Nationwide will now give a ‘green reward’ in the form of cashback for people buying energy efficient property.

Specifically, borrowers who secure a house with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of A or a Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) of 92 or above with receive £500 and, for properties at EPC B or SAP 86, £250.

This cashback comes in addition to any existing cashback offer on a mortgage.

The lender adds that it the reward is given for any house, flat or new build that meets the energy criteria.

Nationwide director of mortgages Henry Jordan says: “Our homes are where we have one of the biggest individual impacts on climate change, but more needs to be done to deliver a long-term plan to improve energy efficiency of new and existing homes.

“We remain committed to helping make the homes we lend on greener and more sustainable, which is why we have launched our new cashback offer for property purchases. By launching Green Reward, we hope it will encourage people to consider the energy efficiency of the property they are buying.”

Last month, Nationwide cut the rates on its green additional borrowing products across all LTVs to 0.75 per cent.