Almost 200,000 current accounts switched during first three months of the year – here are the best deals, including £150 from First Direct

According to Pay.UK, the firm overseeing the CASS, 196,964 accounts were moved using the free service between January and March this year, an increase of 41% on last year.

Pay.UK said the majority of those who did so moved to Santander, Nationwide and Starling Bank. However, if you're after the highest cash switching bonus currently available – First Direct is offering £150 to new customers who switch to it.

The Current Account Switching Service is free and easy to use

Key features of the service include:

• The switching process takes seven working days.

• All your payments going in (for example, salary) and out (for instance, direct debits) of your old account will be moved automatically to the new account.

• Any payment requests will be automatically redirected to the new account.

• The 'switch guarantee' means customers will get a refund of interest and charges if anything goes wrong during the switch.

• Your old account will be automatically closed as part of the switching process.

To initiate a switch, you'll need to open a new account with your chosen bank, then request a switch through it.

For further information on how the CASS works, see our five bank account need-to-knows.

Banks offer free cash, ongoing rewards or loyalty points to try and grab your custom

Examples of current switching offers include:

• An upfront, free cash bonus. This is essentially a cash 'bribe' that's rewarded to customers who switch. For example, First Direct* offers new customers £150 and is rated top for customer service by MSE users. You'll need to pay £1,000+ in to the account within three months to get the switch bonus. 

• Free upfront cash and ongoing monthly rewards. Customers switching to a Halifax Reward account can choose from £5 a month, cinema tickets, movie rentals and magazine subscriptions (and can get £125 to switch). Though you must meet minimum pay-in, spending or deposit criteria to get it all.

• A cash offer, plus ongoing interest and overdraft offers. Banks will also offer new customers savings interest bonuses for the first year and/or 0% overdraft facilities for a fixed period. Switchers to the Nationwide FlexDirect account can get £100 (some can boost this to £125), plus 2% fixed-rate interest on savings of up to £1,500 in the first year, and a 0% overdraft for the same period.

• Loyalty points (instead of a cash bribe). Those who switch to a Virgin Money M Plus* account can get 20,000 Virgin Red points to spend on a variety of experiences, gifts or flights. Again, there are a few hoops to jump through to get this.

See our Best bank accounts guide for full reviews of the accounts above, including all crucial eligibility criteria.