Great guide thanks. We just changed our mortgage from an offset to a regular mortgage (because we wanted to lock in for 10 years and they didn't offer offset for 10 year fixes), which means I now have a current account that isn't earning interest or offsetting my mortgage interest. Time to get into current account switching!

Awesome :) Congrats on only having 10 years left on your mortgage.

The Natwest switch is a nice one to go for first, or Halifax!

my main account is with Lloyds already, so how do I go about opening a new "dummy" account without switching your main account? I was under the impression you are only able to have one "current account"?

Hi James,

You're able to open as many accounts as you like :)

I only recommended Lloyds as it is unlikely that they'll have a 'switching' offer open so you won't lose out. You can just open any account you like as a 'dummy' one, but remember - you won't get any 'welcome' bonus unless you switch to them. So try and find a bank which doesn't have a switching bonus.

Great guide! I've made £200 this year from switching two different accounts. Hopefully about to make another £100 from Nationwide's refer-a-friend offer.

I think Iain, above, is right - opening too many accounts in a short space of time will impact your credit score, which might be a concern if you're thinking of getting a loan or a mortgage in the next year.

Hey, thanks!

Yeah, there would definitely be a temporary 'negative' against your credit files, but this would be the same if you got a mobile phone contract and a broadband package within a short amount of time. In my opinion, it's nothing to really worry about. If your affordability passes and you've never defaulted, you'll almost definitely find a lender. The only time I may warn to hold off a little would be if you're barely in the affordability range for the credit you're applying for, even then though - small things like this probably wouldn't be the deciding factor.

I am not sure if it is fully confirmed, but might be worth noting that I think if you shuffle frequently it can slightly impact your credit score as they often run a credit check before opening your account. So might be worth putting a disclaimer that this might not be the best thing to do if you are saying looking to get a mortgage and have a borderline credit rating for whatever it is you need credit for?