Nationwide 'could' follow first direct’s lead

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Nationwide 'could' follow first direct’s lead

Thu 16th Nov 2006

Nationwide has not dismissed the possible introduction of charges for its current account holders.

The building society refused to confirm that it will not introduce account fees for consumers following recent plans by first direct to introduce a £10 per month charge.

Customers of first direct, the telephone and internet bank, can avoid the new monthly fee by depositing at least £1,500 a month in their current account, having a balance of at least £1,500 or by using another first direct product.

The announcement is being seen as the first step by banks to recover possible losses from recent bank charge claims and could signal the end of free banking services.

However, a spokesperson for Nationwide, speaking to the Guardian, said that the building society would hold off introducing any charges until it had assessed the reaction to first direct's announcement.

"We will ensure that our account remains competitive. If the day comes when everyone else is charging a fee we may need to introduce one. We have no plans to do so and we don't want to do that," said the spokesman.

He added: "first direct customers, especially those who are going to be charged, have got to consider changing their provider and hopefully we will be one of the obvious choices."

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