MoneySavingExpert's Money Tips Email

When you focus on people's finances for a living, Christmas feels a mixed bag. For many, especially little ones and families, it's a source of joy and anticipation. On the other hand, for some it leads to terrible financial health in the new year, and exacerbates crisis debts.

So let us try to ensure you're tooled up with the knowledge you need to sail through this festive season with more joy and less stress.

1. You have NO LEGAL RIGHT to return goods bought in store, unless they're faulty. Many people are shocked by this. So let's be plain. If you buy goods in store, you have no legal right to change your mind - even if you bought the wrong size. You can only take goods back if they are faulty. So make sure you are sure you want items before buying.

Some stores may allow no-fault returns, or have returns policies allowing it, but then you're at the mercy of their terms. If they say 'it's a credit note', take it they're being generous. See Return unwanted gifts.

Watch Martin's two-minute Christmas rights tool-up video. It's a couple of minutes well spent.
Watch Martin's video.

2. Totally FREE Christmas gifts. Don't have money? Spend time instead. Our printable Christmas gift cheques let you pledge to do something nice for someone, eg, breakfast in bed, cleaning their car, a massage.

3. There's still time (just) to cut the cost of sending parcels for Christmas. Use discount courier websites to get the big firms to deliver, but at a fraction of the cost. Full info in Cheap parcel delivery.

4. Urgent. The last 'free or cheapest' online order dates are imminent for Amazon, Asos, Nike etc. We've compiled our full list of 29 retailers' last 'free or cheapest' order dates so you don't leave it too late.

5. Buying on Amazon - is it really discounted? Find out how to speedily see past prices to check if reductions are real. Also see our other 30+ Amazon shopping tricks.

All I want for Christmas is... half-price Tesco toys, £26 Nails Inc set, 50% off H&M

We've a full Christmas deals compendium to help you keep costs down. Whether toys for the kids, or last-minute beauty gifts, here are some of the hottest deals to warm these colder nights.

6. Tesco half-price toy sale. Including Barbie, Paw Patrol etc.

7. £103 of Nails Inc for £29. MSE Blagged. Including eight polish and skincare items. 2,000 available.

8. £187 of Lottie London for £34. MSE Blagged. Including 29 dupes. 5,000 available.

9. Boots Soap & Glory set for £32.50. The popular Star Gift with £78 of make-up and skincare is still available - great for separating and giving its constituent parts to a few people.

10. 33% off ALL cards at Scribbler. MSE Blagged. Ends Tue.

11. See our full calendar of what's to come in the Christmas Deals Predictor. Highlights include a range of New Year SALES that start in time for you to order for Christmas.

12. H&M up to 50% off sale to start on Thu?

13. Kurt Geiger up to 50% off to start on Fri?

14. Asos up to 70% off sale to start on Mon?

15. Track Santa's journey as he delivers presents. The big fella has quite the journey on Christmas Eve, and a nifty free Santa tracker lets you watch his progress - wonderful with ickle ones.

16. You DO have a no-fault right of return ONLINE. Order goods online and, unless they are perishable or personalised, you have a legal right to notify retailers up to 14 days after they arrive that you're returning them for a full refund (think about this timing for prezzie buying).

You've then another 14 days to send them back (this is the law so if firms say you must do it quicker, ignore, many are wrong).

17. Not bought presents yet? Maybe just agree... not to. For years Martin's been campaigning to ban unnecessary Christmas gifts. Do read his blog and watch the video - it went viral with over 17m views on Facebook and over 300,000 shares.

18. You've only 30 days to return faulty goods for a full refund - so if you buy presents long before giving them, beware. If you bought early or are giving late, beware store-bought goods, especially expensive items. You'd be better to check they're working now, rather than leave it too late, as from 30 days after purchase, by law you're only entitled to a replacement or repair.

19. Stay sustainable this Christmas, get a festive jumper for £3ish. We show you how to DIY, where to bag a second-hand bargain, or the cheapest places to buy new if you must in our Sustainable Christmas jumper blog.

20. By law, only the purchaser can return faulty goods - unless you have a gift receipt. Don't assume the recipient will be able to return prezzies, even if faulty. Many allow it, yet by law only the purchaser has a right. A gift receipt transfers that right though (and if not offered, you can write on your receipt and the store's to do it). More on this in our returning Christmas presents info.

21. Can't afford Christmas? Then go cold turkey. If you're ill-prepared, it may be possible to avoid the nightmare before (and after) Christmas, as Martin's 2018 Christmas cold turkey blog shows: "Christmas is just one day. Far more important is a happier, financially less-stressed New Year."

22. Ever thought of doing a lot for... charidee? Make it a time of genuine giving - check our charity gift catalogue for inspiration (more on this next week).

23. Shopping online? Speedily check prices to ensure you've found a good deal. We like PriceSpy and PriceRunner, though there's also the ubiquitous Google Shopping.

24. Abandon your online shopping basket and possibly get 20% off H&M, Asos and more. A nifty trick to push online retailers into giving you a discount code - some have saved £100+. See which retailers tend to offer abandoned basket discounts.

25. Do your Christmas shopping through cashback sites to bolster your New Year coffers. Check if you can make merry by buying via a top cashback site and getting money back.

26. Free Amazon delivery trick via clever tool. Non-Prime members can avoid paying up to £4.99 delivery for most orders under £20 with our Super Saver Delivery tool.

27. Find super-cheap local bargains. Items that must be collected in person often attract fewer bids, meaning there are bargains to be had - our free Local eBay Deals Mapper tool will locate gems near you.

28. Can you beat MSE Rhiannon's 'same wrapping paper for six years' record? She's turned reusing it into an art form - see her Sustainable present-wrapping tips.

29. Christmas comping - free-to-enter Advent competitions. Compers on the MSE Forum love our dedicated Advent Competitions board which lists retailers that release giveaways on a daily basis, a bit like an Advent calendar. Prizes earlier this month included Jet2 holidays and a £500 John Lewis voucher.

30. The MSE team are crafty, see their homemade decoration tips. They include making wreaths, baubles, cards and more using foraged or recycled materials for homemade decorations.

31. 20 free (or very cheap) ways to add Christmas magic for kids. It's the build-up and memories that often create the most fun, so see how to do it for little money in MSE Jenny's Christmas magic for kids blog.

32. 19p sprouts, sprouts, let it all out... the cheap Christmas veg deals you can't do without. Come on, we're talking to you - take a look at when these cheap Christmas veg deals will launch, eg, 2kg of potatoes for 19p.

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PS: Goodbye (for now) from Martin...

"From next week I'm taking a wee break, leaving the site and email in the more than capable hands (and brains) of the MSE team until we hit 2022.

"I wish all celebrating a joyous, peaceful and contented Christmas. Plus let's hope for a better and less Covid-filled New Year. For those who find this time of year difficult, grief-filled, or lonely, may your passage through it be easy, with more smiles than you expect. Martin."

DON'T believe the fake 'Martin Lewis' or 'MSE' ads
Lots of scam ads litter social media and even newspaper websites - some of these lie that we or Martin promote Bitcoin, binary trading etc. See Fake ads warning.

Ends tomorrow. Shift card debts to the market's longest 0% - 31 months (2.75% fee) & get £40 Amazon voucher

Don't wait until Christmas to deal with debt. The sooner it's sorted, the sooner it's cheaper

If you have debt on a credit or store card, and can't afford to clear it each month, then you can't afford not to check out whether you can get a 0% balance transfer card. That's where you get a new card that pays off debt on old cards, so you owe it instead but with NO INTEREST. This means your repayments clear the actual debt rather than just cover the charges, so you're debt-free quicker. Yet the market's top longest 0% deal is being pulled imminently...

What really counts is getting the best card you'll be accepted for... use our tool to check. Each application leaves a mark on your credit file, yet our 0% Balance Transfer Eligibility Calculator shows your acceptance odds (and in some cases pre-approval) for most top cards without affecting your future ability to get credit, so you can minimise applications.

Top NEW CARDHOLDER 0% BALANCE TRANSFERS Go for lowest fee (factoring in rewards) in the time you're sure you can repay. Unsure? Play safe, go long
CARD	KEY 0% INFO	HOW GOOD IS IT?
Ends 11.59pm Thu. Santander Best: check acceptance odds. Or apply* direct.	- 31mths 0%. - 2.75% fee of debt shifted (min £5). - £40 Amazon voucher on acceptance, but you must CLAIM it. - 20.9% rep APR after the 0%.	Market's longest 0% & fee offset by voucher. If the odds show you're likely to be accepted, it's a corker as all accepted get 31mths 0%, plus via our links (not direct) you get the voucher which offsets the fee - you'll get an email to claim it after 30 days.
Sainsbury's Bank Pre-approval available if you check acceptance odds. Or apply* direct.	- Up to 30mths 0%. - 1.5% fee of debt shifted (min £3). - 19.9% rep APR after the 0%.	Long, lower fee 0%, but an 'up to'. Slightly shorter than Santander and, while no voucher, it has a far lower fee. So it beats Santander for transfers over £3,200, though that's if you get the full 0% length, and some accepted only get 24mths.
Sainsbury's Bank Pre-approval available if you check acceptance odds. Or apply* direct.	- Up to 21mths 0%. - NO FEE. - 20.9% rep APR after the 0%.	Longest NO-FEE card, but an 'up to'. If you can repay debt quicker, this may be a winner as there's no fee (though if you're shifting less than about £1,450 and will use the Amazon voucher, Santander still wins, as the voucher gain is bigger than the fee cost). Plus unless your acceptance odds show you're 'pre-approved' for this card, you could be offered just 17mths or 13mths at 0%.
HSBC Best: check acceptance odds. Or apply* direct.	- 20mths 0%. - NO FEE. - 21.9% rep APR after the 0%.	Longest NO-FEE card with definite 0% length. Very similar to the Sainsbury's card above, but here those with decent odds can apply safe in the knowledge that if they're accepted they'll get the full 0% length.

Getting a card? Always follow the Balance Transfer Golden Rules:

a) Never miss the min monthly repayment, or you could lose the 0% deal and it'll cost far more.
b) Clear the card (or balance-transfer again) before the 0% ends, or the rate rockets to the higher APR.
c) Don't spend/withdraw cash. It usually isn't at the cheap rate and withdrawals hit your ability to get future credit.
d) The balance transfer must usually be done at application or within 1-3mths to get the 0% - check your card.
e) You can't balance-transfer between two cards from the same banking group.

Full help and info, including options for poorer credit scorers, in Best balance transfers (APR examples).

Ends TOMORROW. Biggest upfront FREE cash bank switching bonus... £150. Until 11.59pm on Thursday, newbies switching to the HSBC Advance* account via this link can pocket the biggest bonus we've seen since early 2020. To get the £150 (plus a £10 donation to Shelter), you must have £1,500+ going in within 60 days (so just salary for many). Full eligibility info and more options in Best bank accounts.

LOOPHOLE: To get a totally free £40 Amazon voucher. Santander's top balance transfer card deal (see above) ends on Thursday at 11.59pm - everyone accepted (check acceptance odds or apply*) is sent an email after 30 days to claim a £40 Amazon voucher. So you can twist this to just apply, do nowt with the card, get the £40 voucher, then cancel the card. Though if you'll soon make a key credit application, such as a mortgage, all applications have a slight short-term negative impact on your creditworthiness, so in that case, it's best you don't.

Ninja blender/soup maker, multi-cooker 'up to £80 off' via special codes. MSE Blagged. Deals to get £150 multi-cooker (normally £230) and £100 soup maker (normally £150). Ninja codes

Working from home's back again in England. Are you now due up to £280 tax back? If your UK employer requires you to work from home, even just for a day, read Martin's Working-from-home tax back blog.

How do you pay 18p for Doritos, 28p for Sprite, £2.70 for £13 Hotel Chocolat box? Via a 10% extra code for already-reduced 'past best-before' food. MSE Blagged. Approved Food sells cheap groceries near or past their 'best-before' date (just the manufacturer's view of optimum quality, not the use-by date, so they're safe). Min £22.50 spend, delivery is £3+ or free for newbies. Approved Food

Urgent. Shelly saved £560 after Martin's car & home insurance warning - it's not too late. The clock is ticking - a fortnight ago Martin warned everyone to get quotes now, EVEN IF NOT NEAR RENEWAL, as new rules on 1 Jan 2022 may see costs spike. Our success of the week is from Shelly, who followed that and emailed: "After reading the recent email, I sorted out my home insurance. My renewal quote was £743, but I got a quote for £181. Thanks for all your tips." Please send us MoneySaving successes on this or anything else (PS: If you've got deja vu, that's because this was in last week's email, but the links were broken for some, so we've repeated it.)

Grab a money-can't-usually-buy piece of (Martin's) TV history - for charity

Martin: "As it's Christmas, I'm auctioning off my House of Games winning robe, and, courtesy of ITV from The Martin Lewis Money Show, a Martin Lewis cushion, piggybank and 'oil painting' of me and Angelica Bell. All proceeds will be split between the Money & Mental Health Policy Institute charity and Grief Encounter children's charity. I'll cover all UK delivery costs (they'll arrive in Jan) and if you want, I can sign them. Do dig deep, but affordably..."

BLAGGED FOR MSE

- Ninja blender & multi-cooker, up to £80 off 8,000 available
- Extra 10% off reduced past-best food Ends Tue
- eHarmony premium free seven-day trial Ends Tue

DID YOU MISS?

- FREE Greggs meat or vegan bake & hot drink (normally £3ish)
- Cheap Covid travel tests - including day 2 PCRs from £35
- Barclays is slashing Blue Rewards, so many should dump it
- Santander customer? You can set your own contactless limit
- Which cheaper own-brand Irish cream won the MSE taste test?

Universal credit: over 1m people missing out - are you?
Free tool to check - Christine: 'over the moon to find I'm due £40/wk'
CHECK IF... your income's sub-£30,000 or you're on legacy benefits such as tax credits or income support

Major recent rule changes to the state's 'universal credit' welfare payments mean there are now more than one million eligible people likely missing out - including a new clutch of 600,000 who are now eligible but weren't before. So if you're on a lower income, it is worth spending a bit of time to check if you're one of them...

Use our free 10-minute universal credit & benefits checker tool. More than seven million households are missing out on some form of state support - our 10-min benefits calculator is a ready reckoner which shows what and how much you may qualify for. Christine emailed us after checking two weeks ago:

"We completed it to see if we're eligible for housing benefit. It said we were, plus carer's allowance. We applied and will get £40 per week [£2,080/year] backdated until September. We're over the moon. Can only encourage others to do it, you'll never know unless you try. Thanks, Martin and staff."
600,000 more eligible - if you have family income under £30,000 (some under £50,000) check now. About 600,000 extra working households are now eligible for universal credit, and many who are already eligible will get more, because of two things...

- Work allowances increased by £42 per month. The amount those in households with children, or those with 'a limited capacity for work', can earn before universal credit drops has been increased.

- If you earn over your work allowance, you keep more of it. The amount of universal credit you receive is reduced if you earn over this, but now you keep 45p per £1 of earnings, rather than 37p.

So who should check? Our rule of thumb is if you have less than £30,000/yr household income, especially if you have kids, use our 10-min benefits calculator (this doesn't mean you'll get it, just that it's worth investigating). But if you've two or more children and high rent, it can be worth checking if you've household income up to £50,000/yr.
On legacy benefits such as tax credits or income support? Find out if universal credit now pays more. If you're one of the three million still claiming tax credits, income support, housing benefit, income-based jobseeker's allowance and income-related employment & support allowance, you'll eventually be moved to universal credit which replaces them all. Yet this may take years, so check if you'd be better switching now - many will (especially after the changes above), but some won't.

- Who's likely to be better off on universal credit? Those who work and pay rent, especially if they live in a city.

- Who's unlikely to be better off? Those who aren't in work | Those who work but don't pay rent | Self-employed people earning under £1,200/mth | Those with savings of more than £16,000.

Read our full new step-by-step Should I switch to universal credit guide to take you through it.

As Ikea launches its 'up to 50% off' winter sale, our 20 hacks can cut its prices further. See our sale analysis in 20 Ikea hacks, also including '£9' Christmas tree as well as free tea and coffee.

'Martin, why do you say don't fix, when you're also predicting a HUGE price cap rise?' He's being asked this a lot, so watch Martin's 4-minute energy video explainer and share it to help counter the disinformation.

SCAMS UPDATE 1: Parliamentary committee supports our call to put ads in Online Safety Bill. Brilliant news as the cross-party joint committee, that Martin gave powerful evidence to, has recommended big tech be responsible for the adverts they're paid to publish. Now we must hope the Govt listens - see Scam ads news.

SCAMS UPDATE 2: Police warn about 300 'fake emails from Martin' reports. The police agency Action Fraud has warned about Martin scams. Remember, this newsletter and other MSE emails are the ONLY legit emails you'll get from Martin (unless you know him). See the scam emails to watch out for.

Unique chance to try eHarmony premium for a week for free. MSE Blagged. Sign up via our link and get access to the dating site's premium membership free, with NO SUBSCRIPTION needed (normally £10/mth). eHarmony

Can you gain £100s with just a 5-minute look in your wallet? Check if your purse is financially fit.

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS

Longest 0%: Ends 11.59pm Thu. Santander (check eligibility / apply*) 31 months 0%, 2.75% fee - min £5, plus claim a £40 Amazon voucher (20.9% rep APR interest)
No-fee 0%: Sainsbury's Bank (check eligibility / apply*) up to 21 months 0% (20.9% rep APR)

Standard (10Mb+): Shell Energy, equivalent to £12.66/month
Fibre (30Mb+): Vodafone, equivalent to £17/month
Superfast fibre (55Mb+): Vodafone, equivalent to £18/month

Top standard easy access: Investec 0.71%, min £5,000 deposit
Top one-year fix: Masthaven Bank 1.39%, min £500

Get comparison site quotes in this order:

Cheapest for £5k-£7.5k: Sainsbury's Bank (check eligibility / apply*) - 3.3% rep APR interest (Nectar cardholders), 3.4% rep APR (non-cardholders, 4-5 years)
Cheapest for £7.5k-£15k: Cahoot (check eligibility / apply*) and Santander (check eligibility / apply*) - 2.8% rep APR, plus claim a £50 Amazon voucher

Ends 11.59pm Thu. £150 cash to switch + £10 charity donation: HSBC
£100 to switch + great service: First Direct

Up to 3GB data: Lebara, equivalent to £4.29/month for 3GB, unlimited minutes & texts
4GB-9GB data: Plusnet, equivalent to £4.34/month for 4GB, unlimited minutes & texts
10GB+ data: iD Mobile, equivalent to £4.92/month for 10GB, unlimited minutes & texts

THIS WEEK'S POLL

How much is a £100 voucher at Amazon, M&S, Halfords and more really worth to you? These days, many short-lived promotional deals are discounted via store-specific vouchers, not cash. So we wanted to test which you found the most valuable and which are most appealing. To do that, we want to know how much you'd pay for a £100 voucher for different retailers.

Lebara is the top mobile provider for service and network coverage combined. Last week, we asked how you rated your provider for service (how it treats you) and coverage (how strong the signal is) - more than 4,000 people voted. Lebara (which uses Vodafone's network) ranked best when the two elements were combined, as 63% of its customers rated it 'great' for customer service and 70% rated it 'great' for network coverage. For service alone, Giffgaff was top with 72% rating it 'great', while Lebara was unbeaten for coverage. Virgin Mobile took the wooden spoon for service, as 29% of its customers said it was 'poor', while Three ranked bottom for coverage, with a whopping 56% rating it 'poor'. See full mobile poll results.

MONEYSAVING NEWS

- Top story: Beware of local councils promising new energy switch events
- Zopa to close ALL investor accounts - what this means for you
- Nationwide to shut 15,000 bank accounts used by small charities and clubs
- Christmas anti-fraud jingle released by the UK regulator to help consumers spot financial scams

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA

Should I tell my family their Christmas presents are second-hand? On a recent trip abroad, I bought Christmas presents second-hand for all my family. They're in amazing condition and I got them for good prices, plus I wanted to prioritise the environment (I didn't fly to my destination). To me, gift giving's about what you choose for a person and the effort you put in rather than the price you pay, but if they were to find out, I wouldn't want them to think I was trying to hide that I may not have spent as much on them as I have in the past. Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should I tell my family their Christmas presents are second-hand? | Suggest an MMD

MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (WED 15 DEC ONWARDS)

Wed 15 Dec - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, 1pm. Listen to past episodes

MSE TEAM APPEARANCES (SUBJECTS TBC)

Thu 16 Dec - BBC Radio Manchester, Morning with Michelle Dignan, from 9.30am
Tue 21 Dec - BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, Mid-morning with Amir Suleman sitting in for Jeremy Sallis, from 12.40am

'TIS THE SEASON FOR... PACKAGES BEING LEFT INSIDE A RABBIT HUTCH & OTHER ODD PLACES

That's all for this week, but before we go... it's the busiest time of the year for deliveries, but sadly not all courier firms treat packages with love and care, so MoneySavers on our social channels have been sharing wacky places their items have been left in. One was accurately thrown through a small open window on to the couch, another was left in a shed, while one was left inside a rabbit hutch with the bunny keeping guard. Let us know your stories and read those from others in our oddest place you've had a package delivered Facebook post.

We hope you save some money, stay safe,
The MSE team

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What you need to know

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More about MoneySavingExpert and Martin Lewis

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Founded in February 2003, it is now the UK's biggest consumer help website, with more than 16 million users each month and about 7.5 million receiving this email. In September 2012 it became part of the MoneySupermarket Group PLC. Its focus is simple - saving cash and fighting for financial justice on anything and everything. The site has over 80 full-time staff, more than a third of whom are editorial - researching, analysing and writing to continually find ways to save money. More info: See About MSE.

Who is Martin Lewis?
Martin Lewis OBE is the founder and executive chair of MSE, as well as the founder of the MMHPI charity. He's an ultra-focused MoneySaving journalist and consumer campaigner with his own prime-time ITV programme The Martin Lewis Money Show, Radio 5 Live Wednesday show Ask Martin Lewis and weekly slot on This Morning, among others. More info: See Martin Lewis' biography.

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