Switching account multiple times in a row

Robza94

As the title says I’m looking at both the current Lloyds switch and NatWest/RBS accounts, I’ve looked through T&Cs and can’t see anything about a minimum stay period would this mean once I’ve met the conditions to receive the money and have received the money I’d be able to switch again almost immediately? 

WillPS

There is no 'clawback' - once the money is in your account it's yours. If you switch away before it's paid then you're not going to get it, but that's it.

The only provider to ever stipulate such a thing was Nationwide with their refer-a-friend scheme which ended in 2020. I doubt it was ever actually enforced either.

You may or may not find the bank you switch away from won't have you back again in future (as would be their right), but I haven't seen any indication of such a 'ban' being placed by any of the switch bonus regulars previously. Maybe First Direct.

Middle_of_the_Road

Robza94 said:

As the title says I’m looking at both the current Lloyds switch and NatWest/RBS accounts, I’ve looked through T&Cs and can’t see anything about a minimum stay period would this mean once I’ve met the conditions to receive the money and have received the money I’d be able to switch again almost immediately? 

Exactly that, you can switch whenever you want. I usually keep accounts that give rewards or have a linked regular saver though. 

Nasqueron

WillPS said:

There is no 'clawback' - once the money is in your account it's yours. If you switch away before it's paid then you're not going to get it, but that's it.

The only provider to ever stipulate such a thing was Nationwide with their refer-a-friend scheme which ended in 2020. I doubt it was ever actually enforced either.

You may or may not find the bank you switch away from won't have you back again in future (as would be their right), but I haven't seen any indication of such a 'ban' being placed by any of the switch bonus regulars previously. Maybe First Direct.

Co-Op did have a clause on their switch basically saying the same, it's why it's probably better to leave the current account open while the saver bonus is paid. They did actually try and enforce it to, albeit a different scheme (refer a friend) which eventually had to go to the FOS - there is a post on here about it

WillPS

Nasqueron said:

WillPS said:

There is no 'clawback' - once the money is in your account it's yours. If you switch away before it's paid then you're not going to get it, but that's it.

The only provider to ever stipulate such a thing was Nationwide with their refer-a-friend scheme which ended in 2020. I doubt it was ever actually enforced either.

You may or may not find the bank you switch away from won't have you back again in future (as would be their right), but I haven't seen any indication of such a 'ban' being placed by any of the switch bonus regulars previously. Maybe First Direct.

Co-Op did have a clause on their switch basically saying the same, it's why it's probably better to leave the current account open while the saver bonus is paid. They did actually try and enforce it to, albeit a different scheme (refer a friend) which eventually had to go to the FOS - there is a post on here about it

Co-op Bank won't pay you if you don't have an account at the point a payment would otherwise by made, in common with all CASS bonuses.

Unless there's another FOS case I'm not aware - the issue with their (also closed) Refer a Friend scheme was that the eligibility requirements didn't adequately stipulate which former account holders or switch recipients would and would not be be eligible. That's quite different from trying to claw back money after a bonus has already been paid, which is what the OP fears.

Nasqueron

WillPS said:

Nasqueron said:

WillPS said:

There is no 'clawback' - once the money is in your account it's yours. If you switch away before it's paid then you're not going to get it, but that's it.

The only provider to ever stipulate such a thing was Nationwide with their refer-a-friend scheme which ended in 2020. I doubt it was ever actually enforced either.

You may or may not find the bank you switch away from won't have you back again in future (as would be their right), but I haven't seen any indication of such a 'ban' being placed by any of the switch bonus regulars previously. Maybe First Direct.

Co-Op did have a clause on their switch basically saying the same, it's why it's probably better to leave the current account open while the saver bonus is paid. They did actually try and enforce it to, albeit a different scheme (refer a friend) which eventually had to go to the FOS - there is a post on here about it

Co-op Bank won't pay you if you don't have an account at the point a payment would otherwise by made, in common with all CASS bonuses.

Unless there's another FOS case I'm not aware - the issue with their (also closed) Refer a Friend scheme was that the eligibility requirements didn't adequately stipulate which former account holders or switch recipients would and would not be be eligible. That's quite different from trying to claw back money after a bonus has already been paid, which is what the OP fears.

With Co-Op switch you have the second £50 bonus for having £25 in the saver - someone dug in the terms and suggested that the saver plan doesn't need the associated current account to be open to keep running, suggesting you could switch the current account and still fulfil the criteria to get the extra bonus but to me it seems like a risk. There was someone on here saying they would try that as they didn't want to open another current account to switch. Personally I am keeping my Co-Op one open, I might bump the DD over to RBS to use for the offer though trying to spent £2+ every month on my old CC is a bit of a pain!

What I was correcting is your statement that Nationwide were the only switch who had a clawback clause - that is incorrect, Co-Op were an example who had a specific clause for the switch:

See section C below:

https://www.co-operativebank.co.uk/products/bank-accounts/switch-and-save/

10. We reserve the right to withhold any payment (or to reverse any payment already made) where we have reasonable grounds for suspecting you have sought to materially abuse or profiteer from the offer. For example, this may arise if we have grounds for believing that you have sought to engage in a marketing campaign.

maryjane87

There is no issue with switching multiple times as long as you leave the account open long enough to receive the bonus. We have been doing this a few months and have made about £1200 (£600 each as a couple) we did Natwest, LLoyds, TSB and First Direct. We found the most efficient way, so as not to risk them pulling one offer while you wait to switch from eg Natwest to LLoyds was to open an account with Nationwide to switch in (free - open instantly and get SC and Acc no instantly). Have multiple deals running concurrently as they can be withdrawn at any time. For the DD's we set some up to charity for £1 each a month and always use "burner" accounts so it's not interfering with our "real" account and bills. The only downside is the crazy amounts of paperwork you receive so need to be organised!