Rachel Springall, Finance Expert at Moneyfacts.co.uk, said:

“Not one of the biggest high-street banks has passed on the last two BOE base rate rises to savers who have an easy access account, and as some of these rates are as low as 0.01%, it’s imperative savers reconsider their loyalty and switch away from these brands to something more attractive**. As we have seen time and time again, there is no guarantee savings providers will boost their rates because of a BOE rate rise and even if they do it could take a few months to trickle through to customers. Should savers see 0.25% passed onto them, it would mean receiving £50 more a year in interest based on a £20,000 investment.

“Challenger Banks and building societies have not been shy to compete in the easy access space, and if they have the same protections in place as the biggest high-street banks, then there is little reason to overlook them in favour of a more familiar brand. The top rate tables are experiencing a positive uplift and there is hope that rates will continue to rise, however, we may not see pre-pandemic interest rates for some time yet.”

**Brands considered as the biggest high-street banks include Barclays Bank, HSBC, Halifax, Lloyds Bank, NatWest/RBS, and Santander. Out of these, the following brands have not increased rates for these selected easy access accounts since the December 2021 base rate rise: Barclays Bank (Everyday Saver pays 0.01% at £10k gross), Lloyds Bank (Easy Saver – pays 0.01% at £10k gross), Halifax (Everyday Saver - pays 0.01% at £10k gross), NatWest/RBS (Instant Saver - pays 0.01% at £10k gross), Santander (Everyday Saver - pays 0.01% at £10k gross). The only bank to increase rates is HSBC (Online Bonus Saver - pays 0.25% at £10k gross, up from 0.05%, and Flexible Saver - pays 0.10%, up from 0.01% at £10k gross as of 1 Mar 2022), but none of the brands mentioned have passed on 0.40%.