The building society has announced some members will get a £100 handout plus access to a table-topping savings account. Here's who will be eligible for the 2024 Nationwide Fairer Share payment.
If you happen to bank with the UK’s biggest building society, then you could be in line for a cash payment.
Nationwide Building Society has announced that it will once again be sharing the rewards from its recent financial performance with some customers.
The mutual posted sizeable pre-tax profits of £1,8 billion for the last financial year.
While that's down on the record £2.2 billion posted in 2023, it's still decided to share some of these profits in the form of its 'Fairer Share' payment scheme.
What can I get from Nationwide’s fairer share payment?
The payment is worth £100 to eligible customers – as it was last year – with eligible being the key word there.
Not every Nationwide customer is going to be getting a slice of this cash.
In order to get that money, you will need to have two qualifying products with Nationwide.
The first is a current account, and just having one in your name isn’t going to be enough ‒ you will also need to have used it this year.
Being an active current account user at Nationwide isn’t enough though.
You will also need to have either a savings account or mortgage with Nationwide as well.
Thankfully the bar here is pretty low ‒ all that’s required is either £100 in the savings account or an outstanding mortgage of at least £100.
In summary, here's who will qualify for the Fairer Share payment:
- You opened a FlexAccount, FlexBasic or FlexDirect current account before 31 March 2024;
- In two of the first three months of this year, you either received at least £500 into said account (excluding transfers from other Nationwide accounts) and made at least two payments out of the account OR made at least 10 payments from the account;
- You have £100 in a Nationwide savings account or owe £100 on a Nationwide mortgage.
You can check if you're eligible for the Nationwide Fairer Share payment here.
How/when will the Nationwide Fairer Share payment be paid?
According to Nationwide, the money will be paid automatically into the current account of eligible customers in June.
The mutual is going to start contacting those customers now, to inform them of the payments.
It would be understandable if you viewed those messages a bit cynically, perhaps assuming it’s a scam.
After all, it’s not often that financial institutions hand over money for nothing.
However, it is all above board and you won’t have to do anything extra to receive the cash.
If you do receive an email asking for any personal information, you can dismiss it as a scam.
Members can also bag a bestbuy savings deal
In addition to the Fairer Share payment, Nationwide has announced a couple of extra perks for eligible members.
The first one is a juicy 5.5% rate on its 18 month savings bond, which is miles better than the next best on the market – 4.85% from Al Rayan Bank.
You can save a maximum of £10,000 into the account.
It is available to anyone who was a Nationwide current account, savings account or mortgage account holder on 22 May 2024.
The second offer is a current account switching incentive worth £200.
To bag this you will need to have had savings or a mortgage with Nationwide on 31 March, complete a switch from another bank using the Current Account Switch Service and transfer at least two Direct Debits to your new Nationwide account.
Is it worth banking with Nationwide?
The potential to get a cash payment in future, should Nationwide again enjoy massive profits and look to share them with members in such a way, is not a great reason to go for a Nationwide current account.
But the accounts themselves are well worth a look, in their own right.
For example, the FlexDirect account continues to be the highest around when it comes to earning interest on your balance. It pays a rate of 5% fixed for the first 12 months, on the first £1,500 in your account.
Check out our guide to the best high-interest current accounts.
As far as packaged accounts go, the FlexPlus account is decent too, offering worldwide travel insurance and breakdown cover across Europe for £13 a month.
Both of those accounts deliver an interest-free overdraft for the first 12 months as well.
Pick the right product for you, not bank on future gifts
There is clearly no future guarantee of similar payments from Nationwide, though given it's done so two years in a row does make it seem like further payments are likely.
Ultimately the big factor when selecting any financial product should be how appropriate it is for your needs, rather than any added bonuses and perks that may be included.