Martin: 'Get a job or work for self?', 100 days to Xmas, FREE wills, 100GB Sim £6/mth, six top 0% debt shifts, cheap iPhone 16

Martin's student finance need-knows, free dog food, free Ideal Home tix, more beauty Advent savings

                                                           

16 September 2025 | View in browser

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THE TOP TIPS IN THIS EMAIL 100 days till Xmas: Martin's do-nows - New. Free £200 in time for Christmas - New. Free £30 Amazon vch - Earn £100s in cashback on spending - Use our DemoHOHOtivator tool 100GB Sim £6/mth + mobile cost-cutters Free wills are back - update yours Record-breaking SIX credit cards let you shift debt to 0% till July 2028 State Pension to rise next April Martin's student finance need-knows Ends Wed. Free £15 for teens Freebies: £5 dog food, £2.50 juice Martin: 'Get a job or work for self?' Ends Mon. Cheapest ever iPhone 16 FREE Ideal Home Show tickets Martin's pod. Best for kids' savings? Martin's new Money Question Time pod Updated. More beauty Advent savings 'I found a pension pot worth £34,000' Free Disney+ & more via Uber One? Boosted. M&S sale now up to 70% off Wetherspoon pubs 7.5% off food & drink This week's best buys: 4.75% easy-access savings, '£20.46/mth' fast fibre, 5.8% loans Money Moral Dilemma: When to tell son I can't afford private school fees? BEST BUYS & TOOLS MSE Cheap Mobile Finder Credit Club including free credit report 0% balance transfers Compare broadband deals MSE Compare+ Car Insurance Best bank accounts Top savings accounts Credit cards for bad credit Credit Card Eligibility Calculator Loans Eligibility Calculator Mortgage comparison Compare travel money Cheap Energy Club Best Sim-only deals

Ho, ho... oh no! 100 days till Chr******. Martin's 15 do-nows to cut cost & stress then. Early preparation, not celebration Incl... New. £200 FREE cash | Toy sales on NOW | Money-making tips | Discount code secrets | Ban unnecessary prezzies | £500 of cashback freebies Sorry to use the C word so early, I hate baubles and Bublé before Bonfire Night as much as the next Scrooge. Yet this isn't about early celebration; there are just 100 days (well, 99) to Christmas, and as the average family spends 30% more in December, it's a financial event that needs planning & prep. So here's my list of key need-to-knows and need-dos now to make it easier for Christmas (many of the tips also work if, like me, you celebrate Chanukah, or owt else). 1. There's still time to spread the cost to ease the pain. Rather than shelling out the estimated typical £700 Christmas cost from December's income, if you haven't put any aside yet, try to squeeze a quarter of what's needed from your Sept, Oct and Nov income too. Plus, put it in top savings to EARN interest when you do; that's far better than getting into Christmas debt and having to PAY interest on it afterwards. 2. New. FREE £200 in time for Christmas. One way to help pay for the day is to grab a legal bribe to switch bank. A flurry of new deals have just popped out, many that are top rated. Switching is usually easy & hassle-free... You must pass a not-too-harsh credit-check and use the banks' 7-working-day switch service, which closes your old account, moves over your balance, standing orders and Direct Debits for you, and auto-forwards any payments made to it from then on. New customer FREE cash switch bonuses Full detail & eligibility info on all accounts via best bank accounts Top pick: All round deal & top service First Direct 1st Account* (fee-free) - FREE £175. If you've £1,000 total going in within 45 days. - New. FREE £25 Amazon voucher too. Via our link. - Top service. Won almost every customer service poll we've ever done, currently rated 92% 'great'.  - Get 7% regular savings. Save up to £300/mth for 1yr. - Ongoing £250 0% overdraft. Credit score dependent. - Top overseas debit card. Gives near-perfect exchange rates on spending abroad. Can't get if... you had a First Direct account before, or opened one with HSBC since Jan 2018. Full eligibility info in our First Direct review. CASH PAID BY 20 OCT. (8 Dec for £25 vch) New. Club Lloyds - FREE £200. But there's a £5/mth fee if you don't pay £2,000 in each month. - Ongoing £100 0% overdraft. Credit score dependent. - Perks. Eg, choice of 12mths' Disney+ or 6 cinema tix. - Interest. 1.5% up to £3,999, 3% on £4,000 to £5,000. - Get 6.25% regular savings. Save up to £400/mth for 1yr. - Top overseas debit card. Gives near-perfect exchange rates on spending abroad. Can't get if... you received switch cash from Lloyds, Halifax or Bank of Scotland since Apr 2020. Full eligibility info in our Club Lloyds review. CASH PAID BY 8 OCT New. NatWest Reward Current Account - FREE £175. Must pay in £1,250 total and log into the mobile app within 60 days.  - Get 5.5% regular savings. Save a max £150/mth, but no end date and interest paid on up to £5,000. - Rewards. You pay £2/mth fee, but get paid £4/mth if you've 2+ Direct Debits going out, and get £1/mth for logging into the app (so gain £36/yr after the £2/mth fee). Can't get if... you opened a NatWest current account prior to 16 Sept and it's still open as of 16 Sept, or if you've ever got switch cash from NatWest, RBS or Ulster Bank. Full eligibility info in our NatWest review. CASH PAID BY 25 OCT Co-op Bank Current Account (fee-free) - FREE £100. If you pay in £1,000+/mth. - FREE £25 a month for 3mths. If you continue to pay in £1,000+/mth and meet other criteria.  - Get 7% regular savings. Save up to £250/mth for 1yr. Can't get if... you've had switch cash from Co-op Bank since 1 Nov 2022. Full eligibility info in our Co-op Current Account review. CASH PAID BY 1 OCT The 'CASH PAID BY' dates are our estimates for if you switched tomorrow, as most set a max time after you have switched and fulfilled criteria. 3. TOY SALES come early - on now at Tesco, Asda and The Entertainer. If you know what your kids want, the Tesco half-price toy sale is on now, as is up to 50% off at The Entertainer, and there's an Asda 'rollback' - and that's no surprise. At this time of year we usually see toy sales from these retailers, and likely to come are ones at Argos, Morrisons and more - often it's when they do their cheapest pre-Christmas prices. The MSE Deals team are scouring for these, and I've asked them to ensure we let you know via this email each week. 4. New. FREE £30 Amazon voucher from a bank, but you NEEDN'T switch to get it. Open a new Santander Everyday*, Edge* or Edge Up* current account via these specific links, and even if you don't switch your main bank to it, you'll get a link to claim a £30 Amazon voucher by email after 17 Nov (if not, check your spam folder). You don't have to do anything other than open the account to get the voucher (though you will be credit-checked). Are the accounts any good? The Everyday* account is Santander's bog-standard fee-free account. Edge* is a top (joint) bills account, it costs £3/mth but most get far more back, as it pays 1% cashback (max £10/mth) on Council Tax, water, energy, broadband and other bills you pay from it via Direct Debit. It also gives you a debit card with near-perfect exchange rates abroad, so it can be very useful to run alongside your main account(s). Full info in our Santander Edge review, which also includes info on the souped-up Edge Up version. 5. Now's the moment to discuss with friends & family if you're all BANNING unnecessary Christmas presents. Many spend far too much money, time, effort and stress buying people things they don't want or need in a tit-for-tat (especially tat) Christmas giving extravaganza, leaving too much ending up in landfill. Now to be clear, this isn't about gifts for kids or spouses. It's about agreeing with the ever-extending list of friends, colleagues, classmates and family to release each other from the obligation of reciprocal buying - or just do a secret Santa or donate to charity. Most people tell me when they broach this with friends or family, people breathe a collective sigh of relief. Read the full theory, and how to do it in my now-ancient ban unnecessary Christmas gifts blog, or watch my video explainer below, which goes viral most years... 6. Abandon ye shopping basket, all those who (press) enter. If you've an account at an online retailer and put something in your basket, but then don't complete the transaction, many retailers have conniptions! They think "we almost closed the deal, we need to get 'em back," so may send you a specific discount code to try to do that. So with lots of time to go before the festivities, you can turn this on its head - just log in, put what you want in the basket, then walk away to see if they give you a discount code. See our full list of retailers the 'abandoned basket' trick's worked with. We've had huge success with this over the years, with Whirley saying on Facebook: "I frequently leave items in my basket and get emails saying they are now reduced. I saved £30 on a kitchen bin with Amazon." 7. Don't have a festive lust list, do a budget now and start with that. I should've started with this, but I worry it'd put too many off. Many people plan Christmas the wrong way round; they do it by coming up with a lust list of everything they want for perfect festivities, then work out 'how the heck will I afford that?' It's a recipe for debt or disappointment.  Instead, let the finances lead. Spend a little time now to budget what you can comfortably afford on Christmas, then ask: "How do I have the best time on that amount?" And if you're shouting back: "Yeah right, I can't afford anything", do listen to yourself (and try some of the money-making tips here), take a deep breath and possibly consider going spending cold-turkey this year... Christmas is just one day, don't give yourself an awful New Year with a financial hangover due to it. 8. Get an instant 6% BOOST on your Christmas supermarket spending. Digital saving stamp schemes from Tesco, Asda, Iceland, Sainsbury's, Co-op and Morrisons aim to encourage year-long saving for Christmas (see full scheme-by-scheme info). Yet the way they're usually structured means there's a loophole where you can just put the money in on one day to get the bonus instantly. See our supermarket Christmas savings schemes for a full run-through. 9. Gift vouchers can be a festive nightmare - be careful. Many find giving a gift card more socially acceptable than cash - I get it, cash gifts just aren't very British! Yet unfortunately, vouchers have risks. - If the store goes bust, gift vouchers usually become worthless. - Many have expiry dates, which often aren't made that clear. See our table of when stores' gift cards expire (and do tell the recipient). So think carefully about the likely financial strength of the retailer, and how quickly they'll be used. If in doubt, cash (or money in the bank) is the ultimate gift voucher - it's totally flexible and usable anywhere. 10. Get paid every time you spend! Earn £100s as a Christmas Cashback Combiner Christmas tends to be a high-spend period, so why not start getting paid every time you spend? (Just don't see it as an excuse to overspend.) This is all about cashback deals, and you can combine these to max the gain. i) THE BIG ONE - pay on the right plastic. Spend on a cashback card and it pays you each time you spend on it. Currently two cards stand out with boosted offers (see full options in top cashback cards). Both are credit cards, so only do this if you'll repay IN FULL each month so there's no interest. If not, they charge a hefty 30% rep APR interest, destroying any cashback gain. Get £500 of freebies! You can get a FREE £225 with Amazon or M&S, plus £10/mth Deliveroo cashback and four airport lounge passes with the Amex Preferred Rewards card. That makes it a clear winner, as long as you will spend £5,000 within the first six months (many will with Christmas coming up, especially if you put all necessary family spending on it). The link takes you to our full explanation. Get 5% cashback (max £125) for 5 months. The fee-free Amex Everyday credit card currently pays Amex newbies (you can't have had an Amex in the last 2yrs) 5% cashback up to a max £125 for the first 5mths, and up to 1% after. So do it now and the big cashback covers the high-spend pre- & post-Christmas period. Yet you'll need to spend a min £3,000/yr on the card to get any cashback. It's paid on each anniversary of card acceptance (so if done now, in time for Christmas 2026). See our full Amex Everyday review. ii) Combine the card with the top cashback sites. With these sites, visit retailers through them and you get a slice of what brands pay them for generating sales. Yet cashback this way isn't guaranteed, so prioritise the best deal (not the biggest cashback) and think of the cashback as a bonus. Full info in Top cashback sites. PS: In the past, we've often also suggested adding the free Airtime app on top. It tracks your spending and gives cashback on mobile bills, but we're currently trying to find out about a fee some people have been charged. We'll update you when we know more. 11. Time for a household stock-take; walk around your home to look for owt unused since last Christmas. Shops don't just look at what's in their tills, they value their stock too - so should we. So why not do a stock check? Walk around the house to find anything you've not used in the past year - toys, old coffee makers, mobile phones, prams, gadgets or even clothes unused since the last festive season. Ask yourself if you should flog them for cash. More help in... - eBay selling tips. Best for pricey stuff, eg, designer gear or electronics. - Facebook selling tips. Best for larger items, eg, wardrobes or sofas. - Vinted selling tips. Best for clothes. Or read MSE Sarah's guide to flogging your rubbish for cash (even old loo rolls), for tips on selling perfume bottles, jam jars etc. 12. It's time to DemoHOHOtivate yourself. If you're short of cash for Christmas, then consider whether you're willing to make some small sacrifices to help, eg, if you stop your daily matcha latte (darling) on the way to work, you may save £450 by Christmas. Our DemoHOHOtivator tool lets you see how all YOUR little cuts add up. 13. Sort out your shopping list, prepare your Christmas cupboard, and find out how to POUNCE when things are cheapest. If you've a list of presents or other things to buy, be aware prices aren't static; they can move up and down (Amazon price tracker CamelCamelCamel shows eye-opening examples). There are ways to time it right with your more expensive buys... - Start with a shopping list - knowing what you want always helps. - Use Google Shopping to compare prices now, and tools such as PriceRunner and Love Sales to set the price you want to pay for an item, then be alerted when it drops to that price. - Get a Christmas cupboard ready, so if you do buy early, wrap your prezzies, tag them and forget about them until the big day. 14. Please DON'T borrow for Christmas... but if you will, at least ensure it's at 0%. I'm torn. Borrowing for Christmas is a bad idea. My big message is DON'T DO IT, it's far better to cut your cloth accordingly. Yet I know many people do do-it, and won't stop just because I say so. That's the reason January is debt counsellors' busiest time - Christmas debt is oft a catalyst that tips people over the edge. If that hasn't put you off and you feel you've no choice (really think carefully whether that's true), then at least try to keep it interest-free... Use a 0% spending card. This is a 0% credit card that gives you new borrowing at 0% for, in some cases, two years. Done right, they're the cheapest way to borrow over the medium term. To find out what you'll be accepted for, try our 0% Spending Card Eligibility Calculator. Normally with 0% cards, I'd say plan and budget to clear the debt before the 0% ends - or the rate jumps to a costly 25%-ish APR. But for Christmas borrowing, try to clear it well before next Christmas or it'll make things even worse then. If you can't do that, then that's a big danger sign that you shouldn't be borrowing so much - it'll just compound your problems. Always stick within the credit limit and never miss a minimum monthly repayment or you can lose the 0% rate. Or buy now, pay later. This pops up almost every time you pay these days, and lets you spread the cost over, usually, 3mths with no interest. Many don't think of it as a debt, but that's wrong, it is and that's where you should mentally categorise it. Plus, unlike credit cards, formal safety regulation and protections aren't yet in force (thankfully, this is due to take effect in July 2026). Be careful, don't do it willy-nilly, only do it if it's planned and you have the money to repay. Do not do it on a whim (people get into most trouble by just using it all the time and not thinking it needs repaying). Make sure you can afford to repay within the time. If not, you can still get yourself in trouble. More help in Buy now, pay later. 15. It's beginning to look a lot like (the cheapest time to book) Christmas (trains). The very first advance train tickets tend to go on sale around 12 weeks ahead, so that's the point to start looking (though some may be released a few weeks later). If you want to be assured of bagging a cheap festive fare, start checking in the next couple of weeks. For more help, choo-choo your way over to Cheap train tickets. 47. Lots more Crimbo cost-cutters. I haven't messed up the numbering system, just a final note that if you want more tips as we progress towards the festive season, check out our full 47 Christmas cost-cutters 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.

 

 

 

Get 100GB mobile data, unlimited calls & texts for £6/mth! The secret to slashing costs are piggyback networks, and new research shows there's 'no noticeable signal difference' for most Mobile prices have both hugely risen and fallen over the last few years. The contradiction is caused by the fact those on contracts have faced year-after-year above inflation price hikes while, as our Cheap Sim Finder tool shows, the cost of Sim-only deals keep dropping. A Sim is just the (sometimes virtual) chip that goes in the back of your handset to give it its identify and dictate the price you pay. If you're worried about your signal, new research shows that you can keep it by using a cheaper piggyback network, and you likely won't notice the difference! Let's run through it... Step 1: Can you switch & save? Check by dialling just five digits. 14 million of you are out of contract and free to switch. Just text 'INFO' for free to 85075 (some providers will ask for your date of birth to help confirm your identity). The service should then tell you whether there are any early termination/cancellation charges - if there aren't, you're free to move. The service won't work for some on 'multiple phone' contracts, in which case if you've been with the same provider for more than two years, you're likely out of contract, though do check. As Angela emailed: "I switched to a Lebara Sim deal through your site. I am saving £26.90/mth for 7mths, followed by £23/mth - that's a £303 saving this year. Thank you, this has made a noticeable difference to my finances." Step 2: Switch to the best new Sim to save. There are actually only four UK mobile network operators (MNOs) in the UK - EE, O2, Three and Vodafone. All others are mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) which piggyback off their signals. We call them piggyback networks and these tend to be a lot cheaper. Our Cheap Mobile Finder comparison tool has all types of deals, including a Sims comparison, and lets you focus on all those using your current network's signal if you choose. Here's an example of what's available on each network's signal right now using piggybacking. Cheapest Sim-only deal examples Use our Data Calc if you're unsure how much you use Lebara on Vodafone's signal 4.1 / 5 ("good") customer service - 35GB at average '£3.97/mth' over 1yr (3mths at £3.50/mth, then £6.90/mth, plus £25 Amazon voucher), but 1mth rolling contract - 100GB at average '£5.96/mth' over 1yr (8mths at £2.99/mth, then £11.90/mth), but 1mth rolling contract Cheapest similar deal on the main network: Vodafone, 30GB at '£8.82/mth' iD Mobile on Three's signal  2.9 / 5 ("OK") customer service. iD was the one MVNO noted as having a slower signal in the new research below, but it's still not too slow - 40GB at average '£3.88/mth' over 1yr contract (3mths at £4/mth, then £8/mth, plus £37.50 Amazon voucher) - 120GB at average '£5.21/mth' over 1yr contract (3mths at £2.50/mth, then £10/mth, plus £35 Amazon voucher) Cheapest similar deal on the main network: Three, 40GB at '£8.46/mth' Spusu on EE's signal 4.3 / 5 ("good") customer service 10GB at a straight £5.90/mth: 1mth rolling contract Cheapest similar deal on the main network: EE, 10GB at £15/mth Sky on O2's signal 2.9 / 5 ("OK") customer service 10GB at a straight £6/mth: 12mth contract Cheapest similar deal on the main network: O2, 10GB at '£10/mth' New research: Piggyback networks' signal won't be noticeably different to most users. New research done by mobile industry analysis firm PolicyTracker upon our suggestion shows that performance differences between the main networks and the piggybackers WON'T usually be noticeable to most users. So considering how much cheaper the piggybackers tend to be, it's unlikely to be worth paying more to be with a main network (for signal at least). Though it's always worth checking if there are specific features, eg, Wi-Fi or 4G calling, as they can vary. The research did find some differences though. In Lebara's case (on Vodafone), the piggyback network had a slightly quicker signal. Yet with iD Mobile (on Three), it was noticeably worse than its parent - but still, as with all piggybackers tested, it had an average speed over a decent 20Mbps. Variance can be regional too, eg, while Giffgaff (on O2) performed similarly in London, it was worse in Birmingham's suburbs. See full mobile virtual network operator performance assessment. Step 3: To keep your number when switching, text 'PAC' for free to 65075. Then you get a code to send to your new provider, which will transfer it over, usually in one working day. (Do note, some providers will ask for your date of birth to confirm your identity, and doing this won't work if you're on a contract with more than one phone.) In fact, sometimes when you do this they then fight to try to keep you and offer you a much better deal. You could try short-cutting and doing this without the first two steps to see if they do (if you really want to stick with your current provider). For more help, see our Mobile phone haggling guide.

 

A record-breaking SIX credit cards let you shift existing debt to INTEREST-FREE till July 2028. Can you get one? If you can't afford to clear your existing credit card debt, you can't afford not to check if you can do this. More cards mean more acceptance chances. Jump to our record-breaking 0% balance transfers note from last week's email. State Pension to rise 4.7% next April (& Martin says the year after many'll need to pay tax on it)... See how much will my State Pension rise? Martin's five things EVERYONE needs to know about student finance for 2025/26. Read Martin's new student finance demystifier blog. Ends 1pm Wed. Free £15 for 13 to 17-year-olds via top children's bank account. Via this specific link, a top fee-free children's bank account, Santander 123 Mini*, will send new teenage customers a £15 Love2Shop voucher (redeemable at Waterstones, Argos, Boots, Foot Locker, New Look etc). They can just do it to grab the freebie, though it has decent interest too on some money kept in it. Full help & alternatives in last week's children's savings masterclass. FREEBIES: £5 Bakers dog food, £2.50 Robinsons juice & £2 Moma iced latte. Via our September coupons. Yes, it's our latest compilation of coupons and discounts. See 40+ supermarket coupons. Martin video: 'Should you get a job or set up your own business?' Check out Martin's new worker or entrepreneur? video. Ends Mon. Cheapest ever iPhone 16 deal - £185 upfront, then £21/mth with 100GB/mth data. MSE Blagged. Prices have dropped following the launch of the new iPhone 17 this month. Newbies to O2 can get an iPhone 16 (128GB) on a 24mth contract with 100GB of data via Affordable Mobiles. It's £185 upfront, then £21/mth (rising to £22.80/mth in Apr 2026 & £24.60/mth in Apr 2027). In total, that's £733 - not much more than buying the handset outright at Apple for £699. PS: Affordable Mobiles is responsible for the handset, O2 for the contract. Want more options? Use our Cheap Mobile Finder. 10,000 FREE pairs of £16ish Ideal Home Show Christmas tickets. London, 26 to 30 Nov. We've also got free entry to Grand Designs Live and the Homebuilding & Renovating Show. See free tickets. Martin's podcast. Parents & grandparents - where's best to save or invest for your kids? | Car finance update | Broken LISAs. This week's main pod includes junior ISAs, Child Trust Funds, Premium Bonds for kids, children's pensions and far more. Listen to the latest episode of The Martin Lewis Podcast via BBC Sounds | Apple | Spotify or wherever you get your Martin fix. Plus Martin's new Money Question Time podcast! Could govt scrap State Pension? | Credit scoring | Power of Attorney | Cut debt costs. Launching this week to accompany the main pod is Martin's brand-new Money Question Time pod, where you set the agenda. To suggest a question, email the producers at MartinLewisPod@bbc.co.uk.

 

 

BLAGGED FOR MSE - iPhone 16 for £185, then £21/mth with 100GB Ends 22 Sept	DID YOU MISS? - Are you due a share of £106m in forgotten Premium Bonds? - FREE beer, wine and cocktails at major pub chains - Regulator says 14m people to get £100s in car finance payouts - McDonald's Monopoly - boost your chances of winning free food

 

 

Free wills are back... do you have an UP-TO-DATE one? Three free or cheap will schemes are on (or nearly on), so it's the perfect time to sort yours Sorting a will is crucial if you've got a house, savings, a business or people you'd like to look after when you're gone. It means you get to decide who gets what. Without one, rigid intestacy rules dictate it and you don't have a say. This is especially important for unmarried couples (unless you're in a legal civil partnership), as while people often talk about 'common law partners', that's mostly bunkum in English, Welsh & N. Irish law (unmarried couples have slightly more rights in Scotland), so you'd get nothing under those rules. Plus as solicitors tell us, die will-less and it may complicate dealing with the estate, as Samara tweeted us: "This is so important. My mum did her will, but never went back to sign it as she deteriorated quickly. It left us in a real mess and having to navigate a really difficult situation. Really hard to cope with while grieving. Please, for the sake of your loved ones, sort your will." The wills gold standard is for a solicitor to draft it, which normally costs £100s. Yet currently three charity schemes provide them for cheap or free simple wills. Full help in our Cheap and free wills guide. Already got a will, or married or divorced recently? Check it's up to date. An out-of-date will is almost as bad as no will. Plus in Eng, Wal and NI (not Scot), wills are usually revoked when you get married, so you'll need a new one. Will Aid's the biggest scheme - bookings are now open. Age 18+ | UK wide | Solicitor drafted | £120 suggested donation With Will Aid, 100s of solicitor firms across the UK can draft a will for you in the hope that you will make a charitable donation. While the scheme is on in November, bookings are now open, so we wanted to give you advance notice as it usually fills up quickly, though not every participating solicitor has opened up their book yet. If there's not a space near you immediately, keep checking over the coming weeks. A single will has a suggested donation of £120, while a mirror will (where it's the same will, in reverse, for you and your spouse) has a suggested donation of £200. If you can't afford it, you can give less, but please don't game it as it's for charity. The donation is spread across 8 charities (Age UK, British Red Cross, Christian Aid, Crisis, the NSPCC, Shelter, SCIAF and Trócaire). October is FREE Wills Month - available to those age 55+.  Age 55+ | In selected UK locations | Solicitor drafted | FREE This scheme's a winner if you're eligible as you don't have to pay anything and it's solicitor-drafted. Bookings aren't open yet, they start on 1 October. If it's right for you, diarise it as places tend to book up fast (you must book in October, but the appointments can be after). There are two Free Wills Months a year, one in October and one in March, each covering different locations. The October month includes Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, much of Wales, Newcastle, Northern Ireland and Southampton (see all areas included). The scheme covers single wills and mirrors wills. It's organised for Age UK, the NSPCC, Alzheimer's Research UK, Mencap and more, in the hope you'll leave them a bequest (money in your will). The suggested amount is £300 or a small percentage of your estate, but it isn't compulsory. The scheme's in its 20th year and raises £30m for good causes annually. Octopus Legacy 'free' wills month is on in September & October. Age 18+ | England & Wales | Solicitor checked but not drafted | FREE Octopus Legacy runs its own 'free will' month for England and Wales. You can book up until 31 October, but the appointments can be after that (there's no overall limit, but sorting it sooner is always safer). Single wills and mirror wills are drafted by its team and overseen by a solicitor - unless it's very complex, where there'll be a fee and a solicitor may do it all. Wills can be done online, via phone/video, in branch or during a home visit.   It does this in the hope you'll leave a bequest to one of 150 charities supporting the scheme. It isn't compulsory, but Octopus Legacy says many people leave a small percentage of their estate. For more alternative cheap will options, including discounted wills from Which?, see our Cheap and free wills guide. Three quick will need-to-knows. As we're discussing this, a few more tips that are worth knowing...  Solicitors will often store your will in a safe place for free. If you're using one of these schemes, check if that's an option (you can also store it at home if you've a safe place).  You can't put your pension in your will. Die before taking your private or company pension, and the provider / trustees decide what to do with it. An expression of wishes (or nomination) form tells them your preference - it's not binding, but usually does the job. Check you've done one and, if so, check it's up to date.  Martin's view is that for many people, a Power of Attorney (PoA) is more important than a will (not a reason not to do a will, but to do a PoA as well). This is there to ensure someone can look after your finances if you no longer have the capacity to do so..

 

Updated. Big beauty Advent calendars, eg, £584 of products for £90. Our round-up was so popular last week that we've updated it with more launches to help you find the biggest savings. See beauty calendar bargains. 'I found a pension pot worth £34,000 thanks to your tips.' Success of the week. Alison messaged us on Instagram saying: "I have been trying for a few months now to find four of my husband's pensions and two of mine. Thanks to your pension tracing guidance I have now managed to find them. One of mine is worth £33,879. Plus, with my current one and the others I've traced, I can pay in for another 10 years to build a bigger pot. I have been on cloud nine all week." If we've helped you save or reclaim on this or owt else, please tell us about it. Can you get free Disney+, 10% cashback on travel, and grocery discounts via Uber One? Some are getting up to a year free. Can you get a year's discount? Boosted. M&S sale now up to 70% off. Online & in store, eg, £18 top for £5. See full M&S sales boost analysis. Wetherspoon pubs 7.5% off food & drink for ONE DAY only. At 800+ pubs (no booze in Scotland). See Spoons discount. Please be Drinkaware.

 

 

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS 0% balance transfers Longest 0%: Virgin (check eligibility) DEFINITE 34mths 0%, 3.25% fee, 24.9% rep APR interest No-fee 0%: Barclaycard (check eligibility) up to 14mths 0%, 24.9% rep APR interest Best bank accounts Free £175 + £25 voucher: First Direct 1st Account New. Free £200 + perks: Club Lloyds Broadband top picks Fast fibre (100Mb+): Sky '£20.46/mth' Superfast fibre (500Mb+): Sky '£25.46/mth' On Universal Credit or similar? Check all discounted social tariffs Cheap insurance Car: Use our Compare+ Car Insurance tool Home: Try our Compare+ Home Insurance tool Cheap loans £5,000 to £7,499: Santander (check eligibility), 6.9% rep APR interest £7,500 to £15,000: Tesco Bank (check eligibility), 5.8% rep APR interest (must have a Clubcard) Top savings accounts Top easy-access savings: Chase 4.75%, min £1 (newbies only) Top easy-access cash ISA: Trading 212 4.38%, min £1 Top one-year fix: Tandem Bank 4.45%, min £1 Top energy deals Use our whole-of-market Cheap Energy Club Cheap Sims Up to 3GB data: Lebara, '£3.18/mth' for 3GB 4GB to 9GB data: Lebara, '£3.43/mth' for 5GB 10GB to 30GB data: Lebara, '£3.70/mth' for 10GB 31GB+ data: iD Mobile, '£5.21/mth' for 120GB

 

 

MSE NEWS - Top story: Government fails to act on Lifetime ISA fines - but Martin Lewis says there's still a chance to tackle the problem

 

 

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA When should I tell my son I can't afford to pay for him to go to a private school? My ex has registered our son for a private school entry exam and told him he can attend if he does well. He then informed me that, if our son gets in, he'd expect me to pay half the fees. He knows I'm already stretched to the max financially - even if our son got a scholarship, I wouldn't be able to afford to pay for the school bus. At what point do I inform my child of this? Should I let him attend the exam and get his hopes up? Enter the Money Moral Maze: How do I tell my son I can't afford private school? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma (MMD) | View past MMDs

 

 

MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (TUE 16 SEPT ONWARDS) Thu 18 Sept - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, midday

 

 

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