Instead of a cash incentive, Virgin Money will pay 10% interest on balances up to £1,000 for a year if you switch to one of its three current accounts.
Here, Which? explains how the deal works, how much you could earn and if Virgin Money is a good provider.
What's on offer with Virgin Money?
Virgin Money is paying 10% interest on current account balances up to £1,000 for the next year if you sign up to one of its three current accounts; M, M Plus and Club M.
If you meet the offer conditions you’ll start earning the bonus fixed interest rate of 10% gross/10.47% AER (fixed) on balances up to £1,000 from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025.
Virgin Money will work out how much interest you earn at the end of each day, based on the money in your account. This interest will be added to your M, M Plus or Club M account on the last working day of each month.
Here’s what each account offers:
Virgin M plus
This account has no monthly fees and you get cashback from selected retailers and fee-free spending abroad.
You get an interest rate of 2.02% AER (2% gross per annum variable) paid monthly on your current account balance up to £1,000.
If you switch to this account using the deal you’ll start earning this once it’s opened. Then from 1 July, you’ll get an additional 10% gross/10.47% AER (fixed) on balances up to £1,000 until 30 June 2025.
You also get access to a linked saver offering 2.50% AER (2.48% gross per annum variable) on savings balances up to £25,000 and 2% AER (1.99% gross) on any balances above £25,000 with interest paid quarterly.
Find out more:Club M account
This is a premium packaged account offering all the perks from the Virgin M Plus, as well as travel and gadget insurance and breakdown cover for £12.50 a month.
The worldwide travel insurance is provided by AIG and includes you and your partner (providing you are under 75) and up to four dependents under 18. It also includes travel within the UK (if more than two nights are booked) and winter sports.
The breakdown cover is provided by Green Flag and includes the UK and Europe with no call out charges.
The phone and gadget insurance is provided by Assurant and includes mobiles, laptops, tablets and cameras.
M account
This is a no frills basic bank account with access to a linked saver. The account has no fees.
This account doesn’t typically pay interest on current account balances. However, those that sign up to it via the switching deal will get the bonus interest rate of 10% gross/10.47 AER (fixed) on their current account balance of up to £1,000.
With this account you also get access to the linked saver mentioned above.
Find out more:What's in the small print?
The deal is only available to new customers and you’ll need to switch using the Current Account Switch Service, and transfer over at least two direct debits as part of the switch.
This offer excludes any existing M, M Plus and Club M customers and those who have closed a Virgin Money account since 30 April 2024.
You’ll need to switch online or in-store by 31 May, but the offer can be withdrawn by Virgin Money at any time so it's worth acting sooner rather than later if you're interested.
Find out moreHow much can you earn in interest?
Virgin Money told us it calculates the interest using the gross rate and applies interest to the account monthly and interest isn't compounded.
Here’s how much you would earn monthly and in total with each Virgin account if you kept £1,000 in the account.
Providing you keep at least £1,000 in your current account, you’ll earn around £120 over the course of the year if you select the Virgin M Plus account or the Club M account.
You’ll earn slightly less if you select the free basic M account as this account doesn't pay interest (outside of the promotion).
This offer isn’t the most attractive switching deal we’ve seen. In the last 12 months, you could get as much as £200 with Nationwide, and up until recently, First Direct was willing to pay £175 and Santander £185.
That said, this is the best savings rate offered on the market right now, but you'll only be paid this on balances up to £1,000. So you might be better off with a fixed-rate savings account.
Find out more:Is Virgin Money a good provider?
Virgin Money achieved a satisfaction score of 68% in our most recent survey of the bets banks, coming 20 out of 21 providers.
It scored three stars across the board for its customer service, how it deals with complaints, telephone banking, online banking, mobile banking. It scored two stars for its calls to customer service.
What's happening with the Virgin Money takeover?
In March, it was revealed that Nationwide had agreed to buy Virgin Money.
Should the deal go through, the Virgin Money brand will be phased out over a period of around six years. Staff numbers will be unaffected 'in the near term'.
There's no immediate need to avoid switching to Virgin Money, and whatever happens your deposits up to £85,000 will be protected under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
Find out more:How does the switching deal compare?
There are currently no alternative switching deals on the market right now.
But a couple of months back we had five offers from First Direct, NatWest, Santander, Lloyds and HSBC.
So if you have your eye on another account with another provider it might be worth waiting to see if another offer comes along.
undefinedsource https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/virgin-money-offers-10-interest-switch-incentive-is-it-worth-going-for-aalda4Y72vT4