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It's time to slay the pelican! Five easy ways to save on big bills in 2022
Martin: "Happy new year to you all. I hope it'll be better than the last health-wise, as sadly wealth-wise it doesn't look good. The cost of living crisis will run through this year (and this email) like Blackpool does through a stick of rock - inflation, energy prices, tax rises and more..."
This article was first written by MoneySavingExpert.com (MSE) team for our weekly email on 5 January 2022. It was updated by the MSE Team on 18 January 2022.
"Our job, as always, is to show you how to maximise what's in your pockets. To ease you back in, today we're tackling five pelicans - big bills (no animals were harmed in the writing of this email) - specifically choosing some where saving is easiest.
"Then later on, I'll tackle a trickier issue - is it time to fix energy bills? For now, it's over to the team..."
1. LONGEST 0% balance transfer since 2018. Pay credit card interest? Shift it to 35 months 0%
Can't afford to clear your credit or store card debt, so pay interest on it? Then you can't afford not to check out if you can balance transfer.
This is where you get a new credit card to repay old credit or store cards, so you owe it instead, but at 0%. Repayments then clear the debt, rather than just cover interest, so you're debt-free quicker. We've just seen a raft of new deals launch for the new year.
IMPORTANT: Don't just do hit & hope applications for new cards. That puts a negative mark on your credit file (even if you're rejected). Instead use a Balance Transfer Eligibility Calculator to see your acceptance odds for top cards without affecting your future ability to get credit - so you can home in on the best to apply for.
Top newbies' 0% balance transfers
| Go for the card with the lowest fee in the time you're sure you can repay. Unsure? Play safe and go long | ||
| Card | Key 0% info | How good is it? |
| Virgin Money Best: check acceptance odds (pre-approval available), or apply* direct. |
- 35mths 0% - 2.94% fee - 21.9% rep APR |
Longest 0% balance transfer by far. The standout if you need the longest time to clear your debts, plus all accepted get the full time at 0%. |
| New. HSBC Best: check acceptance odds, or apply* direct. |
- 31mths 0% - 2.7% fee (min £5) - £25 cashback if shifting £100 in first 60 days. - 21.9% rep APR |
Long, definite 0% and fee offset by cashback. All accepted get 31mths at 0%. For transfers under £900ish, the cashback's bigger than the fee cost, so you're up. |
| Sainsbury's Bank Best: check acceptance odds (pre-approval available), or apply* direct. |
- Up to 21mths 0% - NO FEE - 20.9% rep APR |
Longest NO-FEE card, but an 'up to'. If you can repay quicker, this card can win as there's no fee. But you could be accepted and offered just 17mths or 13mths at 0%, unless you're pre-approved. |
| HSBC Best: check acceptance odds, or apply* direct. |
- 20mths 0% - NO FEE - 21.9% rep APR |
Longest NO-FEE card with definite 0% period. Similar to Sainsbury's above, but all accepted get the full time at 0%. |
Always follow the Balance Transfer Golden Rules:
a) Clear the card before the 0% ends, or you pay the rep APR.
b) Never miss the min monthly repayment, or you can lose the 0%.
c) Don't spend/withdraw cash. It usually isn't at the cheap rate.
d) You must usually transfer within 60/90 days to get the 0%.
e) You can't transfer between two cards from the same banking group.
Full help and info, including options for poorer credit scorers, in Best balance transfers (APR examples).
2. Pay more than a fiver a month for your mobile? A three-min check to save £100s
The cost of a Sim - the little chip in your phone which connects you to the network and dictates your allowances - has plummeted in recent times, and especially over the last year.
If you're one of the nine million people out of contract on your mobile, it's especially worth doing a quick check to see if you can save.
As David emailed us: "Bagged myself a £7/mth Sim deal - a massive saving on the £21.50/mth I was paying. Many thanks." That's a saving of £170/yr.
- Use our Cheapest Sim tool to see what you can get.
- Want to stick with your network's signal? You can select that in the options (it'll show you all firms using that network).
- Not sure how much data you use? About 3GB/mth is average unless you're a gamer or video streamer.
- Want a new handset? Use our Cheap Mobile Finder.
And deals are really cheap right now. For example, you can get a 10GB Sim from iD Mobile (which uses Three's network) for £7/mth. With this, you can claim a £25 Amazon, Asos, Currys, or Uber Eats voucher within two-months. Factor that in and it's equivalent to £4.92/mth over the one-year contract.
3. New. FREE £150 for switching bank
It's not really a bill, but banks love current accounts as they are a gateway to all our finances, allowing them to cross-sell you lots of products. And having been quiet for much of last year, many are now willing to pay you to switch.
All require you to pay in a set amount, some just at first to get the bonus, others monthly. It's their way to encourage you to pay in your salary.
Four banks pay you to switch
| Account | Key info & review link |
| HSBC Advance* Must pay in £1,500+ within 60 days |
Free £150 for switchers. This one's all about the cash. See our HSBC review. |
| First Direct 1st Account* Must pay in £1,000+ within 90 days |
Free £130 + top service + 0% overdraft. By far the best service rating of those paying switchers - rated 85% great. Plus many get an ongoing £250 0% overdraft. See our First Direct review. |
| Nationwide FlexDirect Must pay in £1,000+ PER MONTH to get the 2% in-credit interest |
Free £100 (1) + 12mth 0% overdraft. The 0% overdraft can be bigger here, credit score depending, but it's 40% after a year, so ensure it's gone by then. You can also get a year's 2% in-credit interest on £1,500. See our Nationwide review. |
| Virgin Money M Plus* Must pay in £1,000+ to the linked savings account within 45 days |
FREE 12-bottle case of wine or £150 experience day gift card. Plus 2.02% interest on £1,000 and no exchange fees abroad. See our Virgin review. |
(1) Existing customers can get £125 to switch.
And don't worry about the hassle of switching. In Martin's Twitter poll in October, 80% said it was mostly easy and hassle-free. To get the bonuses, you need to use the banks' switching service which:
- Switches you within seven working days.
- Moves all standing orders and direct debits for you.
- Closes your old account and auto-forwards payments to the new one.
You will have to pass a not-too-harsh credit check to get the accounts, and be sure to check the eligibility criteria (included in our reviews in Best bank accounts) as some require you, for example, to move a certain number of direct debits.
4. Overpaying for your broadband? Now might be time to find a better deal
Many people pay £30-£45/mth for slow broadband speeds. Yet if you're one of the seven million who are out of contract, you can up your speed and more than halve your costs - again saving £100s a year. It's all about pouncing on short-lived promotions which give rewards such as prepaid Mastercards for signing up.
The easy way to do it is to just search what's available in your area via our Broadband Unbundled comparison tool. As examples, the cheapest new customer deals available to most right now are...
- Cheapest basic 10Mb broadband and line, equivalent £12/mth. Fine for light use. See Plusnet info. Ends Wednesday 2 February.
- Cheapest 38Mb fibre broadband and line, equivalent £15/mth. Fast enough for most streamers and gamers. See Vodafone info. Ends Thursday 27 January.
- Cheapest superfast 63Mb fibre and line, equivalent £16/mth. If you've a need for speed (for example, multiple users streaming). See Shell Energy info. Ends Sunday 13 February.
Savings can be large, as Kathy emailed us: "When BT notified me my contract was ending, I used your comparison and switched. Over the 24-month contract I will save around £841."
If you're happy where you are, do a quick check to see the cheapest deals in your area, then - as long as you're out of contract - use that as a benchmark to haggle down your broadband price.
Also, see our Cutting the cost of digital TV guide too.
5. Interest rates likely to rise in 2022 - check NOW if you can cut mortgage costs, saving £10,000s
The Bank of England raised the UK base rate for the first time in three years in December 2021. Most analysts believe that was just the first of several rises.
But while those on variable-rate mortgages have seen the cost increase, we haven't yet seen a big increase in the rates you can get a new mortgage deal for - sub-1% is still available for two-year fixes.
In general, the more you value certainty right now, the more you should fix and fix longer. It's worth checking if you can save - we even get some people who save five figures (usually over five-year fixes).
Our free 64-page Remortgage booklet PDF has tons of help, but here are four very brief key steps...
- Quickly check if cheaper rates are available. Spend a couple of minutes on our Mortgage Comparison tool.
- Find your existing lender's cheapest deal. If it's got a cheap rate, see if your existing lender will do a 'product transfer', as it may mean less fees & paperwork.
- Use our calculators to compare deals. We've eight different calculators to help you in our Ultimate Mortgage Calculator tool.
- Speak to a mortgage broker to find which lender will most likely accept you. What really counts is finding the cheapest mortgage that will accept you, including affordability and credit-scoring criteria. These are shrouded in mystery, but mortgage brokers have extra info not available to the public, access to special deals, and can help guide you through.
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