Martin Lewis has encouraged those looking to switch to a new bank account to look at a Santander switching offer.

The bank is currently offering £185 in cash to new and existing customers opening a current account.

Mr Lewis said on his BBC podcast: “The new one willing to pay you now is Santander, which gives switchers a free £185.

“It does that on three different accounts, one of which was a top pick of mine anyway for bills or joint bills accounts.

“So that’s the real stand out here, it’s the Santander Edge account. With that account, you pay £3 a month and you get two sets of cashback, both up to a maximum £10 each.

“You get one percent on water, council tax, energy, broadband and phones, and paid for TV bills, and you also get one percent on supermarket fuel, train and and bus and travel spending.”

Mr Lewis said for typical household bills, this would amount to around £80 to £100 a year in cashback savings after the fees.

The switching offer is eligible when opening one of these accounts:

• Santander Edge Current Account
• Santander Edge Up Current Account
• Santander Everyday Current Account
• Santander Private Current Account

To get the £185 payment, you will need to do these things:

• Complete the full switch within 60 days of requesting it
• Deposit at least £1,500 within the 60 days
• Set up two active direct debits within the 60 days
• Continue to hold the qualify account on the day the funds are paid.

Andrea Melville, director of Current Accounts, Savings and Business Banking at Santander, said: “With finances often stretched these days, we know customers want a current account that not only suits their everyday banking needs, but that also delivers additional ongoing value.

“Our new switching offer not only provides a quick boost to customers’ finances, but forms part of the wider value package we provide through our Edge account.”

Several other banks also currently have switching offers. NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland currently offer £200 to switchers, Lloyds is offering £175 and HSBC is offering £100.

Mr Lewis said of the other offers: “They do all give other perks as you bank through them, so you need to make a choice there.”

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