The latest news to help you get the most from your bank account.
Here’s my monthly update sharing changes for leading UK current accounts, as well as some of the relevant articles you might have missed on the blog.
June’s bank account update videos
For a more detailed update, watch this video from my YouTube channel.
June’s current account news
Latest bank switching deals
After a slow start, we’ve now got six active switch offers!
The newest is from Co-operative Bank, where you need to regularly use your account and debit card for five months as well as add money to a regular saver – albeit one that pays 7%. This could be worth £150, plus around £114 interest, so it’s certainly worth a look. Here’s what you need to know.
Also quite complicated is the offer from TSB. You’ll get £100 for switching, and then if you stick around for six months you’ll get another £60, and another month after that you’ll get free streaming or cinema tickets. But you will have to use your debit card 20 times every month, and more. There’s another £30 available via cashback sites. Here’s my full analysis.
Easier are the offers from Santander and Club Lloyds. Both pay £175 and require direct debits to move as part of the switch and money to be added to the account. With Santander you’ll also get 1% cashback on bills and access to a 7% paying savings account, but you’ll pay a £3 monthly fee. Meanwhile Club Lloyds has a freebie such as a year of Disney+ and an exclusive 6.25% paying regular saver.
Then there’s Nationwide, which is only open to members of the building society (so having a savings account, current account or mortgage) as of 31 March 2024. If you are eligible, you might be able to get the offer not just on your personal account, but on a joint account too – meaning there’s £600 up for grabs for couples. Full details here.
You can also still get £175 from First Direct, and in the last week or so the bank has also returned to cashback sites, with another £45 available. All the details are here.
The Barclays Premier Banking offer is still around, but not really worth it. The Danske Bank and Virgin Money offers both ended.
Trading 212 is on Apple Pay
If you weren’t sure about giving the Trading 212 cashback card a go then it’s now a lot easier to use as it’s finally on Apple Pay.
You can still earn 1.5% on spending until 1 October 2024, so it’s one of the higher paying options right now.
Halifax Reward tracking issues
During May, a number of Halifax Reward customers in our Facebook group found the tracking wasn’t working to trigger their monthly reward. We contacted Halifax who told us it’s working in the background so no one will miss out, even if it’s not showing.
That’s obviously frustrating for people who aren’t sure if they’ve met the conditions for the month, but if you’ve done what you always do, then you’re in a good position to complain if the payment doesn’t come.
Payments dropped on 12 June, so if you didn’t get your money, get in touch with Halifax to check why.
Possible Nationwide packaged account hack
I told you the other month about Nationwide’s member bonus, worth £100, as long as you met certain criteria that usually involved paying money in and of a current account at the start of the year.
Well, if the offer returns next year with the same terms then one to consider is a joint FlexPlus account. This is the packaged account that includes travel, mobile phone and breakdown cover. Importantly if you have this account you didn’t need to do anything else to trigger the £100 perk. That’s down to the £13 monthly fee.
But by having a joint account you’ll potentially get two £100 payments! You will need to each have a savings account with the building society too, and I’d suggest the 6.5% paying Flex Regular Saver.
Of course, it’s not guaranteed the bonus will return next year, but assuming you need worldwide holiday cover and one of the other two anyway, it’s actually not a bad deal.
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Lloyds & Halifax revamp overdrafts
Lloyds Banking Group, made up of Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland, has announced that overdraft rates will change from August 2024.
The size of the overdraft will be based on how you use the account and your credit report, and it could see it move from 27.5% (for Club Lloyds holders), 39.9% or 49.9% to between 19.9% and 49.9%.
You’ll get 60 days notice if it’s going up , and seven days if it’s falling, so check your apps if you get paperless communications.
Of course, whatever rate you get is likely to be more expensive than other forms of borrowing. We’ve got a guide to cheaper overdrafts which could help reduce the cost, or you could consider a 0% money transfer card.
Yet more branch closures in 2024
TSB has announced more branch closures for this year. You can find out if your local is affected in these articles:
Use our best buy tables to get the best rate on your savings.
Find out if you can get free cash for switching bank.
HyperJar extends 2% cashback offer
You’ve got until 21 June 2024 to join HyperJar and earn up to 2% back on spending until 31 October 2024. I’ve been using the card, albeit on a slightly lower offer, and it’s been easy to transfer the money over as I want to spend. More details on the offer here.
Revolut debit card “spend hack” issues
As I’ve previously warned you, it seems Revolut is cracking down further on people abusing debit card transfers to their accounts in order to trigger rewards elsewhere.
In our Facebook group, a member posted the message from Revolut saying they’ve closed their account “as we believe it’s being used to gain a points or cash advance from another credit card provider”.
I think the issue here was using the same Revolut account for all three Halifax Reward £500 payments, so check out my article with other debit card “spend” options so you can spread it around different providers, and I’d certainly not use them for offers that require multiple debit card spends like the recent Co-op and TSB switch offers. I’d also avoid keeping too much in your Revolut account in case this happens to you.
My top current accounts for June 2024
I always think it’s worth having more than one current account (find out why here) and here’s my run-down of the top accounts to have this month.
- Best account for everyday banking / app – Starling (review)
- Best account for everyday spending – HyperJar
- Best account for bills – Santander Edge (review)
- Best account for rewards – Halifax Reward (review)
- Best account for savings interest – Santander Edge (review)
- Best account for 0% overdraft – Nationwide FlexDirect (12 months only) (review)
Ugh. This cynical ‘gaming’ of the banking system is the most odious manifestation of the trickle up economy.
They won’t be happy until the 1% own 99.9%.
More power to Revolut if they’re trying to “crack down” on it.
Let’s face it, when a bank thinks what you’re doing is unethical, maybe you have to sit down and think about it.