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The nation's letter flaps are groaning as post-Xmas brown envelopes arrive. Taking a day to cut your bills, treating it like a job, saves many £1,000 over the year. And unless you earn £525,000+, that's the best paid day of the year. Here's proof it works.
Tweeted by @payattentionpls: "@martinslewis Saved £2,000+ switching card and £370 on internet, phone, TV package. Gas and Elec next.Yeah"
| 7:30am. Save £100s with a water meter. While brushing your teeth, ask yourself if your home's got more bedrooms than people. If so, check the Water Meter guide to save. |
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| 8:00. Can you get a uniform tax rebate? Do any of your family wear a work uniform? If you wash, repair or replace it yourself, you may be able to reclaim £100s of tax for up to six years. Full help: Uniform Rebate |
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| 8:30. Missing £1,000s of childcare help? If on the school run, think about childcare. If you pay for it – including after-school clubs – earn under £40,000 and work 16hrs+ each, you may be entitled to Childcare Tax Credits, worth an average £3,000 a year. Otherwise, Childcare Vouchers can cut costs by 30%. |
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| 9:15. Analyse your finances with a budget planner. Most importantly, work out if you spend more than you earn. If so, you risk dangerously building up debt. Use the Free Budget Analyser to ensure you're on track. |
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| 10:30. Bite £100s off food bills. While snacking, check what grocery brands you buy, and try my Downshift Challenge, it can chop £850 a year off a £100/week shop. |
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| 11:00. Gas & electricity, save £100s in 10 mins. If you're on a standard tariff, a typical bill's £1,320 a year, but you could pay £1,030 for the same usage. Top comparison sites: Energyhelpline* (pays £15 cashback per switch), Moneysupermarket* (£30 per dual fuel), Uswitch* (crate of wine). Full help: Cheap Gas & Electricity guide. |
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| 11:10. Spend a penny. Afraid, no way to save there. |
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| 11:15. Haggle £100s off Sky, broadband, the AA & more. @stumpyian's tweet says it all: "@martinslewis Threatened to leave Sky, said I couldn't afford and it halved my bill". See the Top 10 Companies To Haggle With. |
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12pm. Slash credit card costs OR soup-up savings. If you have high interest debts AND savings, you're throwing cash away. Pay Off Costly Debts with Savings and you'll be massively up. To cut card costs, see the main email below.
Check savings, earn a min 3%. Santander's* 3.1% AER with unlimited access. Get a tad more with Nationwide's 3.12% AER but only one withdrawal a year's allowed, or West Brom's* 3.13% AER, but on £10k min. All incl 1 year bonuses. Full warnings in Top Savings. Also see Top Cash ISAs. |
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1:00. Lunch is for wimps, check for mis-sold PPI.
While eating, check old loan & credit card agreements. As @elerisalter tweeted: "@martinslewis I thought claiming my PPI would not really be worth it as I had small loans. Then I was offered £5,362." Yet don't throw 25% to claims handlers, Reclaim PPI for Free. |
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| 2:00. Slash insurance by £100s in 30 mins. Never auto-renew, always check for cheaper. For max quotes in min time, combine as many comparison sites as you can as their searches aren't identical. Try Gocompare*, Confused*, CompareTM* and MoneySupermarket*, then add Aviva* & Direct Line* that comparisons miss & try for hidden cashback. Full step-by-step: Cheap Car Insurance, Cheap Home Insurance. |
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| 2:30. Grab free £125 for switching bank account. Banks will bribe you to switch accounts, so grab it. First Direct* pays £125 to switchers and has top customer service (min £23,100 earnings). Earn over £14,200? Santander* pays £100, plus a £30 Amazon voucher and gives a year's 0% overdraft and 5% in-credit interest, but customer service is poor. Halifax pays £100, plus £5/month, but avoid its costly overdraft. Full info in Best Bank Accounts. |
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| 3:00. Council tax, mortgage and home phone. Now whizz through some home bills. Checking & Challenging your Council Tax can be worth £1,000s, Remortgaging can too, and check out £6.49/month line rental. |
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| 3:30. Drive petrol costs down 20%. Before picking the kids up, declutter your car so you're carrying less weight. When driving don't over-accelerate, speed up gradually and keep your distance so you brake less. Use petrolprices.com to find the cheapest forecourts and read Petrol Cashback Deals for more tips. |
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4:00. Still got energy? This is only the beginning. The full Moneymakeover guide has over 40 key savings, and shows how to keep your budget on track. |
Something to listen to as you do it. Check out this Radio 2 £1,000 in a day Vine special, including the slightly concerning: "My hubby Rob reduced outgoings by £2,400 a year – the water meter, uniform tax rebate etc. Though I was fed up of him sitting in front of the PC every night with Martin Lewis." |
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