In the UK we’re pretty lucky in that personal banking is generally free. So why would you want to pay for a current account then? Accounts where you pay a monthly fee have benefits attached to them. Whether or not it’s worth the money depends on what you get and how much you’re saving.

Here’s a selection of bank accounts with benefits:

Natwest – Select Platinum Account

What do you get?

• Worldwide travel insurance
• Mobile phone insurance
• UK breakdown cover including Homecall
• Two family day passes per year for over 300 National Trust sites
• Tastecard membership
• Preferential rates on foreign exchange

How much?

£16 per month
 

Barclays Bank Account

What do you get?

It’s up to you. This is a basic bank account with ‘packs’ that you can add on to make your own packaged account. Discounts are available when you add more than one pack.

• AA boiler and central heating cover
• Home essentials and appliance cover
• Optional boiler service (additional fee)

• Mobile phone insurance for up to 2 phones
• Worldwide gadget insurance cover for up to £750

• European family travel insurance
• RAC UK breakdown cover
• Card Secure

How much?

Home Protection Pack £12 a month
Tech Pack £7.50 a month
Travel Pack £8.50 a month
 

Halifax Ultimate Reward Current Account

What do you get?

How much?

£15 a month, or reduced to £10 a month if you pay in more than £750, pay out at least 2 different direct debits and stay in credit in the previous calendar month
 

Yorkshire Bank Signature Current Account

What do you get?

How much?

£13.50 a month
 

Nationwide FlexPlus

What do you get?

How much?

£10 a month
 

Santander 123 Current Account

What do you get?

This account is a little different as you don’t get any products included in your monthly fee but cashback and in-credit interest instead. How much you get depends on how much money you keep in your current account and how much you pay out in bills.

How much?

£2 a month
 

Are paid-for bank accounts worth it?

Well, it depends. It can be easy to look at how much the banks are telling you the products are worth but you need to think about whether you’re going to use them. Work out how much the account’s going to cost you over the whole year and then tot up the cost of all the individual products that you would normally buy.

It’s also worth finding out if you can open a joint account and share the benefits for one monthly fee. My hubby and I pay £10 per month for an account that gives us both European travel insurance, AA roadside assistance and mobile phone insurance. The price of phone insurance alone makes this account worth the tenner a month it costs us.

I like knowing that we have travel insurance covered so have one less thing to worry about when we go on holiday. If you have any pre-existing medical conditions though you should call up the medical screening hotline to make sure you’re covered.

If you could get any one benefit free with a bank account what would it be? Tell us in the comments below!