After a brief hiatus in August, first direct has returned to the switching deal market with a £175 switching bonus. It’s one of the only cash switching incentives currently available. Plus, the deal gives you access to a savings account with one of the highest Regular Saver rates in the first year. Here’s how to make the most of it.
For a full list of switching deals on the market, you can visit our switching deals guide.
To make comparing even easier we came up with the Finder Score. Fees, features and customer service across 20+ of the most popular banks are all weighted and scaled to produce a score out of 10. The higher the score the better the account – simple.
How much can I get with first direct’s switch deal?
You get £175 when you switch an existing account to first direct’s 1st Account. Once you switch, you can also access the Regular Saver account at 7% AER fixed for 12 months. If you save the maximum amount of £300 a month into the savings account, you’ll have £136.50 after a year.
“That’s £311.50 in your first year, including switching bonus and maximum savings interest”
Who can get the deal?
The deal is available only to new customers, who must be UK residents aged 18 and over.
You can’t qualify if you’ve held a first direct product or have opened an HSBC current account on or after 1 January 2018.
How can I get the deal?
To get the £175 cash, complete a full switch to first direct’s 1st Account, which has no monthly fee, using the Current Account Switch Service.
Then, within 45 days of opening your account, you need to set up at least 2 direct debits or standing orders, make more than 5 debit card payments and pay in at least £1,000. Plus, you’ll need to register and log on to first direct’s digital banking in that period.
Debit card transactions include online and in-store as well as payments made using a digital wallet and the card itself.
If you meet all eligibility criteria, first direct will pay you the cash before the 20th of the following month.
The exclusions
You won’t be eligible to earn £175 if you’ve previously held a first direct product or have opened an HSBC current account on or after 1 January 2018.
You’ll need to continue to hold your first direct 1st Account on the date that the cash payment is made.
When the offer ends
There’s no end date to the deal, but first direct has said it can be withdrawn at any time.
Finder scores, in blue, are based on our expert analysis. We also show reviews from users, where we've received more than 10, with a score in yellow. We gather more reviews from customers every year in Finder's customer satisfaction survey.
We show offers we can track - that's not every product on the market...yet. Unless we've said otherwise, products are in no particular order. The terms "best", "top", "cheap" (and variations of these) aren't ratings, though we always explain what's great about a product when we highlight it. This is subject to our terms of use. When you make major financial decisions, consider getting independent financial advice. Always consider your own circumstances when you compare products so you get what's right for you. Most of the data in Finder's comparison tables has the source: Moneyfacts Group PLC. In other cases, Finder has sourced data directly from providers.
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Kate Steere is an editor at Finder, specialising in fintech, banking and cryptocurrency. She has previously written for The Motley Fool UK and Fitch Solutions, where she covered a wide range of personal finance topics and kept a close eye on market trends. Kate has a Bachelor of Arts in Modern History from the University of East Anglia. When not working, she can usually be found curled up with a good book or heading out for a run. See full bio
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Kate has written 176 Finder guides across topics including:
Find out how you can open a new current account with NatWest and take advantage of the latest switching bonus.
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