Martin Lewis is urging customers of major banks including Barclays, Santander and Natwest to get an ‘instant’ £175 from First Direct which will be paid in time for Christmas.
A rare bank switch offer which gives cash up front and a 0 percent overdraft is on offer for anyone with major high street banks like Nationwide, Halifax, Lloyds, Natwest, TSB or Barclays, and Santander.
Martin Lewis said as he returned with his first The Martin Lewis Podcast instalment since before his career break in July: “This week First Direct has relaunched its free £175 switching bonus.
“So if you move bank and you’ve never been with First Direct before and you haven’t been with HSBC and you aren’t moving from HSBC, you can get £175.
“First Direct has five perks in one.”
First Direct is offering customers who switch to it from one of those banks £175 cash, plus a £250 overdraft at 0 percent, effectively handing new customers up to £475.
Not only that, but you’ll also have access to a linked 7 percent savings account, which would pay a bumper £136 if you max it out by the end of the year, paying £300 a month into it for the full year.
Not only that, but you also get perfect exchange rates on overseas spending. The debit card First Direct gives you charges nothing on foreign spending when on holiday, meaning you get an almost 1:1 exchange rate when tapping your debit card to spend Euros or Dollars, or one of the many other major currencies it will convert on the fly, without costing you any commission or exchange fees.
To qualify, you must open a 1st Account, then within 45 days switch over an existing account with two or more direct debits or standing orders in place, as well as pay in £1,000, which you can withdraw the next day.
You also need to make at least five debit card payments and log into its online banking at least once.
HSBC customers are out of luck though as First Direct does not offer the switch deal to those with HSBC accounts, as the two are owned by the same company.
Bank switching is automatic thanks to a 7-day bank switch service which all banks are signed up to. Once you make the switch, everything will be moved across for you and no bills should be missed (although if you have a vital payment going out you might want to wait for a clear week just in case).
Martin added: “If you do it now you get the £175 in time for Christmas, and it’s a top customer service bank so unless you really love your bank and some people do and that’s great, but if you don’t love your bank and it’s not doing anything for you, you might want to go and get the £175.
“There are some direct debits you need to switch so do read the eligibility criteria.”
