Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

Celebrating twenty twenty YOU
15 HUGE MoneySaving successes of the year to inspire, including...

- £15,000 council tax refund
- £6,600 a year income boost
- £3,500 a year pension top-up

It's fair to say that 2022 has been a horrendous year for many people's finances - sky-high energy bills, soaring inflation and rising interest rates have made for a severe cost-of-living crisis. Amid this, we've tried to arm you with the tools to cut your costs and fight your corner - and every week, we're inundated with heart-warming stories from people who've used our MoneySaving tips to balance the books, play the system or nab great deals. Here are a few of the most inspiring successes of the year - hopefully they can motivate you into action in 2023...

1) 'Spending £975 on NATIONAL INSURANCE YEARS has bought me a potential £31,000 state pension boost.' To get the full state pension, you need a full national insurance record - but if you have gaps, you can usually buy extra years to fill 'em up. Normally, you can only backfill six years, but some temporary rules mean you can buy missing years from as far back as 2006, so anyone aged 45 to 70 should check now. Our Urgently consider buying national insurance years guide has the full details, and a handy calculator to see how much you could make.

Zoe emailed us in May to tell us of her HUGE state pension boost: "Thanks to Martin's advice, I checked and I've six years missing for the full state pension. Found I'm entitled to claim national insurance credits for four years and pay to top up another. So for about £975 and 30 minutes' work, I'll receive an extra £31,000 in pension payments if I live for the average 20 years after retirement. Happy days."

2) 'I saved £1,300 in credit card interest using your eligibility calculator to find a 0% BALANCE TRANSFER.' A balance transfer credit card is where you get a new credit card to pay off debts on old ones, so you owe it instead, but at 0% interest. Yet acceptance is key, so use our 0% Balance Transfer Eligibility Tool, which shows the top cards you're most likely to get before you apply. Plus see more on the top balance transfer cards below. 

In November, Adam proved that even low eligibility scores don't mean you can't get a decent card: "I applied to one of the top results on your eligibility checker, which estimated I had only a 20% chance of acceptance. I was offered a credit limit of £3,500 with interest-free balance transfers for about two years. This debt was costing 20% interest. I can now focus on other debts, potentially having an extra £1,328 over the interest-free period."

3) 'I'm saving around £1,200 a year with TAX-FREE CHILDCARE.' The Tax-Free Childcare scheme offers up to £2,000 a year per child towards childcare costs, including nursery, childminder and wraparound care. But while 1.3 million families are eligible, around 800,000 aren't currently using it, even though it could save £100s.

It worked for Kiran, who emailed in October to say: "I had no idea about the Tax-Free Childcare scheme until I received an email highlighting I could pay for after-school care through its website and save 20%. Thanks to Martin and his team, I now save around £100 a month. I am so grateful. Thank you."

4) 'I'm saving over £500 a year after switching to a SOCIAL BROADBAND TARIFF.' If you're on universal credit or similar benefits, you could qualify for a discounted social broadband tariff. Around four million people are eligible, but take up is still low - telecoms regulator Ofcom estimates people could save £144 a year on average.

Emma saved even more. In September, she told us: "After reading about BT's social tariff, I made one phone call to see if we were eligible, as we're currently receiving universal credit, and got our bill reduced from £65 a month to £21 a month - that's a saving of over £500 a year. We couldn't believe it. Thank you so much."

5) 'My mother-in-law has dementia. We got a £15,000 refund due to a little-known COUNCIL TAX DISCOUNT.' It's thought that 100,000s of people are missing out on the 'severely mentally impaired' (SMI) council tax discount, which can be awarded where you're living with a condition such as dementia, Alzheimer's or Parkinson's, have severe learning difficulties or have been impacted by a stroke.

Graham told us in August that he and his wife applied for this on behalf of his 98-year-old mother-in-law Vera, who has dementia: "My wife was worried about claiming because we don't have power of attorney but, after two years of first reading about it on MSE, we finally applied. The council, the Department for Work and Pensions and the doctors couldn't have been more helpful. The claim was backdated to 2012 and was over £15,000! And going forward, the council tax is zero, a great help with the rising energy bills."

6) 'SWITCHING MY SAVINGS has netted me an extra £480 in interest.' The UK base rate has been rising all year, and now sits at 3.5%. While banks are quick to jack up mortgage rates when the base rate rises, they're much more sluggish when it comes to savings.

Don't stand for miserly rates. The minimum you should now be earning on your savings is 2.85% - see the latest top savings accounts. If you're not, check, ditch and switch, like Jo did in April: "I moved all of my savings - thank you so much for the info. I'll make an extra £480 interest this year."

7) 'My pension has increased by more than £3,500 a year after I applied for PENSION CREDIT.' If you're over 65 and have income of less than £200 a week (or £300 if you're a couple), it's worth checking if you're due pension credit. It can be worth £1,000s a year, but more than 800,000 eligible pensioners don't claim. Check online or call the pension credit helpline to see if you're due. If you don't qualify but know someone who might, help them check too.

Brid emailed in August: ''I followed your advice on behalf of my sister. Great news - she got an initial payment of £1,800 and will get around £320 per month thereafter. Thank you so much."

8) 'I made £100 using your EXCHANGE OLD COINS TIPS.' If you have defunct coins and notes from your travels, don't leave them gathering dust in an old jar - MSE Rhiannon has found some nifty ways to flog 'em for cash. See our Tips to get paid for UK and foreign currency.

Maria got in touch in April with a decent haul: "I had leftover currency from my travels over the last 10 years, including currencies from countries I was unlikely to return to. I went to the sites I found on MSE. and managed to exchange ALL of my currencies, including coins, and got over £100."

9) 'After using your template, I reclaimed £5,500 in PACKAGED BANK ACCOUNT FEES.' These bank accounts come bundled with extras, such as breakdown cover, mobile phone and travel insurance, all for a monthly fee. If you use the cover, they can be good value, but in the past banks mis-sold these accounts in droves. Check if you were mis-sold, then complain and reclaim using our packaged bank account reclaim tool.

Anne followed our steps in February: "Thank you so much for the info on reclaiming on packaged bank accounts. I held a Lloyds Gold account for over 20 years, and today my complaint was upheld - I got a whopping £5,555 returned. Happy is an understatement!"

10) 'I saved nearly £400 a year switching to a SIM-ONLY MOBILE deal.' Up to nine million people are currently out of contract on their mobile phone. If that's you and you're paying more than £5 a month for your allowance (that's minutes, texts and data), it's likely you're overpaying. Our Cheap Mobile Finder tool makes it easy to find the cheapest deals.

Giles emailed us in November to say: "Thanks MSE. I was paying £24 a month for myself and £23 a month for my wife - I've changed both of us to a 20GB Sim-only deal for £8 a month, saving nearly £400 a year."

11) 'Thanks to you, we now get 16 days of FREE HOLIDAY CHILDCARE for my granddaughter.' If you're on a low income, and your child qualifies for free school meals during term time, you can also get free extra help during the school holidays, including Christmas hols.

Karen emailed in August about England's Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme: "After reading about HAF in your newsletter, I discovered my granddaughter is eligible. She's now enjoying three days a week at a summer holiday club - she's entitled to up to 16 full days including a meal and it was so easy to organise. You really have made a huge difference at a time which has been incredibly difficult. Thank you."

12) 'I checked if I had any LOST PENSIONS and got a cheque for £2,600.' It's not just pensions lying unclaimed - it's thought there's £50 BILLION of lost assets in the UK, from bank and building society accounts, to Premium Bonds and investments. Use our Lost assets guide to check for lost money you or a deceased relative forgot was there.

Julia emailed in August to tell us: "Martin, after watching your TV episode on forgotten pensions, we contacted the number on your site for the companies my husband worked for 40 years ago. Gave them all the information and within four weeks received a cheque for £2,669 for pension contributions he never realised he'd paid. Thank you."

13) 'I'm saving £1,470 on my TV & broadband thanks to MSE's HAGGLING TIPS.' The best savings usually come from switching, but if you don't want to, haggling with your existing provider can slash costs. This can be particularly powerful when you have lots of products bundled together, as many do with home entertainment and telecoms. Full help in our haggling tips.

Alan followed them in August: "After reading your article on haggling, I thought I'd give it a go with my Sky TV, broadband and phone package. I contacted Sky and said I was leaving. The upshot was that by taking on a new contract for 18 months, I am set to save £1,470 and I changed nothing in my bundle. Happy viewing."

14) 'My son saved a massive £1,600 using MSE's new CAR INSURANCE TOOL.' Back in March, we launched a revolutionary new feature - the MSE Car Insurance Compare+ tool. Fill in one questionnaire with helpful cost-cutting tips from MSE to see your cheapest insurers as a benchmark, and we'll then give you bespoke, personalised tips - such as timing your quote or adding additional drivers - to cut costs down further.

Using it saved Lisa's son a fortune in November: "I used your car insurance tool and saved for my son on his first car a massive £1,600 off his insurance. It's made his life a whole lot easier. Thank you MoneySavingExpert."

15) 'I used your BENEFITS CHECKER - I'm now getting £6,600 a year.' Millions of households are eligible for, but not claiming, means-tested benefits - more vital than ever as people struggle with the cost of living. Our 10-minute benefits calculator is a ready reckoner which shows what and how much you may qualify for.

Joel emailed us after checking in May: "In your weekly email, you encouraged people to check if they're eligible for universal credit. I didn't think I'd qualify, but thought I'd check - turns out I was eligible for £550 a month! Thanks so much for the advice, I'd never have checked otherwise."

PS: If these success stories have inspired you, please tell us how much you saved, made or reclaimed.