| | Free £240, 5% interest or free travel insurance
There's never been a better time to switch bank - the 10 need-to-knows Banks are rarely mentioned in glowing terms. Whether for PPI mis-selling, market-rigging or allegations of aiding tax avoidance, they have a bad name. So it's simple...
If your bank's a b*****d, don't bitch, just switch.
Yet in the last year, only 2% of accounts were switched. Thankfully, you can do it right now, and it's quick and easy for most. Here are the 10 need-to-knows (incl our latest bank customer service index)... | 1. | Seven-day switching means it's mostly no hassle. Seven-day switching is now almost 2yrs old. Within seven working days, your new bank will...
- Switch your direct debits and standing orders for you.
- Close your old account & ensure all payments to it go to the new one.
Earlier this year, we did a snap Facebook poll on switching - 82% who'd switched using 7-day switching found it 'easy and hassle-free'. Only 4% had problems. And we often get emails such as Keith's: "Switched to Halifax. Very easy, good service, excellent benefits, £100 paid quickly plus £5/mth."
What counts as switching to get the perks? Full account-by-account info in Top Bank Accounts. For most below, to get the perk and fee-free banking, you must switch using the bank's switching service and...
a) Pass a credit check, though these aren't normally too harsh.
b) Most require a 'min monthly deposit'. In reality, it's just how they ensure you pay your income in. A £500/mth pay-in = £6,000/yr salary. If this may be tricky for you, see point 4.
c) Many require you to have two or three direct debits/standing orders. | | | | 2. |  Ending. Free £240 for switching. Some banks want you so much they pay you to switch, and this bribe is tax-free. Here are the main players.
- LAST CHANCE. Free £120 + £120 to save: HSBC Advance* gives £120 (apply by Mon), plus £10/mth for one year to ISA savers too. It takes a bit of work and requires a high min pay-in, so we've full HSBC info.
- Free £150: Clydesdale's* Current Account Direct pays the biggest one-off switching bribe. It also pays 2% AER variable interest on up to £3k.
- Free £100 + No. 1 service: First Direct* also offers a £250 0% overdraft and 6% linked savings.
- LAST CHANCE. Free £100 + 5% interest: To get the £100, apply for the TSB* Classic Plus by Tue 1 Sep & get 5% AER variable on up to £2,000 (worth c. £100/yr pre-tax).
- Free £100 + £5/mth: Halifax Reward* also pays you a flat £5/mth (after basic tax) if you're in credit.
- Free £100 + £25 to charity: Co-op* gives £25 to one of seven charities.
- Free £100 M&S gift card + £10 Dine In voucher: M&S Bank* also has a £100 0% overdraft and linked 6% regular savings. | | | | 3. | Top for savings interest: 3% on £20k or 5% on £2k. The alternative to suck in customers, rather than cash bribes, is to pay loss-leading interest rates for those in credit. As with normal savings, interest is taxed.
- 3% interest + up to 3% cashback: Santander 123* pays 3% AER variable interest if you've £3,000 to £20,000 in it - almost double the best-buy normal easy-access savings. Couples can open one each and a joint one, provided they meet all the criteria, so that's a max £60,000 between two. No other easy-access account pays well on anything close to that.
There's a £2/mth fee, but for most that's easily covered by the cashback it pays on direct debits: 3% on mobile, phone & b'band; 2% energy; 1% water, council tax & Santander mortgage payments. As Hannah tweeted: "£260 cashback yearly. Mortgage, broadband, phones, TV, utilities." Alternatively...
- Earn 4% on £4,000-£5,000: Club Lloyds* pays 4% AER variable.
- LAST CHANCE. Earn 5% on up to £2,000 + £100: TSB* pays 5% AER variable and gives £100, though only till Tue 1 Sep.
- Get £5 each month you stay in credit (+£100): Halifax Reward* pays this regardless of how much you have. As it's after basic-rate tax, it beats TSB for most averaging under £1,500 in their account.
- Saving monthly? Two free £100 accounts, First Direct* & M&S* (free gift card), have linked 6% regular savers for saving up to £300 & £250/mth.
Can you open more than one for large sums? Yes, but it's tricky. For how to combine top bank savings, see the 5% Savings Loophole. | | | | 4. | Free £100 for switching and you needn't pay in owt. Many with low or uncertain incomes tell us they worry about banks' 'minimum pay-in' terms. This doesn't mean you must be in credit, only that you need to pay in a set amount. It's banks' way of ensuring your income/salary goes through the account. Eg, £1,000/mth equals a £13,200/yr pre-tax salary.
M&S Bank*, which gives a £100 M&S gift card + a £10 Dine In voucher for switching, a £100 0% overdraft & linked 6% savings, is the only top pick with no minimum pay-in (though you need 2+ direct debits). Here's what each bank requires:
- No min pay-in: M&S Bank*
- £500/mth (equiv £6,000/yr salary): Santander 123*, TSB Classic Plus*
- £750/mth pay-in (£9,150/yr): Halifax*
- £800/mth pay-in (£9,850/yr): Co-op Bank*
- £1,000/mth pay-in (£13,200/yr): Clydesdale* and First Direct* (With First Direct, you can get it with less, but there's a £10/mth fee.)
- £1,500/mth pay-in (£22,000/yr): Club Lloyds* (£5/mth fee if less.)
- £1,750/mth pay-in (£26,400/yr): HSBC Advance*
Can I jemmy the pay-in? Usually. The rules say you need to pay in a set amount from external sources. So let's say you want a £1,000 pay-in but only have £500 coming in. Get the £500 paid in, withdraw it either as cash or to another bank, then pay it back in, and BINGO, you've qualified. | | | | 5. | The MSE gold medal for bank service. We interact daily with our bank so service counts and you need to decide how much you value it over the cash perks and/or interest offered.
Our latest six-monthly poll closed last week. And eat your heart out Mo Farah, as our gold medallist, yet again, is First Direct*. It pays £100 to switch, has a 0% overdraft up to £250, and a 6% linked regular saver.
HOW DOES YOUR BANK RATE ON SERVICE?
Accounts that are best buys are linked | | Rank & provider (a) | Great | Poor | | 1. First Direct* | 92% | 1% | | 2. Santander* | 75% | 4% | | 3. Nationwide* | 74% | 5% | | 4. Co-op Bank* (incl Smile) | 73% | 7% | | 5. Halifax* | 60% | 8% | | 6. TSB* | 58% | 8% | | 7. Bank of Scotland | 49% | 14% | | 8. HSBC* | 46% | 13% | | 9. Lloyds* | 46% | 14% | | 10. NatWest | 44% | 13% | | 11. Clydesdale* & Yorkshire* | 43% | 16% | | 12. RBS | 43% | 18% | | 13. Barclays | 38% | 20% | | 9,285 votes. (a) Ranked via 2 pts for great, 1 for OK, 0 for poor. Excludes banks with sub-100 votes. This table excludes people who voted 'OK' so won't total 100%. See full results breakdown. | | | | | 6. | Which pays more - free cash or bank savings interest? As a rough rule of thumb, if you've £10,000+, Santander 123* always wins. Below that, it's close - to work out which wins, we need to get a little nerdy...
a) How often will you switch? You could switch annually (or more often) to keep bagging free £100s. To earn more in bank savings needs £3,000+. As savings pay each year, if you want one account to stick with, they win.
b) Where'd you save it otherwise? The top easy-access savings accounts pay 1.6% AER, so you can earn that without switching bank. So if bank savings pay, for example, 3%, then the gain from choosing it as your bank is 1.4%.
c) Tax. The free cash for switching is tax-free, but interest is taxed like income, eg, at basic rate you lose 20% of it (higher rate, 40%). So £100 free cash is £100, but £100 interest is £80 (£60 higher rate).
As you can see, there are many variables, but in a nutshell, if you don't want to regularly switch and you have above, say, £4,000, high-interest current accounts win. PS: Also read Martin's Santander 123 vs Cash ISA analysis. | | | | 7. | How to cut overdraft charges to 0%. An overdraft's a debt like any other, so if you often go into the red, cutting its cost makes it easier to clear.
- Switch to a 0% overdraft. First Direct* has a £250 0% overdraft, and you can put the £100 it pays switchers towards it. Nationwide's FlexDirect* gives a bigger 0% overdraft, though the amount is credit score dependent, but only for a year (50p/day after, so aim to clear before). Info: Top 0% Overdrafts
- Shift it to a 0% credit card. Some cards let newbies do 0% money transfers, where they pay cash in your account to clear overdrafts, so you owe the card instead. There's MBNA's* up to 36mths 0% for a 2.99% fee (min £3), or, if you can repay quicker, Virgin Money's* 24mths 0% for just a 1.9% fee (min £3). Yet always...
(i) Use our Eligibility Calc to see which card's most likely to accept you.
(ii) Ask for a 'money transfer' to do this; don't just withdraw cash.
(iii) Never miss a min monthly repayment or you can lose the 0% deal.
(iv) Ensure you repay before the 0% ends or rates jump to 22.9% rep APR. Full help in Money Transfers. | | | | 8. | Free travel insurance bank accounts. The Nationwide FlexAccount* is fee-free and includes Europe travel insurance for the account holder(s) up to age 74 (which is when travel insurance gets expensive). You can upgrade to world cover for £40/yr. Full eligibility info and more options in Best Bank Accounts, or see Cheap Travel Insurance to compare.
Or pay £10/mth and the Nationwide FlexPlus* gives worldwide family travel insurance, smartphone insurance for all the family (kids must live at home) and European breakdown cover. A family needing them all could pay £600/yr separately. See Top Packaged Accounts for more options.
As with all travel policies, always disclose pre-existing conditions. | | | | 9. | Fed up with banks? Want something different? Here we factor in perks plus ratings from Ethical Consumer, which rates banks' behaviour on the environment, human & animal rights, politics and investments.
Two building societies do well: (i) Nationwide*. See above for its deals. (ii) Norwich & Peterborough. Its debit card allows cheap spending abroad. For a real change, try a credit union (local savings and loan non-profits), though not all offer current accounts, so check yours. | | | | 10. | Can't get a bank account? There is a way. Sadly, more than one million people in the UK don't have a bank account. Yet as long as you've ID, you should be able to get an account, though you need to ask the right way. See our full Basic Bank Accounts guide for step-by-step help. | | |
PS: Barclays customer? Get a free £48/yr. It's bottom for service and trounced by accounts above, but if you still want to stick, ensure you get a free £48/yr for Barclays customers.
PPS from Martin: I'm taking a break this week, so this email is in the talented hands of the MSE team. |
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| Wed 26 Aug 2015 |
WOW. New 40-MONTH 0% balance transfer credit card
Longest-ever 0% card. Slash the cost of existing credit card debts by £100s or £1,000s with a top debt-shifting deal A balance transfer is where you get a new card that pays off old card(s) for you, so you owe it at a lower rate. The lower rate means your repayments clear the actual debt, rather than just paying interest, so you get debt-free quicker. - The Balance Transfer Golden Rules. It's not just about picking the right card, it's about using it the right way...
a) Don't just apply in hope, that marks your credit file. Instead use our Eligibility Calc to find your best chance first.
b) Never miss the min monthly repayments, or the bank is allowed to end your 0% deal and charge far more.
c) Ensure you clear the card or transfer again before the 0% ends or the rate rockets to the rep APR.
d) Don't spend/withdraw cash on these. It usually isn't at the cheap rate & cash withdrawals hit your credit file.
e) Unsure what to pick? Use our Which Card Is Cheapest? tool. Full help in Best Balance Transfers (APR Examples). back to top ↑ |
| 68 selling tricks - eBay vs Facebook. See 41 eBay & 27 Facebook flogging tips (good for bank hol de-cluttering). How to watch TV and (legally) not pay the licence fee. Many have no idea when they need one, TV Licensing research shows. We dispel TV licence myths. Hot summer BT Sim - £10/mth can get 500 UK mins, unltd texts, 2GB data (4G) AND £50 Amazon vch - all-in equiv £5.83/mth. MSE Blagged. Brand new BT Mobile custs can use code MSEBTMOBILE by 11.59pm on Wed 2 Sep on its BT Sim* for a £50 Amazon vch, sent within 3mths. The 12mth contract Sim is £10/mth if you've BT b'band, £15/mth without. How good is it? If you'd spend the vch, factor it in and it's £70/yr, equiv £5.83/mth (£130/yr, £10.83/mth without BT b'band) - much cheaper than owt else. FULL info + £30 Amzn vch for lower users: Hot Sims FREE £3.50-£6.00ish Lancôme beauty sample. Choose from five 5ml moisturisers. 500,000 avail 11 ways to reclaim £1,000s. Don't chuck a letter that can be worth £250 - it's just one of our 11 ways to reclaim. |
"I slashed Sky bill by £300+/yr" - NEW 'how to haggle' guides
The AA, RAC, BT, Sky, Virgin etc mostly reserve top deals for newbies, get one over 'em with the haggle challenge Haggling's so un-British, but shake off your stiff upper lip and serious deals are possible via call centres, where firms are desperate to keep customers. Our Haggle with Sky, the AA and More guide has the tricks, but we've written new, bespoke company and industry-specific guides (for you, we'll throw in high st haggling tips too).  Slash b'band, phone & TV bills, incl BT, Sky & Virgin. They're among the easiest to haggle with, so we've written special BT, Sky, TalkTalk, Plusnet, Virgin and B'band Haggling guides. A huge 86% of Sky custs who tried haggling succeeded, in our most recent poll. Sarah said: "Haggled £324/yr off my Sky bill (TV, b'band, phone)."- Drive down AA, RAC and other breakdown cover costs. A mammoth 84% of AA and 78% of RAC customers successfully haggled, according to our poll. See Breakdown Cover Haggling for top tips and succeed like Rachel: "Haggled down my AA breakdown renewal by £96."
- Mobile phones - hot for haggling on contracts. 60% of MoneySavers who tried successfully haggled, see full Mobile Phone Haggling tips. Forumite Kkaebsong reported: "I paid EE £35/mth but got it down to £13/mth."
- Haggle on insurance (with care). Power haggling discounts are possible at car and home insurance renewal, but always compare with top new customer deals using our Car and Home insurance guides. Jess emailed: "Got my car insurance down by £540 doing price comparisons, then calling to haggle." See Insurance Haggling tips.
- "I haggled my wedding dress from £500 to £300." Haggling in shops isn't the preserve of back-street bazaars - it's alive and kicking on our high streets, as bride-to-be Frannyann found out. Top tips in our High Street Haggling guide, incl the best stores to haggle in.
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| Last chance to beat BT's line, call & b'band price rises. Some only have a few days to cancel. See fight BT hike. Eurostar £64rtn tix. From Thu. Rare discount (rtns norm £72-£309) for Paris, Lille, Brussels from Sep to Dec. Eurostar 70 Pansy Can Can plants £10 del (next cheapest £30). MSE Blagged. Should flower mid-Sep to spring. 750 avail CODES & VCHS - incl Topman 20% off, Poundland £2 off. This week, we've blagged Topman 20% off everything, incl sale (ends Thu) & The Works 25% off codes. Plus there's an Office 25% off vch (in £2 mag), Jack Wills 25% off code & in store, Poundland £2 off £12 vch (in 70p paper) & AO.com £30 off £299 appliances code. ALL Codes & Vchs 2 specs £23 + 'free' £10 tint. MSE Blagged. £32 off code works on 2for1 offer. Ends Mon. Glasses Direct |
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Show Best Buys
Back to school, incl 20% off uniform at BHS & Tesco. Deals on schoolwear, stationery & more. Back to school Virgin Trains East Coast sale, eg, Lndn-York £20rtn. 100k+ tix, book by Fri, travel till Nov, incl 1st class. Virgin MSE's Big Energy Switch Event 3 coming next week. British Gas may be cutting prices this Thursday but it's still a rip-off. Our collective switch event begins on 1 Sep at Cheap Energy Club where we reckon we'll smash the best buys. '£9.50 Sun hols' are back. Collect tokens for 199 parks across UK & Europe. Sun Holidays |
Warning. Check NOW when your travel insurance ends - get from £13/yr
As the holiday season's ending, many annual policies expire now. If you've another trip booked, get cover ASAP Many people buy annual travel insurance at the start of the summer to coincide with their holiday. If you travel late this year make sure yours hasn't run out - without insurance, you're not covered if a holiday you've paid for is cancelled or you get a medical condition in the meantime. For full help, see Cheap Travel Insurance. In short... - Cover a YEAR's trips from just £13. Basic travel insurance can be cheap and quick to get. If you travel at least twice (incl weekend breaks) in a year, an annual policy usually wins.
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| Solar panel 'feed-in' payments cut for new users from Oct. How to beat it: are solar panels worth it? SUCCESS OF THE WEEK: (Send us yours on this or any topic)
"Followed your home insurance tips. Churchill renewal was £400, got Aviva for £153. Cheers." 20% off 400+ burger joints, incl Meat Liquor & pubs. Thu only, (medium) rare voucher. National Burger Day
Show Best Buys |
| Show Vouchers and Top Deals |
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 CAMPAIGN OF THE WEEK
What pensions advice or guidance do you need? A group of MPs is investigating whether the pensions advice and guidance available is fit for purpose. Let us know how you've found it and have your say in the MSE forum by Friday and we'll tell the MPs what you think. MONEY MORAL DILEMMA
Should I stop paying my host?
This week's MoneySaver who wants advice asks... A friend has kindly offered to let me stay rent-free at hers while I find work, but I end up paying much of her everyday costs - food, drinks etc. It adds up to less than what I'd pay in rent, but I don't have the money. Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should I stop or move out? | Suggest an MMD | View past MMDs THE GREAT HUNT
What do you wish you'd known before you went to uni?
Whether grabbing hidden grants, buying books second hand or avoiding credit cards, we’d like graduate MoneySavers to impart their wisdom to future students. Share yours/read others': Useful uni pointers Past topics: View all Does your charity want an MSE Charity grant for consumer/finance projects? The latest funding round for charities and financial and consumer education project groups opens on 1 Sep. Only the first 40 applications that meet the criteria will be considered - pls check the guidance notes in advance. Full criteria: The MSE Charity. Related: MSE's Charity Fund, How This Site's Financed back to top ↑ |
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MSE team corner Team blogs:
What's more MoneySaving - being in a relationship? Or being single? Regular team appearances: Fri 28 Aug
BBC Radio Manchester, 4.50pm | Discussion of the week Did you plan your wedding before you got engaged? Many dream of a wedding long before it happens but would you make plans before you're even engaged? Apparently it's common as one Forumite shares in the Did you plan your wedding before you got engaged? thread. Join the discussion. | Cheap travel money |
This week's poll: Where should restaurant tips go? With controversy this week over how tips are split after restaurant chain Côte was accused of pocketing the cash (something it denies), we want to know where you think tips for good service should go. Please choose the option closest to your own opinion: | Poll results How good is your mobile network's service & coverage?
Giffgaff just pipped Tesco Mobile to the top spot on customer service and coverage. Vodafone languished bottom. Here are the headlines: Customer service
- 65% rate Giffgaff great
- 28% rate Vodafone poor
Coverage
- 45% rate Giffgaff great
- 41% rate Vodafone poor
10,620 voted. See the full results. |
| Q: I don’t have a landline so is there any way I can get broadband without getting one? John, via email. MSE Nick’s A: It's possible but the choices are few and far between, and there's usually no point doing it as you'll pay more than if you took a landline. It is a ridiculous scenario. For example, Virgin offers its fibre broadband with no line rental for £28.50/mth, but, bizarrely, you can get virtually the same product with line rental for about £5/mth less. See our Cheap Broadband guide for our top picks. Please suggest a question of the week (we can't reply to individual emails). |
 Nick's free game of the week: Abuba the Alien |
| 'They do smelly number twos but don't open the toilet window' That's it for this week, but before we go, putting up with the same people at work every day, particularly if they've nasty habits, can be tricky. So the What do your colleagues do to annoy you? forum thread caught our attention this week (our issue at MSE Towers is rotting food in the fridge). Have a read and let us know what annoys you most about your colleagues - or how you annoy them. 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 MoneySavingExpert and Martin Lewis What is MoneySavingExpert.com?
Founded in February 2003, it's now the UK's biggest consumer help website with more than 10 million people getting this email and about 13 million using the site every month. 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 set up and runs MSE, and still writes this email each week (unless it says so). He's an ultra-focused money-saving journalist and consumer campaigner with his own ITV prime-time show The Martin Lewis Money Show and weekly slots on Radio 5 Live, This Morning and Good Morning Britain, among others. He’s a columnist for publications including the Telegraph, Sunday Mirror and Woman magazine. More info: See Martin Lewis' biography 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 hsbc.co.uk, cbonline.co.uk, firstdirect.com, tsb.co.uk, halifax.co.uk, co-operativebank.co.uk, marksandspencer.com, santander.co.uk, lloydsbank.com, ybonline.co.uk, mbna.co.uk, virginmoney.com, nationwide.co.uk, barclaycard.co.uk, holidaysafe.co.uk, direct-travel.co.uk, leisureguardtravelinsurance.com, wearetravelinsurance.co.uk, bt.com, tescobank.com, google.co.uk, confused.com, moneysupermarket.com, aviva.co.uk, admiral.com, zopa.com, sainsburysbank.co.uk, gocompare.com, directline.com, directsavetelecom.co.uk, postoffice.co.uk.
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