Nationwide to withdraw its 5% Flex Regular Online Saver
2nd April 2019 12:54
by Stephen Little from interactive investor
Nationwide Building Society is withdrawing its Flex Regular Online Saver as it is not reaching its target market.
Nationwide says it will be closing the account at the end of the business day on 5 April.
A spokesperson for Nationwide says: “The account was launched to help members new to saving get into the savings habit.
“However, the significant majority (86%) are opened by existing savers and on average members with the account have around £20,000 saved with Nationwide in other accounts.”
If you are an existing customer will be able to continue to save into the account until it reaches its maturity date.
The building society says it has no immediate plans to launch a replacement product.
The Flex Regular Online Saver is for Nationwide members who already hold an account with the society.
It pays 5% interest each year and allows you to pay in up to £250 a month.
Regular savings accounts
A regular savings account requires you to put aside money each month and can pay up to 5% interest – considerably more than the average easy-access account.
Offering some of the best rates on the market, they are ideal for someone looking to start saving.
However, some only offer the headline rate for a year or require you to be an existing customer.
You can pay between £10 and £250 every month over the period of a year, but you will be penalised if you fail to make a monthly payment.
Alternatives
The First Direct Regular Saver offers an interest rate of 5% for deposits between £25 and £300 a month, allowing you to save a maximum of £3,600 a year. The rate is fixed for 12 months and is only available to current account customers.
There are other accounts that pay 5% interest, but they are more limited in the amount you can deposit.
These include the HSBC Regular Saver (£25 to £250), M&S Bank Monthly Saver (£25 to £250). The Santander 123 Regular eSaver (£1 to £200) pays 3%.
The best high interest current account out there is the Nationwide FlexDirect, which pays 5% interest on balances up to £2,500 for the first year, but this then drops to 1%. There are no monthly fees, but you have to pay in a minimum of £1,000 a month.
Another option is the TSB Classic Plus, which offers 5% interest on balances up to £1,500, provided you pay in £500 a month.
This article was originally published in our sister magazine Moneywise, which ceased publication in August 2020.
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