Nationwide could give millions of customers a £100 Fairer Share payment in 2025.
While Nationwide has been known for having some of the best savings accounts, such as its former 8% regular savings, it has also become popular for paying its members a £100 annual bonus. The building society has made the payment to eligible customers for two years now, but not everyone was eligible.
While there's no guarantee, the mutual’s chief executive Debbie Crosbie recently said they were “well positioned” to repeat a Fairer Share payment to qualifying customers.
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Nationwide saw the highest net switching gains compared to other providers between July and September 2024, Current Account Switch Service data shows.
There were 22,622 net switchers to the building society during this period, while Barclays saw 18,053 , with TSB (12,282) and Lloyds (10,018 ) in third and fourth place.
These new customers might want to check if they would be eligible for a Fairer Share payment, if the scheme goes ahead later this year.
What are Nationwide Fairer Share payments?
Nationwide has shared profits with members by giving eligible people a £100 Fairer Share payment in recent years.
Since the scheme was launched in 2023, the building society has paid more than £700 million to customers.
The building society has 16 million existing members, but less than four million qualified for Fairer Share in 2024.
In May 2024, existing members who, as at March 31, didn’t use Nationwide for their everyday banking, were offered a £200 Member Exclusive Current Account Online Switch Offer.
Nationwide said this would “put them in prime position to receive a Fairer Share payment in future years”.
When are Nationwide Fairer Share payments announced?
Nationwide has announced Fairer Share payments in May for the past two years, but the building society hasn’t confirmed whether there will be a Fairer Share payment in 2025.
The scheme was first announced on 19 May 2023. The payment was made to customers who had unknowingly met qualifying conditions in March of that year.
The money was paid between 13 and 30 June 2023. Nationwide distributed £340 million with members via Fairer Share at the time.
Nationwide announced the second £100 Fairer Share Payment on 23 May 2024, and payments were sent between 13 and 28 June.
Customers had to have met the eligibility criteria in March 2024.
In 2024, the building society distributed £385 million to members who chose Nationwide for their everyday banking and had a qualifying savings or mortgage product.
How to get the £100 Nationwide £100 bonus
While it's not known if there will be a payment in 2025, to qualify for a Fairer Share payment in 2024, customers must have had either:
- A qualifying current account and qualifying savings, or
- A qualifying current account and a qualifying mortgage.
The qualifying current account had to have been open on March 31, 2024, and any extra requirements depended on the type of current account held on that date.
What is a qualifying current account?
| Current account | Criteria |
|---|---|
| FlexPlus | Current account holders had to pay the monthly fee for maintaining the account. |
| FlexOne, FlexStudent or FlexGraduate | Account holders must have received at least one payment in or made one payment out of the account in March 2024. |
| FlexAccount, FlexDirect or FlexBasic | In two of the three months of January 2024, February 2024 and March 2024, you must have either received at least £500 into the current account (not including transfers from other Nationwide accounts) and have made at least two payments out of the current account, or you must have made at least 10 payments out of your current account. |
For the FlexOne, FlexStudent, FlexGraduate, FlexAccount, FlexDirect or FlexBasic eligibility rules, charges, interest, or adjustments to the account balance did not count. People who completed a switch to one of these accounts using the Current Account Switch Service between 1 January 2024 and 31 March 2024 didn’t need to meet the above requirements.
What are qualifying savings?
Customers had qualifying savings if they held at least £100 in total in one or more Nationwide personal savings account(s) or cash ISA(s) at the end of any day in March 2024.
There are some exceptions, however, with qualifying savings not including:
- Money held in a Nationwide Business Savings account (including money held in BusinessInvestor, PortfolioInvestor and Treasurer’s Trust accounts).
- Money or other assets held in a Nationwide Investment account, such as a stocks and shares ISA.
- Money in an account in the name of someone else that is being held for your benefit under a trust or similar arrangement.
What is a qualifying mortgage?
Nationwide says borrowers must have owed the building society at least £100 on their Nationwide residential mortgage on March 31, 2024.
Qualifying mortgages don’t include:
- A mortgage with a Nationwide subsidiary - such as The Mortgage Works (UK) plc, UCB Home Loans Corporation Limited, Derbyshire Home Loans Limited, or E-Mex Home Funding Limited
- A mortgage you applied for, but which had not completed by 31 March 2024
- Nationwide commercial mortgages.
There were some exclusions, and Nationwide contacted people eligible for the payment earlier in 2024.
The building society also launched a Fairer Share payment eligibility checker tool, which people could use to see if they qualified for the 2024 payment.
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