Packaged accounts Are the perks worth the money?

For a monthly fee, banks offer everyday banking with all kinds of enticing extras. Laura Whateley examines how the 'freebies' stack up

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It might be a weekly free Greggs sausage roll, cinema tickets, insurance to replace your teenager's smashed i Phone screen, or annual travel insurance. All of the main high street and digital banks, including Monzo and Revolut, now offer paid-for packaged current accounts where everyday banking comes with a set of enticing perks.

From December, one ofthe most popular, Nationwide's Flex Plus current account, is going up from 513 to 518 a month.

With that, and many other accounts, now costing more than Ezoo a year, you can waste lot of money if you are not making the most of the "freebies".

Here is how the main packaged accounts stack up, and what to consider before you open one.

Nationwide Flex Plus Monthly cost 518 from 1 December (£216 a year).

What does it include? Annual worldwide travel insurance, including the US and winter sports cover, for you and your family, which means a partner you live with, and any dependent children aged under 23.

Mobile phone insurance for you, a partner you li Ve with and children aged under 19, or under 22 if they are in full-time education.

AA UK and European breakdown assistance cover for all your vehicles. Family are covered if they are driving a car you own. Other perks No charge for using your card abroad. The fee is usually 2.99% of the transaction value.

A switching incentive of £175 cash provided you are coming from a non-Nationwide bank account and bring at least two active direct debits, pay in at least El,000 and use your debit card within a month. This incentive is also available on free accounts.