Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email
Over 50 ways to save, incl... lockdown must-knows, free £180 wine, 29mth 0%, beat Netflix hike?, new GHIC, Asos 80% off, £17 b'band, Virgin price hike, car insurance savings and more
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DON'T believe the fake 'Martin Lewis' or 'MSE' ads |
New top debt shift deals, eg, up to 29mths 0% & £20ish on top If you can't afford to clear your card debt, you can't afford not to try to shift it to 0% Don't wait for January's possibly scary credit and store card statements to drop. If you pay interest, a key tool to cut costs is a balance transfer - where you get a new credit card to repay old cards, so you owe it instead, but at 0%. That gets you debt-free quicker as repayments clear the actual debt, rather than cover interest. Yet DON'T JUST APPLY - first find which cards you're likely to get (especially important as acceptance criteria are tightening) using our Balance Transfer Eligibility Calc. That'll show your acceptance odds, helping minimise applications and protect your credit score. There are two new deals, here's how they fit in...
Full help and info, incl options for poorer credit scorers, in Best Balance Transfers (and see APR Examples). |
Free 15-bottle wine case (valued at £180) for switching to Virgin's 2% interest bank account. New switchers to Virgin Money* can get a case of wine, plus a market-leading 2.02% AER variable interest - but only on up to £1,000. To get the wine, switch incl 2+ direct debits via its official switch service, register for its app, and put £1,000 in its separate, linked 0.5% easy-access savings account. Full help and eligibility info in Best Bank Accounts. Pls be Drinkaware. Hurrah - the tampon tax has been abolished. And we've 14 other sanitary savers. See those sanitary savers. Get £40 cashback for investing £400. MSE Blagged. If you plan to 'robo-invest' - where investments are selected for you based on your attitude to risk - then after fees, this Wealthify deal is equiv to a 9.5% head start, provided you keep the full investment for a min 6-7mths. (The fact we've included it doesn't mean we recommend Wealthify - we don't do investment tips, it's just if you're going to use Wealthify anyway, you can get cashback). 3,500 avail. See Robo-investing cashback - incl info on the deal + how robo-investing works. Sales boosts - eg, Asos now up to 80% off, H&M up to 70% off, Selfridges up to 60% off. See our sales round-up. New free GHIC (Global Health Insurance Card) now open for applications - it replaces the EHIC. The new global card replaces the European one, but don't read too much into the name - it does much the same for almost all the same countries. Don't google for it though, as shyster websites will try to make you pay. See our free GHIC/EHIC help. If you've already got a valid EHIC, it's still valid, so you don't need a GHIC. Cheap fibre (ie, FAST) broadband & line - '£17.25/mth'. MSE Blagged. This 35Mb-speed deal for Shell Energy newbies is £22.99/mth, but you get an AUTO £68.97 bill credit within 3mths (essentially 3mths free). It's a total £206.91 outlay over the 1yr contract, equiv to £17.25/mth. Shell is only rated 'OK' on service - if you want a higher service rating or even faster speeds, see our broadband comparison tool for more deals. Switching energy? Remember our Cheap Energy Club's usually cheaper than other comparisons. Cheap Energy Club is usually cheaper for two reasons: a) If we can switch you, we get paid, so give you £25 dual-fuel cashback, which you don't get direct or usually elsewhere. b) Unlike most, we're automatically whole of market, so don't hide tariffs from providers that don't pay us. Our three ways to help you switch: 1) Use Pick Me A Tariff every year (MSE Autoswitch). 2) Use Pick Me A Tariff just for now. 3) Use our DIY energy comparison. |
Car insurance: 'Followed your tips and saved massive £520' Our car insurance cost-cutting system can save you £100s, though many mistakenly leave it out of a new year money makeover, thinking it's impossible to save if not at renewal. But whenever your policy expires, our system can help you drive down costs, and we get inundated with successes such as Penny, who emailed to tell us she'd saved pounds (sorry): "Thanks for your great tips on car insurance. I followed them and saved a massive £520 on my renewal. Keep up the good work." Our Cheap Car Insurance guide has full help - here are 5 key steps to kick savings into gear...
PS: This is about cheap car cover, but if you're struggling due to coronavirus, see what help is available - eg, you can ask the insurer to review your level of cover to see if you can cut costs. |
19 Netflix hacks to fight back against up to £24/yr price hikes. See our Netflix hacks. Martin: 'How I averaged 24,300 steps (burning 3,910 calories) a day in 2020'. See Martin's new blog. Virgin Media to hit millions with up to £54/yr price rises - how to beat 'em. Broadband, TV and phone customers affected - see Virgin price rise help. SUCCESS OF THE WEEK: Get fit for free, incl yoga, cardio workouts and fitness apps. Jan is usually the month of new gym memberships. This year you won't be able to go just yet, so see our 13 tips on how to keep fit for free. The MSE Charity's donated £58k to give debt & financial support to those affected by Covid. Find out more about the charity, primarily funded by this site and Martin, and what it's doing, on the MSE Charity website. |
AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS
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THIS WEEK'S POLL Parcel delivery firms: which are the best and worst? With more of us shopping online, parcel delivery firms are playing an increasingly important role in many people's lives. So it's time for our eighth annual poll to check how couriers are doing. MoneySavers' favourite board game is... Monopoly. Last week, we asked what your favourite board games are. More than 6,900 of you voted and Monopoly was the most popular choice, with 30% picking it as one of their top three. Scrabble came a close second, with 26% choosing it, followed by Trivial Pursuit (16%) and Cluedo (15%). See full board game poll results. |
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MONEY MORAL DILEMMA Should my brother share his lottery winnings? My brother's girlfriend gave him a National Lottery scratchcard as a Christmas gift, and he won £500. She thinks he should give her some of the money as she gave him the card, but I think he should keep it as the card was a present. Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should my brother share his lottery winnings? | Suggest an MMD | View past MMDs |
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MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (WED 6 JAN ONWARDS) Wed 6 Jan - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, 1pm. Listen again MSE TEAM APPEARANCES (SUBJECTS TBC) |
YOUR MONEYSAVING NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS That's all for this week, but before we go... you've been sharing your 2021 MoneySaving resolutions on our social media channels. Cutting out all unnecessary spending, saving £1 a day and clearing credit card debt were among the popular choices. Meanwhile, several MoneySavers plan to sell their clutter for cash too. If you need some inspiration, or have your own to add, see our New Year's resolutions Facebook post. We hope you save some money, stay safe, |
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