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Many will be surprised that some UK savings AREN'T protected by the UK Government. With global markets in turmoil again, while bank collapse is still very unlikely, it's an important prompt for a crucial safety check-up – as there’ve been two major changes. The best way is read the full safe savings guide but here's a summary.
- £50,000 protection doesn't apply to every bank. Most people now know, if their savings provider went bust, you're protected up to £50,000 per person per UK regulated financial institution. Yet some EU owned banks aren't UK regulated eg. ING Direct relies on the Dutch Govt., or shockingly Post Office Savings relies on the Irish.
- New 'What Banks Are Linked' Tool: Your exact protection depends on what counts as a 'financial institution'. Eg. Sister banks RBS & Natwest have separate £50,000 protection, but Halifax & Bank of Scotland have £50,000 combined. Use our new linked banks tool to see who your bank shares protection with.
- Northern Rock Changes: As Northern Rock's now back on its own two feet, last week the Govt's bionic 100% backing ended, so now all its savers (barring those with long term fixed deals) simply get the same £50,000 protection as elsewhere. If you put cash there prioritizing safety over rate, that's gone, so consider spreading some elsewhere.
- Santander & A&L Changes: Since Friday, all money saved with Santander (Abbey & B&B) and A&L now shares one lot of £50,000 protection, it used to be separate. So check if yours is over the limit.
- Spread cash for safety (even if under £50,000). Those with big cash should try to spread it into different high paying accounts so you've no more than £50,000 in each. Even if you've less, remember if a bank went bust you'd be unable to get your cash for a while, so spreading prevents lockdown.
For all current top deals see the Best Buy Savings guide.
Other 100% safe options include repaying debts, buying tax certificates, or saving with NS&I. Full details in the New Guide & Tool: Are your savings safe?
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| The Ones Not To Miss |
Free 'No Cold Callers' Sign: New rules mean they must obey
Stick on door to deter unwanted salesmen. Stop junk mail, calls, texts & faxes too
On Friday the big six energy companies agreed their sales people would respect 'no cold callers' signs - a hard won victory by Consumer Focus & Trading Standards. Free MSE Sign: To help you take advantage asap we've designed a Trading Standard's approved 'no cold callers' sign you can speedily print and put on your door or window. Of course while energy sales people should obey, not every salesman will, but if they don't just point at the sign and politely ask 'em to leave. Stop Junk Mail, Calls & Faxes: You have a right to opt out of post, direct mail, telephone calls and faxes and to do it, you just need fill out an online form - if marketing companies then contact you they're breaching the rules and can be punished.
Full info in the Updated Guide & Free Sign: Stop Cold Callers & Junk Mail Related: Doorstep Sales Crackdown, Free Anti-virus Software, Free ID Fraud Protection, Cheap Gas & Elec
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Urgent! 1 week Amazon 70%+ off designer watch sale
Limited supply. Firetrap from £16 (usually c. £80) Police from £28 (usually c. £85)
See the Firetrap* & Police* pages or all 75%+ off watches* though this includes 3rd parties. Full info in the Deals Note: High Street Sales Related: Amazon Discount Finder
New York £334 all-in, £344 Boston, £408 Miami, £424 LA
Prices have shot up so this American Airlines sale deal is often a serious bargain
Available for June flights or 22 Aug - 31 October. Check if it's cheapest in the Forum Note: American Airlines Sale
Free Holiday Medical Cover. Get a free EHIC card for all the family
Gets free or cut price medical help in 31 places. Already got it? Check it's valid
The free EHIC card is a govt scheme which entitles you to healthcare in all State-run hospital in 31 European countries, as if you were a local. So in Spain it means free healthcare, in Cyprus you pay what locals pay (see full country-by-country guide). Is yours valid? If you've already got one, check it's valid, some only last 3-5 years. And keep it with you, you need present it or you're not covered. Kids need their own: Everyone needs their own EHIC card, even children, so ensure you apply for kids too. Is it worth it? Yes, especially for emergency treatment, but also for quick trips to a GP, and meaning you needn't pay travel insurance excesses. Yet don't think it's a replacement for travel insurance. Full pros & cons in the New Guide: Free EHIC cards How to apply: Go to EHIC application Related: Cheap Travel Insurance, Travel Money
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£1 Next tights (usually £7), £1 for 2 Johnson's Holiday Skin (usually £5 each)
Poundland hidden bargains! Next join Boots No.7 as disguised products & Johnson's is just a bargain
Peel back the labels of tights to find the Next logo. Full pics and info in the Daily Deals List: Disguised Products
Ends Sun! Re-usable £1 off £5+ Tesco MP3 download code. Tesco's cheapest for many Top 40 albums, so the code's a doozy, eg. get Buble's 'Crazy Love' or Rolling Stones' 'Exile on Mainstreet' for £5.97. Free Tool: Tunechecker.com
Urgent! Line rental & broadband bundle £15.50/mth + poss cashback all-in
"Year's free broadband" promo on for a week. Just £3 more than BT's line rental alone
While the "a year's free broadband" marketing overstates it somewhat, phone giant TalkTalk's* new promo's still a big new best-buy. The Deal: For the first year of the 18mth contract, you only pay the £11.49/mth line rental and £30 connection, not the £6.99/mth broadband or the free calls element; making it an avg. £15.50/mth all-in over the contract. What's customer service like? Its reputation still smarts from its nightmare launch 4 years ago, when it couldn't cope with demand. It's now much improved (not difficult) though like most telecom companies, there's always someone it's awful for. Get cashback on top: For easy £40 cashback sign up via comparison site Simplify Digital* but the contract's then 2 years, yet it still works out £14.56/mth all in. Alternatively members of cashback site Quidco* get £30 cashback on an 18 mth deal (though it takes new member's first £5) but do note cashback sites' cashback isn't 100% guaranteed (see Top Cashback Sites). FULL info, alternatives and how to lower call costs in the Updated Guide: Cheap Home Phones Related: Cheap Broadband
Premier Inn 3*ish rooms £29 sale (usually £50-£100)
Half a million rooms for now until Dec just released, though min. two night stay
Good price for a mid-level hotel. Go quick though, full how-to in the Deals Note: Hotel Sales Related: Cheap Hotels
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Eight footie freebies with 65p paper. Including face paints, window sticker, drawstring bag, bottle opener, car flags, keyring and more. Full info & cheap England shirts in the Daily Deals List: World Cup Deals
New top 0% for 15mth balance transfer deal
Destroy the cost of existing debts by shifting them to the longest no-interest card
Doing a balance transfer means you get a new card that repays the debts on your old card for you, so you now owe it instead. New top online 0% deal: Sister banks Natwest* & RBS* offer all accepted applicants 0% for 15 mths, with a one-off 2.9% fee; HSBC* & First Direct offer the same, but only to their current account holders (all are 16.9% APR after). Top Branch Deal: NatWest's now top as Clydesdale & Yorkshire's gold cards are no longer avail. online, unless you're already their online customer. They offer 0% for 16mths but with a higher 3% fee (then 16.9% APR). Lock-in 6.7% for LIFE: If you can't repay within the 0% period or forget to shift again, the rate rockets, so a safer option for many who need longer is MBNA's Rewards Amex* which lets you balance transfer to it at 6.7% until all the debt shifted is repaid. Top 0% on BTs & spending: Virgin* offers 0% for 12 mths on both spending and (for a 2.98% fee) balance transfers ( 21.9% APR after). Warning! Always make at least the monthly min. repayment, as miss it and you can lose the 0% deal. FULL help & more best-buys in the Updated Guide: Best Balance Transfers Related: Cheap Loans, Credit Card Shuffle, Check Credit Rating
New! iPhone surveys app. Earn up to £1.50/time!
Top survey site OnePoll's launched a free iPhone app, so you can earn on the go
Pays 50p-£1.50 per survey. This and loads of online options in the Guide: Online Surveys Related: Cheap iPhones
Bodyshop.co.uk 20% off code (inc 30% off sale goods) & 6 Lush products £10
Plus Superdrug £5 off £30, free sparkly eye shadow in £2.50 mag, £1 Bourjois lipgloss & £7 Bobbi Brown gloss
Joinfree £5 Body Shop lotion with £3ish mag. More in the Daily Deals List: Beauty Deals
Guard lost cards for free! Updated with 80 new cards
Cardsgone.com helps protect credit, debit, loyalty, gym cards etc.
The aim of MSE's Cardsgone.com tool is to speedily give free cancellation help for a lost or stolen wallet not just for credit and debit cards, but loyalty and membership cards too. Best practice is create a cancellation list now, as if you do lose your purse remembering what's in it can be tricky. Numbers update automatically: Once you've built your list you get a special link to click with all the updated numbers on it (don't worry we never store any of your personal info and data). 80 New Cards Added: The response when we launched the tool was fantastic, with emails flooding in suggesting additional cards, so now we've added 80 more including Library Cards, NUS, Prepaid Cards, Shell Drivers' club and more. Full info & security tips in the New Tool: Cardsgone.com Related: Free Anti Virus Software, Free ID Fraud Help
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Burton.co.uk £5 off code and Wallis 20% off & Jones 25% off (in mags).
New codes & vouchers! Join Tesco £10 off 1st £50 online spend and £5 off Boots Skincare
Plus get £5 off Zavvi swimwear. These and many more in the Daily Deals List: Discount Vouchers
'Free Will Day' Wed 9 June (only 700 avail). The Institute of Professional Will Writers has just been approved by the OFT, to celebrate it's offering 700 free wills (so go quick). More info: Cheap and Free Wills guide
New free flights. Credit card freebie war takes off!
Get European return flights for you AND a friend, when you buy a banana
A couple of cracking new credit card freebies have just landed for those with decent credit scores. How to grab freebies: Spend a trigger amount and you qualify for the giveaway, so just do your day-to-day spend on the card until you hit the trigger, ensuring you repay IN FULL each month to avoid interest. New! Two Free Returns (you pay taxes): Until 30 June, get a Flybe card and spend anything on it (eg. buy a banana) before 31 July and you get a voucher for two returns, though you pay taxes & charges of c. £50 (fail to repay in full and it's 18.9% APR). Totally Free BA Europe Return: Until 30 June Lloyds Airmile Duo's* (15.9% APR) effectively offering a free BA Europe return incl. taxes & charges (with no time limit so you can wait the strike out), as for 3mths you get 1 Airmile per £1 spent on the Amex (not the Mastercard), up to a max of 1,500 which is enough for a return to Spain, Italy, Germany etc. Or get the same card from AirMiles* website and just spend £10 on it for an instant 1,500 Miles voucher, yet here the voucher dates and you must book at least a night in a hotel via AirMiles website, which can be costly. Free £30 high street vouchers: The Amex Rewards* (17.9% APR) card gives £30 high street voucher when you spend £500 in the first 3 months. FULL info & more freebies including a new 5,000 Nectar points deal in the Updated Guide: Credit Card Freebies Related: Top Cashback Cards, 0% Credit Cards, Cheap Travel Money
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Bank rejected your PPI misselling complaint?
90% of PPI complaints win at the Ombudsman & the FSA's extended the time you've got to do it
Don't be fobbed off, see the Reclaiming Guide & Letters: Reclaim PPI and MSE News Story: PPI extension
New! Pizza Express and Prezzo £10 starter, main & drink
Plus Pizza Hut 2for1, Zizzi 2for1 for £1, Slug & Lettuce 2 steaks 'n' wine bottle £20 & GBK £8 burger 'n' drink
Joins free pint at Young's Pubs, free coffee at Giraffe and haha £10 off £20 in the Daily Deals List: Restaurant Vouchers
Warning. "HSBC took £3,500 from my account to pay Mastercard"
DON'T bank where you've serious debts - setting off rules mean they can use your cash without permission
The use of 'Setting Off' is on the up, it means any bank can use money in your account to pay off credit card or other debts you have with it or linked institutions, without permission or even notifying you first. Nothing warns about it more eloquently than this e-mail we received: "HSBC recently took £3,500 from my current account to pay MasterCard, even though my missed payments were just £800...They have left me in utter despair & extreme financial hardship. Few can afford to have 70% of their balance cleared in one hit, let alone a single mum who only recently came off Job Seekers Allowance." Don't fall into the trap: The simplest solution's to open a new bank or savings account elsewhere, then you can prioritise which debts to clear. For more info, guidance and how to fight it see the Q&A Guide Setting Off Related: Your Financial Rights, Credit Unions, Debt Problems
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| Big & Easy Ways To Save |
| Quick links or click the titles for full pros, cons, alternatives & more savings |
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| More MoneySaving |
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Q. The new Govt's suggested increasing the 0% income tax limit to £10,000. If you earn say £10,100 per year, will you be taxed on the lot or just the bit above £10,000? If it's the first is it worth earning more as you'll be worse off? Debbie, by email
Martin's A: This scares many new taxpayers, but thankfully few taxes work that way (except stamp duty). With income tax you only pay the higher amount above the threshold. So if it were tax free until £10,000 and 20% above, you'd just pay £20 tax (20% of £100).
Of course it's unlikely that the full £10,000 'personal allowance' will come into full force after the 22 June budget, though it's likely to rise from the current £6,475. See the income tax checker for more info.
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Discuss: Personal allowance increase
Suggest: A question of the week
(big general issues not personal q's pls) |
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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, Charecroft Way, Shepherd's Bush, London W14 0EH 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 we 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 we believe transparency is important, we're including the
following 'un-affiliated' web-addresses for the same things: alliance-leicester.co.uk, amazon.co.uk, simplifydigital.co.uk, energyhelpline.com, gocompare.com, talktalk.co.uk, hsbc.co.uk, tescofinance.com,
moneysupermarket.com, confused.com, moneysupermarket.com, plus.net, virginmoney.com, quidco.com,
natwest.com,
rbs.co.uk,
americanexpress.com,
mbna.co.uk, lloydstsb.com,
airmiles.co.uk, moneysupermarket.com,
thebikeinsurer.co.uk
beatthatquote.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-focused journalist and bestselling author Martin Lewis. On TV amongst other things Martin is GMTV's Money SavingExpert and 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 amongst others the News of The World, The Telegraph 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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