Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

Feed the starving this Christmas and in the New Year at absolutely no cost to you
There's a website, thehungersite.com, where you can go, every day and when you click someone, somewhere who's starving is fed. I make no bones about the fact I update, renew and push this article every Christmas. Please tell friends or forward this, let's do some good. Fully Rewritten Article: Feed The Starving At No Cost To You. (Special mini-mutterings) Related Article: Charity - pay less or nowt, give more!

CD-Wow Free Discount Vouchers The cheap CD site currently has a click for a discount voucher promotion. Worth a go

New 12 month 0% for purchases credit card. Massive new best buy
The Skycard has extended its 0% period for purchases, so get a card now and it won't start charging interest until January 2007, massively ahead of all others. Remember though, 0% isn't for everyone; many will be better with a permanent low rate. Updated Article: Best Card for Purchases Related Articles: Best Balance Transfers, Best Cashback Credit Cards

MAJOR IMPROVEMENTS TO THE FLIGHTCHECKER! Many more companies added
Regulars will know about m'free non-commercial Flightchecker which, unlike other flight comparison services, tells you when to go to get the cheapest price, so often you're flying for just £20 including taxes/charges! Well now Thomson Fly, Sky Europe, Air Wales and Norwegian Air have been added to Ryanair, BMIBaby and Flybe so there's much more choice. FlightChecker Related Article:  Find the cheapest flight of any type

Get a grant to pay for a more energy efficient (and MoneySaving) home
The Energy Saving Trust (the Govt body responsible for reducing our energy usage) has a free service. Tell it where you live and it'll tell you what grants and offers are available for your home. Also you can get a free energy use audit. Energy Grant Search Related Article: Find your cheapest energy supplier and get cashback

SPREAD THE SAVINGS! Pls suggest friends/family/colleagues get this email too

FREE £10 loophole for Egg customers, extended! Ends 30 Dec so grab it quick Eggcellent!

Sub £50 5.1 megapixel digi camera A great chat forum spot. Maplins. Ends 24 Dec. Details

Last Minute Christmas Gifts Hunt
If you've left it to the last second there's a great danger of rushing through and overspending. The web loses its power right now to get you gifts in time, so what are the other options to give good gifts and easy shopping without breaking the bank? I'm tapping MoneySavers' collective knowledge to find the answers. Add your ideas/read others Past Great Hunts:  What Shops Don't Want Us To Know, Laser Eye Surgery and Free Office Graphics and Presentation Software

Christmas Vouchers One: Pact to delay Christmas prezzies so you get more
Sadly many are forced into paying shops' over inflated pre-Christmas prices. There's one way to avoid this. If you're hunting for something big - TV, games console, new bed, something expensive - the price'll drop quicker than an X-factor winner's chart position after Xmas. So why not make a voucher that promises the gift at Christmas, but actually wait till the sales to buy it; meaning more cash for you, and a better new year? (and there's even a website that'll do it for free) Discuss this

Christmas Vouchers Two: Give your time or personal service, nothing beats it
Use home made vouchers to make someone smile at Christmas. Simply make vouchers that promise a special service when they're presented back to you: "one washing up voucher", "one back-rub voucher", "one baby-sitting while you go to the pub voucher".... use your imagination (and there's even a website that'll do it for free) Discuss this

Opera for a tenner anyone?
Last week I asked MoneySavers to find cheaper tickets to the theatre, musicals, etc. Ideas you came up with included Travelex Tenner, Buy in person and Teachers' theatre tickets cost less

Thanks for your Christmas wishes, I've built a well
Many of you have very kindly sent me nice wishes for Christmas and New Year. To say thank you for that and all the site users I've paid to build a well in a desolate part of Africa via the World Vision charity in MoneySavers' names that will provide clean water for ten villages as my wee Christmas prezzie back More info and how to give yourself

Sneaky Tip: Buy January Magazines now to see New Year prices
Many PC, electronics and DVD type magazines have their January editions out already. Often this means the ads in there are for Jan's prices, enabling you to do some good research on what the New Year's discounts will be. Discuss this and other tips Related Chat: 3 magazines for £1

MoneySavingExpert.com Car Sticker
I had a bitter-sweet email this week from a lady who'd left her bank in tears of frustration. Having just had a very heated discussion with her bank about a fee she'd been charged on a tiny overdraft it was ironic that the first thing she saw on leaving was a car parked outside with the MSE car sticker on a car parked outside. She emailed to let me know. Get one yourself

Board of the week: Ebay and other online auctions
This board's a mine of info for auction site users. Discussions include How patient are you with non-paying bidders?, Why was my ebay account suspended? and Ever bought a car on ebay?

This week's Martin's Musings: It's not fun being a multi-millionaire!
'Well done MSE Jenny, sorry we didn't appreciate it enough' and 'Uh Oh, be careful what you promise for charity' Read m'blogs (or RSS users access)

EMERGENCY SAVINGS POLL: Could you maintain your current lifestyle? Vote or Discuss. Also, see last week's Necessity or luxury? Poll results

That's it for this week.  I've been completely distracted building snowmen this week. No, you're not going mad, it's not snowed in London yet. It was an online distraction. Check out the gallery for some really funny snowmen and snowwomen

I hope you save some money

Martin