Nationwide to charge customers extra £60 a year to access bank account this week

Nationwide is hiking the price of one of its bank accounts by £5 a month from this Sunday which means customers will be forced to fork out an extra £60 a year.

The building society is raising the price of its popular FlexPlus packaged account from December 1. Currently, the account costs £13 a month – or £156 a year – to have. However, from Sunday the monthly cost will rise to £18 a month, which equates to £216 a year.

The new monthly cost will impact both new and existing FlexPlus customers. As you have to pay for this type of bank account, it is slightly different from a traditional one. With Nationwide's FlexPlus account, you get a range of insurance policies for you and your family including travel and mobile phone insurance, plus breakdown cover. Nationwide members with this account also get preferential rates on loans and overdrafts.

The building society says the increase – which is the first since 2017 – comes due to the rising cost of insurance. A spokesperson reviusly told the Mirror: "We have held back raising the fee for FlexPlus since 2017. However, the rising cost of insurance means we now need to make changes, taking effect from December.

"Even after this change, FlexPlus will continue to be one of the UK’s most competitive packaged current accounts, both in price and quality of cover."

Customers with this account, should now consider whether the account is still worth it for them. Sarah Coles, personal finance expert at Hargreaves Lansdown, said the £5 hike means the account will no longer be "one of the cheapest" on the market.

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However, she added it could still offer good value for money, depending on your circumstances. She said: "This is particularly the case for families who plan more than one holiday this year, have smartphones that need insurance and who would otherwise buy car breakdown cover."

Currently, Nationwide's closest competitor if Virgin Money with their Club M account. The account fee is £12.50 a month and it comes with free gadget insurance, worldwide family travel insurance and UK and European breakdown cover, and there's no minimum pay in. Sarah added: "If you want a lower monthly charge, you can get the Virgin Money M account which comes with similar cover. Just check you’re happy that you still get what you need."

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