NS&I last month announced a “new secure way to add funds to Premium Bonds”.
With the prize draw results approaching, many people may be wondering how they can buy more bonds in hopes of increasing their chances of winning.
NS&I’s online customers wishing to top up their Premium Bonds and other easy-access savings accounts will shortly start noticing a new payment method, Pay by bank account, appearing in their payment options.
The new method offers a “quick, easy and secure way” for customers to top-up their savings.
It will be gradually rolled out to customers with easy-access variable rate accounts – Premium Bonds, Direct Saver, Direct ISA, Income Bonds and Junior ISA.
NS&I confirmed there are 22.9 million variable customers, but six million are registered to manage their accounts online.
Once customers have logged in to their online NS&I account, they’ll be able to select ‘Pay by bank account’, where they’ll be transferred to Ecospend and asked to select the bank or building society.
They added that online customers will still be able to continue to make payments via bank transfer and debit card while those unable to transact online can call its customer service teams to add funds to their savings accounts using a debit card as usual.
Each month, two people have the chance to become millionaires in the NS&I premium bonds prize draw. Prizes range from £25 to £1million and are all tax-free.
There are seven days to go until NS&I updates their prize checker with July’s premium bonds winners.
The odds of winning are 24,000 to one (for every £1 Bond), however, on their website, NS&I said: “Instead of gaining interest, every £1 saved in your Premium Bonds gives you the chance every month to win tax-free prizes. The more you save (up to the maximum of £50,000), the more chances of winning you have!”
Dax Harkins, NS&I Chief Executive, said: “I am pleased that NS&I is able to offer our customers the benefits of the latest banking technology to top up their easy-access savings accounts.
“Customers with most UK major banks and building societies will soon find that they can smoothly make transfers into their NS&I variable savings accounts as we start to roll out Pay by bank account over the coming weeks.
“The great advantage is the system automatically fills in the customer’s NS&I account details to ensure their money reaches their account seamlessly.”
