Nationwide customers could maximise their chances of getting £100 bonus by following three simple steps
MILLIONS of Nationwide customers could be inline to receive another £100 bonus in 2025.
However, this is only offered to customers who meet three specific sets of criteria.
Last June, the building society paid £385million in £100 payments to 3.85million members after announcing a pre-tax profit of £1.77billion.
Nationwide boss, Debbie Crosbie announced that the bank is “well positioned” to dish out the £100 payment back in December.
The potential good news comes after Nationwide received a £2.3billion windfall from its £2.9billion takeover of Virgin Money back in October.
However, more than 12million customers missed out on the firm’s last year’s £100 “Fair Share Payment” due to the society’s strict eligibility criteria.
Assuming that the eligibility criteria remains the same in 2025, customer current account should be “active” between January and March, so don’t close your account between these dates.
You will also need to use your current account within the first three months of the year, but how you’ll need to go about this will depend on your account type.
For example, customers with a Flex Account, Flex Basic and FlexDirect account must either pay at least £500 into the account and make two payments out.
The same customers may also qualify as long as they make at least 10 payments out.
Those with a FlexPlus packaged bank account will automatically qualify for the Fair Share Payment as long as they continue to pay the monthly fee.
Customers with a FlexOne, FlexGraduate and FlexStudent can qualify as long as they make a payment into and out of the account in March 2025.
Finally, all customers outlined above must also ensure they have at least £100 in savings or owe at least £100 on a mortgage with Nationwide in March 2025.
Customers without a savings account could opt to temporarily sign up to Nationwide’s Flex Regular Saver which pays 6.5% interest on deposits up to £200 a month.
What if I’m not with Nationwide?
Switching bank accounts can be an easy way to give your balance a quick boost.
Several major banks and building societies are now offering cash incentives to do so – including Nationwide.
Nationwide Building Society has launched a new offer of £175 to switch to its FlexDirect, FlexPlus or FlexAccount current accounts.
The free-cash perk is a joint-market leading sum with First Direct.
The FlexDirect account gives the account holder 5% interest on current account balances up to £1,500 for the first 12 months.
This account also offers an interest-free overdraft for balances up to £50.
Those who open a new FlexDirect account can also receive 1% cashback for the first 12 months on debit card purchases, capped at £5 per month.
You can’t have switched into a Nationwide account, or have received switch cash from Nationwide, since August 18, 2021 to qualify.
Find out more by visiting nationwide.co.uk/current-accounts/switch.
How do I switch bank accounts?
SWITCHING bank accounts is a simple process and can usually be done through the Current Account Switch Service (CASS).
Dozens of high street banks and building societies are signed up – there’s a full list on CASS’ website.
Under the switching service, swapping banks should take seven working days.
You don’t have to remember to move direct debits across when moving, as this is done for you.
All you have to do is apply for the new account you want, and the new bank will tell your existing one you’re moving.
There are a few things you can do before switching though, including choosing your switch date and transferring any old bank statements to your new account.
You should get in touch with your existing bank for any old statements.
When switching current accounts, consider what other perks might come with joining a specific bank or building society.
Some banks offer 0% overdrafts up to a certain limit, and others might offer better rates on savings accounts.
And some banks offer free travel or mobile phone insurance with their current accounts – but these accounts might come with a monthly fee.
What else is happening at Nationwide?
Nationwide axed passbooks for all customers on Wednesday, February 5.
Although passbooks may seem mystical to younger generations, they were the original way account holders used to keep track of their savings.
Customers with passbook savings accounts receive a physical notebook allowing them to record deposits and withdrawals.
The books physically hold all details of all transactions in an account so you can see them all at a glance.
They also come in particularly useful if you are trying to limit compulsive spending as there are a lot more steps to take with each transaction.
Customers affected by Nationwide’s move today can now get access to a “savings wallet” alternative.
This wallet contains a card that can only be used in a Nationwide branch.
Within the wallet, there is a space for printed “mini-statements” which customers will receive when they deposit or withdraw money at a branch.
This will still allow customers to keep a record of their transactions within the wallet, but it will no longer be in a book format once the old passbooks are phased out.
However, affected customers can choose whether they want a savings wallet or not.
And despite the scrapping of passbooks, customers still have access to their passbook account as they haven’t been closed since the change comes into force.
On Saturday, Nationwide slashed the interest rates on almost 90 savings accounts.
The move comes after the Bank of England cut the base rate from 5% to 4.75% in November before holding rates in December.
Whether you will be affected depends on which savings account you have.
For example, with an easy-access account the rate you earn on your nest egg can change at any time.
We’ve listed all the accounts affected.
Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme – Sun Club