A woman was left delighted after she received £125 in her bank account using a five-minute Martin Lewis tip. And without a hitch, the advice worked leaving her thrilled.
The Money-Saving Expert advised Brits to look at switching bank accounts if they want to earn some free cash. A woman named Kate Lally gave it a go, the MEN reports.
Using Martin Lewis' advice, Kate, a reporter from our sister site Liverpool Echo, switched from Santander to the Halifax Reward current account. She chose this as it offered her £125 to move over.
Read more: The reality of Bristol's cost of living crisis - from skipping meals to rough sleeping
On top of this, she also gets an extra reward of either £5, a cinema ticket, digital magazines or movie rentals, if she pays in £1,500 each month. Sadly, this Halifax deal has ended - but other banks are offering up to £170 for you to switch over to them. This cash could come in handy during the cost of living crisis.
HSBC is the top player with a cash bribe of £170 for new customers, followed by £150 from its sister bank First Direct. Of course, for any switch bribe you’re interested in, you’ll need to meet the terms and conditions before you apply - or you won’t get the cash.
You should also make sure the bank account you’re switching to is right for you - don’t just move for the cash reward alone. Finally, make sure you switch using the Current Account Switch Service (CASS) to get these rewards. Here's how Kate found the switching process...
"Like many others, I often check out Martin Lewis' tips and tricks to see if there's more I could be doing to look after the pennies. Amid the cost of living crisis, the finance guru has repeatedly found himself lost for words and unable to offer much help.
"Unlike previous years, there are often no deals or switches to be found. At times, the MSE founder's advice has simply been to do nothing. Thankfully, one simple way to bag some cash comes in the way of a bonus, or bribe, for switching bank accounts. And these deals are usually readily available in some shape or form.
"Last month, MSE shared a number of ways savers could get their hands on some free money by moving accounts to a different banking provider. I opted for the Halifax Reward account, as it offered £125 bonus for opening the account.
"On top of this, if you pay in £1,500 each month (for me this is covered by my wages), you can also receive a monthly reward of either £5, a cinema ticket, digital magazines or movie rentals.
"I chose the £5 per month, meaning if nothing changes I will get an extra £60 cash from Halifax this year, too. This is the first time I've switched banks since opening my first account with Santander at 15. I'd previously been put off as it seemed like too much of a faff, but it was actually extremely straightforward and took me a matter of minutes. I imagine banks have realised a complicated switching process would be unappealing.
"All I needed to do was tell Halifax of my intention to switch, fill in my details and they notified my old bank on my behalf. "They also moved all my direct debits across from the old account. I then had to tell my employer to ensure my wages landed in the right place (this took around 20 seconds). I had £125 in my new account - and with my monthly reward, there's more free cash to come. Thanks, Martin!"
Read more about where to get help in Bristol if you're struggling with the cost of living
