New Tool! The DemoHoHotivator
With 100 days to Christmas, our new tool makes the little savings add up
People swear by (and at) our Demotivator tool which reveals your annual spend on coffees, snacks, cigs, mags & other discretionary purchases to help you cut back. Be brave - new save for Xmas tool: As tomorrow (Thur) is 100 days to Christmas, we've built the new www.demoHOHOtivator.com to show what you can save in time for the festivities by cutting back on the little things. It's updated daily so whenever you choose to cut back, it gives the exact savings. Printed DemoHoHotivator: There's a specially designed printed version to stick on the wall/fridge to keep you on track. £140 coffee savings: As an example, if you stop getting a £2 Starbucks coffee every work day, you could have £140 by Christmas. New Tool: www.demoHOHOtivator.com Related: Stop Spending, The Demotivator, The Budget Planner, Christmas Cost Cutting |
 |
Urgent! EXTRA £100+ cashback on cheap energy deal
Ends Thurs. Short term cashback boost on one of the cheapest tariffs
Many homes can save £300/year switching - plus until Thurs sign up to any Scottish Power deal via specific comparison sites (ie, not direct) and you can get up to an extra £115 on top of the usual extra freebies. Is Scottish Power any good? It depends where you live & your energy usage, so always do a comparison. If, as is v. likely, its online tariff's within £115 of your cheapest, it wins. Though like most super-cheap deals it has early exit penalties. Compare, switch & get this cashback (via MSE links only): Online: Two comparison sites give £35 per fuel extra (£70 for dual) for Scottish Power, Moneysup* plus the usual £30 per dual fuel swich (so £100 total) and Uswitch* plus the usual case of wine. By phone: Call Energyhelpline on 0800 074 0745 and you get £50 per fuel (ie, £100 dual fuel) for Scottish Power, plus mention us and you get the usual £15 on top - so £115 in total. When's the cashback paid?
It can take three months due to certifying connection (so hopefully by Christmas) and may come in separate tranches. FULL info inc. poss more cashback in the Guide: Switch Gas & Elec Related: Boiler Cover, Grant Grabbing
|
 |
| Got friends who'd like to save? Please tell them about this email
|
Shift credit card debts to 6.8% for 'life'
If you've debts on cards consider a GUARANTEED long term cheap deal
Apparently, Sept's the new January, with people sorting cash after summer's excesses - so a key focus is existing credit card borrowing. When NOT to go for 0%: Short term 0% deals win if you can repay all the debt before they end or 'balance transfer' again to another cheap deal. Yet you need a decent credit score & good diary skills to do this, or the rates rocket to c. 20%, and even a couple of months at that can eat all past gains. Hence some are better picking long term cheap deals. Lock in at 6.8%: Barclaycard's* Simplicity lets accepted new cardholders shift debts to it at 6.8% APR. While not officially a 'life of balance' deal, regulations mean provided you always make at least the min. repayments, it can't increase rates in year one, and after that you can reject any rate rises provided you don't want to borrow more (see Rate Jacking guide), effectively letting you permanently lock in at 6.8%. Next top's Halifax* Easy Rate at 6.9%. Both are typical rate, annoyingly meaning 1/3 of accepted customers may be given a higher APR. 0% for 16 mths: Barclaycard* is the longest deal, lasting 16 mths for accepted new cardholders, while Natwest* & RBS* both give 15 mths - all have one-off 2.9% fees (then 16.9% APR after). FULL best buys and guidance in the Updated Guide: Best Balance Transfers Related: 13 mths 0% spending, 7.7% loans
|
 |
Got holiday cash left over? Make £££s
Find the best buyback rates for Euros, Dollars, Colons or owt else
It's time to wave summer goodbye, so it's worth a check to see if you've decent wads of foreign cash lingering in wallets. Best buyback rates: Some online bureaux de change let you sell them back overseas currency - MSE's TravelMoneyMax has a buyback comparison which shows the best rates for your Euros, Zlotys, Ringgits etc to get the most bangs for your buck. Is it worth it? Commission can be heavy, so if you've only, say, £30 worth, it'll eat away at it, thus if you're likely to return somewhere that uses that currency (eg. Euros) within a year or two, best to put it away somewhere (see Martin's overseas wallet blog for suggestions). Use the TravelMoneyMax: Holiday Cash Comparisons Related: Cheap Travel Money
|
 |
|
News! Take on your BANK or insurer and win
New bank-by-bank stats show half complaining to Ombudsman win
Figures just released for the first half of 2010 show around half those who complained to the Financial Ombudsman won, and 81% of PPI insurance complainants got payouts (see the free PPI reclaiming help guide). Ignore bank rejections: To get to the Ombudsman you must first complain to the bank, insurer, or finance company itself, so all these successes come AFTER people have already been rejected (or in some cases directed).
Rejection's sometimes just a tactic used to put you off going further - ignore it. Bank by bank stats: Most complaints were about Lloyds (45% upheld by Ombudsman), then Barclays (a massive 61% upheld) and the worst performer was Eisis with 100% complaints against it upheld, then Ocean Finance (99%) & Lloyds-owned Black Horse (90%); see full bank complaints breakdown news.
It's about fairness, not law: Unlike courts, it needn't just rely on law, but also "have you been treated fairly?" This applies whether you think your insurer should pay out and hasn't, if you've been overcharged, got an unfair credit default etc. See the Full Guides: Your financial rights, PPI Misselling, Bank Charges, Mortgage Fee Reclaiming
|
 |
|
Latest weekly email
