The time has come to ditch your bank!

Sick of your bank? John Fitzsimons rounds up the hottest deals on offer from the top five alternatives to the traditional high-street banks.

You can't put on the news at the moment without discussion of banking bonuses.

The idea that Royal Bank of Scotland, a firm that only still exists thanks to our cash, can countenance handing over massive bonuses to some staff sticks in the craw for many of us.

Indeed, the high street banks in general have lost our trust, with more and more of us turning away from the usual suspects.

This may have been one off the motivating factors behind last week's announcement from the Government of plans for the Post Office to offer more financial services, including current accounts and children's savings accounts that you can open in branches (if you can find one, of course).

Admittedly it will be a while before you can take advantage of them, but if you've had enough of your high-street banks and want to put your money somewhere else, where's should you turn?

1) The AA

Believe it or not, the easy access savings account paying the highest rate in the entire market at the moment is offered by the AA.

Yep, the Automobile Association, the same firm that provides car breakdown cover!

The AA Internet Extra (Issue 1) Account pays 3.15% APR on savings from £1 up to £49,999, and 3.3% APR on balances from £50,000 and above (just be aware if you invest more than £50,000, you're over the Financial Services Compensation Scheme limit). There's penalty-free, instant access and you can apply for and manage your account online.

2) Tesco

If like me you feel like you spend every waking minute in Tesco or Sainsbury's, then you could do a lot worse than going with a supermarket account.

Tesco offers two savings accounts. You can get your hands on its decent Internet Saver, which pays 2.75% gross (including a 12 month 1.5% bonus) and an Instant Access savings account which delivers a pretty pitiful 0.75% gross up to £10,000.

If, however, you apply for Instant Access savings account by the 7th January 2010, you'll be able to get your hands on a whole heap of Clubcard points. If 28th February, you have a balance of £1,000 in this account, you get 500 points, if you have £3,000 you get 1000 points, and for £10,000 you get 1500 points (the equivalent of £15 in Clubcard vouchers, which can be then used to get £60 worth of stuff from Clubcard partners).

3) Sainsbury's

Sainsbury's also offers a good savings deal, with its Easy Saver account. The account pays an interest rate of 2.8% on sums up to £100,000, with a guarantee to stay 2% above Bank Base Rate for 12 months. However, you are limited to five withdrawals, so it's by no means perfect. Still, the big selling point is what you get in addition to the account - take out a financial product from Sainsbury's and you'll get double Nectar points on all your shopping at Sainsbury's for a massive two years!

But the best financial deal by far on offer from Sainsbury's is its 0% on purchases card. If you don't want to fall foul of negative payment hierarchy, where the most expensive debts are left on your credit card longer, choose this card offers 10 months interest-free on both purchases and balance transfers with a 3% fee. You'll also receive double Nectar points.

For more on the Sainsbury's offer, and the other cracking financial deals they have available at the moment, have a read of Get free stuff for picking the best deal.

4) M&S

It's not just the supermarkets that have branched into offering financial products. Stores like Marks & Spencer have their own range of savings, credit cards and loans too.

M&S Money offers an Everyday Savings Account, which pays 1.56% AER (with a one year 1% bonus), while if you are happy to put your money away for a while you can access a range of fixed rate deals. For a one-year product you'll get 2.5%, while for two and three years you'll get 3% and 4% respectively.

M&S also offers one of the top 0% on purchases cards, again allowing you 10 months of spending, interest-free. You also get M&S Rewards for spending - 1 point for every £1 spent at M&S or every £2 spent elsewhere.

However, if you are determined to turn your back on a high-street bank forever, it's worth remembering that M&S Money is part of the HSBC group.

5) Zopa!

One organisation that we write about a fair bit here at lovemoney.com is Zopa, a peer-to-peer lending firm.

With Zopa, you agree to lend anything from £10 to £25,000 over a three or five-year term to fellow Zopa users. You select which group of borrowers you are most comfortable with (so it could be those with a spotless record, or perhaps some are have a more chequered payment past), and your money is spread across a group of them, in order to safeguard your cash.

The returns are phenomenal. Over the past 12 months savers with Zopa have made an average return of 8%. Compared to the average three-year fixed bond of 4.14%, that's a hell of a return.

You also have a lot of control with Zopa - you are the one that sets the rate. So while one lender at Zopa has been happy to get an average return on their cash of 3.2% over the past 12 months, another is getting an average of 17.2%! It really is completely up to you.

If Zopa sounds like an intriguing option for you, then I'd certainly recommend having a watch of my colleague Ed Bowsher's video on Zopa.

Get help from lovemoney.com

If you want to get a great return on your savings, then you're in the right place! There's a host of ways we can help.

First of all, why not follow some of the great hints and tips in this goal: Build up your savings

Next, you might like to check out this video: How to... save when you've got no money

And finally, if you have any savings questions that you need an answer for, why not pick the brains of your fellow lovemoney.com readers in our Q&A section?

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