MoneySavingExpert News
Package holidays

Warning: Holiday booking scams jump by a third - here's how to avoid them
Holidaymakers should watch out as new data from Lloyds Bank shows travel-related scams have increased by a third over the year to March, with fraudsters targeting those booking package holidays, flights, hotels and caravans. Here’s how to try and avoid them - and what to do if you've been scammed.
29 April 2022

Got a credit note from a Covid-19 cancelled package holiday? Use it by 30 September or you lose valuable extra protection
Package holidaymakers with unused credit notes for Covid-19 cancelled trips should ensure they either redeem them or cash them in before 30 September 2022. Failure to do so means you may not get your money back if the holiday firm that issued them goes bust after this deadline.
26 April 2022

Teletext Holidays and Alpharooms on the brink of collapse - here's all you need to know and how it affects you
Teletext Holidays has stopped taking new bookings, while sister company Alpharooms says existing trips will not be fulfilled. The move comes after both firms' membership to the Travel Trust Association (TTA) - a trade body that ensures travel companies abide by industry regulations - ended on 29 October.
19 April 2022

Portugal axed from travel 'green list' after traffic light scheme review – your rights
Portugal is to be taken off England and Northern Ireland's 'green list' of quarantine-free travel destinations next Tuesday
8 June 2021

Covid uncertainty means holiday bookings are a risk - 19 need-to-knows to cut costs and protect your pocket in the UK and abroad
The rules on holidaying have changed radically. Until this week, in England, only stays away in self-contained accommodation were allowed, but as of 17 May hotel stays and sleepovers at friends' are back.
25 May 2021

Martin Lewis says the Government has misexplained its own travel rules - the traffic light system DOESN'T dictate whether or not you can go
MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis has criticised the Government for failing to properly explain its own Covid travel rules, amid mounting confusion over where Brits can holiday overseas.
19 May 2021

England's 'green list' of quarantine-free holiday destinations unveiled - including Portugal, Gibraltar and Israel
Holidays abroad could get the go-ahead from 17 May as an announcement from Grant Shapps, the secretary of state for the Department for Transport is expected today. It's thought a 'green list' of countries that Brits will be able to travel to without needing to quarantine on return will also be revealed.
7 May 2021

Travellers warned of 10-week passport renewal wait - so apply NOW if hoping to go away this summer
Hopeful holidaymakers have been urged to apply for new passports or to renew existing ones as soon as possible to avoid delays of up to ten weeks. Usually passports take between four and six weeks to be processed.
12 April 2021

Loveholidays to refund £18m to 44,000 holidaymakers for coronavirus cancellations
Around 44,000 Loveholidays customers whose trips were cancelled due to the coronavirus crisis are in line for refunds worth a combined £18 million after intervention from the competition watchdog
15 December 2020

Lastminute.com to refund £7m to thousands of holidaymakers for coronavirus-cancelled trips
Over 9,000 Lastminute.com holidaymakers will finally receive refunds for package trips that were cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, after intervention from the competition watchdog
1 December 2020
18 May 2022
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12 ways to save only do with apps
Free chocs, free Whopper and more
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Martin: 'Aged around 45 to 70?'
'You may be able to turn £800 into £5,500+'
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New. Top way to spend abroad
Unbeatable exchange rates and cashback
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10% off discount 'best-before' store
Eg, 23p Pepsi , £4,50 for 1kg Lindt
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Cheaper energy deals kiboshed
Martin not exactly impressed
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Lloyds' free £125 bank bribe
But others pay more
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Debt cost-cutting masterclass
Mortgages, cards, overdrafts, loans...
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Lloyds Banking Group to shut another 20 Lloyds branches and eight Halifax outlets - here's what's happening
18 May 2022Lloyds Banking Group has announced a further round of branch closures, with 28 more outlets being shut across the UK between August and November this year. The closures are made up of 20 Lloyds Bank branches and eight Halifax outlets. -
Hit by passport application delays? Your travel and compensation rights explained
17 May 2022With record numbers lodging passport applications after putting off renewals during the pandemic, delays at the Passport Office are threatening to derail holidays for many. We round up your travel and compensation rights. -
Households should ignore scam emails WRONGLY telling them to claim council tax rebates from energy regulator Ofgem
17 May 2022Beware scam emails wrongly telling you to click a link to sign up for both a council tax rebate and an energy bill discount. It comes as MoneySavingExpert.com (MSE) has received several reports from individuals who've received these emails. Here's what you need to watch out for. -
NHS prescription costs frozen in England for the first time in 12 years – here are all the details and how to save on your medicine bills
17 May 2022NHS prescription costs will remain frozen at £9.35 an item for the next 12 months. This is welcome news for many but remember to check if you qualify for free prescriptions or if you can save money with a prescription 'season ticket'. See below for more details. -
Coronavirus travel rights
17 May 2022We've the latest on the testing and self-isolation rules for travellers visiting popular destinations abroad, plus full refund and insurance rights for overseas and UK travel.
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Martin Lewis: 'UO is just as important as UX: A tip for anyone developing their website or app'
6 May 2022I set up MoneySavingExpert.com nearly 20 years ago – when arguably the modern web was still in its infancy. With an abundance of self-belief (something I had too much of then, as I realise now) I decided not to read any books, or follow prevailing wisdom on how a site should operate – and just do it my way. -
Martin Lewis: Got a cash ISA? You should probably ditch it
3 May 2022Press the rewind button and go way back to April 2015... Possibly on the telly in the corner of your living room, I was on-air at the time urging savers as usual to use their new tax-free cash ISA allowance – because 'money was nicer in an ISA'. But things changed in 2016. -
Martin Lewis: Money and Mental Health charity 2021/22 – Covid & cost of living hell...
26 April 2022It's hard to believe the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute (MMHPI) charity is now six years old. As the chair of trustees, each year I write the foreword to its annual report – and today the 2021/22 report is out, so I thought I'd blog my formal chair's foreword here. -
Martin Lewis: What happened to my pledge to give £10m to charity – 2022 update (spoiler: it's now £20m)
11 April 2022Nearly a decade ago, in June 2012, MSE joined the MSM Group and I pledged £10m to go to charity. As that was a public pledge and I feel I've a duty of transparency, every year or two I bash out a blog report to explain where I'm up to, and who's got what money.