Four banks accounts will pay you to switch to them right now

Money doesn't grow on trees, but it does come free with particular bank accounts looking to entice you in.

There's no catch and this isn't finance's version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang's Child Catcher.

They are genuine offers; you won't be whisked off to some Bavarian castle alongside others also duped by bogus sign ups.

And they've got the backing of Money Saving Expert founder Martin Lewis, so what more could you ask for?

In the latest episode of 'The Martin Lewis Podcast' on BBC Sounds, released on Wednesday (20 March), the money guru waxed lyrical about taking advantage of the offers to help in the ongoing cost of living crisis.

They're available to those with UK bank accounts - with the offers issued as a way of rival banking companies poaching those from their finance peers.

"There's a new bank that's willing to pay you to switch to it. The bank switch competition has hotted up, there's now four that pay switchers," Lewis says on the latest episode of the podcast.

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"So unless your bank is tickling your toes on request, why not grab some cash?"

There's four banking companies right now that are offering cash money for changing to them.

The newest to join the growing trend is Santander.

And as Lewis explains, there's other bonuses alongside it that could see you earn back another £100 on top of that.

He says: "The new one willing to pay you now is Santander which gives switchers a free £185.

"And it does that on three different accounts; one of which was a top pick of mine anyway for bills or joint bills accounts. So that's the real stand out here."

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He continues: "It's the Santander Edge account. With that account you pay £3 a month and you get two sets of cash back.

"Both up to a maximum of £10 each. You get one per cent on water, council tax, energy, broadband, phones and paid-for TV bills.

"And you also get one per cent on supermarket, fuel, and train and bus travel spending up a maximum of £10 in each."

Lewis says that the maths on this will give you '£80 to £100 a year after the fees."

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As for the other offers, NatWest and RBS - which are part of the same company - are giving away free £200 cash with every transfer.

Lloyds is giving you £175 in cash and HSBC £100 in cash.

There are eligibility conditions on this which you will need to be aware of before applying, so it's worth checking in advance.