Santander gives £205 in money and vouchers to change present account

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Santander is now offering the best deal on the market to switch your current account – if you don’t mind receiving part of the bonus in vouchers. 

The Spanish bank is luring customers in with a £180 cash incentive for switching bank account, as well as a £25 Amazon voucher – bringing the total bonus to £205. 

To get the voucher, you’ll have to start the switch via one of the participating price comparison websites which are MoneySavingExpert, MoneySuperMarket*, Experian or Clearscore.

Santander’s £205 offering beats the £200 cash bonus available from Barclays. 

Lloyds is also offering £200 to switch to Club Lloyds, where customers will need to either deposit £2,000 a month or pay a £5 fee every month to get the cash. 

First Direct will give you £175 if you make the switch there, while NatWest offers £150. 

It’s worth noting that Santander previously offered £200 cash to switchers, the last time it ran a bonus like this. 

Cash carrot: Santander is luring customers with a £180 incentive for switching bank accounts

Andrew Hagger of personal finance website Money Comms said that £180 is ‘still a great offer, and even more so if you switch via certain comparison websites where you can get an additional reward in the for of a £25 Amazon voucher.’

He added: ‘There are plenty of current account switching deals out there, so if you’re not happy with your existing bank, why not consider switching and picking up a cash bonus as part of the deal. 

‘It will come in handy with the current spike in fuel and food costs and could give you a bit more breathing room in your budget.’

There are higher amounts on offer, but these are reserved for premium accounts and require the customer to have plenty of cash to deposit. 

For example, Lloyds will pay £500 to switch to its Premier account, but they must deposit £5,000 in the first 35 days or have £100,000 in savings or investments.

How can you claim your £205?  

Santander’s new offer starts today, 1 April, and no end date has been announced. 

You can’t get the money if you held a Santander current account on 1 January 2025 or if you have ever received a Santander switcher incentive.

You must use the Current Account Switch Service to complete the switch, rather than closing your old account and opening the new one independently. This means your regular payments should be moved automatically. 

Then, you have to pay in at least £1,500. You must set up two direct debits as well. Unlike some banks, these must be selected ‘household direct debits’. 

This means gym memberships and credit card payments will not cut it. The direct debits will have to be from Santander’s approved list of household utilities, such as Sky, British Gas or Thames Water. 

Once all that is done, you should receive your £180 within 90 days of starting the process. 

To be eligible for the £25 Amazon gift card, you have to start the switch using one of its participating price comparison websites such as MoneySavingExpert, MoneySuperMarket, Experian or Clearscore.

You then have to make five debit card transactions within 30 days of opening your account. 

> Compare bank accounts at MoneySuperMarket* 

What accounts can you open?  

When switching, it’s important to consider the features of the account and the bank’s customer service record, as well as any cash bonus.

You are eligible for the incentive money if you open Santander’s free Everyday Current Account. 

It doesn’t offer many benefits but includes an optional overdraft as well as free access to Santander cash machines when you are abroad.

You can also open the Santander Edge current account – which charges £3. It requires a £500 monthly deposit as well as two active direct debits. 

It lets you use your debit card abroad for free and gets you £10 cashback on certain household bills.  

You have access to a savings account which offers a 6 per cent interest rate on anything up to £4,000- that goes down to 3.5 per cent after 12 months.

It also offers a Santander Edge Up current account for £5 a month – which lets you earn 2 per cent interest on balances up to £25,000.

For £17 a month, you get access to the Santander Edge Explorer current account. This includes worldwide family travel insurance, UK and European breakdown cover and 24/7 remote GP access along with all the benefits of the other accounts.