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DON'T believe the fake 'Martin Lewis' or 'MSE' ads |
Can't afford to clear debt? Check if you can shift it to 0% - you could save £100s or £1,000s If you've got existing debts, a balance transfer is the key cost-cutting weapon - it's where you get a new card that pays off debt on old credit and store cards for you, so you owe it instead, but at 0% interest. That means more of your repayments clear the actual debt, rather than just covering interest. And after a long wait, we can finally tell you about a top 0% deal that's the market's NEW LONGEST. Two tips first... 1. Don't 'just apply' - that can hit your ability to access credit. Go via an eligibility calc. Our 0% eligibility checker shows your acceptance odds for top cards, so you can home in on those most likely to accept you without applying. 2. If you've a choice, go for the LOWEST FEE within a 0% time long enough to clear your debt. Generally, the longer the balance transfer, the bigger the fee. So if you can clear your debt quicker, go for a shorter deal to minimise fees. Unsure? Play safe and go long.
Quick balance transfer FAQs (click links for Martin's answers) |
1,500,000 car finance reclaim complaints now sent via our free tool. Are you due £1,000+ back too? And if you've already used the tool, a favour... If you bought a car, van, motorbike or camper van on PCP or Hire Purchase between April '07 and 28 Jan '21, go quickly to our free car finance mis-selling guide & tool - the sooner you get a complaint in, the more chance of getting a possible £1,000+ payout. Already complained? We're gathering info on how firms deal with them - please fill in this 2-min car finance survey so we can guide you better on what to do next. Free Asda £5. Newbies to its rewards app can get a £5 voucher to spend on almost anything. Free fiver New. Now FOUR banks pay you up to a FREE £175 to switch. Our top pick is still Santander Edge's free £175 + 7% savings + bills cashback deal, which we highlighted two weeks ago (link goes there). But now it's joined in our Best bank accounts guide by three others: First Direct's free £175 and top service deal, the new Club Lloyds' free £175 + rewards, and TSB's free £100 + £10/mth for six months. Do read through to see eligibility info, and how they compare.
Martin video: 'Chancellor - will you end awful Carer's Allowance cliff-edge?' Outrageously, carers - those who look after vulnerable relatives for more than 35 hours a week - lose the £80-a-week support they get if they earn just a penny over £151. Watch Martin grill the Chancellor on it (just before the election was called). Tesco shopper? Use or extend £17m of expiring Clubcard vouchers. See Tesco alert. Last day today (Wed). Top 22mth 0% spending card - borrow interest-free for nearly two years. If you need to borrow over a year or two, nowt beats an interest-free card, used right. Yet only do it for a planned, one-off purchase, and repay within the 0% time - if in doubt, don't. The longest - Barclaycard's up to 22mths 0% - is being pulled tonight (link goes via our eligibility calc so you can see how it compares). Golden rules: 1) Always pay at least the min monthly payment. 2) Never withdraw cash. 3) Clear debt before the 0% ends or you'll pay 24.9% rep APR. Full help & more options in 0% spending cards. Nationwide customer? Some will get a(nother) free £100. It's re-running its Fairer Share scheme to reward 'loyal' customers. See who'll get the £100 Nationwide payment. Related: Nationwide's £200 existing-customer switch bonus. Martin's new podcast: Will inflation falling impact mortgages & savings? | Cheapest way to spend abroad | It's time to fix energy bills | How to successfully complain. And lots more, all in the new The Martin Lewis Podcast. Listen via BBC Sounds | Spotify | Apple or wherever you like to get your Martin fix. PS: Martin's up for Top Expert & Top Factual Show in the National Television Awards long-list if you want to vote. |
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How to pay less at Amazon... FIVE 'hidden' tools and tricks to bag a discount
- Quickly find bargains: Use our free Amazon Warehouse Discount Finder. - Best for? Up-to-date branded electricals, kitchen appliances, laptops, lawnmowers, games, jewellery, household items. - Consumer rights: You've got statutory rights, but might not get the manufacturer warranty. Amazon Warehouse* shows and sells returned items at reduced prices, often simply because someone has changed their mind. If you're after a posh toaster for example, but can't afford the latest model, then Amazon Warehouse can knock it down to fit your price range. So you know what you're getting, items are categorised by condition: 'acceptable', 'good', 'very good' and 'like new' (see what each grade means). And to help you on your discount quest, we've built the nifty Amazon Warehouse Discount Finder. Tell us what you're after, and it'll show you how much money you'd save compared with buying it new at Amazon. Major bargains we found this week include:
- Quickly find bargains: Search on Amazon Renewed*. For phones, use our refurbed-phone finder for a wider range. - Best for? Slightly older tech including phones, laptops, headphones, games consoles, smartwatches and cameras. - Consumer rights: All have a one-year warranty on top of your statutory rights. While Warehouse is mostly for current models, Renewed only sells pre-owned tech products that have been tested, refurbished and look like new, such as previous generations from Apple, Samsung and Dell. Refurb models also help the environment, as well as your wallet. Stock can be limited, but we found an Apple Watch Series 9 for £310 (from £399 new), AirPods 2nd generation for £69.99 (£129 new) and Soundcore by Anker Q20i headphones for £33 (£50 new). Patricia told us: "Bought a phone and tablet as good as new. My kids didn't notice the difference and it saved me hundreds." Amazon Outlet: Odds and ends, but worth a check for 15% to 70% off new overstocked items - Quickly find bargains: Head to Amazon Outlet* and use the search. - Best for? Brand-new out-of-season items such as leftover Christmas cards/gifts and lesser-known brands. - Consumer rights: You've got statutory rights. The clearance Outlet has 1,000s of brand-new excess stock which Amazon (or third-party sellers) are keen to shift, though it's hit and miss. Best way to think of it is like any store's end-of-sales clearance - it's a mix of funk, junk and a few things you may put in your trunk. We found some men's hiking trainers for £15, reduced from £40. Do check prices though - not everything in the Outlet is discounted, and even those that are may not be great deals. See our Amazon Outlet analysis. Is 38% off a good deal? Check past Amazon prices with CamelCamelCamel. Amazon can play fast and loose with what a discount actually is. Is it off the RRP, the normal selling price... or something else? And, if you don't know what the discount's off, is it actually a good deal? To find out, use CamelCamelCamel's price history tracking tool. For example, a Breville coffee machine is currently "38% off" at £350 - but the tool tells us it was £301 in February this year. Spending £20 to £25 and not got Prime? Check if the Super Saver Delivery Tool saves you cash. Usually Amazon charges for delivery on orders less than £25. If you're just below it, it can be cheaper to add a small extra item than pay for delivery. The Amazon free delivery tool finds suitable extras for you. |
Going away this year? 13 ways to slash the cost of spending abroad. If you missed it last week, check out our top ways to STOP PAYING TO PAY when you go abroad. Top cards, best cash & more Ends Fri. Cheapest 20GB mobile Sim we've seen - just '£3.63/mth'. This iD Mobile Sim (uses Three's signal) is £3.50/mth for the first three months, then £7/mth, but you can CLAIM (don't forget) a £30 Amazon or Currys voucher. Factor that in and it's equivalent to £3.63/mth over the 12mth contract. Want different data / network? Use Cheap Mobile Finder. Urgently register to vote... and check you've valid ID. To have your say in the general election, you need to register to vote (if you've not already) by 11.59pm on Tue 18 June. To vote in person, you also need valid photo ID, so check yours is OK. Or, to apply for a postal vote, the deadline's 5pm Wed 19 June, or 5pm Fri 14 June in Northern Ireland. Cheap period products (eg, £6 period pants) - save £1,000s on tampons & more. It was Menstrual Hygiene Day this week, so we've updated our guide on how to keep period costs down. Cheap period products New. FREE £26 when you spend £5+ online. MSE Blagged. Cashback site Quidco is back with a boosted bonus for newbies, offering an extra £26 cashback via our special link if they spend £5 or more through it. Quidco bonus Free & cheap kids' half-term activities, including FREE Pets at Home workshops. Plus, free fitness classes for girls, restaurants where kids eat 'free', six free Beano comics, and lots more half-term helpers. Ends Fri. Get £50 cashback when you invest £250. If you plan to invest, this Wealthify deal offers a tidy boost. Keep £250 invested for 12mths+ & you'll get £50 cashback. This isn't a Wealthify recommendation - we don't do investment tips - but if you'll use it anyway, you can get cashback. Full info in Robo-investing cashback. Free 3 months' access to 7,000+ digital magazines, from Grazia & Vogue to Gardeners' World. MSE Blagged. For Readly newbies and those who cancelled over six months ago. Plus 10% off for 12 months. Mag-nificent |
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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS
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THIS WEEK'S POLL How long have you been with your broadband provider? Millions overpay for broadband, as their cheaper intro price rockets once their original contract ends - but sometimes there are legitimate reasons to stay with a provider (such as customer service). So this week, we want to know how long you've been with your broadband provider and, if you're a loyal customer, what's encouraged you to stay. Vote in this week's poll. Using a specialist travel credit card is the most popular way to spend abroad. Last week, we asked how you normally pay when you're on your holidays - over 6,000 responded. Just under one third (29%) said they used specialist travel credit cards, while 23% used cash ordered in advance, the next most popular option. Encouragingly, only 0.1% said they exchanged cash at the airport - by far the most costly way. See full travel money poll results. |
MONEY MORAL DILEMMA I'm single and have rented a holiday home with two couples - how should we split the cost? We've rented a house that has three double bedrooms, with the couples taking a room each, and me taking the third. The couple that booked it have suggested we split the cost three ways as there are three bedrooms, which means me paying a third of the total, and the others a sixth each. Surely a five-way split would be fairer? The house includes other rooms and amenities, which we'll all use. Enter the Money Moral Maze: How do we split the cost of our rented holiday home? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma (MMD) | View past MMDs |
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MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (TUE 28 MAY ONWARDS) Tue 4 Jun - This Morning, phone-in, ITV1, 10.20am |
DITCHING TISSUES FOR HANKIES: THE SIMPLE WAYS YOU LOOK AFTER THE PENNIES TO SAVE POUNDS That's all for this week, but before we go... MSE Forumites have been sharing the simple things they do to look after the pennies to save pounds. A common tip was to batch-cook and freeze meals, while a purr-fect tip for pet owners is to use shredded free newspapers as an alternative to cat litter. Using soap rather than pricey shower gel is how another Forumite cleaned up their MoneySaving act, while another has built up a decent savings pot by putting the loose change left over at the end of the week into a jar. But the tip that got up many people's noses was ditching tissues for the old-fashion hankie - while several posters admitted to doing this to save cash, it really divided opinion among MoneySavers. Let us know how you blow a hole in your regular spending in our Saving pennies to make pounds forum thread. We hope you save some money, |
Important. Please read how MoneySavingExpert.com worksWe think it's important you understand the strengths and limitations of this email and the site. We're a journalistic website, and aim to provide the best MoneySaving guides, tips, tools and techniques - but can't promise to be perfect, so do note you use the information at your own risk and we can't accept liability if things go wrong. What you need to know This info does not constitute financial advice, always do your own research on top to ensure it's right for your specific circumstances - and remember we focus on rates not service. We don't as a general policy investigate the solvency of companies mentioned, how likely they are to go bust, but there is a risk any company can struggle and it's rarely made public until it's too late (see the Section 75 guide for protection tips). We often link to other websites, but can't be responsible for their content. Always remember anyone can post on the MSE forums, so it can be very different from our opinion. Please read the Full Terms & Conditions, Privacy Policy, How This Site is Financed and Editorial Code. Martin Lewis is a registered trade mark belonging to Martin S Lewis. More about MoneySavingExpert and Martin LewisWhat is MoneySavingExpert.com? Who is Martin Lewis? What do the links with an * mean?Any links with an * by them are affiliated, which means get a product via this link and a contribution may be made to MoneySavingExpert.com, which helps it stay free to use. You shouldn't notice any difference; the links don't impact the products at all and the editorial line (the things we write) isn't changed due to them. If it isn't possible to get an affiliate link for the best product, it's still included in the same way. More info: See How This Site is Financed. As we believe transparency is important, we're including the following 'un-affiliated' web-addresses for content too: Unaffiliated web-addresses for links in this email tescobank.com, uk.virginmoney.com, natwest.com, rbs.co.uk, amazon.co.uk Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Note MONY Group Financial Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA FRN: 303190). MoneySavingExpert.com Ltd is a company registered in England and Wales. Company Registration Number: 8021764. Registered office: One Dean Street, London, W1D 3RB. MoneySavingExpert.com Limited is an appointed representative of MONY Group Financial Limited. To change your email or stop receiving the weekly tips (unsubscribe): Go to: www.moneysavingexpert.com/tips. |
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