Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

Martin's weekly coronavirus update

18 NEW need-to-knows incl: Furlough till Oct & you can WORK | Self-employ grant TWO | Hols in Spain, US & more? | 2yr 0% overdraft | Mortgage hols extended | Must you take leave on furlough? | New People's Commission | Tui | Football charges return

So there I was, trying to take just one week off for half-term... and a year's worth of important money news happens. As I've therefore got a bumper crop of key info for you to catch up on, no preamble, let's just get to it.

Remember, as always the very latest info goes into our constantly-updated key coronavirus guides as soon as it breaks...

And finally, as always, while we strive for 100% accuracy, please give us just a touch of wriggle room - things are still changing all the time.

1) Furlough to last until Oct, but from Aug employers contribute, which sadly may trigger redundancies. Last Fri, we got details of the extension to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. It allows employees to be put on furlough - where your job's put on standby - and the state covers 80% of your salary, up to £2,500/mth.

While employees must still receive at least 80% of their salary, from Aug employers will be asked to start to pay - at first just covering national insurance and pension contribution costs. Each month more is added, until by Oct - the final month of furlough - they pay 20% of salaries towards furlough. See full who pays what, when.

Sadly, that means if firms think they can't or won't keep their furloughed staff on their books from Nov, they're likely to start redundancy processes soon, so people leave at or after the end of Jul, before firms have to contribute. If that happens to you, see our Redundancy rights guide, and consider help from an employment lawyer, either direct or via a trade union or Citizens Advice.

2) Self-employment grant TWO available from Aug. The Chancellor said there will be a second (and crucially 'final' grant) for eligible self-employed people affected by coronavirus to cover Jun to Aug. This is something I, and others, have been pushing hard for, once it was announced furlough would last until Oct. Even though the amount's at a slightly lower rate than the first, I'm delighted to see it happen, as at one stage chances were no better than 50-50. For a full briefing on this, including who's eligible, watch my self-employment grant TWO 5min video explainer.

3) From 1 Jul, YOU CAN WORK for your employer while furloughed - but what'll you be paid? From 1 Jul, a month earlier than planned, firms can bring furloughed employees back to work. The work hours can vary week by week, so it could be nothing, part-time or full-time. Exact details of how this'll operate will be published on 12 Jun, but I've had a rough preview.

For the hours you work, you'll be paid your full contractual rate by your employer, and you'll be paid by furlough for the rest of your normal hours that you're not working. I break this down in easy-to-understand detail in my furlough update 8min video explainer.

What if I can't/don't want to go back to work? You mightn't feel comfortable going back as you're shielding/looking after children/don't feel it's safe. We'll be doing detailed research into your rights on that and will update you next week.

4) Interest-free overdrafts due to END next month - check now if you can shift yours to TWO YEARS 0%. While mortgage payment holidays are being extended, it's far from certain if other coronavirus financial forbearance measures will be too. This includes the £500 0% overdraft help banks have had to offer customers who are struggling. It's currently only set to last until 14 Jul - after that, banks can start charging their new hideous 40% EAR charges again.

So it's worth knowing that there's now ONLY ONE money transfer credit card longer than 12mths 0% left. Money transfers are special cards that let you pay money directly into your bank account, which you can use to clear your overdraft, then owe the card at 0% instead. MBNA's 24mth 0% card has a one-off 2.99% fee - use our MBNA eligibility calc to check if you'll be accepted (some poorer credit-scorers get 16mths at 0% and/or a 3.49% fee).

If so, make sure you do a 'money transfer', don't just withdraw cash. Then always make at least the min repayments and clear the borrowing within the 0% period or the rate soars to 22.9% rep APR.

5) Plans to go to France, Spain, USA or other top 10 destinations for Brits - when will they let you in? The Foreign Office is still warning against all non-essential travel. Yet if you've a holiday booked this summer, even if the warning's removed, there's still the issue of whether they'll let you in or make you quarantine when you arrive.

So we've got our top 10 holiday countries travel access guide, which tells you what the score is in each country at various dates for Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Greece, Portugal, Croatia, Turkey, the Netherlands and the USA. Even then, from Mon the current plan is that you'll need to self-isolate for two weeks when you return - though there's likely to be movement on that.

6) Have YOUR say on how post-lockdown UK society will look - join the People's Commission. Life has changed forever. The way we work, support each other, travel, shop, spend, and also the value we put on the roles people play in society. The past few months have been challenging for our country on every level, but it is time to try and find opportunity from adversity.

Cross-party think tank Demos has launched its "People's Commission". Its aim is to have 1 million people feed in to what life should be like when we return to normal. Have your say, join the People's Commission.

I've agreed to be one of 11 commissioners, alongside the likes of former education secretary Nicky Morgan, trade union Prospect's general secretary Mike Clancy and UK Youth chief executive Ndidi Okezie.

7) Mortgage payment holiday extension confirmed - starts Thu - but ONLY do it if you need one, as it can hit your credit score. Regulator the FCA has just confirmed that, from Thu, the mortgage payment holiday extension proposed 12 days ago, for those suffering financial difficulties, will be in play. In brief...

- If you've not yet applied, you've till 31 Oct to do so.
- If you're already on a payment holiday, you can ask to extend it for a further 3mths.
- The 'no repossessions' rule has been extended until 31 Oct too.

My rule on payment holidays is simple: IF YOU NEED ONE, DO IT, BUT ONLY DO IT IF NEEDED. And if you don't need the whole holiday, you can do a partial holiday, eg, ask to reduce what you pay by half. There's more info in our step-by-step guide, incl my mortgage holiday 8min video briefing.

The reason it's not a 'grab it' is two-fold. First, because the holiday is just a deferment, you still have to pay it back later, plus the interest that's racked up.

Also, while it won't go on your credit file, as I revealed here two weeks ago mortgage payment holidays can affect your credit score as lenders use other methods to detect it. After I'd raised this with the FCA, it checked it, confirmed it and put it in its announcement.

Yet if you're going to struggle to repay, and need cash flow, do it. Better that than killing your finances.

8) Warning. New furlough deadline. You need be furloughed by 10 Jun (even if on MATERNITY now) to get it after. A new rule means to be eligible for furlough from Jul, you have to have been on full-time furlough for a min 3wks. So if you've not been furloughed, and may need to be, the cut-off time to start is 10 Jun (3wks before Jul).

For those on maternity leave, if you plan on coming back between Jul and Nov, and it's likely your firm will want to furlough you, they need to furlough ASAP or you're unfurloughable (yes, I've likely invented the word) later - we think this will do the job, but are making some final technical checks. You'll usually still stay on maternity pay until that ends though, see maternity furlough for more.

9) It's coming home, it's coming home, football's coming (to your) home... but that means Sky Sports and BT Sport charges. Both allowed custs to stop their charges due to the pandemic sport suspension. Yet with the Premier League, snooker, golf and horse racing either restarted or soon to, charges return too. Full info in Sky and BT Sport rebates, but in brief...

- Sky Sports customers who "paused" their subscriptions will start paying again from 19 Jun. Those with a package for just one sport (eg, Formula 1 or cricket) will stay on pause until that sport's back.

- BT Sport had given bill credit equal to their subscriptions, and will give a 50% credit for the Jun bill - automatic for all who've already asked, if not, you can still ask.

10) Football season ticket refunds. Top-level football clubs are set to play out the rest of the season without fans watching, so season ticket holders can usually get refunds, though some only offer credit unless asked. See football season tickets.

11) Can employers ask you to use up annual leave on furlough? I've been asked this countless times. Some employers want staff to use up their holiday. Both the Govt and ACAS confirm they can require you to do this, though they must pay you your full contracted rate for your annual leave days.

But, crucially, they must give you NOTICE TWICE AS LONG AS THE HOLIDAY. So if you're taking a week, they must tell you at least two weeks beforehand - if not, speak to your manager and show them the guidance. There's far more on what to do in annual leave and furlough.

12) Warning. Beware new NHS Test and Trace scams. They've been added to our updated 20+ coronavirus scams to watch out for blog.

13) Are you one of 1m self-employed eligible for an income support grant who haven't claimed it? Only 2.5m of the 3.5m eligible for the self-employment income support help have claimed it. The deadline's 13 Jul. Some may not, as a deliberate ethical choice that you don't need help. That's cool. Yet there are a few reasons people may WRONGLY be missing out that I'd like to clear up. Pls spread word...

- You wrongly think 'I'm working/earning, I can't claim'. Unlike the current furlough scheme, if you're self-employed you've always been allowed to claim it even if you're working and earning.

- You're worried declaring 'I'm impacted by Covid-19'. Doing this is part of the application, but don't overly worry, it's a very broad criteria. Unless you're deliberately defrauding, there's no claw back - just be honest. You've been impacted by Covid-19 if one or more of these apply (or something similar)... a) you or a staff member's been unable to work/work normally, b) your work premises have been closed/had reduced access, or c) you've seen a decrease in demand/work level.

- You've not been contacted. HMRC has contacted people by letter, email or text. Yet for some, details will be wrong or this contact hasn't made it to you. If so, you can use the HMRC eligibility checker.

14) Tui's cancelled 10,000s more hols - get a full refund. The package hol giant's now cancelled all trips departing up until the end of June (and some cruises even further ahead). Its record for refunds has been very poor - it scored -60% in our recent survey.  Yet it has recently simplified its refund system - tentative feedback seems to be that if it's not perfect, it's at least an improvement. See Tui refund help.

15) Updated: Can I get a refund on my static caravan pitch fees? Far more help, including template letters. This is one of the thorniest issues we're investigating, with some caravan parks helping, others playing hardball. We're continually adding to our Static caravan pitch fee refunds guide - this week there's a comparison of how different parks are reacting and more legal guidance, and now we've added template letters.

16) Is there going to be any more help for the excluded... ltd co directors, the ineligible self-employed, new starters, freelance PAYE and others? Sadly, desperate people who aren't eligible for the state support schemes make up a big chunk of my e-mailbag - constantly asking if there is any news on their situation. I wish I had news. I don't.

I've been lobbying hard for the cracks to be filled for months, but I think it is getting less and less likely that we'll see any substantial change coming. If you're not eligible for support now, as the Chancellor is trying to reduce support, not increase its range, barring maybe a few small technical tweaks I can't see much change coming.

This leaves universal credit and, for those with small businesses, bounce back loans as the main hope (limited company directors may also be able to furlough themselves). Do see our full guides for more. I'm not ignoring you, but I'm sorry to say I just don't have anything new to tell you.

17) Fewer lenders now offer bounce back loans to new customers. Small biz, including limited companies, impacted by coronavirus can get loans of £2,000 to £50,000 interest and payment-free for the first 12 months, and as our Bounce Back Loans guide explains, these CAN be used to support your income in some cases.

Most banks only offer these to existing customers with a business account, and some who were allowing newbies including RBS and NatWest have now pulled back from that. This leaves HSBC as the main newbies' option (Barclays and Starling to a lesser extent too) but we have a lot of reports that it is a SLOOOWWWW process and many are frustrated. See our bank-by-bank bounce back table for full info.

PS: Also see our news that we're referring complaints about Starling's bounce back loans for sole traders to the regulator.

18) Smart meter installations restarting. If you signed up to a tariff that needs smart meters, in England E.on, Npower, SSE and Ovo have started offering appointments again, as has British Gas, but only for prepay meters - all with appropriate precautions. You don't have to get them fitted. See smart meters latest.

Remember those heady days of my last series... OK, it only ended the week before last, but I'm delighted to say ITV's recognised the importance of the week's must-watch Thursday financial briefing (if I say so myself) and we've agreed to do six more, now at the LATER TIME of 8.30pm.

I'll talk you through many of the key tips above, and more, plus new deals, and MoneySaving tips too. Of course as we're live I can answer your questions as well, just tweet me @MartinSLewis using the show's hashtag #MartinLewis. So do tune in or set the Betamax.