Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email
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Airlines collapsing. Zoom, Alitalia and more to come? Transatlantic budget airline Zoom’s gone insolvent and cancelled all flights; package holiday firm XL is in refinancing talks and even Italian flag carrier Alitalia is relying on the State to save it. Huge fuel costs mean airlines are struggling, and industry predictions say many less profitable players are at risk. How to protect yourself. Don’t let this put you off booking cheap flights; often it's the more strongly financed companies that stay cheap, as they can afford to compete. Yet protect yourself. 1. Book on a credit card. If the cost’s over £100, Section 75 laws mean the card company’s jointly liable, so if the airline goes bust, it must pay the money back. Though always repay in full, so you’re not charged interest. 2. Consider package holidays. Book a package (flight and hotel wrapped in one) and check it has ATOL protection, then if the company goes bust, you should get a refund, and if you’re already out there, you can carry on your holiday and get a flight home (see Cheap Package Holidays). |
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Snoop on neighbours’ house prices & value and assess your home for free.
Whether you're buying, selling, renting or staying put, it's possible to find what neighbours' homes sold for, school and crime data, the nearest pubs or even get a rough house price valuation, without paying a penny. So whether you're a budding Kirsty or Phil or just want to check out the neighbourhood, this fully re-written and re-researched guide's got the web's best free property info tools. New Guide: Free House Prices Valuations Related Guides: Mortgage Guide, Remortgage Guide, Council Tax Reclaiming
Free £30 of Burger King 2for1 vouchers. Joins Pizza Hut (now inc N. Ireland), Ha! Ha!, Gourmet Burger Kitchen and many more in the Daily Deals List: Eating Out Vouchers
Switch or Cap ASAP! All energy providers have hiked prices, it’s a level playing field.
Scottish Power & Npower’s price hikes last Friday mean all six major suppliers have hiked their main rates (by up to 35%). So I’ve shifted from “Don’t Switch” to “Switch Now”, as do a price comparison and finally the results are fair. Online Tariff Alert: British Gas’ Click Energy 5 and Eon’s Energy Saver 8 haven’t hiked rates yet, so comparisons may put them cheapest. If that happens, factor in almost certain 20%-25% imminent price rises. To get the best deal/cap: There are many current pitfalls, so read the Cheap Gas & Elec plus cashback guide to steer you through. If you know what you’re doing, my top pick is Energyhelpline*, which pays £15 cashback per switch. Alternatively, Moneysupermarket* gives £30 for a dual fuel switch and Uswitch* sends a crate of wine. Related Guides: Cheap Boiler Insurance, Grant Grabbing, Cheap Home Phone
£19 Travelodge room sale (& rumours of £9 sale): The UK-wide hotel chain's reduced some rooms from its usual £29-£59 price and rumours are it may imminently get even cheaper. Full info in the Forum Note: Travelodge Sale Related Guides: Cheap Hotels, Days Out
Earn between £6,035 and £40,835? You'll get £60 more in September's pay packet
After April's huge '10p tax row', the Government upped everyone's income tax personal allowance, the amount you can earn tax free, from £5,435 to £6,035 to make up for it. This takes effect next Sun 7 Sept, so if you earn above this amount, but under £40,835, you'll take home an extra £120 between now and March. This starts with £60 in September's salary, then £10 each following month. So check your payslip to ensure you get it. Full info in the Forum Note: Income Tax 2008/09
Free Lenor £2 fabric softener.Just take an old softener bottle cap to Asda, this Fri or Sat. Absolutely fab-ric!
STOP YOUR FRIENDS WASTING
CASH! PLS SUGGEST THEY GET THIS EMAIL
Premium Bonds Update: how much will you win? September's draw odds are now in the Premium Bond Probability Calculator
Cheap train tickets: stealth rises predicted Sunday. Find out how to beat 'em.
This Sunday, walk-on train fares will get new names: open singles and returns become 'anytime' and cheap day returns 'off-peak'. According to the Telegraph, changes in ticket terms mean there will be stealth price increases. Sadly, the train ticket system is ridden with illogic and confusion, but it’s possible to take advantage of this with a host of loopholes and tricks to slash fares by up to 80%. Full details in the Updated Guide: Cheap Train Tickets Related Guides: Cheap Flights, Cheap Hotels, Days Out
Buy two Cineworld tickets, get two free.If you or your mate has a Mastercard, use it to pay and you get sent two more tickets for ANY film, valid Mon-Thurs. Mamma Mia!
New Cheap Home Insurance System: Compare 81 providers in mins & get cashback.
The current record result using this system is being paid £67 to take it out. The key step is using the right comparison sites, in the right order, to compare. Yet their coverage regularly changes, so we've completed a mammoth re-assessment. The new top sites: The top four are now Confused*, MoneySuperMarket*, TescoCompare* and Only*; by combining them you’ll cover 81 insurers and brokers to find your cheapest quote in minutes. Then you can get cashback on top; you never know, you may end up being paid to get it too. Full details in the Updated Guide: Cheap Home Insurance Other Insurance Guides: Car, Van, Bike, Travel, Medical, Breakdown, Boiler
This weekend! 1,000s of usually private historic buildings are open for free. Special English Heritage Trust and Civic Tust event. Full info in the Daily Deals List of: Cheap Days Out
Last chance MSE Charity applications. Funding debt & consumer education grants
The MSE Charity gives grants to both individuals and groups. If you can’t afford to do a consumer/debt course, be it basic financial literacy or the Open University’s personal finance, money may be available. Plus any charities or people with good ideas for specific projects can apply for grants. Deadline date: The closing date for the next tranche of grants is 12 Sept; to apply, see The MSE Charity. Related Guides: The MoneySavingExpert Charity Fund, How this Site is Financed
2for1 massages, pedicures, facials and more. At nearly 70 posh spas across the UK. Just click 'n' print!
Last Chance! Over 60 and not getting the pension credit? Urgently check!
The pension credit rules are changing on the 6 October and it's important to claim before then. If you haven't claimed and are eligible, you may get a backdated payout of up to a year, but if you leave it this could be reduced to only three months. Find out if you can get it in the Forum Briefing: Pension Tax Credit Related Article: 5 Minute Benefits Check Up
5p/litre off petrol at Tesco. Spend £50 in store or online at Tesco for a 5p/litre discount voucher. Ends 21 September. Updated Guide: Cheap Petrol/Diesel
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The Big & Easy Ways to Save Checklist |
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Great 'What I wish I'd known before I was a student' Hunt. Give your top tips
What financial pointers do you wish you’d known before you arrived fresh-faced at Uni? Whether it’s grabbing hidden grants, buying books second-hand or steering clear of credit cards, I’d like graduate MoneySavers of any age to impart their wisdom for the benefit of future students. What money advice do you wish you'd known from the outset? Add your ideas/read other peoples': Great "What I wish I'd known before I was a student" Hunt Past Great Hunts: Wine Tart, Top Designer Charity Shops, Internet Dating
200 free texts and 40 free minutes for 18-24 year-olds. In return for receiving ads. It’s a Blyk or white deal
Stamp duty threshold raised to £175,000. Big savings for a few house buyers. From Weds, the Govt's upped the level at which house buyers pay 'stamp duty', from £125,000 to £175,000. Above this threshold, you pay a flat rate (starting at 1%) of the entire price paid for a property, so this means a saving of up to £1,750 if you were looking to buy a home in this price bracket. Forum Note: Stamp Duty
CHEAP FLIGHTS SALES ALERT Airline: Easyjet. Price: sub-£25 e/w. Ends: When tickets sell out.
My top pick budget airline sale this week is Easyjet's sub-£25 inc. most taxes & charges to various European destinations from a range of UK airports. Tickets are at this price on selected flights until they sell out. 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 £25. 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
The 'What to Buy Your Baby' book giveaway. 15 copies blagged for MoneySavers. Want one?
MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Would you leave a small shop in the lurch?
In need of some new bicycle pedals, you nip down to your small local cycle shop. The kindly owner orders the required model and, knowing you’re buying the pedals, gives the bike a quick service for nowt. Yet a few days later, you spot the pedals for £3 less in Halfords, available then and there. You’re tempted to pick them up, then cancel the order, saving a few quid and a week’s wait. Enter the Money Moral Maze: Would you leave a small shop in the lurch? Previous MMDs: Would you take the kids out of school for a holiday? and Would you tell a charity shop that a Chloe bag was under-priced?
Quick Forum Tips
Warning! Bargains listed here tend to
sell out quickly
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Board of the week: Health & Beauty MoneySaving
A little pampering needn't cost the earth. The Health & Beauty MoneySaving board features an array of top tips to keep you healthy, happy and gorgeous on the cheap. Discussions include Smell-alike perfumes, Cheap but outstanding beauty discoveries and Beating teenage acne
Great 'Student discounts' Hunt Result
MoneySaver Smickan collated a fabulous list of student discounts. So I turned it into a Great Student Discounts Hunt to find others. There were some great suggestions including Student Oyster Cards,
£10 English National Opera and Cheap Maccie Ds
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Kids' Recipe Booklet, Kids’ Maths Stickers, Vintage Knitting Patterns, |
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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.
- Jeremy Vine, Radio 2, Friday 5 September, 1pm. Full Gas & Electricity phone in.
- GMTV & LK Today, ITV1, Tuesday 9 September, all morning between 7:30 & 9am. Join Martin's special Debt Help Cash Clinic.
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: All boobs and toes... a modern holiday postcard
"Trains: what's a fair fare system" and "Tool to find how big websites really are". Read m'blogs (or RSS users access)
Have high fuel costs changed the way you drive? This week's poll. Vote and Driving efficiency discussion.
Are you worth more than you earn? Yes! Last Week’s Vote. Of the 7,500 who voted, six in ten are in credit, leaving four in ten in debt. A huge 5% of people are worth more than 20 times what they earn; my guess is these are mainly mortgage free pensioners. At the other end, 2% of people owe more than 20 times what they earn – probably people who’ve had major change of circumstance or lost jobs. See Assets vs. Wealth poll results.
Archna's Free Game of the Week! How good are your mental arithmetic skills? Add Like Mad
Urine for a treat. That’s all for this week, but I hope you don’t think I’m taking the pee. You really should try this test of urinal etiquette!I hope you save some money
Martin
Explanation of * Links
FSA NOTE: Referring people to insurers or insurance intermediaries can in some circumstances require FSA authorisation. For this reason, Martin Lewis of Shepherd's Studios, Rockley Road, Shepherd's Bush, London W14 0DA is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
How this site is financed. Any links with a * by
them are affiliated. That means go via this link and a contribution may be made
to MoneySavingExpert.com, which helps it stay ad-free and free to use. You
shouldn't notice any difference, the links don't impact the product at all and
the editorial line (the things I write) is NEVER impacted by it. If it isn't
possible to get an affiliate link for the best product, it's still included in
exactly the same way. As I believe transparency is important, I'm including the
following 'un-affiliated' web-addresses for the same things: energyhelpline.com, uswitch.com, confused.com, moneysupermarket.com, tescocompare.com, only.co.uk, virginmoney.com, hsbc.com, barclaycard.com, alliance-leicester.co.uk, kaupthingsingers.co.uk, americanexpress.co.uk, tiscali.co.uk, envirofone.com, mopay.com. 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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