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| DON'T believe the fake ads on Facebook |
| New. Free £175 to switch bank AND 2% cashback on bills Just as a number of switching bribes were disappearing, NatWest has re-entered the free cash bonus switch war with a bang, possibly as it's a good time to stand out from the crowd. Remember, switching's easy - it takes just seven working days and the new bank moves all your payments (eg, direct debits). Here are full details and alternatives... (All require you pass a not-too-harsh credit check.) New. NatWest: Free £175 + 2% bills cashback (worth £60/yr extra for many). NatWest pays new switchers to most of its accounts £125, and £50 if you're still with it in June 2020. Its customer service rating is a middling 43% 'great'.- Top account if you're a bill-payer (or have joint bill accounts). The standout is NatWest Reward* which, for a £2/mth fee, gives 2% cashback on most bills (incl energy, council tax, broadband) paid by direct debit. On average it's worth £60/yr after the fee - though some can earn £100+/yr. So all-in with the free cash you could bag £250+. - Top if you don't want to pay a fee. If you don't pay bills, don't bother paying £2/mth. Instead you can still get the £175 (but no cashback) by switching to the fee-free NatWest Select* account. - How to qualify. For the £175 cash on either account, request a switch by 7 Jun, pay in £1,500+ & log in online by 12 Jul, then use your debit card at least once per month. For the cashback, pay £1,500+ every month (that's just a way of making you pay your salary in, as long as it's £21,500+/yr - if less there's still a way round it). See full NatWest help. First Direct: Free £100, 90% 'great' service + 5% linked savings. New First Direct* customers get the cash plus access to a 5% regular savings account where you can save up to £300/mth in it for 1yr. Many also get a £250 0% overdraft. Note that you must pay in £1k+/mth (equiv £12,500/yr salary) for the bonus and to avoid a £10/mth fee. M&S: Free £100 M&S voucher with NO min pay-in (+ £80 vch after 1yr if you pay in £1,250/mth). Newbies who open an M&S Bank* account get the initial £100 and access to its 5% regular saver if within 3mths of opening they switch incl 4+ active direct debits and register for online banking & statements. For the £80, as well as meeting the min pay-in, you must keep the direct debits active. If you've an M&S credit card, you get a £120 vch after 1yr. Halifax: Free £50 before the switch completes + £85 after 6mths + £2/mth. Halifax pays newbies all this if they pay in £1,500+/mth (equiv £21,500/yr salary), use their debit card at least once in the first 6mths, pay out 2+ direct debits each month, go paperless and remain in credit. For full eligibility info, incl exactly when the bonuses come, see Best Bank Accounts. |
| In 2016 we launched a campaign to ensure the 10,000s of 'severely mentally impaired' (SMI) people across Britain entitled to an SMI council tax discount (and their carers) would hear about it, and that - as many missed out due to poor info - it should be backdated. Thanks to the MSE campaigns team's top work, this week the Welsh Govt will follow all our suggestions to improve how its councils deal with the SMI discount. I'm launching it in Cardiff today (Wed) with the Finance Minister... The Severely Mentally Impaired discount can be worth £1,000s - here's how you get it. Like students and under-18s, in Eng, Scot and Wales (NI doesn't have council tax), those who have a severe mental impairment are 'disregarded' for council tax purposes. This means if they live alone they shouldn't pay any council tax, or more commonly, if they live with one other adult, often their carer, there should be a 25% discount (typically worth about £400/yr).To qualify, someone must be medically certified as having a severe mental impairment (ie, one that severely and permanently affects their intellectual and social functioning), and be eligible for certain benefits. Eg, dementia, strokes and Parkinson's are all conditions that could result in someone having a severe mental impairment. Our How to claim SMI guide has full info. Some councils will backdate the payout. This can be huge - Tom tweeted: "@MartinSLewis Thank you. After seeing you talk about council tax exemption, I've claimed back £9,649.65 for my dad who suffered a stroke in 1999 and has lived alone since 2005. Thank you so much. This will make a big difference." New. Wales launches easy SMI application & backdating - but elsewhere councils still aren't good enough. In 2017 we investigated the SMI discount - shockingly 69 of 100 tested councils gave incorrect info to our mystery callers, with some front-line staff even unaware of the discount's existence. Take-up rates varied hugely, with some areas over 50 times more likely to get it than elsewhere. So we came up with a series of recommendations... |
| Thorntons 2 personalised Easter eggs £11ish deliv (norm £18). MSE Blagged. Trick to get a cracking deal. 30+ free and cheap things to do with kids in the Easter hols. Incl egg hunts, free workshops, £2.50 cinema, kids eat for 'free/£1' & plenty more Easter holiday ideas. 20 'lucky dip' hanging basket plants £9 all-in. MSE Blagged. Eg, lobelia, fuchsia, petunia. Thompson & Morgan New. Hot Sim: 4GB data + unltd mins & texts for '£6.67/mth' from BT-owned Plusnet. This is a cracker as you normally get 2GB for that price. Newbies to Plusnet* (uses EE's network) can get it for £10/mth on a 1yr contract. As you're automatically sent a £40 cheque, it's an equiv £6.67/mth. Full help & more deals in Best Sims. Kurt Geiger shoes from £12ish via 25% off code. MSE Blagged. Also valid on ALL brands in the Shoeaholics outlet, incl Adidas & Converse. But the best prices & choice are on Kurt Geiger's own stuff. Step this way Asos cracking down on 'wear and return' customers. It's tightening its rules if you deliberately buy clothes to wear, then use your online return rights to send 'em back, in effect to get a free rental. Asos crackdown |
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| 'We got our dream wedding for £2,000' - 53 MoneySaving wedding tips Getting hitched? Congratulations. How to say 'I do' to your betrothed, not to £1,000s of debt With wedding season fast approaching, don't assume you need to spend like a Kardashian for one day. While the average bash costs £30,000+, it doesn't have to. Work out what you can AFFORD and use our 50+ Wedding Tips to help cut costs. Here's a taster (hopefully as delicious as the cake)... New. 'We got hitched for £2,000'. Bristol-based romantics and long-time MoneySavers Bridget and Derek teamed up to bag discounts galore - incl two rings for £200 - before saying "I do" and cutting their Asda cake. Read their £2,000 dream wedding story.Dresses fit for royalty at Z-list prices. You don't need to spend the earth to look a million dollars. Oxfam has 12 specialist bridal departments, and says many dresses are donated by designers, straight from the catwalk. Plus we've more dress tips on specialist second-hand dress sites and bagging a high-street bargain. The 'wrong' date can save you 50% (a lucky saving on Fri 13th perhaps). Slash costs by getting married on an unconventional day. See how to pick a cheap date. Save £100s on invites, photography, decorations, confetti and more. Harness your loved ones' skills for homemade cakes, flower arranging etc. Also see free place settings, cheap invites and make your own confetti. Create a FREE website to help plan and keep costs down. You can track RSVPs, update guests on timings and more by creating a free personalised website or using free wedding planning apps. Would you book a £4,500 ALL-IN wedding reception... at Wetherspoon's? It's not everyone's cup of tea but if you're game you get a three-course meal, wine and DJ for 100 day guests (and 200 in the evening) at a central London venue - we've all the details. Also see £1,000 wedding packages and 10 questions to ask the venue. Do you need wedding insurance? It can be tempting but insurance won't cover it all, eg, if someone gets cold feet. Our Wedding Insurance guide explains what's covered and more, incl how to get it from £35 if you're due to say "I do". |
| Martin: 'Please help STOP THE DEBT THREATS - sign the petition.' The law requires language used in debt collection to be threatening - some even take their lives in fear. Martin's Mental Health & Debt Policy Institute charity is lobbying the Govt to change it, but they need your help. If you agree, please sign the 'stop the debt threat' petition. SUCCESS OF THE WEEK: "Saw Martin Lewis this morning talking about switching energy tariffs. I thought I'd give it a go and I've just saved £418 per year. Awesome, thank you."(Send us yours on this or any topic.) Three customer? Check if you're one of 550,000 who've had direct debits taken EARLY. It'll give a refund if you've been hit with charges, but you need to claim. See direct debits blunder. |
| THIS WEEK'S POLL Have you ever asked for a pay rise? The gender pay gap is in the news again. Normally in the consumer world if you're unhappy with something, you should politely complain. We wanted to test whether this applies in the world of work too. So disregarding any company-wide annual rises, have you ever asked for a pay rise? Most have credit cards but pay them off in full. Last week, we asked whether you had a credit card and how you use it. Younger respondents were more likely to use their cards to borrow - but hearteningly, most with cards from all age groups avoided interest by either paying them off in full or at 0%. See full credit card poll results. |
| MONEYSAVING NEWS - Top story: MSE Charity celebrates 10 years since giving its first grant |
| MONEY MORAL DILEMMA Should I chase the loan I gave a friend? I lent money to a friend, who promised to pay it back ASAP. But she's since lost her job, and paying it back will be a struggle. It's not a huge amount for me, but it's my money and I worked hard for it. Should I say something, or wait to see if it comes - even if that never happens? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should I chase the loan? | Suggest an MMD | View past MMDs THE QUICKIES - Debt-Free Wannabe chat of the week: The Debt-Free Roll Of Honour |
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| MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (WED 10 APR ONWARDS) Wed 10 Apr - BBC Breakfast, 8.20am MSE TEAM APPEARANCES (MOST SUBJECTS TBC) Wed 10 Apr - BBC News Channel, 3.45pm |
| QUESTION OF THE WEEK Q: Can I save money on my water bills by getting a meter? Dominic, via email. MSE Nick's A: It depends. As a rule of thumb, if you live in England or Wales and there are more or the same number of bedrooms in your home than people, it might be worth looking at getting a meter. To give you a better idea, the Consumer Council for Water has a free meter calculator which asks questions about your water use, then tells you your estimated costs with a meter. Most water companies will also let you trial a meter for up to two years and let you switch back if it doesn't end up saving you money. See Cut your water bills for more info. In Scotland, water meter installation isn't free (and can be pricey) so unless you live alone in a huge house, it's unlikely to cut bills, while in Northern Ireland there are no domestic water charges so you've no need for a meter. Please suggest a question of the week (we can't reply to individual emails). |
| 'I KEEP A SPARE BOTTLE IN THE CAR IN CASE THEY DON'T HAVE HEINZ' That's all for this week, but before we go... We often challenge you to downshift to save money, but for some, certain brands are non-negotiable. We asked our users which brands they can't live without and were flooded with comments, such as "Heinz ketchup - can't stand any other, so much so I keep a spare bottle in the car", and "my son will only eat actual Cheerios". Check out more comments on our challenging downshifts Facebook page. 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 starlingbank.com, holidayextras.co.uk, looking4.com, skyparksecure.com, bookfhr.com, natwest.com, firstdirect.com, bank.marksandspencer.com, plus.net, sainsburysbank.co.uk, moneysupermarket.com, confused.com, gocompare.com, comparethemarket.com, aviva.co.uk, directline.com, zopa.com Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Note MoneySupermarket.com Financial Group Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (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 MoneySupermarket.com Financial Group Limited. To change your email or stop receiving the weekly tips (unsubscribe): Go to: www.moneysavingexpert.com/tips. |
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