Millions of Nationwide customers get free £100 update as 10 day countdown begins

Millions of Brits could be entitled to a free £100 this spring, with clarity on the matter now less than two weeks away.

And the scheme is that popular it has recently got the likes of Martin Lewis and his Money Saving Expert team involved once again, providing much-needed clarity in a way that only the UK's leading financial journalist seems to be able to do.

We're talking about a popular scheme created by Nationwide, which has roughly 24.5 million customers in the UK as of 2026. That's a lot of people who could be in line for a welcome cash bonus.

Nationwide's Fairer Share scheme has been giving customers the £100 bonus annually for the last three years, and there's now a good chance it'll land in bank accounts for 2026 as well.

How do I qualify for Nationwide's Fairer Share scheme?

First thing's first, the deadline for to qualify has been and gone, with Martin Lewis saying in March that it was then 'likely your last chance to qualify to get this year's Fairer Share £100'. So there's no rushing to get yourself in for a chance of scooping from the pot, sadly.

Why does Nationwide do this? It's about sharing profits with members, ultimately, given it is technically a building society and not a traditional bank.

To have qualified the Fairer Share scheme, you obviously need to have a Nationwide current account. Importantly, if you closed your account after 31 March this year you should still qualify.

Millions could be dished out to millions of Nationwide customers (Getty Stock Images)

On top of this, you must have used the current account in at least two of the first three months of 2026.

Third on the list is having at least £100 in savings or owing at least £100 on a mortgage with Nationwide in March of this year, according to Mr Lewis' MSE.

Will Nationwide make the £100 payments in 2026? And when?

All signals say yes, if we take the bank's own word as gospel. We'll get an answer later this month, on Thursday, 21 May.

A Nationwide spokesperson said: "Nationwide aims to make a Fairer Share payment again this year, subject to financial performance and Board approval.

"Any announcement, including eligibility criteria and amount, will be made on 21 May at Nationwide's end‑of‑year financial results."

Trust in Martin Lewis (ITV)

In 2025, Nationwide paid out £400 million to a total of four million of its customers. If we go back to 2024, the number was 3.85 million customers sharing a pot worth £385 million.

Last year's payment was announced in May and dished out in June, so we'd expect a similar scenario if the pot is confirmed for 2026. On bank statements, the £100 was shown as 'Nationwide Fairer Share Payment'.

In the last three years, the £100 was treated as a 'taxable savings income'; this means most of those people who qualify wont have to pay any tax on it. For those on the higher rate of tax, that's not the case, but we think you'll be alright anyhow.