This week | MARTIN'S QUICK BRIEFING: For more tips, alerts & awful puns, follow Martin on Twitter £16/year travel insurance
Sort yours AND a valid free EHIC card to ensure full holiday protection The perfect holiday protection combo if Europe-bound is travel insurance and a European Health Insurance Card which gets treatment at state-run hospitals & GPs at a local's price; if they don't pay, nor do you. It's NOT a substitute for insurance (which can be cheap), which covers cancellation, baggage, theft, etc. | 1. | Urgently check if yours is one of 3m EHIC cards expiring this year. Full help and links in our Free EHICs guide, but three key rules...
a) Check all your family's cards. 3m expire in 2013. Renew or they're invalid.
b) Keep it with you. Each person needs to show theirs to use it.
c) EHICs are free. Google them and you may get shyster sites charging £15. 'Fast track' applications don't exist, avoid getting caught out. | | | | 2. | Warning - some Greek and Spanish hospitals have rejected EHICs. Reports are trickling in that a few hospitals in popular resorts aren't accepting EHICs, and funnel travellers to costly private medical care. Getting an EHIC's still essential, but be aware, and read what you can do (incl claiming on travel insurance) in EHICs rejected in Spain/Greece news. | | | | 3. | Three quick rules to pick the RIGHT travel insurance.
 Single vs annual: Go away just 2+ times a year (incl weekends) and annual policies usually win; fewer, and single trip cover's often cheaper.
Individual vs family/couple: For multiple people, family policies win. They can also cover solo trips away, though always check.
Europe (wider than you think) vs world: Some insurers unexpectedly include Morocco, Tunisia & Egypt in Europe. Check, as it'll cost less than worldwide.
Always get insurance when you book, so you're covered for cancellation. | | | | 4. | Cheapest annual European travel insurance £16. These are FSA-regulated & meet our min cover levels for medical bills, cancellation and baggage.
| | | | 5. | 'Top value' annual European cover, £21. These are subjective, incl payout history, extraordinary circumstances such as volcanoes, plus feedback. Even so, insurance is about unexpected events - you can't predict everything. If you want natural catastrophe cover, this costs £20-£40 extra.
| | | | 6. | Skiing or snowboarding? You NEED winter sports add-on. This covers medical costs from accidents, damaged gear and cancelled passes due to piste closure. Check if your current policy includes this - if not, get a quote to extend it, then see if you can beat it buying new cover.
The cheapest with basic winter sports cover is Protect Your Bubble* from £27 for singles, £48 couples/families. For off-piste, extreme sports such as tobogganing, or entering competitions, try BMC (though it's not cheap). | | | | 7. | Over 65? It's pricier, but £36 annual cover still gettable. The cheapest way may be single trip cover - depending on destination, you can get it from £8/week (£18 worldwide) via MoneySupermarket*.
£36 annual cover in Europe: You can get an EHIC, then add EHICPlus* insurance from £36/yr (£59 couples), though it only covers treatment in state-run hospitals. If you're over 80, try Castle Cover or Age UK.
Worldwide: To get cheapest prices, for most you need to go via MoneySupermarket*. 65-69: £72/yr individuals (£108 couples). 70-74: £90 individuals (£162 couples). 75-79: Go direct to PlanetEarth* £202 indiv (£364 couples). Always declare existing medical conditions. | | | | 8. | FREE Europe travel ins for over-65s with bank account. The Nationwide* no-fee FlexAccount gives Europe-wide insurance (joint account covers both) up to age 73, and worldwide or family cover upgrades are cheap. You need to switch to it and pay in £750/mth to qualify.
Alternatively, try the highly-rated Co-op Privilege account at £9.50/mth (£114/yr) which includes worldwide family travel insurance - see how it compares in our Packaged Bank Account Analyser tool. | | | | 9. | Don't hide medical conditions - it could cost BIG. You MUST declare all medical problems or insurers could refuse a pay out. Even so, prices won't necessarily rocket. Staysure* accepts 220 conditions at no extra cost. Plus try Protect Your Bubble*, Insurancewith, Avanti & specialist brokers. | | | | 10. | Gap yearers need specialist cover (from £120). Normal annual policies limit you to 30 days per trip, no good for gallivanting teens. Try Direct Line, Virgin Money, Direct Travel* and Insure and Go*. Prices vary from £117 for European trips, to £213 worldwide. Plus declare if you intend to work, or do any skydiving or shark cage diving (the fun or crazy stuff). | | |
PS. I'm taking a break this week, so all of this email is in the more than capable hands of the MSE team - Martin |
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| The Ones Not To Miss | Wed 6 Mar 2013 |
5% 'savings' and a 0% overdraft
New top current account smashes the savings best buys as bank war hots up Banks and building societies will bribe you with cash or cracking rates to join them. So much so, that now the best savings rates are on current accounts. Grab what you can.  5% interest - clobbers savings best buys. The new FlexDirect current account from Nationwide* pays a huge 5% AER in-credit interest on balances up to £2,500. After a year, it drops to 1%. It's not for big, long-term savings, but it's a healthy boost with rates so dismal.
It gives a 0% overdraft too (50p/day after a year), so it's a top all-rounder. The building society also scores well on customer service. You must switch and pay in £1,000 monthly income to get paid interest, but it's not a requirement for the overdraft.
- 3% on big savings and cashback on bills. Santander 123* pays 3% AER ongoing interest on £3,000-£20,000 balances, plus an ongoing 3% cashback on phone, b'band & TV bills; 2% gas & electric; 1% water, council tax and Santander mortgages. This should dwarf its £2/mth fee, as typical bills will earn £10/mth, though many get more. Its service is also improving, but avoid its costly overdraft. See Santander 123 Analysis.
- £100 plus BEST customer service. It pays no interest, but First Direct* gives new switchers a cool £100 cash if you've £1,500/mth income. It's smashed every service poll we've done, plus has a £250 0% overdraft.
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| FREE £4.80 large Maltesers. MSE Blagged. Use voucher via phone app (newbies only) at Co-op. Shop Scan Save Find hidden eBay local deals. New mobile tool. Now works on iPhones. eBay pick-up only deals have fewer bidders and we've a new Local eBay Mobile Site (must click from mobile to see properly) to help find 'em. It joins our Android Local eBay App and Local eBay Deals Mapper tool. 25% off almost EVERYTHING at Debenhams, John Lewis matching. Until Sun, Debenhams sale, plus extra 10% web code Wed-Sat only. Plus till Thu, John Lewis is price-matching 'unnamed' competitor's 25%-off. Sales Diary Code gets £17 extra large hardback photo book (RRP £47). MSE Blagged. Full details in Photo Deals. |
30 FREE home valuation tools
Snoop on what your neighbours paid, crime levels, price drops and more Whether you're a buyer, seller or voyeur, a wealth of info is available at no cost using secret web weapons. Our updated Free House Price Valuations guide lists over 30. Here's a taster...  Free house price valuations. We've 30 Free House Price Tools to match up sold prices with detailed old property ads, monitor house price drops and track when sellers put particular properties on the market. Plus use police crime-mapping tools, school league tables and even a noise level check. - 50 house BUYING tricks. In the biggest purchase you'll make, small mistakes cost big. Our 50 House Buying Tricks include how to squeeze sellers for info, hidden costs, deal-breakers' checklist, solicitor/surveyor tips & 10 last-ditch Qs, eg: "How to turn the water off?"
- Find the best mortgage deal. With fixed rate mortgages at historic lows, our Remortgage & First Time Mortgage guides negotiate the mortgage maze step by step, while our Mortgage Calc does the sums.
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 Ma-vellous Mother's Day deals ♥ £2 flower bunches in-store or £19 delivered on Sunday. Mother's Day flowers ♥ FREE Mother's Day gift cheques. Pledge to do something nice such as making her afternoon tea, doing the washing up, or just a hug. Printable Mother's Day gift cheques. |
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| FREE tea/coffee at Waitrose every day. Sign up for loyalty card & get a hot drink. Waitrose Deals Habitat 25% off, Body Shop 40% off + free del, H&M 25% off & more
Habitat 25% off code & voucher | Body Shop 40% off + free del code | Jaeger 25% off code & voucher
H&M 25% off one item code | Oasis 20% off code & in-store | BHS £5 off £25 code. Full list: Discount vouchers 100 free Tesco Clubcard points (worth up to £4). Forum Hottie. Tell it your car, home or pet insurance renewal dates but DON'T automatically buy its insurance. Tesco Deals Ends Thu. Unlimited b'band & line rent equiv £7/mth (BT line alone £15). MSE Blagged. Pay £114/yr upfront TalkTalk line rent, then get its Essentials package* for broadband (avail to 85% of UK) + eve/wknd calls for £3.25/mth (half usual £6.50/mth), PLUS a £70 voucher. Factor the voucher as cash and it's £83/yr; equiv to £7/mth. |
Top poor credit 0% debt-shifting cards
Find the best deal YOU can get to cut existing debt costs (incl payday loans), even if you're struggling If you've a poor credit history, getting a balance transfer, where you shift debts to new credit cards at a cheaper rate, can be difficult. Yet our eligibility checker finds your chances of getting both the poor credit and standard deals... - Poor credit 0% card (lets you shift payday loans too). Even some with old CCJs or defaults (use our Eligibility Checker) may be accepted for Capital One's Balance*, letting you shift debts at 0% until July for a one-off 3% fee. After that, it's a massive 34.9% representative APR, so please read Cap One Balance Help to avoid costly pitfalls.
Unusually, it also allows you to do a money transfer, where you pay cash into your bank account, and then repay it on the credit card at 0%. It's good for clearing payday loans at 1,000+% APR, though again, be careful.
- Get up to 21mths 0%? You can check your likelihood of getting a top balance transfer deal WITHOUT hitting your credit file, like applications do, with our eligibility checker tool (sadly, we can't do it on every card).
- Balance transfer golden rules. a) Repay at least the set monthly minimum, or you can lose special rates. b) Aim to repay in FULL before the 0% ends. c) Don't spend on these cards, it isn't usually at the same cheap rate.
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| Free 15ml Colgate Total toothpaste. Travel-sized sample. Go quick before supply decays. Colgate Deals Don't pay £1,240 a workout - cancel unused gym membership. Not going & out of contract? Admit it & cancel. This tweet says it all: "Paid for 3 yrs gym at £69/mth. Think I went twice." That's £1,240 a workout. See Cheap Gyms 'Free' £10 Neal's Yard hand cream in £4 mag. Plus £6-8 Percy & Reed hair products in £2 mag. Beauty Deals |
Free MSE annuity booklet - must-read for over-50s
It's vital you scour the market for the best deal. Now, firms have been told not to flog their own deals hard Converting a private pension into an annuity is a one-shot affair - get it wrong and it can cost £1,000s. Here's what to do: -
 What's an annuity? It's what most people buy with their pension fund to get a regular income till death. Once done, you CAN'T change your mind. Full help to get the best deal in our Free 30-page MSE Printed Annuities Booklet (may take 10 days) or Instant PDF Annuities Booklet. - NEVER just take your pension firm's annuity. Two-thirds grab their firm's offer, likely to be a costly error. A new directive this month aims to stop pension firms flogging their annuities as chances are, they won't pay the most. A 65-year-old with a £100,000 pot may get £4,930/yr with the worst payer, £5,340/yr with the best. Live to 90, that's £10,250 lost.
- Have a medical before getting an annuity. Even if well, have a check-up as ailments such as high blood pressure could get you an 'enhanced annuity', which pays more, as (morbidly) chances are you'll die sooner. The same 65-year-old with high blood pressure could get £5,770/yr vs £5,340 in good health. See Annuity Mantras.
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| £4 fruit trees. Can be up to £20 elsewhere. Trees include apple, pear, plum, cherry and peach. Hot Bargains 2for1 at 26 Merlin attractions incl Alton Towers, Sea Life centres, Madame Tussauds in £2ish cereal.
2for1 Merlin tix to London Eye, Thorpe Park & more in Kellogg's cereals | 25% off Merlin annual pass (usually £160).
Trade in £10 cashback site earnings for £42 Tesco Rewards. If you've cash stashed in Topcashback, £10 now gets 1,050 Tesco pts, worth up to £42 in Rewards. Max exchange £50 (£210 Rewards). Tesco Points Boosting Free Edible Garden Show tix (RRP £26). MSE Blagged. 'Grow your own' show near Coventry. Edible Garden
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Restaurant vouchers | Discount vouchers & sales | Top deals |
| The Moneysaving community |
 CAMPAIGN OF THE WEEK:
Want to teach financial education in your school?
Finance education charity Pfeg's My Money Week runs from 3-9 June. Primary and secondary schools and teachers UK-wide can order an activity pack to start planning ideas at My Money Week. Plus see MSE's financial education info. Suggest a campaign: This is for MSE to support work by other charities, groups and campaigners. Send your campaign of the week suggestion. BOOK GIVEAWAY:
How to be an Everyday Kitchen Magician. 25 blagged for MoneySavers. Want one? MONEY MORAL DILEMMA:
Should we deduct rent from future uni contribution?
This week's MoneySaver who wants advice asks... My 18-year-old son is on a gap year before uni. I'm sure he's getting jobseekers' allowance (£56/week), though he won't tell me. He won't pay for bills or help around the house. We've told him if he won't contribute, we'll deduct rent from our contribution towards uni costs, but if he then can't cope financially he might drop out and have to live off us. Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should we deduct rent from future uni contribution? | Suggest an MMD | View Past MMDs THE GREAT HUNT:
Free/cheap Mother's Day gifts and ideas
Mother's Day is this Sunday, but you don't need to spend a fortune to show her you care. There are loads of great deals above, and we want more inspiration on cheap but thoughtful ideas - whether a bunch of daffs, a homemade card or just spending the day with her. Share yours/read others': Cheap Mother's Day gifts Past topics: View all CHEAP FLIGHT SALES ALERT:
Airline: Aer Lingus Sale: Up to 25% off Ends: Thu 21 Mar
Our pick this week is Aer Lingus's up to 25% off sale. It's for flights from 14 UK airports to Ireland between Mon 1 Apr and Wed 23 Oct 2013. The discount is applied before taxes and charges so you pay them on top. We found flights from London Heathrow to Dublin for £44.99. To find flights quickly, use the FlightChecker on a £50 one-way 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 Insurance THE GREAT HUNT... REVEALED:
Top-selling items at car boot sales
MoneySavers reported beauty items, even used ones such as perfumes and nail polishes, sell well, along with clothing and workwear. But items you're better off taking to the charity shop included videos, old paperbacks and records. back to top ↑ |
Quick forum tips | Freebies |
Martin's blogs | Martin's appearances Monday 11 March
This Morning , ITV, 11am-12pm.
Subject tbc. | |
MSE team corner - Team appearances:
- No team appearances this week
| Board of the week The Flights, Currency & Car Hire Board Share advice and tips on travelling and spending abroad. Discussions include Multi-city travel, Aer Lingus meals and Cabin air quality. | Cheap travel money | UK's Best Currency Rates | | £100 will buy you: | | Best | Worst |  | € | 115.26 | 104.94 |  | $ | 150.41 | 136.75 |  | TL | 264.00 | 241.99 | | Rates correct at 4.30pm Tue | Find all top currency rates
Compare travel cash | |
This week's poll: Which TV ads should be banned? Tobacco ads are already banned. Do you agree with this? Which ads do you believe should be banned from TV screens, or is it down to the public to take responsibility for their choices?
Which TV ads should be banned? | Poll resultsHow do you spend abroad?
17% of MoneySavers use their normal credit or debit card while 26% change cash at their bank or high street currency exchanges.
Tut, tut. We always shout you should use specialist cards (see Cheap Travel Money) or TravelMoneyMax.
11,318 voted (a further 1,624 don't go abroad). See the full results. |
Question of the week Q: Is there anywhere I can cash my commemorative coins for sterling of the same value? Susan, by email. MSE Helen S’s A: Most banks should accept them as deposits into an account or can exchange them for other coins or notes. You can also spend them (not swap them) at post offices.
The other option is to sell them on eBay or another auction site - the rarer the coin, the more it might fetch, often more than face value. However, check sellers' fees before you list anything to sell. Also read our eBay Selling guide for tips. Please suggest a question of the week (we can't reply to individual emails). |
 Archna's free game of the week: Revive |
Read 2012's letters from blind children to Santa If you, like Martin, are soppy, you may enjoy this. The RNIB has given us permission to share some of this year's letters, but they come with a warning: they can induce watery eyes. Letters to Santa 2012 We hope you save some money, Martin & the MSE team |
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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 we 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. MSE, Money Saving Expert, MoneySavingExpert and Moneysavingexpert.com are registered trade marks belonging to MoneySavingExpert.com Limited. More about MoneySaving Expert and Martin Lewis What is MoneySavingExpert.com?
Founded in February 2003, it's now the UK's biggest consumer help website with over 6 million people getting this email and nearly 10m using the site. In September 2012 it became part of the MoneySupermarket Group PLC. Its focus is simple: how to save cash and fight for financial justice on anything and everything. The site has over 30 full time staff about half 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 set up and runs MSE, he's an ultra-focused money saving journalist and consumer campaigner. He has regular slots on Daybreak, Lorraine, Radio 2 Vine, BBC1 Watchdog, Radio 5 Consumer panel and presents ITV Tonight. He is a columnist for amongst others the Sunday Post as well as an author. More info: See Martin Lewis' biog What do the links with a * mean? Any links with a * 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 product at all and the editorial line (the things we write) isn't changed due to it. 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:
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