MSE launches car insurance tool, easy FREE £20, 1.5% savings, Shark code, national insurance calc

Plus... 7 urgent energy tips, 60 ways to boost income, 5kg fruit & veg £1.50, check for old £20s

                                                           

30 March 2022 | View in browser

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THE TOP TIPS IN THIS EMAIL New. Revolutionary Car Insurance Multi-Compare tool launches - Plus 4 more motoring tips Urgent. 7 energy need-to-knows 60+ ways to boost your income New. Top 1.5% easy-access savings Shark cordless vacuums £60 off code New. FREE £20 for trying First Direct Lidl £1.50 for 5kg fruit & veg box New. Income & national insurance calc Check for old £20 & £50 paper notes Urgent. Beat Fri's cost of living hikes Cheap Disney+ via Clubcard  Longest 0% debt shift - 33 months Alton Towers 'free' grown-ups' ticket Mortgage alert - act now if fix ends soon NHS prescription charges frozen  Urgent. Tax credits or child benefit paid into Post Office card account? MSE's Easter egg taste test This week's best buys, including 10GB Sim '£4.50/month', '£14/month' broadband, 2.8% loans Should I keep the voucher I got for my holiday booking? BEST BUYS & TOOLS Cheap Energy Club, incl Pick Me A Tariff MSE Cheap Mobile Finder Credit Club incl free credit report 0% Balance Transfers Compare Broadband deals Cheap Car Insurance Best Bank Accounts Top Savings Accounts Credit Cards for Bad Credit Credit Card Eligibility Calculator Loans Eligibility Calculator Mortgage Comparison Free online complaints tool - Resolver Compare Travel Money Best Sim Only Deals

Revolutionary new MSE tool launches today Cheap car insurance  Multi-Compare For years I've said don't just use one comparison site, combine 'em, and follow key tricks. Now our new tool easily, speedily does much of that for you Getting the cheapest and best insurance has long been about elbow grease and knowledge. Different comparison sites include different insurers, and even where the same firms are listed, they can have different prices for them. A while ago I had an idea of how we could do a chunk of the work for you at speed. Now the brilliant MSE team have taken my blueprint and built a great new tool. I hope it's a game changer. The best way to see how it's different is to try it... The MSE Car Insurance Multi-Compare tool Today's launch day, but we want to keep improving it, so please give us feedback & suggestions & let us know of any bugs (hopefully not). PS: Not at renewal? Put in for your cover to start in about 25 days' time. If owt is cheaper now, see how to switch if not at renewal.  Last week I asked my Facebook followers if they fancied playing with my tool (sorry) and the early feedback was good. Kerry said: "Easy to use. I like the ways to cut costs, especially the best time to buy. Would definitely use again. Saved £40 with better cover." Claire said: "I saved £248 with a lower excess, courtesy car and legal cover." How Multi-Compare works in six steps... Fill in just one comparison site's questionnaire. At the start of the Multi-Compare tool you answer MoneySupermarket's question set (we're part of the same parent group, so can get permission). If you've filled that in before, it can auto-fill in the questionnaire for you. We add MSE extras as you answer, eg, JOB PICKER. We try to make filling in the question set easier, with lots of info, plus we've got unique widgets. The MSE Job Picker tool is a key example - it shows which slight, legit changes to your job description might save you money. You then find your cheapest insurers to start the saving. These are your benchmark quotes from the MoneySupermarket comparison, so you can see straightaway any saving, but of course we want you to beat them... We analyse your % chance that other big comparison sites - and 'not on comparisons' Direct Line - are cheaper. A 'compare the comparison sites tool' would be great, and we're asking the other sites, but for now this is the nearest I could get. Using INDEPENDENT 3rd party data we analyse your situation to show the chance you could make a 'material saving' (lower of £10 or 5%) for each site. We also do this with Direct Line, the one big insurer not included on comparison sites (and we're working with it so hopefully it'll be quicker to get a full quote from Direct Line too at some point). So you know if spending more time may be worth it. Timing it right can halve your price - we'll tell you if you're too early, too late or you're Goldilocks. Insurers factor how early before renewal you do your quote as part of their behavioural risk analysis, and it can have a huge impact on costs. If you're too early, we'll tell you when to come back. If you're too late, you can opt for a reminder so you get it right next year. Personalised tips on how YOU can cut your costs, with one-click tests, eg, whether to add another driver. From our analysis of your data, we will show you other things you should try (all are trial and error though) to cut costs further. Plus where we can, we've added one-click buttons so you can quickly try these within the original search to see if it works. The type of things I mean here is... - Should you add a responsible additional driver? - Would comprehensive be cheaper than third party? - Can you save with a multicar policy? If you want to see how it works (or diarise it for a month before your renewal) give our new MSE Car Insurance Multi-Compare tool a go. Quick FAQs: Here are some key questions we were asked by the trial-user group. If you've further questions or feedback, please let us know. - Will car insurance searches affect my ability to get credit? No. You can see them on your credit file but lenders can't. See full credit impact answer. - What about cashback websites? We can't give a percentage chance of whether they're cheaper, as there's no data on it, but we do include them as a further option within the tips dashboard. - Don't comparison sites give perks? Yes. Within the tool we evaluate each site's so you can decide whether to factor that into which you use. - Does MSE get paid as part of this? We hope so - lots of people have been employed building this tool, and it costs to keep it up to date. So as always if a link in the tool has an *, that means a click through it may result in MSE being paid. Yet it'll never cost you more than going direct and the editorial line (what we write) is never affected. See How MSE is financed. Four more quick Motoring MoneySavers Fuel duty was cut by 5p a litre this week, but that's still just a drop in the slick, compared with the huge prices at the pumps. So if you're looking to save on motoring, here are a few extra trip tips... Find the cheapest petrol or diesel near you in seconds. The difference between the cheapest and priciest forecourts can be sizeable. Luckily there's a cheap fuel finding tool - eg, in Durham on Monday we found that petrol ranged from 158.9p/L to 174.9p/L, so about £9 on a typical tank. Stop using your brake... and save up to 30% on fuel. Many could make their fuel use more efficient by decluttering their car (ditching roof racks and junk in the trunk) and driving more evenly and efficiently. This can really slam down costs - see 13 efficient-driving tips.   DIY checks to help you pass your MOT. Many fail needlessly with broken lights, bald tyres and more. A simple 5-min check can help to fix that. See our 9 pre-MOT checks. Related: How to pick the right MOT test centre. Full breakdown cover, including home start and onward travel, for TWO, for £56/year. Newbies via this link can get an AutoAid* policy and pay £61.50 for a year, and then get £6 automatic cashback, whereas the big providers cost well over £100 for similar. If you want to stick with the big providers, never just renew - always haggle. You can often slice down the price or alternatively use cashback sites or Clubcard vouchers. Full explanation and more options in Cheap breakdown cover.

 

 

DON'T believe the fake 'Martin Lewis' or 'MSE' ads Lots of scam ads litter social media and even newspaper websites - some of these lie that we or Martin promote Bitcoin, binary trading etc. See Fake ads warning.

 

 

 

Urgent. Seven energy need-to-knows, before the 54% hike in the price cap hits this Friday. Includes must-do tips for those on direct debit and prepay We've warned about it for over six months, and it's been confirmed for two. Yet this week the harsh reality hits home. The energy price cap will rise an average 54%, increasing a typical bill to £1,971/year - up £700/year. And it isn't likely to get better, with another hike expected in October. The price cap doesn't cap the total you pay - it caps the rates you pay. The price cap only applies to standard variable (default) tariffs - though most homes are now on these. The cap is regional and dictates the rates you pay - see the new and old price cap rates (including regional breakdown) and our full how the price cap works info.  Most firms are shifting their rates to the maximum allowed under the cap. As expected, most of the big firms including British Gas, E.on and Scottish Power are hiking their standard tariffs to the max allowed - we've a full supplier-by-supplier round-up.   New. Pay energy by direct debit? Martin's 'urgent three things to do now' video, including SHOULD YOU FIX? In Martin's new energy crisis - monthly direct debit help video he explains... - Why you should take a meter reading on Thursday - Why you should be careful if you're thinking of ditching direct debit - And crucially, his best guess on whether you should fix right now New. Have a prepay meter? Should you be topping up before 1 April? The situation is complex - some can make large savings doing this, others won't. See Martin's prepayment 'top-up trick' video where he talks you through it, alongside his detailed explanation. Is your energy bill going up by MORE than 54%? Martin's been inundated with questions from those seeing rises far above the price cap hike. So he's recorded a 'Why's your energy bill gone up by over 54%?' video & transcript explaining why and what to do about it. Struggling to pay? Check out what help is (and isn't) available. Too many people risk the awful choice between heating and eating. Our Energy bills - struggling to pay? guide covers options and where to get help. The other way to cut bills, is, obviously, to use less. Our energy saving tips help with the simpler stuff, such as turning your thermostat down and adjusting boiler settings. But other ways aren't as clear-cut, such as whether to leave the heating on low all day - we've the pros and cons of this and more in our Energy mythbusting guide.

 

As the war in Ukraine continues, here's a reminder of the ways you can donate money or help. New. TOP paying 1.5% easy-access savings - highest rate since 2019. Open app-only bank Chase's account* (you needn't switch to it) and you can get its linked easy-access savings account, which pays 1.5% AER variable on up to £250,000 (though as always, only up to £85,000 has UK savings safety protection). It dwarves the top non-linked account (Zopa's 1%, max £15,000). It also pays 1% cashback on all debit card spending for a year and it's a top pick for spending overseas too. See how it compares in Top savings and Best bank accounts. Shark cordless vacuums £60 off code (on a £200 & £230 model). MSE Blagged. Only 8,000 available. Shark New. Easy FREE £20 just for trying top-service bank First Direct - then if you switch to it, you get £130 more. Via this specific First Direct* link, it pays £20 to newbies simply for opening its account and using mobile / web banking within 90 days. Easy free money. Of course, its hope is you'll like it so much you switch, and as it's top of our customer service poll (90% rated it 'great'), that's possible. If you do switch your bank to it within 90 days (call 'em to do it), it'll give you a further £130. Full help, eligibility info & other options in Best bank accounts. Lidl £1.50 for 5kg fruit & veg box. These boxes are filled with 'wonky' or slightly past best-before fruit and veg, which are still good to eat, but would have otherwise been thrown away. Save a bunch New. Find your new take-home pay after TWO big national insurance changes. The rate rises in April mean you pay more, but then the threshold rises in July means you pay less. See how it balances out for you via our updated Income Tax & NI Calculator. Full explanation in Martin's Spring Statement round-up. Check for old £20 & £50 paper notes now (back of sofa, piggybanks or old wallets). There are £17.6 billion of soon-to-be discontinued £20 & £50 paper notes still out there. See Paper £20 & £50 warning to ensure you keep their value. Urgent. The cost of living crisis hits home on FRI - act now to beat the pain (council tax, water bills, stamp prices, broadband, marriage tax, PPI tax, tax codes and more). Fri 1 Apr sees most major utility price rises, while Wed 6 Apr is the start of the new tax year. There are many ways to save that work only if you do them BEFORE then. See Martin's urgent guide to beat the cost of living crisis from three weeks ago, most still work.

 

 

BLAGGED FOR MSE - Shark cordless vacuums £60 off code 8,000 available  - Swagbucks earn £30 Amazon voucher for doing surveys Ongoing offer for newbies	DID YOU MISS? - Going abroad this year? Sort the cheapest way to spend NOW - 75,000 FREE Grand Designs Live London tickets - Extra 15% off code at Adidas and Reebok outlets - Currys trials 'Cash for Trash' scheme

 

 

60+ legit ways to boost your income  Earn £50+ playing video games, a £30 Amazon voucher for surveys, cash for rubbish & more... Our core remit is helping you cut your bills, fight for financial justice and manage your money. Yet in these tough times some may have exhausted all they can do (or would prefer not to start cutting back). So if your expenditure is where it needs to be, why not look at your income? No miracles here, but it's worth scanning through our big list of 60+ ways to boost your income to see if any apply to you. Some are fun, others require the means and a bit more effort. Here are some examples... Earn £50 to £200 road-testing video games. Before big new games hit the shelves, companies need to test them out to see if they'll be a hit. And a market research agency typically pays between £50 and £200 for you to do it. See our top tips and 16 more sites that help you earn from focus groups in make cash from market research. Earn a £30 Amazon voucher for doing quick online surveys. If you've spare time, newbies to survey site Swagbucks can get an extra £20 Amazon voucher when they earn £10 via our MSE Blagged Swagbucks deal. Not used it in a year? Consider flogging it. It's time for a stocktake. Walk round your home and if you've not used anything in a year, consider flogging it. See our eBay selling tricks and Facebook selling tips. Sell your story for £100+. If you're happy to share, papers and mags offer cash for you to talk about your real-life experiences. We list the top places for requests, plus mags that pay up to £50 for letters and photos. Read all about it Rent out your frocks. With going out back on many people's agendas, it's the perfect time to profit from your wardrobe. MSE Jenny's a fan: "Don't think you need an Oscars-worthy wardrobe to do this. I rented out a Sezane dress for £40 that I originally bought used on eBay for £40 - made my money back in one rental!" Find out how in make money renting out designer clothes. Sell old Lego by the kilo. If you've mountains of unmatched bricks, some special sites let you sell your Lego. Become a 'life model'. All you need for this one is a bit of confidence about your bits... MSE Forumite Badger_Lady told us: "My ex did this for ages, found a classified in the local paper (well, I found it for him). Good money, gentle work." See how to be a model. Turn your rubbish into cash. Whether it's old crisp bags, empty jam jars, wine corks or old loo-roll tubes, your trash may be others' treasure. See Flog your rubbish for what sells. Trade in old mobiles for £100+. While eBay often nets max cash, for speed and ease, plug your info into trade-in sites. We found one site, for example, that pays £149 for a 64GB iPhone XR. See Sell old mobiles. Rent out your parking space. If you've unused parking in a busy city or near an airport, you can loan out your spot for cash. Depending on where you live, you could earn up to £200 a month. See Rent your parking space. If you do manage to bag a few hundred pounds following our tips, you don't have to worry about the tax office taking its cut. The 'trading allowance' lets you earn £1,000 a year from selling goods or casual services completely tax-free. But if you make more, you'll need to report it to HM Revenue & Customs and potentially pay income tax. Find out about tax on extra cash. PS: If you're looking for some further money-making inspiration, and real-life experiences of trying out our tips, see the Boost Your Income board in the MSE Forum.

 

Swap £6 in Clubcard vouchers for 3 months of Disney+ (normally £24). It usually costs £8 in vouchers, but until Mon, you can get a 3-month subscription for just £6. Cheap Disney+ New. Longest 0% debt shift credit card now 33 months. A balance transfer is where you get a new card that pays off existing costly cards for you, so you owe it instead, but interest-free, helping you clear your debt. HSBC's 33 months 0% (2.7% fee, min £5)* is the new longest 0% deal. Will you be accepted? Use our 0% Eligibility Calculator to check your eligibility chances for this and other top cards. Golden rules: Always repay at least the monthly minimum, and clear the card before the 0% ends or it's 21.9% rep APR interest. Full help in Top balance transfers (APR examples). Alton Towers 'free' grown-ups' ticket via £3ish cereal and snacks. With any full-price ticket. Can also be used at Thorpe Park, the London Eye, Madame Tussauds and more. Cheap theme parks Mortgage alert - cheap rates have doubled. Act now if your fix ends soon. In case you missed it last week, read our 7 remortgaging need-to-knows. NHS prescription charges in England frozen at £9.35. But many could still cut medicine costs through exemptions or by purchasing a prescription 'season ticket'. Full details in NHS England prescription cost freeze. Urgent. Get tax credits or child benefit paid into a Post Office card account? You've one week left to act. Thousands still need to set up a new account and tell HM Revenue & Customs the details before Tue 5 Apr, or risk missing payments. See our Post Office card account warning. MSE's egg-citing Easter egg taste test. MSE staff diligently compared the taste of eggs, ranging from £1 to £8, to see if it's worth giving the cheaper eggs a crack. [You call this work?!? - Martin]. See which brand or supermarket won.

 

 

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS 0% balance transfers Longest 0%: New. HSBC (check eligibility / apply*) - 33 months 0%, 2.7% fee (21.9% rep APR interest) No-fee 0%: Santander (check eligibility / apply*) - 21 months 0% (20.9% rep APR) or NatWest - 22 months 0% if you're a NatWest/RBS customer (21.9% rep APR) Top savings accounts Top standard easy access: Zopa 1%, min £1 deposit Top one-year fix: Castle Trust Bank 1.7%, min £1,000 Car insurance Try our new MSE Car Insurance Multi-Compare tool Cheap loans Cheapest, £5k-£7.5k: Novuna Finance (check eligibility / apply*) - 3.4% rep APR interest Cheapest, £7.5k-£15k: M&S Bank (check eligibility / apply*) - 2.8% rep APR Broadband top picks Standard (10Mb+): Shell Energy '£13.83/month' Superfast fibre (55Mb+): Shell Energy '£16.58/month' Best bank accounts £150 to switch + TOP service: First Direct £150 to switch + £3/month cashback: NatWest/RBS Cheap Sims 4GB-9GB data: Virgin Mobile, '£3.92/month' for 5GB, unlimited mins & texts 10GB+ data: TalkMobile, '£4.50/month' for 10GB, unlimited mins & texts

 

THIS WEEK'S POLL Have you ever asked for a pay rise? The jump in the cost of living has hit hard, with fuel, energy and food costs rocketing. Yet for many, wages haven't increased nearly enough to cover these additional costs. While it won't always be possible and many firms are also finding it tough, asking for a pay rise could help mitigate some of the financial strain. This week, we want to know whether you've ever been successful in asking for a pay rise. Half of MoneySavers spend 30% or less of their income on housing. Last week, we asked what proportion of your monthly take-home pay do you spend on accommodation - more than 10,000 people responded. Overall, excluding those 25% who spend nothing, 50% said they spend 30% or less of their income on housing. See full housing poll results.

 

 

MSE NEWS - Top story: Council tax bills to rise from 1 April - what's happening and what to do about it - Lloyds Banking Group to shut 60 UK branches - Millions more Vodafone customers will see bills rise by 8.2% from 1 April - Morrisons admits to processing error for some shoppers placing online orders

 

 

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA Should I keep the voucher I got for my holiday booking? I booked a family holiday through a major travel firm and got a £30 voucher for an online retailer by using a discount codes website. Should I keep this for myself as I made the booking, or use it to buy something we'll all need for the holiday, such as sun cream? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should I keep my holiday booking voucher? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma

 

 

MSE TEAM BLOG - Wombles, dogs & errant landlords - this week's MSE Forum highlights - Spend less or save more: how the MSE Forum can help you make or break a habit in 2022

 

 

MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (WED 30 MAR ONWARDS) Wed 30 Mar - Guest-presenting Good Morning Britain, ITV, 7am - cost of living special Wed 30 Mar - Lorraine, ITV, 9.30am Wed 30 Mar - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, 1pm. Listen to past episodes Thu 31 Mar - This Morning, phone-in, ITV, 10.50am MSE TEAM APPEARANCES Wed 30 Mar - BBC Radio Leeds, Breakfast with Richard Stead, Katie Watts on supermarket shopping tips, from 8.15am Thu 31 Mar - BBC Radio Oxford, Breakfast with David Prever, Gary Caffell on energy, from 8.50am Thu 31 Mar - BBC Radio Lincolnshire, Mornings with Scott Dalton, Gary Caffell on energy, from 10am Thu 31 Mar - BBC Radio Cumbria, Mornings with Matt Bailey, Gary Caffell on energy, from 10.20am Tue 5 Apr - BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, Mid-morning with Amir Suleman, from 12.40pm (subject TBC)

 

BRIGHT CANDLES & BURNING CHILLI... DO YOU HAVE A 'JUST IN CASE' CUPBOARD? That's all for this week, but before we go... Forumites have been sharing the essential items they keep stocked in their 'just in case' cupboard. This isn't stockpiling, it's the reserves to help cushion users in an emergency. People are stocked up on chilli sauce, Bovril and, of course, teabags. There are practical items, too - one Forumite keeps a stash of white vinegar, bicarbonate of soda and lemon juice as they double up as cleaning products, while another has batteries and candles in case the electricity cuts out. Add your own essentials to the What do you stock up on 'just in case'? MSE Forum discussion. We hope you save some money, stay safe, The MSE team

 

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