MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

Martin: "Give me your (digital) wallet or purse for five minutes and I can usually save most £100s!"
Take Martin's Wallet Workout: 17 ways to speedily save

This was my party trick in the early noughties (sexy, eh?). In fact, I think I likely got my first TV series in 2005 when the production company boss suggested the ITV commissioner hand over his wallet for me to do it on. These days, for many, the wallet is now a phone or even a watch - but savings are still possible, and often even bigger. So let's open them up...

1. Pick up your photo driving licence and check SECTION 4B. Photo licences only last 10 years. You should get a notification before it expires, but many don't notice - and over two million are estimated to be out of date. If so, and you get stopped, you risk a fine. Don't panic though, if it's out of date, our driving licence help shows how to safely renew.

2. Had your debit card for years? Get PAID £220 to get a new one. Debit cards are just the front end of a bank account. If you've had the same one for years (unless it makes you feel special), now's the perfect time to get paid to ditch and switch to a new-customer offer, as the choice is huge. Full best-buys, pros and cons, eligibility criteria and Q&A in Top free cash bank accounts, but here are the main runners and riders in brief, in order of upfront cash...

• HSBC* FREE £220. It rarely does this. Available if you haven't had HSBC or First Direct accounts since 1 Jan 23.
• Barclays* FREE £200, plus optional half-price Apple TV.
• NatWest FREE £200 on its Reward Account and possible £3/mth cashback.
• Santander Edge* FREE £180 & top (joint) bills account. You pay £3/mth but get 1% cashback on bills.
• First Direct* FREE £175 & top-rated for service. 92% rate it 'great'. Interest-free £250 overdraft for many.

Switching bank is easy. Just use its switch service, which closes your old account for you, auto-forwards any payments made to that account, and moves all Direct Debit and Standing Orders for you. The super-savvy willing to play can earn £1,000s multi-switching.

3. Travel in London... due a share of £500m in unclaimed Oyster or contactless card credit? Plus, if you paid via Oyster or contactless and failed to touch your card at the journey's end, or were delayed 15 mins by Tube, you may have money waiting too. See our quick Oyster & TfL contactless reclaiming guide.

4. Paying interest on credit cards? TWO-MINUTE test to see if you can move it to interest-free.Even if you've been rejected before, it's worth checking if you can get a 0% balance transfer. This is where you get a new card that pays off your existing cards for you, so you now owe the new card - but interest-free. That way, more of your repayments clear the actual debt (just try not to do any more borrowing).

• Step 1: Take the test... Use our 0% Balance Transfer Eligibility Calculator and it'll show the 0% deals you're most likely to be accepted for - and checking doesn't impact your ability to get future credit. Even only a 20% chance is worth trying if it could cut debt costs.
  
  
• Step 2: If you've a choice of cards... Go for the one with the lowest fee, within a time you're sure you can repay. If you're not sure, play safe and just go long. Examples for accepted new cardholders...
  
  - New. Longest definite deal & cashback: HSBC (existing customers use this link) gives a definite 3yrs 0%, for a now lower 3.09% one-off fee. Plus, transfer over £500 and you get £25 cashback, effectively reducing the fee.
  - Shorter yet NO FEE: Virgin Money gives a definite 12mths 0% with NO FEE, so no cost whatsoever.
  
  
• Step 3: Follow my golden rules. If you get a card and do a transfer (usually has to be within 60 days)...
  a) Clear the card or shift the debt again before the 0% ends, or you pay the full rep APR.
  b) Never miss the min monthly repayment, or you can lose the 0%.
  c) Don't spend/withdraw cash - it isn't at the cheap rate, so a simple tip: don't put your balance transfer card in your digital wallet as you don't want it accessible to spend on.

5. NOT got a credit card? Get one to get paid £100s... (just don't borrow on it).When we spend on credit cards, the retailer pays the card firm a fee, and there's a way to get some of this back in your pocket, plus extra Section 75 protection too. The key to this, though, is you must pay off the card IN FULL at the end of the month, preferably by Direct Debit, to avoid interest. That way you turn it from a debt card into a transaction card. Though only do this if you trust yourself not to be tempted to borrow on it. Full best-buys and Q&A in Top Credit Card Rewards, but here are a few top picks...

• Get 1% back on all your spending. The Lloyds Ultra credit card pays 1% uncapped cashback worldwide for a year. Spending abroad has near-perfect exchange rates and earns cashback too. So if you stick £10,000 of spending on the card over a year, which many will do if they do all their normal spending on it, you'll make £100. If you fail to pay off in full, you'll be charged 14.9% rep APR.
  
  
• Get 5% cashback for five months. The Amex Cashback Everyday currently gives 5% cashback on most purchases for the first five months (max £125). After the five months, it's a decent 0.5% cashback on spending up to £10,000 a year and 1% above. However, you only get paid the cashback if you spend £3,000+ a year on it. If you do, it's a strong option for bigger spenders. If you fail to pay off in full you'll be charged 29.1% rep APR.
  
  
• Free £40 in Uber (Eats & Rides) and 3% cashback on fuel and domestic travel. Newbies opening the Santander Rewards credit card, who add it to their digital wallet and spend on the physical or virtual card 10+ times in month one (you could just buy single bananas) get sent a £20 Uber voucher within 60 days and another 30 days after claiming the first, as long as you've kept the card. The card pays a year's 3% cashback, UK and abroad, on petrol, diesel, train travel, EV charging (not at home), eating out & takeaways (0.25% on other normal spending). It's also a top debit card for spending overseas. If you fail to pay off in full you'll be charged 24.9% rep APR.

With all these cards as well as paying off in full, make sure you don't bust your credit limit and don't withdraw cash.

6. Coupon clipper? No need any more... 30+ digital coupons, including 'free' frankfurters, cat food & more. Our regularly updated 30+ coupons guide collates the best online coupons for you, so you have access to them wherever you are.

7. Is your debit card a SECRET DEBT card? Credit cards get a bad rap, but if you're overdrawn, debit cards are worse as the interest is typically nearly double that of a credit card, the average being 40% So it's important to manage it down and see if you can make it cheaper...

• Small overdraft? Get PAID to make it cheaper. First Direct* pays accepted new customers £175 to switch to it, and gives many an ongoing £250 0% overdraft too (it's the standard 40% AER above that). So if you've an overdraft of £425 or less, the £175 clears some and the rest is interest-free.
  
  You will have to 'switch' the overdraft over yourself. Expect your old bank to ask you whether you can pay the overdraft off, or whether you want to keep the account open while you do (it varies by bank). If you do keep it open, while Direct Debits and Standing orders will move automatically, payments into the old account are unlikely to be forwarded to the new one, so you will likely need to arrange to move them yourself.
  
  
• Shift it to a 0% credit card. For big overdrafts, an option is to shift it to a specialist 0% money transfer card, these aren't as good as they used to be, and need a decent credit score, but you could get a year interest-free for a 4% fee.
  
  
• Treat overdraft borrowing like a debt. Try to repay a set amount each month, eg, £50 (ie, you should start the next month with a £50 smaller overdraft than the one before). More help, tips and info in how to cut overdraft costs.

8. Emergency service, NHS, care worker or teacher? Do you have your discount card? The £5 Blue Light Card gives a decent range of discounts on eating out and shopping, eg, 20% off at Pizza Express, 10% off at the Range. See more NHS & care worker discounts.

9. Ensure you're holstering a free coffee (or tea) pass. Just sign up to the Waitrose loyalty scheme, then all you need do is bring your own cup and swipe your card at the machine - you can do it once per day. It's not the only one though - see our list of free tea & coffee deals too.

10. Do you have my picture in your purse or wallet? Some people do; they tell me they have it there as a form of fiscal contraception to remind them to stop spending. Uh-hmm. I think I'm more comfortable if you use our designed free money mantras printout instead.

And speaking of contraception...

11. Check any condoms you have are still in date. Carrying a condom around might be a cliché, but safety counts. Remember though, condoms have use-by dates, so as you're doing this workout, it's a good time to check. To replace, you can use the NHS England free condom search, and there's info for Wales & Northern Ireland too. For Scotland, it's area-by-area, so a quick web-search is best.

12. ...and for a different protection, spend a penny. The Section 75 law is powerful voodoo. Buy something costing £100.01 to £30,000 and pay for any of it, even a penny, on a credit card, and the card firm's jointly liable with the retailer for the WHOLE amount. So for important purchases, put at least a little on a credit card (paid IN FULL at the month end to avoid interest, obvs).

This means you can go to the card company to complain about anything you would with the retailer - useful if it's gone bust, won't play fair with faulty items, or you buy abroad and can't take the item back. Section 75 isn't perfect, there are holes, but it's far stronger than anything else. Full help in our Section 75 guide. As Rachel emailed a couple of weeks back: 

"On my wedding day, the zip on my wedding dress broke. I contacted the shop after the wedding and they apologised and told me they would investigate, but I never received a response. I asked my bank to chargeback but it was unsuccessful and I assumed there was nothing I could do. Nearly two years later, almost on a whim, I submitted a Section 75 claim with evidence to support my case. The bank upheld the claim in part and offered me £800 (50% of the purchase price). Thank you for all the guidance MSE provides, it gave me the confidence not to give up."

If you pay on any plastic, including debit cards, and Section 75 doesn't apply, there's a lesser protection called chargeback. It isn't legal, it's part of the Visa, Amex or Mastercard rules. It's where your bank asks the seller's bank for money back if goods aren't received as they should be. Yet while it is less powerful, it's often worth trying ahead of Section 75 as your bank will be happier to help - if it works, it doesn't have to pay you, the retailer's bank does. 

13. Pop a donor card in your (digital) purse. In every UK nation you're automatically considered willing to be an organ donor unless you opt out. Yet to concrete your wishes with your loved ones, a donor card or digitally registering your decision makes it easier (do it via these links: England and Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland). Better still, discuss it with them. PS: You can be a living donor too. There are many ways to help while living, including blood & plasma donation, bone marrow donation, stem cells (ages 16 to 30) & hair for young cancer patients.