Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email
Cheaper iPhones; 0% for 16mth credit card
7.2% savings; Line rental & broadband £12.50/mth
And much, much more MoneySaving...
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Cheapest cap closed Tue, only two remain. My emergency weekend e-mail urgently warned to cap (fix) your gas & elec tariff; ie lock in at today’s prices, to beat price hikes. Yesterday, as predicted the cheapest cap, Scottish Power’s Fixed Price energy 2009 Dual Fuel, was pulled from comparison sites and is likely to close to direct customers asap. Only two other cheap caps remain, and they could go any moment. If you haven’t capped use the compare energy guide ASAP.
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| Q. Can I cap just gas or just elec? Yes for elec, no for gas, so if you need both get capped dual fuel. Q. Do I have to pay a fee to leave a cap? For some yes, for some no, check yours. Q. Should I cap cheaper or longer? With prices rising rapidly, if there’s not much difference go for longer. Q. If I cap now, but they take 2 mths to switch me what happens? Don’t worry you get today’s rate. Q. My supplier’s offered me a special cap, any good? You'll need a spreadsheet to do the sums, hence why most should stick with a comparison site’s result. Q. We’re moving house, can we cap now? Most caps let you take it to a new property, but do check. Q. My son/gran etc isn’t online, can they compare? They can call e.g. Energyhelpline 0800 074 0745 or Energyshop 0845 330 7247 Q. Is Scottish & Southern’s fixed discount a cap? No, it’s a discount off its variable tariff so don't cap with it. Q. I used 2 comparison sites and got different answers? Always compare using kilowatt hours, if not the sites make assumptions, hence the variance. If you used kWh read my comparisons variations note. Q. Can I cap on a prepay meter? Sadly not, energy companies treat you as second class citizens, you pay more. If you can, change to a billed meter, if not do a comparison or try Ebico For updates on the cheapest cap use the Cheap Energy guide. |
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Cheap Hotels Loophole. Beat online bidding system to bag posh hotels worldwide
Don’t assume hotel or hostel prices are fixed: book the right way and massive savings are possible. Whether for the UK or overseas, this re-researched guide accomodates scores of tips to cut the cost. Plus there’s a new guide to a loophole on hotel bidding site Priceline; you can only bid once a day then see if it’s accepted, but there’s a sneaky trick to work out the minimum acceptable bid. One MoneySaver got six nights in NY Sheraton Times Sq, for £336 rather than £1,230. New Guides: Full Cheap Hotels guide which incorporates the specialist Priceline Hotel Bidding guide. Related Travel MoneySaving: Car Hire, Travel Money, Flights, Package Holidays, Travel Money Maximiser
New Theme Park & Comedy 2for1ish vouchers... Get three 2for1 vouchers for Alton Towers & others by spending £40 plus at Sainsbury, plus a code for half price Jongleurs tickets. Lots more in the Deals Note: Cheap Days Out
New Top 0% Balance Transfer. 0% for 16 months with a 3% fee. Updated Article
New cardholders can now shift debts from other cards to Capital One* at 0% until 1 Dec. 2009; as it usually takes three weeks to get, that means just under 16 months at 0%, though there's a one off 3% fee. This just beats Virgin’s* 15 months 0% with a 2.98% fee. Yet only do it if you can repay the debt in that time, or have a good enough credit score to balance transfer again. Otherwise lock-in until all the debt shifted's repaid at 6.5% fees free with Barclaycard* or at 4.9% with a 3% fee with Citibank. Full details, pros, cons and alternatives in the Updated Article: Best Balance Transfers Related Articles: New Borrowing, Cheap Loans, Credit Rating
iPhone cost cutting. Save £35 on iPhones & double your minutes Deals note: Cheap iPhones
Urgent. Home Phone Loophole. Line rental, broadband & free calls £12.50/mth all-in
A loophole ending midnight this Friday (1 Aug) means you can get line rental, broadband and free eve & weekend calls to UK landlines for just a couple of quid more than BT's basic line rental. TalkTalk's the second cheapest provider, but sign up to it now via one of the special cashback websites, and you get £100 cashback, effectively cutting the price from an average £18.12/mth to £12.56/month all-in over the 18 mth contract. Full info in the Forum Note: TalkTalk Cashback and on the package itself in the Updated Article: Cheap Home Phones Related Guide: Top Cashback Sites, Cheapest Broadband
Possible £5 off £30 Tesco in-store joins £15 off £50 at Waitrose online. It’s very likely Sunday’s News of the World (95p) will have this voucher in, thus buy it for a £4.05 profit. When confirmed it’ll join Waitrose, and others in the Deals Note: Shopping Vouchers
STOP YOUR FRIENDS WASTING CASH! PLS SUGGEST THEY GET THIS EMAIL
Free Amazon next day delivery loophole. Sign up & cancel Amazon Prime trial. Forum note: Amazin' deal!
New Top Savings. 6.55% instant access or 7.2% if you lock in for a year. Updated Article
From today (Wed) the current market leading instant access account Kaupthing* is increasing its rate to 6.55% AER for new and existing customers, plus over the long run it guarantees to beat UK base rate by at least 0.3% until Feb 2012. Yet if you’re prepared to lock your savings away for a year, ICICI* has just launched a 7.2% one-year fixed rate. Both these banks are foreign owned, but are fully regulated in the UK, so you get the same £35,000 per person per institution protection as anywhere else. Full info in the Updated Article: Top Savings Related Articles: Are Your Savings Safe?, Top Cash ISAs, Where To Start Saving
IMPORTANT. Do you claim tax credits? If you’ve been sent an annual declaration form and haven’t returned it, go quick or phone 0845 300 3900, it needs to be in by Thurs (31 July) or payments may stop. Related Article: Benefits Check-Up
Half-price 3G Broadband. Free dongle & 5Gb download limit £7.50/mth. Updated Article
There’s a special deal only available through cashback website Quidco to get a broadband on the go dongle for free, from the 3 network, and a big 5Gb monthly download limit for £7.50 a month with an 18 month contract. A dongle is the thing you plug in laptops so you can get speedy internet anywhere (not just in wireless hotspots) via the mobile phone network. These alone often cost £60 plus and then you can pay £15/mth on top. This is an unbeatable deal, and likely to go within the next couple of weeks. For more pros, cons and explanations read the Updated Article: Free Wireless and Cheap 3G Broadband Related Articles: Cheap Broadband
Code to fly under 18s free to US/Canada for free. If two adults fly, there's a code to take kids free, possibly saving £1,000. Incl Lond-New York & Manc.-Toronto. Forum Note: Ends Thursday Related Article: Cheap Flights
T-Mobile hikes price by up to 300% on calls to 0870, 0845, 0844, and 0800 numbers
The regulator Ofcom’s recommended mobile networks should treat 0870, 0845, 0844 and 0800 like normal numbers for price and free minute inclusion from the autumn. T-mobile has decided NOT to include them in free minutes, but to charge the same as normal numbers outside those minutes; which is high. So since 28 July on all tariffs, where you once paid 10p/min, it’s now 12p to 40p/min. If you’re going to use these, if possible do it from a landline. Otherwise, for further hints, read the Guide: Saynoto0870 Related Articles: Cheapest Home Phones, Calling Mobiles Cheaply, Cheap International Calls
Is your company offering to contribute to your pension? Take it! Read m’blog
The Big & Easy Ways to Save Checklist |
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Need to convert media files? A nifty free online tool can convert hundreds of image, video and text file formats, with no download or even registration. Forum Note: YouConvertIt
Great 'Large Families MoneySaving’ Hunt: Cut costs with more than two kids
It’s tough to save when you’ve a bigger-than-average brood. From package holidays to family theme park tickets, companies assume that a family equals two adults and two kids. So I want to tap MoneySavers’ for their tips on tricks to cut the cost. Any attractions or restaurants that offer big family-friendly deals? How do you cut package holidays and flights costs? Any other loopholes? Add your ideas/read other peoples': Great 'Large Families MoneySaving' Hunt Past Great Hunts: Single MoneySaving, What Kids Should Know About Money, Audience Tickets
Did you recycle your mobile phone with Cex? If you're having problemsMoneySavers can use a special email address from Cex. Cex problems Related Article: Recycle Your Mobile For Cash
MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Would you keep the dropped lottery winning ticket?
You’re in the lift at your local shopping centre, a woman talking excitedly on the phone says she won an unspecified amount on last night’s lottery. Yet she’s saying she can’t find the ticket and asking her husband if he’s got it. She gets out at the next floor, and you notice it's fallen from her bag and on the floor, as the door closes. Enter the Money Moral Maze: Would you keep the lottery ticket? Previous MMDs: Would you pick herbs from a strangers's hedge?, Should Arkwright give Granville his money back?
CHEAP FLIGHTS SALES ALERT Airline: EasyJet. Price: sub-£30 e/w. Ends: When tickets sell out.
My top pick budget airline sale this week is EasyJet’s sub-£30 inc.most taxes & charges to various European destinations from a range of UK airports. Tickets are at this price until they’re sold out but are only available on selected flights. How to quickly find the sales flights: Don't go direct, instead use the Budget Airline FlightChecker and ask it to find all flights under £30. Non-Budget Airline Tools: These are listed in the Cheap Flights article.
Related Travel MoneySaving: Cheap Hotels, Spending Abroad, Cheap Currency,
Travel Insurance, Mobile Roaming
Quick Forum Tips
Warning! Bargains listed here tend to
sell out quickly
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Board of the week: Up Your Income
The Up Your Income board offers a wealth of information and innovative ideas to generate serious extra cash outside your day job and boost your bank balance. Recent discussions include: Becoming a private tutor, Home delivering, Foreign students
Great 'Cheap when you get there holiday destinations' Hunt Result
With the euro getting ever more costly, destinations like Spain and Greece aren't as cheap as they used to be. Hotels, restaurants, car hire: all are pricier. So last week I tapped MoneySavers' collective knowledge to gleen their top tips on cheap places to holiday when you get there. There were some great suggestions including You won't go hungry in Hungary,
Bargain Brazil and Try Closer To Home
Carotino Recipe Book, Relaxation Hypnosis Download, |
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MoneySavingExpert on the box/wireless
If you like to watch as well as read about MoneySaving, I'll be appearing on the following programmes over the next week or so.
- GMTV, ITV1, Wednesday 30 July between 8 & 8:30am. URGENT: Cap Your Gas & Electricity!
- GMTV, ITV1, Tuesday 5 August between 7:30 & 8am, then again between 8:45 & 9:15am. The topic's news reactive so you'll have to wait and see!
Watch/listen back to past appearances: Including Radio 1's Jo Whiley, Radio 2's Vine, Radio 4's MoneyBox and GMTV. Listen/watch here
Keep updated on appearances: Changes and updates go in the Updated appearances list
This week's Martin's Blog: When did home phone costs become irrelevant?
"How the other 1% live" and "Is your company offering money for a pension? TAKE IT TAKE IT TAKE IT!". Read m'blogs (or RSS users access)
Do you ask for a doggy bag? This week's poll. Vote and Doggy Bag discussion.
The "What does the government spend our money on?" quiz. Last Week’s Vote. A bit 'could do better' this week, as only 22% of you got it right! The Government's highest spend was actually £169bn on Social Protection (ie pensions & benefits). The 38% majority of you thought debt interest would be the most exchequer-busting of the options, yet actually it comes third to last in the official figures, at a 'mere' £32bn. Full answers and vote results Govt Spending Quiz discussion.
Archna's Free
Game of the Week! A simple but strangely addictive, strategy game. Box World
Candid Catchphrase. That’s it for this week, but before I go, having heard Roy Walker talk about it on the radio, I couldn’t resist digging out this clip . If you used to watch Catchphrase, check out Naughty Mr. Chips
I hope you save some money
Martin
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the editorial line (the things I write) is NEVER impacted by it. If it isn't
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following 'un-affiliated' web-addresses for the same things: capitalone.co.uk, virginmoney.com, barclaycard.co.uk, kaupthingedge.co.uk, icicibank.co.uk, alliance-leicester.co.uk, americanexpress.com, envirofone.com, .mopay.co.uk
. Read more about this in how this site is financed.
MoneySavingExpert.com is the free to use Consumer Revenge website focused on how to save you cash. It’s owned, and run by ultra-specialised journalist and bestselling author Martin Lewis. On TV amongst other things Martin has his own show It Pays To Watch on Five, is GMTV’s Money SavingExpert, presents money programmes for ITV1 Tonight. On Radio Martin has regular slots on Radio 2 Vine and Radio 1 Whiley. He’s also a columnist for the News of The World, Moneywise and the Sunday Post. Find out more: About the site and its funding.
Disclaimer: This e-mail is based on journalistic research. It does not constitute financial advice. Any information should be considered in regard to your
own specific circumstances. All tips are followed at your own risk and should be followed up with your own research Full Terms & Conditions.
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