Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

VAT cut . Get £££ back on purchases big and small. On Monday the VAT rate changed from 17.5% to 15%. Here’s a quick Q&A (thanks to JW at PriceWaterhouseCoopers for help). Do shops have to cut prices? No. If they keep them at old levels, it’s a price rise, as effectively they’re increasing the pre-VAT price. Yet with the cost of price list changes & the poor retail climate it's likely. After all, dropping a £9.99 DVD to £9.78 looks weird. Many passing the cut on are more likely to leave some goods, and cut others by more than the difference. It’s a 2.1% not 2.5% price cut. Imagine an item at £100 before VAT. Add the tax and it now costs £115, where it used to cost £117.50. This means you save £2.50 per £117.50 (not per £100) a cut of 2.13%. Refund on goods ordered but not delivered? VAT is charged at “time of supply”. So if you put a £100 deposit on a £5,000 kitchen, under new rules you should only pay a further £4,793 when settling the balance. The key's in the agreement, if it just said ‘VAT inclusive’, it can choose whether to pass the cut on. If it said ‘£XX plus 17.5% VAT’ or ‘VAT at the appropriate rate’, you may have a legal argument that it has to. Refund on goods paid in advance? If you paid up front for a monthly subscription, eg, a gym, this falls under ‘continuous supply of services’ and it doesn’t have to change the price. Though BT is going to give refunds to all customers (it doesn’t have to). Which companies are passing it on? Discuss who’s passing on the VAT cut and how to gain.

Week of 25 Nov - 1 Dec '08 (Last week's position) 1. Savings Accounts (1) 2. Freebies, Freebies, Freebies (3) 3. Cheap Train Tickets (New) 4. Cash ISAs (4) 5. Best Balance Transfers (New) New entry Cheap Trains snuck into the top five on the back of the last chance friends and family railcard promotion. While Best Balance Transfers almost certainly jumped up due to the warning credit scoring changes could hit card tarts.

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The Ones Not To Miss MSE

Premium Bond rate slashed to 1.8%. Lowest odds EVER. Find your predicted winnings.
This month's Premium Bond draw has the worst odds since it began in 1957, though UK base rates are at record lows too. The interest rate's been slashed to a paltry 1.8%, just over a third of the top savings accounts. What the rate means: It determines the annual prize fund, so now only 1.8% of the total bond value will be distributed. At these odds, the newly updated calculator shows someone with £1,000 of bonds, has a 72% chance of winning NOTHING over the next year. On the plus side, if you do win it's tax free, and your money is totally safe. Calculate Your Chances: Premium Bond Probability Calculator Related Guides: Top Savings, Safe Savings

One Day 20%+ Sales: M&S, Debenhams, Harvey Nichols & More. This week these plus Burtons, Dorothy Perkins, Laura Ashley & more. See the Daily Deals List: One Day Sales Diary

NEW. Cheapest Xmas Bargain List. Wiis, Tom Toms, Baby Born, Champagne & more.
Today we're launching a brand new daily updated guide to where the top Christmas gift bargains are cheapest. What's included? Sat Navs; Dab radios; Kids' toys; Games consoles; chart topping CDs, Books & DVDs; Mp3 players; digital cameras; freeview boxes; DVD players, netbooks and more. New Daily Deals List: Christmas Gadgets Related Guides: No Presents Pact, Christmas MoneySaving

Free Vodafone £15/mth Sim (250 mins, 100 texts). Get a Vodafone Sim-only mobile contract and a cashback site pays you £120. Use for eight months then cancel and it's no charge. See the Forum Note: Voda-deal!

Top Prepaid Cards. Now anyone buys online. Perfect for teens & poor credit scorers.
Many can't access the cheaper deals often available online as they can't get credit or debit cards, yet a new breed of plastic offers a solution. What are they? You load prepaid cards up with cash, then can spend anywhere that takes Visa or Maestro. Who're they for? There's no credit score, so anyone can get them, even those usually rejected, plus there are special teenagers' cards. This new, comprehensive guide explains the pros and cons, and the top picks. New Guide: Compare Prepaid Cards Related Guides: Online Shopping, Top Cashback Cards

New Shopping Vouchers: 20%+ off, House of Fraser, Habitat, Monsoon & H&M. See the daily updated Deals List: Shopping Vouchers

MFI Help: It's in adminstration. Ensure you get your money back. New Guide
Furniture store MFI has gone into administration. Thousands of people who’ve spent £1,000s and are waiting for delivery are worried, others have unfinished kitchens. Yet it's promising refunds to those who paid by debit card, cash & cheques; while credit card customers must reclaim from their lender. This is a full Q&A guide on how to get your money back. New Guide: MFI Help Related Guides: Consumer Rights, Section 75

New 2for1 at Bella Italia. Last Chance Pizza Express & Zizzi. More click 'n print vouchers galore plus a two meals for £5 pub deal, all in the Daily Deals List: Restaurant Vouchers

STOP YOUR FRIENDS WASTING CASH! PLS SUGGEST THEY GET THIS EMAIL

10,000 free copies of Moneywise mag, worth £4.25. Blagged for MoneySavers. Want one?

Shift debts to cheap rates ASAP. Credit Scoring & Credit Crunch Worries
There are more mutterings two factors may make it increasingly difficult to get cheap new credit. If you need new cards to cut existing debt costs, do it asap. Credit Crunch: Market rumours suggest some of the longer 0% deals may disappear soon or at least have fees increased. Credit Scoring: As noted last week, new data sharing rules mean some lenders can now see if you're on a promo deal and whether you pay the minimum or in full. This means they could weed out credit card tarts. Top 0% deal: Virgin’s* 0% for 16 mths 2.98% fee. Top Long Term: Barclaycard & Capital One* both 6.5%. More options in the Updated Guides: Best Balance Transfers, Credit Scoring

Six Free £5ish kids' DVDs e.g. Tweenies & Postman Pat. Mon-Sat next week The Sun (30p) will have a coupon for a different kids' DVD. See the Forum Note: Kids' DVDs

WARNING! Think before giving Gift Vouchers. Plus Woolworth's voucher holders' note
If you're planning to buy gift vouchers for friends or family this Christmas, remember they aren’t as safe as cash. If a retailer goes bust, the voucher holder is usually just one in a long queue of creditors. Of course most retailers will be fine, but for pure safety cash is king. What about Woolies?: It’s in administration, but stores are still open and rescue bids are possible. Yet if you've Woolies vouchers or savings stamps it's worth considering spending them sooner. Discussion Link: Don’t vouch for it?

Mental Health Caseworkers? Please help feedback for a new MSE guide to Mental Health & Debt

Travelling to the USA after 12 Jan? Apply for a Visa Waiver ONLINE before you go
The days of filling a Visa Waiver form for US travel on the plane are ending. If you're travelling after 12 Jan 09 you'll need to fill out an online request to enter the States, at least three days before travelling. Otherwise you'll be turned away at US immigration. Not online? You can't go! We may all need to help friends and family who aren't online out. Outrageously when we asked the US embassy about provisions for those not online it replied, "contact a friend, family member, colleague or travel agent who is online." Full details in the Forum Note: New US entry procedure Related Guides: Cheap Flights, Cheap Hotels, Cheap Package Holiday

Barclaycard holders WARNING. It’s changed some people's monthly payment dates unannounced. Check now or you may be hit by a fine or damaged credit score due to late payments. More in the Forum Note: Barclaycard Repayment

Extended! 25% off code for Family & Friends Railcard. The National Railcard website purchase page broke last week, so it's extended the deal to this Sun. More in the Deals Note: Train & Coach Promo

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The Big & Easy Ways to Save Checklist

Cut Car & Home Insurance! Car Insurance/ Home Insurance Cost Cutting Assess Your finances: Free Budget Planner to see if you spend more than you earn Give Yourself a Money Makeover: Special guide to overhauling your finances New Borrowing: Best Card For Spending or Cheap Loans Mortgage Makeover: Read the free Remortgage Guide Reclaim £1,000s: on Mortgage Fees, Council Tax, Endowments, Bank Charges, PPI Home Phone & Broadband: Tiscali* or better still read the Home Phones guide Cashback Credit Card: Amex Plat* or read Best Cashback Cards Get Quick Cash for Old Mobiles: Envirofone*, Mopay*. Recycle Mobiles guide Teen Cash Guide: Free 40 page PDF guide to teach your kids about money Switch Gas & Elec and Get up to £30 Cashback! Energyhelpline* or Gas & Elec guide MoneySaving Books: The Money Diet, Thrifty Ways, Three Lessons Free MoneySavingExpert Car Sticker MoneySavingExpert.com/carsticker

More MoneySaving MSE

Redsave Investigation. Online retailer Redsave sent legal demands for the removal of a mass of negative comments in the forum, saying many were unjustified. The posts were removed, but as we're here to support consumers, we've conducted a full investigation into the claims. Forum Note: Redsave Investigation

An open letter to UK Mortgage brokers… please read the Mortgage Broker Letter

Great 'Taking a Lodger for Beginners' Hunt
If you need some extra cash, you can receive up to £4,250 a year tax-free on the Government’s Rent a Room scheme (read the Boost Your Income guide for more info). But where should you start when taking a lodger for the first time? I want to tap MoneySavers for their tips on finding the perfect lodger, dealing with deposits and being a good landlord. Add your ideas/read other people's: Great 'Taking a Lodger for Beginners' Hunt Related Guide: Boost Your Income Past Great Hunts: Crucial Phone Numbers, Cheap Dates and No-Contract Deals

WARNING! Watch for text messages scam saying “you’ve got a parcel”!
There’s a scam doing the rounds. If you get a text message saying something like "URGENT! A large parcel is awaiting delivery, please call +43820990914 for delivery tomorrow. From International Parcel Deliveries", DO NOT call it, or any other number listed, as it’s a scam to get you to dial, which will cost around £1/min on most mobiles. Instead ignore and report it to your network provider. More in the Forum Note: Text Scams Related Guide: Avoid Phishing Scams

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Insult by paying or let them struggle?
You're travelling to a developing nation, and a good friend who's originally from there asks you to drop off a parcel. On arrival, though you've eaten, the father insists on taking you and your family out to dinner to say thanks, explaining it's the local hospitality rules. You soon realise it's one of the City's most expensive restaurants and he order all the local delicacies for you. The bill's huge, a struggle for them, but not so big a deal for you, yet the father refuses to let you pay, saying it'd insult him. Enter the Money Moral Maze: Would you insult by paying or let them struggle? Previous MMDs: Would you get into debt to grant a friend's dying wish?, Should Lucky Luke give back his hardship grant?

Quick Forum Tips Warning! Bargains listed here tend to sell out quickly Daily Bargains Update Tips, Tricks & Treats

Top deal! Free haircut when you buy a £3.50 mag. Cheap as Elle Two free energy saving lightbulbs. From Gala Bingo or Sue Ryder shops. Enlightening Up to 50% off sale at Iwoot.com Incl remote controlled helicopters. Wizz! Take That's The Circus Album £5.88 In store at Asda Xmas Loss Leader 2for1 photo calendars. £15 for two. Ready to snap Half-price Hunter festival wellies. £33 instead of £55. Muddy good! Partying in London this Xmas? Quickly find a safe cab by text. Cabwise Debt Free Wannabe chat of the week: Diary of a Teenage Debtfreewannabe Old Style (Thrift) Board thread of the week: Starch-onomics November Post of the Month winner: £50 Amazon voucher, See all nominations Nominate Post of the Month for December

 

CHEAP FLIGHTS SALES ALERT Airline: BMI Baby . Price: sub-£30 e/w. Ends: 10am Fri 5 Dec.
My top pick budget airline sale this week is BMI Baby's sub.£30 (inc. most taxes & charges) flights to a host of European destinations from a range of UK airports. Tickets are at this price on selected flights between 1 Dec & 28 Mar until 10am Fri 5 Dec. 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

Board of the Week: Individual Voluntary Arrangements
Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs) are commonly missold, yet in the right circumstances they're a welcome release for some of those in severe debt crisis. To help a few weeks ago I set up a new IVA Board. Many people are sharing their experiences. Discussions include My experience before an IVA, IVA or Bankruptcy? and Charge on my property? Free Guide: IVA Guide Related Guide: Debt Help Related Boards: Debt Free Wannabe, Bankruptcy Board

Great 'How to Start Home Brewing' Hunt Result
Last week I called upon home brewers, both newbies and veterans alike, to share their top tips on how to make a good but cheap home brew. There were some great suggestions including Get a 3kg kit, Check Freecycle and Make your own Baileys equivalent

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Andrea's Freebies Freebies, Freebies, Freebies

Animated Xmas Tree, Ice Age Cloning Talk (London), Xmas Knitting Pattern Ordnance Survey Maps for Schools, Nature Activity Sheets

Odds and Ends MSE

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 & LK Today, ITV1, Wednesday 3 December between 7:30 & 9:30am. Christmas MoneySaving Special, including Cheap Online Shopping, Shopping Vouchers and Cashback Sites.
• Jeremy Vine, Radio 2, Friday 5 December, 1pm. The MoneySaving topic's yet to be decided.
• GMTV & LK Today, ITV1, Tuesday 9 December, between 7:30 & 9:30am. The topic for these shows is news reactive, so you'll have to wait and see!
• Past appearances: Listen/watch back, plus keep updated on future appearances.

This week's Martin's Blog: RIP It Pays To Watch
"Mental Health and Debt Guide", "Recession’ll end soon: The joy of maths" and "Scrabble – an easy way to win". Read m'blogs (or RSS users access)

Mortgage Brokers. This week's poll. Vote and Brokers discussion

Nearly 30% hit by evaporating equity. Last Week’s Vote. Of those who’ve got mortgages, 28% are borrowing more than three quarters of their homes value, the point at which it becomes tough to get a new deal. Sadly around one in 15 (6.5%) are now trapped in negative equity. See full Evaporating Equity poll results.

Archna's Free Game of the Week! Test your riddle power with this game full of obscure puzzles Zahada

Spellbindingly Hypnotic World Dance. There are many ways to see the world, one being to dance you way around 42 countries! It’s a strangely compelling watch: Where's Matt?

I hope you save some money

Martin

Explanation of * Links

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: uk.virginmoney.com, capitalone.co.uk, tiscali.co.uk, americanexpress.co.uk, mopay.co.uk, envirofone.com, energyhelpline.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 is GMTV’s MoneySavingExpert, 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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