State Pension error!, 12% cheaper energy fix, new car finance switch & save tool, 5 steps for EVERYONE with card debt, free £2 milkshake, beat airport charges

There's a perverse reality that those most in need of cheap credit are the ones who find it hardest to get. Misinformation and misunderstandings exacerbate that, including the myth that you have a single credit rating - so if one lender rejects you, they all will - which still abounds.

Today, with a host of new, better deals launching (jump to top 0% balance transfers), including 0% poorer credit scorer deals, I want to take you through step-by-step how to check, protect, maximise and best utilise your credit ability to minimise current debt costs.

Step 1: Test your Credit Eligibility Rating (a more reliable indication than your credit score)

The days of a bank manager sitting across a desk to work out whether consumers were safe to lend to are now mostly consigned to history. Acceptance is now data driven. So, it's important to know where you sit in the credit get-ability league table, and how to climb it.

Yet while the data is the same, each lender credit-scores you differently based on its OWN wish-list of what makes a profitable customer (some even target those with worse histories). There's no universal rating, or a blacklist. It's lender-by-lender.

MSE's Credit Eligibility Rating assesses your real credit get-ability

In the free MSE Credit Club, members get our unique Credit Eligibility Rating, which assesses you based on a combination of three key data-sets to diagnose how strong your real-world credit power is. They are...

Your 'TransUnion Credit Score'. This is the one most people have seen. It is a credit reference agency's assessment of how a typical lender would look at you. Don't see it as a hard or fast fact, but instead a rough illustration of where you sit (so don't stress small moves in your score, but do check out big ones). In the Credit Club, you can view your TransUnion Credit Score for free.
Your 'affordability score'. Credit scores don't include the single most important stat - how much you earn. If you've a great history but no money, you will be rejected. In the Credit Club, you can view your affordability score for free.
Current market conditions. Lending isn't just about your situation, it's about the market. We factor this in. Thankfully, slightly lower UK interest rates mean things are a little easier, so hopefully a few who have had past rejections may be accepted now.

To review all this, register or log in direct to the Credit Club or, easier, do it via the MSE App (iOS | Android). It also includes a mortgage affordability calculator, cards & loans eligibility calcs, plus bespoke tips on how to improve your credit.

The trio of measures lenders assess you on

Within your credit and affordability scores, there are three calculations made to assess you. We show you yours in the Credit Club, but it's worth understanding them...

An infographic titled 'The trio of things lenders calculate'. It shows three factors: A) Debt ratio, or unsecured debt as a percentage of annual income, with a tip to boost it by reducing debt or increasing income. B) Credit utilisation, or the percentage of available credit used, with an example (£100 debt on a £1,000 limit equals 10%), and a tip to reduce debt or get more credit. A gauge indicates credit utilisation: over 60% is bad (red), 40% to 60% is OK (yellow), 20% to 40% is good (blue), and under 20% is excellent (green). C) Disposable income, or spare cash each month after bills. It notes that for mortgages it's individually calculated and for cards and loans it's statistical, with cutting expenditure less helpful than increasing earnings or reducing debt. The link takes you to our Credit Club.

A) Debt ratio: the percentage you owe compared with annual income. In general, the lower the debt ratio, the better. This is for non-mortgage debt such as cards & loans. Eg, £10,000 of card debt on a £40,000 income is a 25% debt ratio.

To improve it: If possible, pay down any debt (or increase your income, though if you could, you'd probably be doing that anyway). Yet lenders do like to see a little debt used, so they can check you're doing it responsibly and paying it off - so a ratio under 1%, especially if you've little other credit data, can be negative.

B) Credit utilisation: the percentage of available credit you currently use. Again, lower is better. Eg, if you've spent £100 on a credit card and you've a £1,000 limit, that's 10% credit utilisation.

To improve it: To cut it, again, pay off some debt if possible. Though the utilisation isn't important if you've a low debt ratio (ie, the fact you're using most of your credit isn't a biggie if it's only a small part of your income.) It's when you've more significant debt it comes into play.

C) Disposable income: the percentage of spare cash left over each month after essentials. This time, higher is better. Essentials include housing costs, debt repayments and other bills you and your dependants must pay. For cards & loans, it's done via a statistical calculation for a typical person in your position, rather than looking at your actual incomings & outgoings, so there's not much you can do to change it.

Step 2: Can you shift existing credit or store card debt to 34mths 0% (22mths if poor credit)?

The key weapon to tackle existing card debts is a 0% balance transfer, where you get a new card that pays off debt on existing card(s), so you owe it instead, but interest-free for hopefully a long period. This means more of your repayments clear the actual debt, not just mostly cover interest, meaning you get debt-free quicker.

And it works, as Bernadette emailed in April: "Thanks to in-depth info & explanation, I applied for 0% balance transfer, got 23 months. Transferred £2,000 of high-interest debt. Applied for another card and got 20 months 0% to clear remaining £1,000. Am so delighted to finally make headway. Have also set cards to frozen on bank apps. Thank you all so much. [Likely interest saving £600/year.]" To do it...

Find which top card you're most likely to be accepted for via our eligibility calc. It shows your odds of getting each card BEFORE you apply, minimising applications & protecting your credit score. All links in the tables below go via it. Plus it means if new cards are launched, they'll be included when you check too.
Go for the lowest fee with a 0% period long enough to clear the debt. Balance transfers usually have a one-off fee of the amount of debt transferred (eg, 3% is £30 per £1,000 shifted). Longer 0% cards usually have bigger fees, so if you can clear quicker, go shorter. Unsure? Play safe & go long.
Usually rejected when you apply? Our eligibility calc also includes balance transfers for poor credit scorers, and MSE's free Credit Club (available via the MSE App on Apple | Android) can analyse the problem (and includes the eligibility calc too).

Below are the top deals, first for those with stronger credit scores, then poorer credit 0% deals.

Top-pick 0% balance transfers for newbies (all links via our eligibility calc)
Longest 0% deals (ordered by length)
New. MBNA UP TO 34mths 0% (2.99% fee) 24.9% rep APR interest after 0% ends	Longest 0% & lower fee, but an 'up to' The joint-longest 0% deal, with a lower fee than the other, making it top. It's an 'up to' card, meaning some accepted will get a worse deal than the headline rate (see the backup rates below), but our eligibility calc shows what you'll get in advance, so you have certainty before applying, which should help you decide. Headline 0%: 34mths 0% (2.99% fee) Backup 0%: 33mths (3.49% fee), 18mths (3.49% fee) or 14mths 0% (3.99% fee)
NatWest UP TO 34mths 0% (3.49% fee) 24.9% rep APR after 0% ends	Longest 0%, but an 'up to' The same headline 0% length as MBNA above, but a £5 higher fee per £1,000 debt shifted. It's also an 'up to' card, and offers a backup rate that could be anywhere between 16 and 33mths 0%. Yet, again, thankfully, with this card, our eligibility calc will tell you which rate you'll get before applying, which should help you decide. Headline 0%: 34mths 0% (3.49% fee) Backup 0%: 16 to 33mths 0% (3.49% fee)
Virgin Money DEFINITE 33mths 0% (2.99% fee) 24.9% rep APR after 0% ends	Longest DEFINITE 0% All accepted get the full 33mths at 0%. The fee is low for a long card too, at 2.99%, so if you're not offered the longest rates above and are shown decent odds of getting this, it's likely a winner. All accepted get: 33mths 0% (2.99% fee)
Lowest fee 0% deals (ordered by lowest fee)
Barclaycard UP TO 14mths 0% (NO FEE) 24.9% rep APR interest after 0% ends	Longest NO-FEE 0%, but an 'up to' Used right, no-fee cards mean absolutely no-cost debt. If pre-approved in our eligibility calc, you'll definitely get 14mths - a good deal. If not, we're told roughly one in five get the backup rate, so you may be safer going for the card below. Headline 0%: 14mths 0% (NO FEE) Backup 0%: 7mths 0% (NO FEE)
New. Virgin Money DEFINITE 13mths 0% (NO FEE) 24.9% rep APR after 0% ends	No-fee DEFINITE 0% Only a month shorter, but here all accepted get the full 0% deal. So if you've decent odds of that, it's a strong deal. All accepted get: 13mths 0% (NO FEE)
New. Virgin Money DEFINITE 18mths 0% (0.95% fee) 24.9% rep APR after 0% ends	Low-fee DEFINITE 0% For those who need a little longer, this is a strong card because, again, all accepted get the full 0% deal and the fee is still low (at roughly £10 per £1,000 transferred). All accepted get: 18mths 0% (0.95% fee)
New. Barclaycard UP TO 22mths 0% (1.49% fee) 24.9% rep APR after 0% ends	Decent length, lower fee, but an 'up to' We're getting into decent-length territory here but the 1.49% fee (reduced from the normal 1.99% via this special link) is still £20ish cheaper per £1,000 of debt shifted than the very longest cards. If you're pre-approved in our eligibility calc you'll definitely get the full 22mths, otherwise we're told roughly one in five people will get the backup rate. Headline 0%: 22mths 0% (1.49% fee) Backup 0%: 11mths 0% (1.49% fee)

Cards for poorer credit scorers, with a quick warning...

Balance transfer cards that accept those with poorer credit scores tend to have higher 'go-to' rates, which is the APR the card jumps to once the 0% ends. So it's especially important here to check how that rate compares with the APR of your current card.

If it is higher, ONLY move an amount you're sure you can repay within the 0% period, or you could be stuck paying more interest after. If it's the same or a lower rate, shift as much debt across as you can to take advantage of the 0%.

Poorer credit 0% balance transfers for newbies (all links via our eligibility calc)
Capital One DEFINITE 22mths 0% (2.9% fee) 26.9% rep APR interest after the 0% ends	All accepted get 22mths 0%. - Min income? N/A - Who may get it? It accepts some with a history of past defaults, County Court Judgments (CCJs) and bankruptcies.
Vanquis UP TO 18mths 0% (2.9% fee) 32.9% rep APR after the 0% ends	Some get 18mths, some just 6mths, but at least it will tell you via our eligibility calc which you get before you hit apply and mark your credit file. - Min income? N/A - Who may get it? Some with past CCJs or defaults, but you can't currently be bankrupt or have an active Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA).
Virgin Money DEFINITE 16mths 0% (3% fee) 29.9% rep APR after the 0% ends	All accepted get 16mths 0%. - Min income? £15,000/yr - Who may get it? CCJs or defaults must be over 18mths old and you need a recent history of managing credit well and a UK bank account.
Fluid DEFINITE 12mths 0% (3% fee) 29.9% rep APR after the 0% ends	All accepted get 12mths 0%. While this is shorter than the others, acceptance chances may be greater due to the lower min-income threshold. - Min income? £5,000/yr - Who may get it? Some who were declared bankrupt over 18mths ago. CCJs or IVAs must be over 3yrs old. Need 12mths' UK address history & a UK bank account.

Getting a card? Follow my Golden Rules...

Clear debt before the 0% ends. Pay it off or balance-transfer again before the 0% ends or you'll pay the far-higher rep APR.
Never miss the minimum monthly repayment. Or you can lose the 0% rate. Best to set up a Direct Debit for at least the minimum, then make additional manual payments on top to clear the debt.
Don't spend/withdraw cash on the card. It usually isn't at the 0% rate, so will be expensive and it's best not to build up more debt.
Check how long you've got to do the transfer. If you don't do it as part of the application, you've normally 30 to 90 days.
Try to avoid further borrowing. Unless you're a stoozer, if you're doing a balance transfer it means you've a decent chunk of debt. So, it's a signal to think carefully before borrowing any more (especially if it's a poor credit transfer). Consider doing a money makeover and a budget.

The most frequent questions I get about balance transfers (oh and the answers too...)

I've been talking about this for over 20 years, and had more questions than I can shake a maraca at...

Q. Should I apply if my best eligibility score is only 20%? Cutting debt costs is important (usually only trumped by a mortgage application), so go for it. While 20% odds are low, it means it's likely two in 10 applicants will succeed, and it could be you. If you are rejected, barring a minor credit-file application mark, you're no worse off. So the upside massively outweighs the downside.

Q. What if the credit limit isn't high enough for all my debt? If you get accepted for a card but the credit limit isn't big enough, the application's already on your credit file - so shift as much of your highest APR debt as you can to the new card (usually they cap it at 90% of the credit limit). Then once done, use our eligibility calculator to see your chances of acceptance for other providers' cards to move the rest.

Q. Can a balance transfer hurt my credit score? While shifting a balance from one card to another isn't recorded on your credit file, a footprint is added to your file every time you apply for a new credit card. Multiple applications, especially close together, and high outstanding debts, even at 0%, can affect your ability to get further credit.

Yet don't let that put you off. This isn't a flippant application. Cutting expensive debt costs is one of the reasons you try to build a good credit history. If you like, it's 'worth spending your credit score on'. See our Credit scores guide for full information.

Q. What if the eligibility calculator says 'no chance' for all cards? That makes things difficult. Our calc is only an estimate based on the info we get from firms, but it likely means rejections from all those we include, and as that includes poor credit scorers' cards, it likely means acceptance anywhere will be tough. There are still other things you should look at doing though - keep going on to the next steps...

Step 3: Pay off debts the right way (even if you can't get 0% balance transfers)

Some try to repay their biggest debt first, or spread repayments equally as it feels psychologically better. Yet I'm a Money Saving Expert, my aim is to minimise your costs and it's the debt with the highest interest rate (APR) that's growing most quickly and costing the most, so I very strongly think that's the priority to pay off.

It's worth noting you can sometimes use existing cards to move debt to where it's cheapest too. Some may give you 0% deals for a short time, yet even if not, if you've two cards, one that charges 20%, one 30%, and you're not at your credit limit, you may be able to ask the 20% card whether you can shift some debt from the 30% card to it. That would help. Ask your lender whether it'll do it, and see the credit card shuffle for how it works. Putting all this together...

Move all debt to where it's cheapest using 0% balance transfers or existing-customer balance transfers.
List all your cards and overdrafts in APR order (loans too, though that's more complex - see existing loan help).
Focus all spare cash on clearing the highest-rate debt, paying just the minimum on all others. Once it's clear, focus on the next highest rate, and so on. This will get you debt-free quickest.
If your overdraft is the most expensive debt (and at a typical 40%, it may well be) then just pay the min on all cards, and make sure any spare money is reducing the overdraft (see 9 tips to cut overdraft costs).
If you've a 0% card soon to end that'll go to a hideous rate, at that point you may want to push to clear it first.

All this can make a big difference, as John kindly emailed us last month: "I did have a good, well-paid job, and could easily afford to pay off the credit card in full each month. Unfortunately, I lost that job, and although I cut down on luxuries and non-essential costs, got into not paying off in full - and the interest started building up.

"I thought I would get out of the spiral in time. Obviously, it became harder month by month. Took Martin's advice and started moving debts around reducing the highest interest first. I couldn't get 0% offers to begin with, but promotional deals from the providers of cards I already had.

"Over time, I've reduced the debt each month, by paying the minimum each month and saving what was available each period to then pay that at the end of the promotion. It's taken time, but from a bad position of owing almost £10,000 on credit cards, I'm now within a month of paying it all off with 1 final payment." [Huge congratulations John, it takes hard work and discipline. This will inspire many - Martin.]

"Thanks a lot for the advice, Martin, it's worked wonders including my mental health each month wondering whether to pay Peter, Paul or another debt. Looking forward to the future where the money that was going on repayment can now go into savings & a long overdue holiday."

Step 4: Ten tips to (re)build creditworthiness

Now let's move on to the future. None of these tips will help you today, but building yourself a history as a better credit citizen will accelerate your debt cost-cutting in times to come and hopefully let you minimise debt, too.

There are bespoke tips in the MSE Credit Club, but I wanted to run through some general concepts that can make most more attractive to lenders, though there's no universal fix - as just like when you're on the pull, different people/lenders fancy different things. Yet in general...

Get on the electoral roll. If not, getting credit's tough, as it can cause ID and tracing issues, so sign up to the electoral roll (you can still opt out of the 'open register' to avoid junk mail). If you're from overseas, it's trickier, so see help for foreign nationals.
Never miss or be late on repayments. Use a Direct Debit to be sure, even if just the minimum (then manually repay more on top).
If you don't have, or have never had, credit, start with crap credit and use it well. Lenders credit-score you to predict your future behaviour based on your past. Yet if you've no credit history, they've no data to assess, and you'll usually be rejected. If so, one way to start is to get a credit rebuild card or something similar.

The interest rates will be hideous, but spend £50 to £100 a month on it (just your normal spending, eg, supermarket) and pay it off IN FULL each month so you don't pay the interest. That way you'll gradually start to build a credit history.
Use consistent answers on every application (eg, job title). Evidence of stability's good, so don't alter your job title or put different bank or mobile numbers down (unless they've changed). Too much variance can also trigger rejection from fraud checks.
You can hold hands, snog, live with or marry who you like... just be careful if you get joint products. Even marriage won't link your credit file with someone else. ONLY joint products (mortgage, loan, or even a bills bank account with flatmates) can, then lenders can assess their history too. So, avoid if they've had issues. If you're no longer with someone you were linked to, see how to de-link your finances.
Check your credit file at least once a year and before any big applications. It's important to go through line-by-line, as errors can kibosh applications. Worse still, if you get wrongly rejected due to an error, that application will be on your file anyway making things worse in future. See how to check all three credit reference agencies' files for free.
Ensure you time it right. Major problems, such as County Court Judgments, defaults or bankruptcy, stay on your file for six years. Applications for products stay on for one year. So, if you're nearing a point where things will soon lapse (your credit file will tell you), try holding off applying until they do.
Buy now, pay later (BNPL) is increasingly appearing on credit reports, so timely repayment matters. The three credit reference agencies now add data about firms such as Klarna and Zilch, so on-time repayments should boost your credit history, while late repayments may harm it. And in future all BNPL firms will likely be doing this, as it's becoming regulated, so this gets more important. See how BNPL works.
Wait to do little applications until after big ones. Too many applications too quickly can be negative, so space out and prioritise applications, eg, if you're soon applying for a mortgage, don't apply for more trivial products such as cashback credit cards or switch bank account in the month or two before.
Don't withdraw cash on credit cards. It's expensive & evidence of poor money management (for a possible exception, see Withdrawing cash abroad).

Step 5: Struggling to cope? Get free debt help

The solutions above all involve you being in a functional relationship with your debt, ie, you can afford to repay and just want to cut the cost. But for some, a different tack is better - full help in our Debt crisis help guide. I have three questions to ask...

- Do you struggle to meet minimum monthly payments?
- Is your total debt (not mortgage/student loan) over 1yr's salary?
- Do you have sleepless nights or depression/anxiety over debt?

If you answer 'yes' to any of these, forget the solutions above, and instead get free, one-to-one debt-counselling help from Citizens Advice, StepChange, National Debtline or CAP (which gives emotional support too).

They're there to help, not judge. The most common thing we hear after is: "I finally got a good night's sleep." Just go for it, read inspiring stories in our Debt-free wannabe forum, and also see our Mental Health & Debt guide.

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.

Martin: It may be summer, but it's an energy switching sweet spot!
We now know what energy bills will likely be till the year ends, so can say with some certainty most can CUT BILLS BY 12% on the new cheapest fix (typically £200/yr less)

Martin: "We're at an interesting moment for the over 65% of Eng, Scot & Welsh homes on a Price-Capped tariff (pretty much all who aren't on a fix or a special deal). The Price Cap dropped 7% on 1 July, but now sadly it looks like it won't keep dropping, meaning the cheapest fixes look strong. It's important to understand how it works...

- The next Price Cap change is 1 Oct (each Cap lasts three months so that stays until 1 Jan).
- That Cap is set based mainly on the average of wholesale rates from mid-May to mid-Aug. We're 2/3 through that.
- So, we've a decent idea of what'll now happen - the current predictions are it'll go UP 1.5% on 1 Oct.
- They're likely to be within a few % correct, so it'll ROUGHLY STAY AT THE CURRENT PRICE TILL THE YEAR END.
- After that, it's far more crystal-ball gazing, but current predictions are DOWN 0.2% on 1 Jan, and UP 5.5% on 1 April.

"So, we're pretty sure the current cheapest fixes, which are 12% below the current Price Cap, will be substantially cheaper until the year end, and likely (though less guaranteed) to continue to be cheaper afterwards. Now, over to the team to talk you through the cheapest deals."

Are you on a Price-Capped tariff? It includes: British Gas Standard Variable \| EDF Standard (Variable) \| E.on Next Next Flex \| Octopus Flexible Octopus \| Ovo Simpler Energy \| Scottish Power Standard

Today's cheapest fixes. A fixed tariff is where the rate is set for, usually, a year or more to give you peace of mind of no price rises. Though currently you get substantial immediate savings too. As your exact winner depends on your location and usage, it's best to use our whole-of-market-by-default Cheap Energy Club comparison.

A quick note on Ecotricity's 1yr fix*, which on average is cheapest at 11.6% cheaper than the current Price Cap. We've arranged that if you switch via this link, or the one in Energy Club, you get £20 (dual fuel) on a prepaid Mastercard (£10 single fuel). We've factored that into the saving here, but for technical reasons can't include that in the saving you'll see in the Energy Club, so if it's not cheapest there but is close, it may be your winner anyway.

Top-pick cheap standalone energy fixes (1) All accept both switchers & existing customers
All links via Cheap Energy Club to give a bespoke price and as tariffs can change at short notice (not N. Ireland [2])
Ecotricity EcoFixed - 1 Yr Green Tariff July 25 v6 12mth fix. - Smart meter needed (if you don't have one, it'll fit one) - Dual fuel, elec or gas-only. Monthly Direct Debit only	Save average 11.6% compared with today's Price Cap, including until 2,750 switches are done or at the latest 1 Aug a £20 MSE dual fuel (£10 single fuel) prepaid Mastercard. £75/fuel early exit fees.
Fuse Energy July 2025 Fixed (18m) V2 18mth fix. - No smart meter needed - Dual fuel or elec-only. Monthly Direct Debit only	Save average 11.4% compared with today's Price Cap, including £20 MSE dual fuel (£10 single fuel) cashback. £50/fuel early exit fees. Fuse has similarly priced 12mth fixes, with the same early exit fees.
Outfox Energy Fix'd Dual Jul25 v3.0 2 year fix. - No smart meter needed - Dual fuel. Monthly Direct Debit only	Save average 10.5% compared with today's Price Cap. £250 dual-fuel early exit fees. Outfox has similarly priced 12 & 18mth fixes, but with lower early exit fees.
Octopus Energy Fixed July 2025 v4 12mth fix. - No smart meter needed - Dual fuel, elec or gas-only. Monthly Direct Debit only	Cheapest NO EARLY EXIT PENALTY fix. Save average 4.1% compared with today's Price Cap. There are other fixes cheaper than this we haven't listed, but we've added this as with no exit penalties, it's no risk - you can leave at no cost if things change.
(1) Full info in the Energy Club comparison. It includes non-standalone tariffs, ie, those where you need to get other products such as broadband or boiler cover. All are detailed via our Energy Club. (2) For help with Northern Irish tariffs, see N. Ireland energy.

Q. I'm on prepay - can I fix? Yes, if you're on a smart meter. Not if you're on old-school key or card meters. The cheapest smart prepay fix currently is EDF's Simply Fixed Aug26v3 (link goes via Energy Club so you can compare), but it's only 4.7% cheaper than the current Price Cap (including MSE cashback) and has £50 per fuel early exit penalties. Hopefully better ones will come out soon.

Q. Is a longer fix worth it? It gives you price certainty for longer, and means you needn't switch as frequently. Yet no price predictions go much beyond a year ahead. So it's tough to know whether it'll stack up. The more certainty is important for you, the more you should consider it. Beware big early exit penalties though.

Q. What is 'MSE cashback'? Some providers pay energy comparison sites to facilitate the switch (you still get the same price as going direct). But unlike other sites, we don't default to hiding tariffs that don't pay. Instead, we show them all, but when we get paid to switch you, we give you a chunk of it as cashback, so those that pay us are relatively cheaper for you, so likely more people switch to them. Win-win.

Fixes are not the only fruit. There are a few other innovative tariffs that can save you money, though they're often more difficult to compare via the traditional comparison site model, so we wanted to explain them here...

- Low user? Slash £50 off STANDING CHARGES. EDF and British Gas have trackers which follow the Price Cap but with £50 lower Standing Charges (£25 lower for elec-only). If your usage is under roughly £85/mth, so the Standing Charges make up a larger portion, this can mean a decent saving, otherwise fixes are far cheaper.

- Rapid change time-of-use tariffs. They need a smart meter, and can be very cheap, though they're best for sophisticated users who get how energy markets work. The Octopus Tracker's rates change daily based on wholesale rates - it's been under the Price Cap substantially over the last year, but has had some periods of being costlier. Octopus Agile is an elec-only tariff, and rates change half-hourly. You may even be paid to use energy in the wee hours, but it can be very costly at peak times. They're best for those who can nimbly shift their usage to take advantage (or have battery storage).

- Specialist electric vehicle tariffs. There's a good choice of these - see our specialist electric vehicle tariffs guide.
I'm struggling to pay bills - what do I do? It's always worth talking to your energy firm. Be polite and straight with it, and make sure you explain if you're vulnerable. There can be hardship & debt grants from energy suppliers. For far more info, see our full What to do if you're struggling to pay energy bills, Energy saving tips & Energy mythbusting guides.

State Pension error! Did you take time off work (1978 to 2010) to look after children? You may be due £10,000s. If you cared for a child or someone with a long-term disability between 1978 and 2010, you could wrongly have National Insurance gaps that reduce your State Pension. 100,000s could be affected, and while the Govt was contacting people, it isn't any longer - as highlighted by former Pensions Minister Steve Webb. Thus the onus is on YOU to proactively check. The impact can be huge, as Cilla found: "I've just received 15yrs' back pay from HMRC of £31,674 for underpayment of my pension. Thank you." Full help in our Missing out on State Pension guide.

FREE £3 St Pierre brioche buns, FREE £2 Fuel milkshake, FREE £1 Florette salad & more. Check out all this month's freebies and discounts in 40+ supermarket coupons.

It's getting hot out there - now SIX banks pay switchers up to £310, but not for long... Another week, another new bank fighting to pay you to switch, but the clock's ticking on other deals. These specific links get you...
- New: TSB's FREE £190 cash + '£120'* is back. £100 upfront + £15 for 6mths + a reward in March, eg, £120 hotel voucher.
- Ends in 8 days: Boosted £25 Amazon voucher on Santander Edge's FREE £180* - while it costs £3/mth, it pays 1% cashback on most bills paid via Direct Debit (max £10/mth) which typically makes you about £20/yr even after the fee.
- Rare: Barclays' FREE £175* launched last week. It rarely does switch bonuses so fewer 'past switchers' are excluded.
- Ends Mon: Club Lloyds' FREE £185 + reward, eg, 12mths' Disney+ with ads or six cinema tickets.
See all SIX 'get paid to switch' banking offers in our guide, which also includes full pros, cons and eligibility criteria.

£59 Instant Pot 7.6L air fryer - our link gets £111 off (reduced from £170). 5,000 available. MSE Blagged. Next cheapest we've seen this elsewhere is £109. Instant Pot

Martin's new pod: A beginner's guide to investing. Should you do it, how to start & more... Watch Martin's 1min 'Why risk isn't always bad' video, a snippet of his new 'A beginner's guide to investing' episode of The Martin Lewis Podcast where he's joined by two specialists to answer your questions (listen on BBC Sounds | Apple Podcasts | Spotify & elsewhere). Plus, what's going to happen to the cash ISA limit and Martin's explanation of Bitcoin.

Jetting off imminently? 16 last-ditch travel checks to avoid panic stations. A reminder of last week's 16-point last-ditch TRAVEL CHECKLIST including passport check | cheapest travel insurance | GHIC check | beat car hire insurance hard-sell | book airport parking now | cheapest way to spend abroad | pay in euros.

Plus, updated. Airport-by-airport how to avoid up to £15 drop-off charges. See how to ditch 'kiss & fly' charges.

Puma 30% off almost EVERYTHING code including sale items, eg, £70 trainers £25. MSE Blagged.

Top Tesco Trick! Turn £5 of vouchers into 1,000pts (£10) and get £10 of rewards too. Hugely popular last week, and ending next Tuesday, so here's a reminder of this Tesco trick.

'I claimed £2,500 for pothole damage thanks to your guide.' Our success of the week comes from Colin, who emailed: "In Feb, my car hit a pothole left by a utility company. After looking at the MSE Pothole claims guide, I submitted a 'fast claim' to the council. The response was in the form of a template rejection letter modified to suit my situation. I responded to the rejection with a 'full claim' using your template. The result is that my car is now repaired and the council fully reimbursed me for my repair costs (over £2,500). This would have been so much harder if it hadn't been for your website, so thank you." If we've helped you save or reclaim (on this or owt else), send us your successes.

BLAGGED FOR MSE

- £170 Instant Pot 7.6L air fryer £59 5,000 available
- Puma 30% off almost everything Ends Tue 29 July

DID YOU MISS?

- NHS, care or emergency worker? Earn new discounts
- £4,000/yr help for disabled/ill State Pensioners
- Summer holiday kids' freebies and cheapies
- Updated: Got a 'do not drive' order from Citroen or DS?
- Can you get a school uniform grant of up to £200?

While we await the car finance reclaiming decision...
New Tool: The Car Finance Checker! Can you switch your current PCP or HP deal to cut the cost by £1,000s?

The car finance industry and millions of its customers are on tenterhooks, awaiting the Supreme Court's imminent decision on whether car finance was mis-sold on a massive scale (see Martin's car finance reclaiming warning). Meantime, we've been investigating a different (& compatible) way to cut costs... the little-known car refinancing route, where you take out new, cheaper finance to repay your existing Hire Purchase (HP) or Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) deal. Some can save £1,500+ in interest. Our new Car refinancing checker & guide has full details, but let's speed you through the basics here.

PS: We've confirmed with the regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, that generally refinancing shouldn't affect your right to claim, in the event any mis-sold car finance compensation schemes are set up.

Step 1: Try the new Car Finance Checker: Can you switch deal and save? Whether you're likely able to save depends mainly on your current interest rate, how much and how long you have left to pay, and whether your credit history has improved since you took out a deal. Our Car Finance Checker will speedily tell you whether it's likely you can save, ie, whether it's worth you bothering with the next steps below to find out.

If it is likely, the checker will also give you an estimated settlement figure (the amount you'll need to borrow to pay off your existing deal), which you'll need for steps 2 and 3.
Step 2: If the checker says you can likely cut costs... first see whether a loan is cheaper. Of course, if you've got a decent whack of savings, then that'll always beat taking out debt. Yet most won't, so the first port of call is to check whether a loan would save you money. In general, the cheapest loans undercut car finance (unless it's already at 0%). Acceptance is key though, so use our Loans Eligibility Calculator to find whether the cheapest lenders will accept you (or do the same via MSE's free Credit Club).
Step 3: If you can't save with a loan, see whether cheaper car finance is available. Specialist car finance lenders will pay off your old car finance and set you up with a new deal. To get a comparison of these, try Motiv (via MoneySupermarket)* and Experian* (if you've time, check both as they can have different lenders / rates). Full help in Will a new finance deal save me money?
Step 4: Use the new loan or car finance to pay off your existing deal. The exact process depends on which type of new finance you're getting. It's not too difficult though. Full info in how to pay off your old car finance deal.

This is new for us - do let us know how you found it... This is a brand new guide and car refinancing system. We've worked through it and been testing it, and we'd love your feedback and/or successes - that should help us refine it and make it even better in future.

Don't let estate agents try to force you into using their mortgage broker or solicitor. It's called 'conditional selling' and it's illegal, though many skirt close to it. Panorama did an investigation into the scale of the practice last week - see our Don't let estate agents tell you 'use our services' guide for your rights and how to fight back.

10% off iPads or Macs & free AirPods for students (& sneakily parents) and teachers.

Want to test our new Savings Hub? All the best rates at a glance. We've been working hard on a new hub with all of the best savings rates at a glance. It's still a work in progress, but we thought some of you may enjoy it early - if you do, please send feedback.

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) protections to take force next July. The regulator has launched the start of the process to regulate BNPL, yet key protections will not be in place for a year. Martin warns BNPL care till then

Achoo! 180 hay fever tablets for £5.99.

How do you rate your bank account's service? Have your say in our six-monthly poll.

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS

Longest 0%: MBNA (check eligibility) up to 34mths 0%, 2.99% fee, 24.9% rep APR interest
No-fee 0%: Barclaycard (check eligibility) up to 14mths 0%, 24.9% rep APR interest

Free £180 + £25 Amazon voucher: Santander Edge
New. Free £100 + £15/mth for 6mths: TSB Spend & Save

Fast fibre (100Mb+): Virgin '£22.54/mth'
Superfast fibre (500Mb+): Sky '£27.67/mth'

On Universal Credit or similar? Check all discounted social tariffs

Car: Use our Compare+ Car Insurance tool
Home: Try our Compare+ Home Insurance tool

£5,000 to £7,499: People's Choice (check eligibility), 7% rep APR interest (6.5% on £7,000 to £7,499)
£7,500 to £15,000: M&S Bank (check eligibility), 5.9% rep APR interest

Top easy-access savings: Chase 5%, min £1
Top easy-access cash ISA: Trading 212 4.98%, min £1
Top one-year fix: GB Bank 4.53%, min £1,000

Use our whole-of-market Cheap Energy Club

Up to 3GB data: Lebara, '£2.70/mth' for 3GB
4GB to 9GB data: Lebara, '£2.72/mth' for 5GB
10GB to 30GB data: Lebara, '£3.73/mth' for 10GB
31GB+ data: Lebara, '£4.17/mth' for 35GB

CAMPAIGN OF THE WEEK

Your chance to ask MPs about the evidence behind policy decisions. Evidence Week in Parliament highlights how evidence is used and scrutinised in Westminster - with MPs, researchers and the public openly discussing the evidence behind policy decisions. Evidence Week is being held in November, but right now you can vote on the questions to be put to MPs in a live 'hot seat' event (including two from MoneySavingExpert) or put forward one of your own on an issue that matters to you. Find out more and vote here.

THIS WEEK'S POLL

How do you rate your bank account's service? Every six months, we ask for your help to track the quality of customer service provided by banks. By comparing your answers with last time, we can see which have got better or worse. Please vote based on customer service for your main current account over the last six months. Vote in this week's poll.

MSE NEWS

- Top story: Govt finds 'systemic failure' with solid wall insulation fitted under official schemes
- Former TalkTalk broadband user? Your free email address will soon stop working unless you pay

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA

Should I give some of my lottery winnings to the relative who gave me the ticket? A relative always puts a lottery ticket in family and friends' birthday cards. In my most recent card, I won a decent sum of money on the ticket - should I keep it, or tell them about it and offer to deal them in on the winnings? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should I give my relative some winnings? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma (MMD) | View past MMDs

MSE TEAM BLOG

- FREE Lego animal painting mini figure at Smyths toy stores on Saturday
- How to make Dubai-style chocolate and save up to 66%. No need to 'Du-bai' it!
- MSE Forum highlights: Pilchards, plants & pockets

MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (TUE 22 JUL ONWARDS)

Thu 24 Jul - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, midday
Tue 29 Jul - This Morning, phone-in, ITV1, 10.20am

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We 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.

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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 is now the UK's biggest consumer help website, with more than 12 million users each month and about 8.5 million receiving this email. 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 Lewis CBE is the founder and executive chair of MSE, as well as the founder of the MMHPI charity. He's an ultra-focused MoneySaving journalist and consumer campaigner with his own prime-time ITV programme The Martin Lewis Money Show, Radio 5 Live Wednesday show Ask Martin Lewis and weekly slot on This Morning, among others. More info: See Martin Lewis' biography.

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