I believe that onlinbe share dealing is far better than offline as the main advantage is that of speed. Deals can be made in an instant and it is easy and simple to do. I currently hold an online share dealing account with Halifax and it is a brilliant service that allows shares to be bought in an instant as well as being a lot cheaper than over the phone. It costs just £12.95 a trade but just £1.50 if you buy on an arranged date in the future. Selling fees are also just £5 for trades under £250 and £11.95 for those over that amount. Overall I have found the online system to be cheaper, as over the phone dealing fees are far higher (often over £15 a trade) and also ...  Read the complete review

Having access to on-line real time (Or as good as) has always given the Stockbroker/FundManager the edge on the retail investor until the advent of Ceefax and then obviously the Net. I use on-line accounts for all of the realtime information,News and stats I need however still default to the ringing my Broker in order to place the trade. Why? It's the human factor thing - The broker guides you through the trade and any last minute queries are answered on the spot rather than trying to find the information whilst in the middle of a trade procedure. And when the deal is done - It's confirmed - No risk of network glitch, phone being disconnected or a ...  Read the complete review