I seem to be fighting a losing battle most of the time in persuading you to shake up your lazy deposit accounts that are paying poor rates of interest.

It seems such a shame when you can, with relative ease, move money from one deposit institution to another and sometimes virtually double the interest rate that you are receiving.

For example, An Post Savings Bonds are currently paying 2.6 per cent but Permanent TSB's Signature Deposit account is offering 5 per cent if you leave your money invested for 12 months.

I am not a great fan of long term deposits but if it make you feel safe then go for it. Just make sure you keep enough in an easy access account for emergencies and other unforeseen needs.

But putting money into a safe account is only part of the story because there are two things that attack your investments before you get at them yourself.

And the first is tax. Deposit Interest Retention Tax (DIRT) takes away 20 per cent before you begin.

So your top rate of 5 per cent becomes just 4 per cent.

You might think that four per cent is a reasonable rate of return particularly given the certainty that a deposit account offers you.

What a different world that is from the roller coaster ride and the total vagaries of both the stock market and the property market.

But if inflation runs at an average of three per cent then you are moving ahead slowly. And ever so slowly gaining just 1% in real terms each year.

Depending on your income of course you may not be worried about tax.

The allowances here in Ireland are particularly good for retired couples – for example if you are both over 65 and if your income is under ¤40,000 then you are completely exempt from tax.

For a single person the equivalent figure is ¤20,000.

But if you have a deposit account you are probably relying on the interest to provide you with some income and so the capital is always being eroded. It stands still when you spend the interest and inflation eats away at the principle every day making it worth less and less.

So often people sit before me saying that they are not worried about the long term because of their age.

But life expectancy is ever increasing.

A couple aged 65 can be pretty sure that one of them will live for more than 20 years.

Twenty years is a long term investment in anybody's investment books.

Even a couple who are both aged 75 will find one of them living for virtually 14 years.

And again who would argue that 14 years in anything but long term?

Ignoring your savings and not seeking out the best rate of interest is only giving an advantage to the banks and building societies – and I don't think you owe them anything.

Pretending that inflation doesn't exist is to ignore reality.

So why not pick up a decent newspaper tomorrow or Sunday and look at the personal finance pages and see who is offering the best rates of interest to give your savings account a jolly good spring clean.

You owe it to yourself. Not to the banks.