Millions of Nationwide customers urged to act now to increase chances of free £100 payment
Nationwide customers might have to do something soon to be eligible for a possible £100 bonus payment.
For the past three years, the building society has run something called the Fairer Share Payment Scheme, where profits are shared among customers.
While it hasn't been confirmed if it's happening this year or what exactly the eligibility requirements will be, we have a pretty good idea of what you'll need to do based on how the reward scheme has worked in the past.
And, if that's anything to go by, you have just over 24 hours to give yourself the best chance of an £100 payout.
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And even if you're not currently a Nationwide customer, there is still a way that could make you eligible for the one-off payment.
Nationwide told Metro they would 'decide on a Fairer Share payment for 2026 and it will depend on our financial performance', and if past versions of the payout are anything to go by, meeting the criteria by the end of March is important.
They said: "That assessment will be made after our financial year end, with the eligibility criteria for this year being agreed then too. The decision will be announced as part of our full year results in May."
In the past three years, customers with an active Nationwide current account and either a savings account or cash ISA with at least £100 in it, or a mortgage with at least £100 still left to pay in March have been eligible.
For those with a FlexAccount, FlexDirect or FlexBasic, Money Saving Expert explains that you need to have either paid in at least £500 from another non-Nationwide account in two of the first three months of the year, or have made 10 payments out of the account that aren't transfers to other Nationwide accounts.
Given that the second of those three months is about to end, the window of opportunity to meet this potential criteria is closing.
The past rules appear to have been put in place to prevent people from just moving their money around different Nationwide accounts to simulate the appearance of using them often.
You might also be eligible if you make a full current account switch from another provider to Nationwide between 1 January and 31 March.
For customers on FlexOne, FlexGraduate or FlexStudent accounts, MSE said that - assuming the criteria is the same as last year - they'll have to either make a payment in or out of the account to or from a non-Nationwide account next month.
Alternatively, making a full current account switch to FlexOne or FlexStudent before the end of March could make one eligible.
Meanwhile, if you're on a FlexPlus packaged account, you might be alright just paying the monthly fee.
Once again, all of this is entirely up to Nationwide to decide and any payout depends on their profits to be shared and how they pick the criteria.
Joe Harker