If payday is just too far away, it's worth having a look at some of the newer banks opening up in the UK.
So-called 'challenger' banks Monzo and Revolut allow you to pull your salary into your bank account the day before you are due to be paid, as long as it is paid through the BACS system. And if payday is on Monday, you could have the money in your account on the Friday prior - so be paid three days early.
Around 700,000 banking customers switched accounts last year, which is a sharp fall from more than one million in 2019. The Currant Account Switching Service ( CASS ) put this drop down to the pandemic, noting that the Covid-19 crisis had made people more reluctant to switch, while banks themselves were found to have adopted a more cautious approach, focusing on helping existing customers rather than marketing their services to new customers.
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CASS pointed to the fact that many banks withdrew switching incentives last year, which would also have dented the numbers switching accounts. However, the last seven years have seen a raft of new banks coming into the UK marketplace, challenging the traditional high street banks by tempting customers with new features such as app-based banking, instant notifications when money arrives or leaves your account and easy account set-up.
Two of the fintech banks - so called because they are use financial technology - are trying to tempt customers by allowing BACS payments to be spent before they are actually due to arrive. The reason behind the move is thought to be to encourage customers to use the fintech banks as their main bank account rather than a secondary account.
Monzo was the first bank to offer its Get Paid Early feature to it 5m customers , followed by Revolut's Early Salary option to its 14.5 million users.
According to Monzo, more than 90% of the UK’s population is paid by BACS, and the scheme also includes benefits payments such as PIP and Child Benefit, as well as student loans. The bank claims that all banks could theoretically offer this service as money comes into the system a day early, but most choose not to.
“Early access to salaries could be a genuine lifeline for many during these tough economic times,” said Revolut chief executive Nik Storonsky. “Our aim is always to provide Revolut customers with services they need and the best possible experience."
However, there is a potential catch. Although both banks offer the service for free, both reserve the right to recall the money if there is a problem and the BACs payment does not reach your account as it was planned to.
A Monzo spokesperson told consumer group Which? that Monzo would know before 4pm if there was a problem at the sender’s side. If a wider banking problem was discovered after 4pm – such as a bank having a major issue and needing to delay all of its Bacs payments – Monzo says it would reverse the payment and let the customer know. It stresses that such a scenario would be ‘extremely rare’.
