | The shareholders’ club provides a light coffee break at Salon Mickey, 15 per cent discounts at resort boutiques, restaurants, hotels and parks and a VIP FASTPASS. |
| Fuller, Smith & Turner | 250 | Computershare | Discount card offering a reduction on hotel prices of 10 per cent Sunday to Thursday and 50 per cent Friday to Saturday. Reduction on items for sale in the Brewery Store. |
| Greene King | 100 | Capita | Discount vouchers on food and drink at Greene King pubs, Loch Fyne Restaurants and local pubs. |
| Groupe Eurotunnel | 1,000 | Computershare | Must have held shares for three months for a 30 per cent discount on standard Eurotunnel tickets for three return journeys or six one-way journeys per calendar year. |
| Holidaybreak | 200 | Capita | 10 per cent reduction on certain holidays. |
| Hydro Hotel, Eastbourne | 200 | na | 10 per cent discount scheme on accommodation, dining, personal functions and beauty treatments. |
| InterContinental Hotels* | 1 | na | Hotel discount promotion. |
| Int'l Consolidated Airlines | 200 | Computershare | 10 per cent travel discount to bearer and eight travel companions. |
| Irish Continental | 100 | Computershare | 20 per cent discount on passenger and car ferry services between Ireland and Britain, a 10 per cent discount between Ireland and France and a 5 per cent discount on Irish Ferries package holidays. |
| Mallett | 1 | Capita | 10 per cent discount on full retail prices in store. |
| Marston's | 84 | Equiniti | 20 per cent discount card on food and accommodation at Marston’s Inns and Taverns pubs. |
| Millennium & Copthorne | 1 | Equiniti | 15 per cent discount voucher on accommodation, food and beverages on one visit only. |
| Minoan | 5,000 | Capita | 5,000-9,999 shares held for a year: a discount of £7,500 on a two-bedroom apartment; shares held for three years £15,000. Over 500,000 shares held for one year: a discount of £135,000 on a four/five-bedroom villa; or held for three years, £175,000. |
| Newbury Racecourse | 100 | Capita | Owners of 100-4,999 shares are entitled to a voucher for two-day member badges; 5,000-9,999 shares, entitlement to a single annual metal badge; 10,000 and above entitled to two annual metal badges allowing entry into the members enclosure. |
| Northern Racing | 500 | Computershare | Complimentary members' passes at August bank holiday race meeting. |
| Park Group | 1 | Computershare | Hamper discount and high-street vouchers. |
| Peel Hotels | 1 | RBS | 30 per cent discount on stays in company's hotels across the country. |
| Renishaw | 1 | Equiniti | Discounts on flights and holidays booked through subsidiary Wotton Travel. |
| Restaurant Group | 1 | Equiniti | Discount vouchers to be use in Frankie & Benny's, Chiquito, Garfunkel's and the group’s pubs. |
| Shepherd Neame | 100 | Computershare | Privilege cards for discounts in pubs and hotels and the visitor centre shop. |
| Thwaites, Daniel | 1 | na | Ad-hoc offers with the annual report and accounts. |
| Tui Travel | 500 | Equiniti | Discounts up to 15 per cent via its travel companies. |
| Whitbread | 64 | Capita | A sheet of vouchers offering discounts at its various brands distributed with the annual report and accounts. |
| Young & Co's | 1 | Computershare | Details of shareholder discounts and offers are mailed to shareholders from time to time. |
| Others | |||
| Adept Telecom | 1,000 | Computershare | Register for free residential line rental saving £120 a year. |
| Barratt Developments | 1,000 | Capita | Must have held the shares for one year to receive £500 discount on every £25,000 spent. |
| Bellway | 2,000 | Capita | Discount of £2,000 per £25,000 or pro rata on a new home. |
| British Land | 1 | Equiniti | Invitation to sponsored exhibitions. |
| BT | 1 | Equiniti | Shareholder discounts on various products. |
| Close Bros | 1 | Capita | Discount on individual savings accounts. |
| Kcom | 1 | Capita | 10 per cent discount on all goods purchased online or from Carr Lane shop in Hull. |
| Legal & General | 1 | Capita | Shareholders and their families receive discounts on insurance products and reduced charges on investing products. |
| Manchester & London Investment Trust | 2,500 | Computershare | Qualified to participate in a draw undertaken by directors before the annual general meeting in respect of the All England Lawn Tennis Ground. 13 draws entitling successful shareholders to one pair of adjacent seats for one day’s play. |
| National Grid | 1 | Capita | Events inviting shareholders chosen by ballot to visit operational sites and meet with senior managers. |
| Persimmon | 1,000 | Computershare | 2 per cent discount on purchase price of new or part-exchange homes from the group. |
| Redrow | 2,500 | Computershare | 1 per cent discount on a new Redrow home. |
| Safestore | 100 | Capita | 25 per cent off storage cost and boxes and packaging materials. |
| Santander | 1 | Santander | Receive a magazine each quarter which includes special shareholders' offers. |
| Telecom Plus | 2,500 | Capita | A credit equal to 10 per cent of the total annual spend with Telecom Plus. |
| Travis Perkins | 1 | Capita | Preferential trade terms on all products. |
| Source: Barclay's Stokebrokers, Hargreaves Lansdown & companies | |||
