Free £10 off trains, energy hikes MONDAY, free pay rise, £10 De Vere hotels, 1,000 extra Boots pts, 5% Xmas cashback, 40 eBay tricks, 5.6% loan

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	Cutting your costs, fighting your corner	Martin's Money Tips Wed 10 Oct 2012
Cards Reclaim Shopping Deals Utilities Banking Travel Insurance Mortgages Income

This week Free £10 on trains Winter sports travel insurance Are you missing out on a pay rise? 40 eBay buying secrets FREE £17 Gourmet Society app/card £10 De Vere Hotels | £20 Ramada Warning 9% energy hikes hit Mon 1,000 Boots pts boost Reclaim uniform tax for FREE Plain Lazy kids £26 goody bag New 5.6% loan: cheapest since 2006 Tesco.com grocery code 2 comedy tickets and burgers £9 Lenor 1.4L 50p with voucher New cheapest line rent £7.49/mth Body Shop £25 code | Clarks 20% Free can of Red Sq vodka Vouchers Index: Restaurants / Shopping Best Buys: 0% cards | Car insurance Best Buys: Gas & Elec | Bank Accs	MARTIN'S QUICK BRIEFING: For more tips, alerts & awful puns follow Martin on Twitter 5% cashback on ALL spending - great for Xmas EARN £100s. Perfect time to get cashback credit card (even if poor credit) Cashback credit cards PAY YOU to spend on them. Done right, many can earn £100s annually just by changing plastic. Take this by big spender Paul Ashurst... "I put virtually everything on my card and got £1,458 cashback this year. Pay the balance off in full and do some basic budgeting to earn a significant amount." So with Christmas coming, carpe diem. Here are 10 need-to-knows: 1. First, neuter its interest-charging ability. Cashback cards are only worth it if you set up a direct debit to repay IN FULL each month. That way you avoid any interest, so it's all profit (also, never withdraw cash). 2. Now, it's a DEBIT card that pays you, so use it for everything. The direct debit means it's like a debit card, paid monthly from your bank account. So provided you can always clear in full, use it for ALL normal spending (not an excuse to overspend) and possibly expenses. 3. BIG 5% cashback over Christmas & Jan sales. Capital One* Aspire pays newbies 5% back for the first 99 days (max £100 in that time). So now's the time to apply to get 5% for the high-spend Xmas & Jan sales period. Fail to repay IN FULL and it's 19.9% rep APR. After the 5% ends, the rate's 'up to 1.25%' depending how much you spend. You need to own a home, have a decent credit score & earnings of £20k+. Already got Capital One? Barclaycard 6% Cashback and Amex Plat 5% are good alternatives. Full info: Top Cashback Cards, Official APR Examples 4. Poor credit score? 3% cashback. Most cashback cards require a top credit score. Yet Aqua Reward* offers 3% cashback, max £100/yr, and as it's primarily a card to rebuild your credit, even some with past CCJs/defaults can get it. Only do if you can afford repayments. Fail to repay IN FULL each month and it's a hideous 34.9% rep APR. More info: Credit Rebuild Cards 5. Best for motorists: 3% back on fuel spend. Santander's 123* credit card pays 3% on up to £300/mth petrol, diesel, rail & Tube spending; 2% department stores & 1% supermarkets. Yet a £24 annual fee means it only wins for heavy drivers/commuters. Another big plus, unusually, this card pays cashback monthly. Full info: Petrol Cashback Cards. Fail to repay IN FULL and it's 18.9% rep APR. 6. Up the gain with a partner. In a trusting relationship? Janet applies for 5% cashback making John the 2nd cardholder. When her deal ends, John does the reverse for a further 5%. After, both use one card, as cashback rates are tiered. As Chris Ross tells us: "I share cards with other family members - five mths, £171 cashback. Splitting it four ways at year-end." 7. How's the cashback paid? It's usually taken off the statement annually (you owe £400 and have £200 cashback, so you're charged £200). Most cards pay on the account opening anniversary, Capital One every January. 8. The impact on your credit score. It's applications, not acceptance, that matter. One application has no real impact. The problem is when you make lots in a short period, so avoid. Full info: Boost Credit Rating 9. Free consumer protection. By law, buy anything from £100 to £30,000 and pay, even in part, on any credit card (not debit) and Section 75 laws mean the card firm's jointly liable with the retailer for the whole amount. If an item's faulty, or the retailer goes bust, go to the card provider for refunds. 10. Cashback on council tax, mortgages, energy bills & more. With the Santander 123 bank account* (not the credit card) you get 1% back on water, council tax, Santander mortgage payments; 2% on gas & elec; 3% on mobile, broadband, phone and TV bills. Plus tiered interest up to 3%, beating savings. There is a £2/mth fee (£24/yr), but for many pelicans (those with big bills) this is a winner, worth £100s/yr. See the Is Santander 123 For Me? review. Do us a favour. If this email's ever helped you, please forward it to friends and suggest they get it via moneysavingexpert.com/tips
Blagged for MoneySavers Free £10 Train Ticket Voucher 30,000 £10 e-vouchers. Get one Thurs £9 comedy & burgers for two Ends: 24 Nov 2012 £26 Plain Lazy kids' goody bags While stocks last Code for 70% off photo calendars 5,000 available £60 Bench specs for £23 with code While stocks last
Did you miss? 16 months' no interest spending Free and cheap wills New Tool: Wine Discount Finder £9.90 Orla Kiely scarves London Midland £15 unlimited train travel
Reclaim PPI for FREE Claims handlers aren't more successful. Free help & templates: Reclaim PPI
MSE News Top Story: Buy now to beat insurance hikes? ING savers to get UK protection Nationwide axes interest-only mortgages Government caps rail fares rise £10bn welfare cuts
The Ones Not To Miss		Wed 10 Oct 2012
FREE £10 train ticket voucher Plus it's the PERFECT time to bag Christmas and New Year super-cheap train tickets These days, many people let the train take the strain on their wallets. But right now we can unclasp it a little... Totally free £10 for trains. MSE Blagged. We've 30,000 £10 e-vouchers for train ticket booking site RedSpottedHanky. Get one: £10 Train Tix Cheapest time for Xmas & NY tix. Rail operators launch tickets 12-ish weeks ahead when lots of super-cheap advances become available. Now, most have released tickets for 28 Dec, with NY due any day. Full help: Slash Train Costs Free split ticket app. Counter-logically, buying 2 tickets for one journey can save large. A London-Wolverhampton single is £83. Yet buy London-Milton Keynes, where the same train stops, then MK-Wolves, and it's £53, saving £30. To find quirks, use the TicketySplit iPhone app or TicketySplit Android website. back to top ↑
FREE 3mth restaurant 2for1s / 50% off discounts (worth £17ish). MSE Blagged. Free Gourmet Society app (or 75p for card) works at 6,000+ restaurants. RRP £70/year. Full info: Gourmet Society Hot hotel sales (incl Xmas) - De Vere £10 rooms | Ramada £20. Mid-range hotels at budget hotel prices. 11,000 De Vere rooms (starts Thurs), 100,000 Ramada (with voucher). Hotel Sales Warning. 9% energy price hike Monday: FIX for 2 winters to beat it On 15 Oct, SSE's price hike hits. The other big six suppliers are likely (not guaranteed) to follow. Many on standard tariffs can save £200+/yr locking into a cheap fix now, ensuring no hikes for two winters. Full info: Cheap Energy. Cheap fixes: Until 31 Mar '14. Cheapest: First Utility* | No exit fees: Scottish Power* (so no risk). Compare & check savings: Energyhelpline* £15 cashback per switch. Dual fuel only: MoneySup* £30, uSwitch* crate of wine (via these links). Urgent. Boots pts boost - 1,000 extra on £50 spend. Wed-Fri. Good for starting Xmas shopping. Boots Deals
Cheapest winter travel insurance - sort ASAP Get it when you book or you're uncovered | Travel insurance price drop | Annual cover incl winter sports now £27 If you book to travel, but flights/hotels are cancelled before you buy insurance, you're not covered. Many Best Buy Travel Insurance prices have been cut, the guide has 'em all. Some winter highlights... Annual cover with winter sports £27. Our cheapest picks are FSA-regulated policies hitting our min cover criteria. Our top value picks also incl past payout record and feedback. For single trips use MoneySup* (can also beat the below if you take the time to do a full comparison). Annual Travel Insurance - incl basic winter sport cover Cheapest Europe Cheapest worldwide Top value picks include Individual 18-44 Protect Yr Bubble* £27-£33 Age 45-65 HolidaySafe* £34-£38 18-44 Protect Bubble* £33-£40 45-65 HolidaySafe* £54 Top pick: Direct Travel* Europe £42-£62 World £65-£95 Add £20 for catastrophe cover Family / Couple 18-35 Protect Yr Bubble* £48 36-64 Diamond £57 18-44 Protect Bubble* £58-£69 45-64 Diamond £70 Top pick: Direct Travel* Eur £80-£117 World £124-£180 Add £40 for catastrophe cover Going on the piste? Unless it's got winter sports, you won't usually be covered for ski/snowboard accidents, never mind gear & cancelled passes (double-check, even if you already have a policy). Plus, in the EU, always carry an EHIC for emergencies. Those going off-piste/extreme sports, try BMC for cover (though it's not cheap). back to top ↑
Don't pay to reclaim £100s in uniform tax. As often happens when we start a campaign, claims firms try to leech on the back. That's now happening with uniform tax rebates. Just DIY, like this MoneySaver: "Just received a £410 cheque after seeing Martin. Helps to ease the Christmas pressure." See Reclaim Uniform Tax for FREE. £26 Plain Lazy kids' goody bags (worth £83). MSE Blagged. Forumites requested & got it. Plain Lazy Deals New. 5.6% APR personal loan - cheapest since 2006. Rates for £7,500 to £15k loans are plummeting. Derbyshire BS* (part of Nationwide) has dropped to 5.6% representative APR. Sainsbury's* (need Nectar card) has matched it (for loans under 3yrs). Only get a loan if you've budgeted & can afford it. Full help, pros & cons in Cheap Loans, (Official APRs). Tesco.com 1,000 pts + £10 back on £50 groceries. Newbies only. Ends Sun. Via cashback site code. Tesco Deal Click the titles for full info and all our top picks Balance Transfers Car Insurance Cheap Loans Top Cash ISAs Longest 0%: Barclaycard* 23 mths 0%, 2.8% fee (17.9% rep APR) Low fee 0%: Barclaycard* 16 mths 0%, 1.5% fee (18.9% rep APR) Get quotes in this order... MoneySup* Confused* Direct Line* Aviva* Admiral MultiCar* Sainsbury's* (£5k - £7.5k) 7.1% rep APR (Need Nectar card) Derbyshire BS* (£7.5k - £15k) 5.6% rep APR Manchester BS 3.06% AER Min £1,000. Incl bonus. Postal only. Transfers allowed. Cheshire BS 3% AER Min £1,000. Incl bonus. Transfers not allowed See Card APR Examples & Loan APR Examples Comedy tix for 2 + burgers £9 (RRP £52). MSE Blagged. Fri & Sat, incl Ldn, Birm, Leeds. Highlight Deals Lenor 1.4L fabric conditioner 50p. In-store with voucher, 1.4L including Infusions range. Supermarket Coupons
Are you missing out on a pay rise? New laws force employers to contribute to your pension | 15 pension need-to-knows Starting now with big firms, auto-enrolment means virtually all employees will get a pension (retirement savings) unless they actively opt out. Our new 15 pension need-to-knows guide explains the pros & cons. Here's a few... A pay rise? Really? Yup. Under auto-enrolment, if you start a pension, employers must contribute, gaining many £1,000s of old age savings. Even though it means a little less income now as you contribute too, for most it's worth it. If you pay £50/mth, and your employer matches, with basic tax relief, you get £112.50 of savings. Our Pension Widget does the sums. Haven't pensions been pants? Yes & no. Pensions are a form of tax break on investments for old age. They got a bad rep when many were advised to get with-profits pensions (such as endowments) which performed poorly. Their investments went wrong, not the pension. When to start? The sooner the better, to avoid a cold baked bean future. You'll put more in and it has longer to grow. A very rough rule of thumb: halve your age when you start, and contribute that % of your income for the rest of your working life, so start at 20 and it's 10%; at 40 it's 20%. If that's scary, do what you can. back to top ↑
Cheapest line rent cheaper: £7.49/mth. At half BT's price, Primus Line Rental Saver* is £7.49/mth (norm £7.99) until 8 Nov. For inclusive eve & weekend landline calls, its Home Phone Saver* is £8.69/mth. Cheap Home Phones Codes for £25 off Body Shop, 20% off Clarks & more... Body Shop £5 off £15, or £25 off £50 code | Clarks 20% off code & voucher | Ocado 25% off £50+ new custs code Oasis extra 20% off sale code | Warehouse extra 10% off sale code & in-store. Full list: Discount Vouchers BMI frequent flyers warning. Transfer miles to BA by 27 Oct, or they'll be worthless. See BMI Diamond news
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40+ eBay buying tricks How to hunt out hidden bargains | Exploit spelling mistykes | Win auctions with sniping tools and more It's the now-ubiquitous online auction site, a mammoth marketplace with millions of goods. Most people just bid, but to really track down uber-bargains, learn the tricks & etiquette with our 40+ eBay Buying Secrets. Here are three to start: eBay local bargains. Pick-up only deals have fewer bids, so can be far cheaper. Just tell the Local eBay Deals Mapper how far you're prepared to schlep to find them. Exploit speiling mishtakes. Spelling errors mean fewer bidders. Mistake spotters find listings with errors, which can result in cheaper goods. Learn to snipe. Free sniping tools let you auto-bid to cheaply seal deals. back to top ↑
Forum Hottie! Cheap stamps for benefit recipients. From 6 Nov 2012, many benefits recipients will be able to get up to 36 stamps at 2011 prices. See Stamps Deals. Free Red Square Reloaded can (vodka). Like Facebook page, get from Tesco, Asda. Hot bargains & Drinkaware Click the titles for full info and all our top picks Gas & Electricity Bank Accounts Home Insurance Landlines Compare, switch & get cashback Energyhelpline* £15 per switch MoneySupermarket* £30 dual fuel uSwitch* 6 bottles of wine First Direct* £100 bonus and top cust service Santander 123* Up to 3% cashback on bills (£2 per month fee) Get quotes in this order... Confused* CompareTM* Direct Line* Aviva* Get quotes in this order... Primus Line Rental Saver* £7.49/mth BT Line Rental Saver* £10.75/mth (pay a yr upfront) Do a Money Makeover Budget Planner MSE car sticker £16 Travel Insurance
Restaurant vouchers ASK 2 mains for £13 PizzaExpress 3 courses £13 Harvester 'free' starter/pud Zizzi 25% off food National Trust 'free' pud	High street sales House of Fraser up to 50% off Warehouse up to 70% off M&S up to 50% off H&M up to 50% off Asos up to 50% off	Top deals £5 rtn coach travel in Scotland 2for1 theme parks with 50p paper 'Free' Benefit make-up in £4 mag 'Free' £10 Molton Brown in £4 mag Asda 2p bargains Can you find 'em?
The Moneysaving community
THE GREAT HUNT | Tips for new parents After Martin mentioned fitting a car seat on his Facebook page (MSE junior is due in 3 weeks) one follower posted him tips such as "pin a 'baby sleeping' sign on the front door to stop disturbance". So we thought we'd use all MoneySavers' collective wisdom to help new parents everywhere - including our Martin. Read/add yours: Newborn Baby Tips Past topics: View all CAMPAIGN OF THE WEEK | Report spam calls and texts The Information Commissioner's asking everyone to report spam calls or texts. Whether for PPI reclaiming, payday loans or personal injury, your reports will help the ICO investigate firms or individuals who may've broken the law. Spotted a campaign? This space is for MSE to support money-based work by other organisations. Send us a campaign of the week suggestion. MONEY MORAL DILEMMA | Should student daughter contribute? This week's MoneySaver who wants advice asks... My 18-year old daughter just started uni and lives at home. She gets £60/wk grant and has a part-time job on about £50/wk. I've asked for £20/wk maintenance, since I've lost my child tax credit and am a single parent. She's refusing as she believes HER grant's for her to spend. I don't want to kick her out, but how else can I make ends meet and teach her money's value? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should she contribute? | Suggest an MMD | View Past MMDs BOOK GIVEAWAY RESULT | When a Middle-Aged Bloke Discovered Rugby. 25 blagged for MoneySavers. Check your inbox to find out if you got one. CHEAP FLIGHT SALES ALERT | Airline: Monarch Code: Up to £20 off returns Ends: ongoing Our pick this week is Monarch's up to £20 off return flights with the code GETAWAY. Includes some taxes & charges. It's for flights to 26 Oct 2013 to various destinations from six UK airports, eg, Manch to Venice £50. To find flights quickly, use the FlightChecker on an £80 return max search. Extra charges warning: Avoid payment and check-in charges - see the Budget Airline Fee Fighting guide. Related: Cheap Flights, Cheap Hotels, Spending Abroad, Cheap Currency, Travel Ins SPILL THE BEANS... REVEALED | Shop assistants, what's your haggle policy? We received some great tips from MoneySavers who work(ed) in retail on the best way to bag a bargain. Apparently, different Waterstones branches have different offers on the same titles, so it's worth ringing round first, whereas at Apple, "hagglers get nothing". Contrary to popular belief, asking to see the manager is a no-no - just smile instead. back to top ↑
Quick forum tips Top Deal: 29p red onions (750g) at Lidl this weekend. What fun-ion... £8.50 sewing kit (was £17) online & in-store at John Lewis. Sew worth it. £3.50 M&S chocs (were £7), £6.66 X-mas cake (was £10). Have your cake. £1 letter "J" keyring (was £3.95) & more reduced gifts at DotComGiftShop. Debt Free Wannabe chat of the week: Money conscious or spender? Competitions thread of the week: A £600 New Look gift card. Old Style (Thrift) Board thread of the week: How to untangle a necklace?		Andrea's freebies Galaxy chocolate bar Felix cat treats X-plane flight sim Giorgio Armani makeup "No Trick or Treat" downloads
Martin's blogs When will Eon raise prices?   Team Blogs Canning spam texts	Martin's appearances Thursday 11 October Shelagh Fogarty, Radio 5, 12-1pm.  Consumer Panel. Listen to past shows. Tuesday 16 October Daybreak, ITV1, between 7am & 8.30am. Subject tbc. Ps. If you've missed any episodes of The Martin Lewis Money Show watch them here.	Cheap travel money UK's Best Currency Rates £100 will buy you: Best Worst € 123.06 117.10 $ 159.06 150.76 TL 282.50 258.89 Rates correct at 4pm Tue Find all top currency rates Compare travel cash
This week's poll: Is it fair to discriminate on age, gender or race in insurance pricing? In December the European Court of Justice 'gender equalisation' rule hits, meaning insurers can no longer charge men and women different prices (other things being equal). It'll mean hikes in car and life insurance for women, and lower annuity rates for men. Select ALL below which you think insurers SHOULD BE ALLOWED to factor in? Gender Race Age Disability Religion None of them		Poll results Is it wise to borrow £10,000 to travel the world? When one of Martin's followers on Twitter asked for advice on whether she should borrow £10k to go travelling, she had no idea she'd get 11,367 responses. Almost half (48%) said it was silly and she shouldn't do it, 34% reckon it's silly, but they'd do it if it was their one chance and 18% voted 'do it - live now, worry later'. See Full Results.
Question of the week Q: Should I pay to get my EHIC quicker via a 'fast-track' service? MSE Rose's A: No, no, and no. A European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) is worth having if you're going abroad, as it can get you free or discounted medical care in any EU country, plus a few others. Yet there's no such thing as an EHIC 'fast-track' application, so don't get caught out. Google "EHIC" and you'll find websites charging about £15 to process your application, with some offering a 'fast-track' service for an extra fee. Yet the fastest way to get your EHIC is via the official website, www.ehic.org.uk. Go via this route so there's no cost - see the Free EHIC guide. Please suggest a question of the week (we can't reply to individual emails).		Board of the week Local MoneySaving: The Scotland Board Share offers and tips on moneysaving in Scotland. Discussions include Which tattoo studio is best in Scotland?, Looking for a knitting/sewing/mending group and Made to measure kilts.
Archna's free game of the week: Office Sneakout
Name and shame... your dog Here at MSE Towers, we believe in naming the culprits of misdeeds. Yet an oversight in the past means we've missed out some naughty and destructive pooches. No longer - eg, the dogfession: "I eat stinkbugs and throw them up on the nice clean floor." Name and shame your dog. We hope you save some money, Martin & the MSE team
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