This week | MARTIN'S QUICK BRIEFING: For more tips, alerts & awful puns, follow Martin on Twitter Going abroad this summer?
10 things to do to boost holiday cash - Factor 50 wallet protection Dreaming of white beaches and turquoise seas? Wake up - even if you've booked, you must ACT NOW to protect your pocket and ensure a better time. | 1. | Permanently holster UNBEATABLE exchange rates. Most plastic adds a hidden 3% load (so £100 of dollars costs £103) when you spend overseas. But four specialist credit cards are load-free worldwide, smashing bureaux de change by giving you permanently unbeatable rates everywhere.
Top pick due to low ATM fees is Halifax Clarity*. Also load-free are Saga* (over-50s), Post Office* & for Nationwide custs ONLY, its Select* card. So pocket one only for holidays. Of course, crucially, always repay IN FULL to minimise the 11.9-16.9% rep APRs. Full info: Travel Money (APR Examples).
Will you be accepted? Getting these cards depends on your credit score. Use our Eligibility Checker to find with which you've the best acceptance odds. | | | | 2. | Find top travel cash rates in seconds (& Asda euro sale). While the cards above win, for foreign currency in your hand, our travel money comparison compares 40 bureaux for the best rates. Until 8am Fri, Asda's got a 10-currency sale, incl US dollars and €uros - it's included in the comparison. | | | | | 3. |  Free sat nav app for 30 countries. If you've a smartphone with GPS (eg, an iPhone or Samsung Galaxy) there's a nifty way to convert it to a decent functional sat nav abroad.
Most importantly, download the maps BEFORE you go, so you won't need to use pricey 3G data while you're there. See Free Sat Nav App info for full help. | | | | | 4. | Get travel insurance NOW or you mightn't be covered. If you've booked with no insurance, you're not covered for cancellation or collapse.
Go away twice a year or more and annual policies are usually cheaper. Here are the cheapest under-65s picks meeting our min cover criteria. FULL info, explanation and options, incl top value picks, in Cheap Travel Insurance.
Europe: Travel Guard* £16-£20 single, £30-£38 family (age-related).
World: Travel Guard* £27-£33 single, Protect Your Bubble* £48-£58 family.
Single trip: Use MoneySupermarket* comparison. | | | | | 5. | Ensure you know how to turn off smartphone data roaming. Even if you don't use the web overseas, apps can download £100s of data in the background. So you need to know how to turn off data roaming (most phones have the option in settings - find it now) to protect yourself.
Plus NEVER watch TV via 3G. Bills when you return can be sickening, eg, Three charges £10/MB in Canada. As a 30min TV programme is 500MB, that could be £5,000. Full help in Cheapest Mobile Roaming & Data Roaming. | | | | 6. | Book cheap car hire sooner and beat hidden nasties. Car hire booked in advance can be as little as £10/day. Use comparisons Kayak* and Carrentals* to find your cheapest. Though beware - many cheap firms charge upfront for a full fuel tank and let you return it empty. For low mileage drivers, this can add £100. Factor it in and pick a smaller car for a smaller fuel tank.
When you pick up the car, hire firms use "one scratch and you pay £500 excess" scare tactics to push costly 'no excess' insurance. Yet excess cover can be got via comparison site MoneyMaxim* at a fraction of the cost.
One MoneySaver told us: "Thanks for the tip. I paid around £17/week excess cover in Portugal. The car hire company wanted €15/day." | | | | | 7. | Slash the cost of airport parking (don't pay on the day). If you need to drive (though public transport's often more MoneySaving), cut costs by booking early and using comparison sites via these special links: SkyParkSecure 13-22% off* | APH 10% off* | FHR 12% off*. Full help & tricks for hidden local deals at many UK airports in Airport Parking. | | | | | 8. | Don't Google to get/renew EHICs, passports and ESTAs. Many shyster sites appear, looking like official sites, but charge extra fees for nowt.
EHICs are always free. The European Health Insurance Card gets you treatment at EU state-run hospitals & GPs at the same cost as a local - so if it's free for them, it's free for you. Check yours hasn't expired - millions have - and always take it with you. To renew or get one, see Free EHIC Card.
ESTAs only cost $14. If you're going to the US, go via the official ESTA site.
Passports via Gov.uk. Passports can be costly - up to £137 - but to ensure you're not paying more than needed, go via the official Gov.uk page. | | | | | 9. | Always pre-book baggage and check in online. Hand luggage only's cheapest - 10kg's quite a lot. Supplement by stuffing socks in big coats' pockets or special jacket cases. If you need to check in bags, always book ahead, it costs up to £100/rtn compared with up to £270/rtn at the airport. And always check in online first, or it can cost a ludicrous £140/person, rtn.
If you've not booked your flight yet, see Cheap Flights for how. | | | | 10. | Jump the queue to grab best seats on the plane. Checking in online is an art. To help paint the picture, a few sites help you find the mythical extra legroom. Use Seatguru to check the plane's seating plan to see whether 18E beats 19C. Skytrax includes airline reviews and rankings too. | | |
These are just the tip of the iceberg - see our full 50 Overseas Travel Tricks guide. |
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| The Ones Not To Miss | Wed 15 May 2013 |
New. Fix energy bills for THREE years?
You can now lock in energy prices, ensuring no hikes until September 2016. But is it worth it? Over the next five years, it's almost certain energy prices will rise considerably. Even if wholesale prices (what the energy firms pay) don't inflate, new power stations, environmental schemes and more will push costs higher. | Long term gas & electricity fixed deals | | Fixed until | Exit fee | Cost/yr | | Avg standard tariff (1) | - | - | £1,420 | | Npower Price Fix* (2) | 30 Sep 2016 | None | £1,320 | | EDF Blue* (2) | 28 Feb 2015 | None | £1,190 | | Cheapest variable (2) | - | - | £1,040 | (1) Quarterly billing, dual fuel customer. Source: Ofgem
(2) Monthly direct debit, dual fuel. Varies by region. | - Fix for 3 years. The new Npower Price Fix* promises no hikes until Sept 2016 and is slightly cheaper for those on bog-standard tariffs. If prices rise 10% a year as some predict (no certainty), some will save £1,000 over the 3 yrs.
- Does it beat EDF Blue? EDF Blue Feb 2015*, while shorter, is much cheaper. Like Npower, it has no early exit fees, so if you want to leave early (eg, prices elsewhere get cheaper) you can. It's available for dual fuel & elec only (not prepay).
By the time EDF's fix ends, someone with typical bills would have paid it £200 less than Npower. So if you want to fix, Npower's longer deal needs to save you more than this in its last 16 mths. If we assume when the EDF fix ends you shift to the cheapest variable tariff, that would need to rise 15% every year for Npower to win. So EDF likely wins for bigger savings, but if peace of mind is key, Npower protects from the worst-case scenario for longer.
- Always compare, get £30 cashback and FREE price monitoring. Always check how these deals stack up for you. Your exact cheapest depends on your usage, postcode & current tariff. Our free MSE Cheap Energy Club will compare (both tariffs are in our 'top picks' tab). Switch via it and you get £30 dual fuel cashback (£15 elec only) on top, and it'll monitor your tariff to alert you when to switch again. More cashback options in Cheap Gas & Elec.
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| Ends Wed. A YEAR's unlimited b'band & line rent £53 (equiv £4.40/mth) MSE Blagged. TalkTalk's Essentials* deal's the cheapest we've ever seen. You get A) Line rent. Usually £14.95/mth, but later in sign-up process opt to pay £114 for a yr upfront, equiv £9.50/mth. B) Unltd b'band. £3.25/mth avail to 85% of UK. C) Free £100 Love2Shop vouch. Use in Argos, Boots, B&Q etc. Factor as cash & it's £53 over the year's contract. FULL info: Cheap Broadband Big FREEBIES (limited supply) - £15 free train credit, porridge oats and dry shampoo
Free 3x£5 RedSpottedHanky train vouch | Free Graze porridge oats incl delivery | 'Try me free' Batiste shampoo £10 Starbucks voucher £5. 100,000 available - eye-catching deal to pump new deals service. Starbucks Deals £30 Body Shop beauty bundle (£84 separately) MSE Blagged. 40%-off code on new £50 bundle. Body Shop |
Get 17 months' interest-free borrowing
If you need to borrow, nowt's cheaper than interest-free
Credit card borrowing can be a nightmare - especially if you just use it willy-nilly to make up a gap in your income. Yet if you've a planned purchase you need to make, crucially, budget to repay before the 0% ends. Done right, it's totally free.
- 17 months 0%. Accepted new Halifax Purchase* cardholders get 17mths 0% on spending. It's the current market longest, though other cards have perks which can tip the scale if you can repay sooner. Here's how they compare.
| TOP 0% SPENDING CREDIT CARDS | | Card | Spending deal | Spending perks | Rep APR after | | Halifax* | 17 mths 0% (1) | - | 16.9% | | Tesco* | 16 mths 0% | 1 Clubcard pt per £4 spent | 16.9% | | NatWest* | 15 mths 0% | Free £10 Amazon voucher | 17.9% | | M&S* | 15 mths 0% | 0.5% back in M&S pts | 16.9% | | Sainsbury's* | 7.8% APR long term (1) (2) | Cashback on Sains shopping | 7.8% | | (1) Representative rate - only 51% of accepted applicants need to get it. (2) The rate isn't fixed, but card regulations mean you can usually reject rate rises. (3) Full info in 0% Cards & APR Examples. | - Will you get the full 17mths? Unusually, Halifax is a representative 0%, meaning it only needs to give the full 17mths to 51% of those accepted, based on credit score. To find out you must apply, but that marks your credit file. So try our Eligibility Checker, which shows your odds of acceptance on this and some other cards above.
- Golden rules: 1) Always budget, and plan to repay (or balance transfer) before the 0% ends or the rate jumps. 2) Pay at least the monthly min, or you'll lose special rates. 3) If you're aiming to cut existing cards' costs, don't use these, get a top balance transfer card instead. 3) FULL info & best buys: Top 0% Spending & APR Examples.
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| New 3% AER cash ISA. New top rate for regular saving, NOT lump sums. Newcastle BS Big Home ISA's 3% variable if you put £1-£500 in every month and don't withdraw. Lump sums/Easy access: Cheshire BS* (part of Nationwide) is 2.3% variable and lets you withdraw anytime. Its rate'll plummet in Oct 2014, ditch & transfer then. Full info: Top Cash ISAs £10 Havaianas flip-flops. Usually £20ish - always popular. P&P £3.50 or free in-store collection. Matalan Deals Instant Shell 5p/L off petrol or diesel voucher. Sign up and print, valid till 31 May. See Cheap Petrol |
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| Puma Hotels 50% off code. MSE Blagged. 4-star UK rooms (usually £79-£240) till Sept. Ends Fri. Puma Hotels Cheapest EVER personal loan - 5% APR. Derbyshire BS* is offering 5% rep APR on £7,500-£15,000 loans paid back over one to five years. Ensure you've budgeted & can afford repayments. FULL help: Cheap Loans, APR Examples FREE 2-month Family & Friends Railcard (and £10 off a year's code). You and up to 3 more grown-ups get 1/3rd off travel for a year, if there's at least 1 child (max 4) with you. Kids get 60% off. See Train Deals. |
Tesco's DOUBLE exchange is back - incl toys & clothes
Reclaim £100s of lost vouchers, then ensure you get maximum value by doubling or even quadrupling them About 16 million people use the supermarket giant's Clubcard loyalty scheme. And as point-chasers know, waiting until its double-points promo is on is a great time to redeem vouchers. As it's back, here's how to max the gain:  Step 1: Find £100s of lost Tesco vouchers. Whether lost 'em or just forgotten you can check and reclaim old Tesco vouchers online at speed. You can find far more than you think, like AnnaV: "WOW - £413 of unspent vouchers. Ridiculously excited."- Step 2: Check if you can QUADRUPLE rewards. Before doubling in-store, check Tesco's Rewards brochure. You can get up to 3x or 4x points' value, eg, £10 becomes £40 at Ask, £30 at Goldsmiths, or £20 on train tickets. We've analysed their true value in our Top 10 Tesco Rewards.
- Step 3: It's back. Double vouchers in-store and online, incl toys & clothes. Until 2 July, its voucher exchange lets you swap £5 worth of vouchers for £10 to spend in-store or online in selected departments. These include toys, clothes, opticians, biking, camping and outdoor sports, cameras, sat nav and audio, baby and toddler and much more. See the full Tesco Exchange info.
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| Brantano (incl Clarks, Nike, Adidas) 40% off code. For 1,000+ shoe styles & accessories. Brantano Deals 1p for £16 magnolia & £5 peony plants (but £4.95 p&p). MSE Blagged. Bloomin good deal. T&M Deals Dorothy Perkins 20% code, Wallis 30% sale & more...
Dorothy Perkins 20% off code & vch | Debenhams up to 25% off sale | 300 Yankee Candle 15% off + free del codes
M&S Outlet 15% off £35 code | Phase Eight 20% off sale | Wallis 30% off sale | Full list: Discount Vouchers & Sales Got Sky Sports just for the footy? Cancel (can take up to 31 days) till next season to save. Cancel Sky Sports BT giving Premier League channel with broadband. Full info on what to expect: Is BT Sport offer any good? |
Free Mental Health & Debt Help 2013 booklet. You're not alone
Mental health issues and debt are a marriage made in hell - each can feed off the other. Yet you're not powerless This week's Mental Health Awareness Week. 1 in 4 experience a mental health issue each year and Mind reports over 70% say it makes their debt worse. Our view is let's ditch the stigma and focus on it like any other money issue.  Free Mental Health & Debt booklet - updated for 2013. Download 44-page
Mental Health & Debt Help 2013 booklet (thanks to charities Mind, Rethink, CAPUK & others for their help) crammed with info on handling debts when unwell, working with banks, where to get help, whether to declare a condition to your bank & more.
- Who's it for? Individuals, families, carers and caseworkers of those with anxiety, depression, bipolar and more. When we first launched our booklet, many told us of their relief on realising (in a good way) they weren't special, and that these issues are common.
- Struggling with debts, but not mental health? Info, tips and how to get one-on-one help in Debt Crisis Help.
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| £11 Gillette Venus razor £3.50. Forum Hottie. Combine half-price offer & coupon. Tesco Deals 2 'free' Legoland Windsor tix (RRP £91). Collect 9 newspaper tokens (£4.80). Must be date-flexible. Legoland Santander bank accounts cut interest to 0% - SWITCH. If you've an old current account, you probably now earn no in-credit interest. Easy option: Switch to Santander 123. It pays 1-3% cashback on your bills, which should easily cover its £2/mth fee, and up to 3% in-credit interest. Leave Santander: Switch to Halifax Reward and get £100 plus a flat £5/mth if you're in-credit, or get £100 for switching to First Direct. Full options in Best Bank Accounts. Tesco 3mth delivery pass £18 (RRP £36), 6mth £30 (£60) codes. Gets half-price delivery. Tesco Deals
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Restaurant vouchers | Discount vouchers and sales | Top deals |
| The Moneysaving community |
 FROM DIY SOS TO AUTHOR
First a home makeover, now forumite Lisawaters writes a book
In 2010, 100 forumites contacted TV programme DIY SOS suggesting it help out Lisawaters. Mike (yes, he's a 'he') had bought a derelict house, but was left in dire straits by a disappearing builder. Now he's written a book about the whole experience. Read about it and watch the programme. BOOK GIVEAWAY
101 Things to do Before you go Abroad. 50 blagged for MoneySavers. Want one? MONEY MORAL DILEMMA
Is it wrong to be a supermarket voucher vulture?
This week's MoneySaver who wants advice asks... Lots of people don't realise they might get a price-match money-off voucher (printed at the end of the transaction) and leave before collecting them. Is it wrong to use someone else's voucher, especially if they're still walking away, or is it fair game to assume they don't want them? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Is it wrong to be a voucher vulture? | Suggest an MMD | View Past MMDs THE GREAT HUNT
Easy freezy - food items that freeze (and those that don't)
When researching a Cathedral City cheese glitch last year, we were surprised to find many freeze cheese. In light of this revelation, we want to tap MoneySavers' collective knowledge on other food items that freeze well, and those which definitely don't. Share yours/read others': Food items that freeze (and those that don't) Past topics: View all CHEAP FLIGHT SALES ALERT
Airline: Aer Lingus Sale: 20% off Ends: Tue 21 May
This week's pick is Aer Lingus's 20% off flights to Ireland. It's on till Tue 21 May and includes taxes & charges for flights between June-October from 14 UK airports. We found Heathrow to Cork flights for £64.02. To find 'em quickly, use FlightChecker on a £80 one-way max search. Extra charges warning: Avoid payment and check-in charges - see Budget Airline Fee Fighting. Related: Cheap Flights, Cheap Hotels, Spending Abroad, Cheap Currency, Travel Insurance THE GREAT HUNT... REVEALED
Cheap taste-a-like tipples
MoneySavers looking for a tasty, own-brand version of Pimm's or Jack Daniel's should head to Aldi, which received the most recommendations for alternative branded spirits. For cheap cocktails, try your own pina coladas. They sound delish. back to top ↑ |
Quick forum tips | Freebies |
Martin's blogs | Martin's appearances 16 May
Daybreak, ITV, 7.35am-7.45am.
Deals of the Week. | 16 May
Shelagh Fogarty, Radio 5, 12pm-1pm.
Consumer Panel.
Listen to past shows. | 17 May
The Martin Lewis Money Show, ITV, 8pm-8.30pm.
Credit scores and reclaiming lost Tesco points.
PS. Missed past shows? Watch them here. | 20 May
This Morning, ITV, 11am-12pm.
Subject tbc.
20 May
Daily Politics, BBC2, 12pm-1pm.
Guest of the day. | | |
MSE team corner - Team appearances:
- No team appearances this week
| Board of the week The Employment, Jobseeking & Training Board Share advice and tips on how to get a job. Discussions include Smoking and Employers, free/cheap Health and Safety course and job interview travel expenses. | Cheap travel money |
This week's poll: How do you rate your home phone and broadband providers' service? We can tell you the cheapest providers, but we need your help to rate their service. Please rate your provider(s) on customer service (not price) over the past SIX MONTHS.
If your provider is not listed, check the full list and vote. | Poll resultsWhat class are you?
Over half of voters consider themselves in the middle classes.
- 55% chose middle classes.
- 40% chose working classes.
- 1% chose upper class.
25,598 voted. See the full results. |
Question of the week If I buy an item online, but pick it up in-store, do the Distance Selling Regulations still apply, ie, do I still have the seven-day right of return, whatever the reason? Or should I check/try on the item in the store? Arnold, by email. MSE Helen S’s A: Distance Selling Regulations do apply to 'click and collect', so long as you purchased the item online. If you'd selected 'click and reserve', then you wouldn't be covered, as you'd have made the actual purchase in store. So, because you bought online, even though you picked up the item in-store, you get the DSR's seven-day right of return. This means you can get a full refund, including any postage paid, though some items, such as customised goods or perishable items, are usually excluded. However, you'll usually have to pay the return postage if you send the goods back. Please suggest a question of the week (we can't reply to individual emails). |
 Archna's free game of the week: Monkey Go Happy |
A poem of modern Britons That's it for this week, but before you go, check out this accidental poem, created by you. On St George's Day, Martin asked people on Facebook: "What are you doing today?" The unplanned result was a portrait of Britons, from the mundane to the magnificent. Check out A poem of modern Britons. 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. 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:
Unaffiliated web-addresses for links in this email halifax.co.uk, saga.co.uk, postoffice.co.uk, nationwide.co.uk, travel-guard.co.uk, protectyourbubble.com, moneysupermarket.com, kayak.co.uk, carrentals.co.uk, moneymaxim.co.uk, skyparksecure.com, aph.com, fhr-net.co.uk, npower.com, edfenergy.com, talktalk.co.uk, halifax.co.uk, tescobank.com, natwest.com, marksandspencer.com, sainsburysbank.co.uk, thecheshire.co.uk, barclaycard.co.uk, confused.com, directline.com, aviva.co.uk, admiral.com, energyhelpline.com, uswitch.com, santander-products.co.uk, comparethemarket.com, bt.com.
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