Archive: MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

15 Motoring MoneySaving tips to put the brakes on costs here in the UK (and abroad) this summer 

Fuel prices may've dropped, but they're still hefty. And car insurance prices are exploding...

Petrol and diesel prices may've dropped this year, but they're still a painful 30% higher than in 2020. And elsewhere, the cost of getting behind the wheel is accelerating, especially if you're at insurance renewal time.

So if you're planning to drive this summer, whether in the UK or overseas, it's well worth looking for indicators of costs you can swerve and checking your blind spot for rising prices you may be able to reverse. You can find full help in our 50+ Motoring MoneySavers, but here are some of the most essential to send you on your way...

1. More than 2 million are driving on expired licences, check yours now. If you don't renew, you risk a fine. Most photocards go out of date after 10 years, so if you're driving anywhere this summer and you're not sure about yours, quickly check if your licence is valid.

If you get caught driving with an expired licence, you could be hit with a fine of up to £1,000. Remove the risk by seeing how to renew (and your rights once your application's in).

2. Swerve pricey motorway services. Speedily find cheaper places to eat, drink, refuel and sleep with Just Off Junction.

4. Track down cheaper fuel. With PetrolPrices, you can see where the cheapest filling station near you is in seconds. On one postcode we spot-checked, we found prices ranged from 148p to 170p a litre within five miles.

5. The rebook trick keeps on keeping on giving... is your car hire cheaper than when you booked? Car hire costs seem to be following a bizarre pattern this year. Normally booking early is cheapest, but many are reporting prices have dropped. So keep checking if you can get it cheaper via comparisons such as Skyscanner*, Kayak*, TravelSupermarket* and Carrentals*. If prices have dropped, and your booking has free or cheap cancellation, fill your boots by rebooking and cancelling.

We've been swamped with successes, such as Steve: "Thank you for your piece about rechecking car hire costs AFTER you've booked. I booked car hire in Croatia back in January for £203 for 7 days. I rechecked last week, it's now £140. I cancelled and rebooked at the lower price."

6. The accelerator's a money burner, then again, so are the brakes! Speed up too quickly and you don't gain much time, but do rack up cost. And every time you brake, you're losing the speed you've paid for. So with good road positioning, smooth driving and by using momentum wisely, you can speed up and down gradually yet safely, which can have a marked impact on your car's fuel use, saving you £100s a year. See our eight driving efficiency tips.

7. Breakdown cover, home-start and onward travel just £57/year. AutoAid* has been one of our top picks for well over a decade. It covers you and your spouse (or live-in partner in some cases) in any car you or they drive. Newbies via our link pay £56.64/yr, or £71.54/yr if your car's over 15 years old. For comparison, an equivalent AA policy is £134.50/yr if bought direct.

If basic cover will do, see how to get RAC or AA cover from £41/yr. More help, deals and tips in Cheap breakdown cover.

8. EV drivers, can you save with a specialist tariff? A handful of energy suppliers - including British Gas, E.on, EDF, Octopus and Ovo - offer special tariffs for charging EVs at home. You typically get a few hours of cheap rates (7.5p to 10p/kWh) to charge in. See which EV tariffs are worth it?

And if you're new to the EV world, see Electric vehicles basics.

9. Can you charge your EV FOR FREE? There are 1,000s of 'free charging' points across the UK, in places such as car parks, supermarkets and other stores - though they're getting harder to find. See free electric vehicle charging for how.

10. Booked car hire? Avoid the excess insurance trap at pick-up. Car hire usually includes basic insurance, yet at the pick-up desk, they almost always try to push you to get 'excess cover insurance' costing up to £25/day using scare stories of huge bills for just a scratch - or sometimes implying you have to do it.

Instead, get cheap standalone car hire 'excess' insurance in advance for £2/day. Yet even with it, they will try to put you off or tell you it won't work and make you leave a refundable deposit of £1,000+ on a credit (often not debit) card, which must be in the name of the person who booked. Not a problem, as long as you have one, just keep calm and carry on.

11. MOT due? Eight simple DIY checks and 'hidden' test centres to keep costs down. A third fail MOTs first time for simple, avoidable reasons, which are usually cheaper to sort before rather than after. So look for lights that aren't working, windscreen cracks and more using our easy DIY MOT checks, including TyreSafe's 20p tread test.

Next, find the right test centre for you. If your car's in good shape and likely to pass, simply find the cheapest. If minor issues are likely to be found, 'hidden' council centres may win, with MoneySavers reporting that they're fair and efficient, although they don't do repairs. If major issues are likely, do your research and find a garage you're happy will do good work.

12. Driving in Europe? Make sure you've the right documents, equipment & more. Different restrictions apply on the roads, and if you get things wrong you could face problems - or even hefty fines. Full help in our Driving in Europe guide.

13. Get rid of the junk in your trunk and get pumpin' (up your tyres). A few simple adjustments to your car can mean you pay less for the same journey - roof-rackers beware. See our five fuel-efficiency checks.

14. Taking your car to the EU? Post-Brexit, it's more important than ever to check your insurance. If you are taking your car abroad, don't automatically presume you will get the same cover you get here - it is likely to be the minimum if you have an accident. See our sections on taking your car abroad and not forgetting to get car breakdown in Europe.

15. And finally... could you say 'see ya' to your car this summer? It's stating the bleeding obvious, but there's no better motoring MoneySaver than not motoring at all - and with the average distance of car journeys in Britain being less than nine miles, the stats suggest it's far from impossible. Would any of these work for you?

- If you live in a city, you could join a car club.
- Let the train take the strain with our Cut the cost of train tickets guide.
- Or swap four wheels for two with our MoneySaving tips for cyclists.
- Really cut the cost by walking everywhere, like Martin does.

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And a PS from Martin: "Goodbye for now... I won't be overseeing the next few weekly emails, as I'm going to take a work-break to recharge my batteries. I'm going to try avoid the temptation to comment on any interest rate or Price Cap changes, and leave it to the brilliantly capable hands of the MSE team - who'll likely do it far better than I can. Ta-ta."