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03 March 2026 | View in browser

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→ Martin: Financially protect yourself from death & illness: - Free solicitor-drafted wills - Crucial (and cheap) Power of Attorney - The big Inheritance Tax need-to-knows - Preparing for death & funeral planning → Cheap Medical Insurance - 'I saved £3k' → Make £100s stoozing → Stop press: Energy prices spiking! - Urgently get off Price Cap if you can - Save £170 on Price Cap. Ends Thu - Already on an energy fix? → 1p Hellmann's mayo, 2p crackers & more → Car insurance price warning → Your Middle East conflict travel rights → FREE £500 bank switch New  → £130 Shark vac £70 → ICYMI: Longest 0% debt shift cards → Blue badge now gets railcard New  → M&S 'up to 50% off' sale → Question pod. (A beautiful tale...) Homeless to homeowner - what next? → Martin pod. All energy bills to fall from April! Student loan changes coming? → 145Mb Plusnet '£19/mth' Ends Wed  → PM Law collapse - are you impacted? → Low/no Standing Charge energy coming → Mother's Day: £25 couriered flowers, etc → 'Pay by Bank' - should you do it? → 90 days' free: 1m audiobooks & e-books → This week's best buys: 4.46% cash ISA, 10GB Sim £3/mth, 5.6% loan → Money Moral Dilemma: Should friends pay for meal that may've been my treat?

Wills matter! Power of Attorney arguably matters more! Whatever your age, are you financially protecting yourself & loved ones from death, dementia & illness? Free wills. Cheap PoA. Inheritance Tax. Funerals. Time for a deep breath. Each year in this email, I aim to encourage you to have an unpleasant but necessary conversation. I'm doing it this week, as two free will schemes are now open, though it's about far more than that. While we should all hope for the best, it's also crucial to plan for the worst, as the knock-on financial and emotional costs of not engaging with these issues are more painful. This ISN'T only for those with greying hair - if you have dependents, do consider all this. I know many struggle to start this conversation with loved ones, but whether it's with parents, a partner or adult children, do try. Blunt, warm and practical is oft easiest (or show them this). Be as candid as possible... the odd tear in the eye just means you love each other. I'm going to try to help you through some key issues here... 1. Free solicitor-drafted wills | 2. Crucial Power of Attorney | 3. Inheritance Tax need-to-knows | 4. Funeral planning Let me explain & answer your questions tonight... The Martin Lewis Money Show Live ITV1, 7.15pm (Tue) I'll take you through key free wills & Power of Attorney help & am joined by specialists to answer your questions. Plus an urgent News You Can Use on energy bills due to the price spike. PS: Watch it after via ITVX 'Martin Lewis'. 1. FREE solicitor-drafted wills If you don't have a will, then the rigid intestacy rules dictate who gets what of yours. Risks include the wrong people getting your assets, increasing Inheritance Tax costs, and making it more complex for your loved ones to deal with your estate. Sorting a will is crucial if you own a home, have savings or investments, a business, or people you'd like to look after when you're gone. The gold standard way to draw up a will is to get a solicitor to draft it, which normally costs many £100s. Yet there are charity schemes which cut the costs, and crucially some are on now...  FREE WILLS MONTH (for age 55+). Free Wills Month happens in March and October, where a solicitor will draft the will for free, covering different places each time... - March is London, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Bristol, Birmingham & far more (see March free wills list). If it's not on in your area now (eg, N. Ireland, Cornwall) it should be in Oct. - It covers a single will for anyone aged 55+, or a 'mirror will' for couples where the wills are near-identical, as long as one is 55+ (simple circumstances only). - As long as it's booked in March, the appointment can be after. - It's organised in the hope you'll leave a bequest (money in your will) of £300 to £1,000 or a percentage of your estate to charity. It's not compulsory, but it is a charity scheme, so do what you can. Charities include Age UK, Alzheimer's Research UK, Breast Cancer Now, Help for Heroes, Mind, Stroke Association and more. It's been running for 20+ years and raises £30m for good causes annually. PS: Leave 10%+ of your estate to charity and it reduces your Inheritance Tax rate on the taxable estate from 40% to 36% (best for larger estates). OCTOPUS LEGACY 'FREE' WILLS (for age 18+). Octopus Legacy (sister company of Octopus Energy) runs its 'free will' scheme in Feb and March in Eng & Wales. Wills can be done online, via video, or during a home visit. They're NOT solicitor-drafted, they're drafted by its team and then overseen by a solicitor (unless it's complex, when there can be a fee and a solicitor does it all). It hopes you'll leave a bequest to one of 150+ charities supporting the scheme, but it's not compulsory. Charities include ActionAid, Macmillan, RSPB and more. More free or cheap will schemes. The biggest is Will Aid which is each November, where you get a will for a suggested charity donation of £120. You may also currently be able to get a free or cheap solicitor-drafted will via individual charity schemes (such as Cancer Research), your trade union, and via your employer. Far more info in our Cheap & free wills guide. Seven must-knows about WILLS Unmarried couple? A will is even more important. You may have lived together for 43 years and have had 17 children but that means almost nothing in law across most of the UK (and only a little bit more in Scotland). If one of you dies, the other won't get anything without a will, possibly even not all the family home (it depends, see joint tenants vs tenants in common). For those who are married or in a Civil Partnership, the intestacy rules mean your spouse will inherit at least some of your assets. Related: See my 9 financial benefits to marriage blog for more. Don't inadvertently leave your pension to your ex (a will won't fix this). Most private or company pensions sit outside your will, it is the provider / trustees who decide what to do with it. So here it's not your will but an expression of wishes (or nomination form) that tells them your preference - it's not binding, but usually does the job. Check you've done one and it's up to date. There are horror stories out there from people who haven't, as Sandra wrote on Instagram: "I was left an annuity [an annual payment for life] in my deceased partner's will, but it wasn't 'nominated' with the pension company, so instead it has gone to my deceased partner's ex-wife; he would be spinning in his grave if he knew." Got a will? Ensure it's up to date. An out-of-date will is almost as bad as no will - directing your assets to the wrong people. Got married since you did your will? It's likely invalid! In Eng, Wal and NI, wills are usually automatically revoked when you get married, so you'll need a new one. In Scotland, while not technically revoked, in practice a new one is generally best. Similar issues can apply at divorce. Store your will safely with instructions to executors on where they can find it. As this X reply shows: "@MartinSLewis When my mother died we found a will in her house but had no idea if it was up to date. Her solicitor didn't know if it was current or if she used a different solicitor for an updated will." See where to store your will. Who'd look after your children if you died? We all want to believe we'll see our little ones grow up, but not everyone gets to. I lost my mother while still a child - thankfully not both parents, but that happens too. So, the grown-up thing to do is consider and plan for this horrid eventuality. Read our what happens to my children if I die? help. Socials & photos are an asset too - protect your digital legacy. There's no specific UK law, but you can express your wishes to give individuals access to 'digital assets' in your will - social media, photos, videos, emails and so on. See the digital legacy blog. Some have had to take legal action when a lost loved one hadn't specified access, so it's worth doing the basics... List the digital assets you want to pass on, on paper. Back up important files (via external hard drive if possible). Record your decisions using a digital legacy template. Add a 'legacy contact' on a platform that allows it (Apple, Facebook, Google) and refer to this in your will. 2. A will alone isn't enough. A Lasting Power of Attorney is arguably more important Being blunt, a will is a document that dictates what happens to your assets when you die. A Lasting Power of Attorney is there for if you are alive but no longer have the faculties to make decisions for yourself. Don't assume that if you lose mental capacity relatives can just access your bank account, insurer or mortgage firm to sort things out, not even to pay for your care, or the mortgage itself. That's what a Lasting Power of Attorney (PoA) is there to fix. And this isn't a trivial thing as financial issues are often urgent if you lose faculties...  ...Who'll look after you? Who can access your funds to pay for necessities? Who ensures your money still works for you if you're no longer capable? And it doesn't just happen to the elderly - accidents, strokes, early onset dementia and more may hit anyone. And younger people's finances tend to be more separate, making it even tougher. I'm 53 (surely not, I hear you say, surely not!) and have no reason to foresee losing capacity, yet I've had a PoA since my 30s just in case. Not having a PoA can cause real difficulties... Without a PoA, it may be hellish for your loved ones. They'd need to apply to become a 'Deputy' (or similar) to take care of your finances via the Court of Protection (Sheriff Court in Scot; Office of Care and Protection in N. Ireland).  And while some think 'it's fine there's an option' that's exactly what I want to try and help you avoid. I receive many nightmare stories about the Court of Protection - it's often difficult, costly, and usually takes many, many months, leaving you in limbo in the meantime. As Jane wrote on X: "@MartinSLewis I had to apply for Court of Protection for my dad. An expensive, stressful process that takes far too long. I wish we'd sorted out PoA while he still had capacity. We now have PoA for my mum and arranged for our daughter to have PoA for us. It's reassuring to know it's in place." How a Lasting Power of Attorney works. A 'Property & Financial' PoA makes it easier for someone to take over your finances & financial decisions if you can't. You nominate a trusted friend or relative to look after your affairs if needed (if you're older, it's best to include at least one person a generation younger).  This DOESN'T mean giving up control now (though you can choose to while you still have capacity) - you can opt for it only to be in effect if you're no longer capable. And included within it, as a safety net, you can nominate other separate people to be notified of the PoA, so they can object to it if necessary (eg, if they thought you were still compos mentis). How much does a Power of Attorney cost? There's a fixed cost to register a PoA. In Eng & Wales it's £92 per PoA (there are two - one for finance & property, one for health & welfare) so total for both is £184. See PoA costs across the rest of the UK. Feel unsure? Pay for help. If you've more complex financial affairs, or are uncertain (or have substantial assets), the gold standard is to getting a solicitor's PoA help, though it isn't cheap, usually £400 to £750.  Alternatively, Which? Wills* has a decent halfway house, where you fill in a questionnaire that it populates for you, then it is checked by a specialist paralegal within two weeks. This normally costs £99, but via this link, we've blagged it for £69 for you. (Not available in Scotland). Can you DIY a Power of Attorney online? Solicitors don't recommend it, as it's easy to get wrong. However if you're reasonably good at form-filling and following instructions, in England and Wales you can DIY apply for a Lasting Power of Attorney online which means the only cost will be the registration fee. In Scotland it's not available online for consumers, and it's more difficult in N. Ireland. Our DIY Power of Attorney form-filling step-by-step help will take you through it. Yet really do it carefully, 134,000 PoA applications were rejected in 2024. It's as specific as write in black pen, cross out mistakes and initial them, don't delete... and far more. Don't ignore the health Power of Attorney. While my focus is of course financial, there's also a Health & Welfare Power of Attorney for medical and daily care routine decisions, should you be unable to make them - this is an extremely important document and you should consider it. Another option to consider is a living will (officially 'an advance decision'), where you can refuse certain medical treatments if you lose capacity. PS: Enduring vs Lasting Power of Attorney? In 2007 in Eng & Wales, Lasting Power of Attorney replaced the older Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) system. If you've an EPA, it's still valid (though there are some differences). 3. The big Inheritance Tax (IHT) need-knows Inheritance Tax is a much-discussed and much-misunderstood topic. And things are likely to get even more complex as the government plan is to bring most unused pension funds into scope for IHT in just 13 months' time. I'd start by watching this how IHT really works video - while directed at marriage, it gives a good overview... Now on to the key need-to-knows...  Far more worry about Inheritance Tax than pay it. While many fear it, only about 5% to 6% of estates pay it, usually those at the higher end of the wealth scale. In reality it does likely eventually affect a higher portion of families than that, as with some estates everything is going to the spouse and that's not taxable (see below), but it is still only the minority who pay it and likely to remain so even after the pension changes.  If your estate is under £325,000, no IHT is paid. You don't pay IHT on the first £325,000 of your estate (all your assets, including property, added up). So if that's you, IHT is not an issue. This allowance has been frozen since 2009/10 and is expected to stay frozen until at least 2031. This is boosted by £175,000 if you pass on your main residence to your direct descendants. You can leave an additional £175,000 tax-free specifically on your primary residence (or as much as it's worth if less than that). Direct descendants include (biological / step / adopted / some foster) children or grandchildren.  So if your house is using that allowance up then - if passed to descendants, and your total of it and other assets are under £500,000 - IHT isn't an issue. See more details on this in our Inheritance Tax guide. Estate over £2m? You start to lose this extra £175,000 allowance (by 50p per £1 over £2m). Once it's £2.35m, you lose it entirely. Anything left to a spouse is EXEMPT. If you are married or in a Civil Partnership, and your spouse is usually UK domiciled, whatever you leave to your spouse isn't taxed. Even Bruce Wayne leaving £100bn wouldn't be taxed if he left it to Mrs (or Mr) Batman. Yet if you are cohabiting, no matter how long you've been together, you don't get this.  This is big, but when combined with the next point, it's huge! PS: Remember, if you don't have a will and die intestate, then all your assets may not go to your spouse, which could add substantially to the IHT paid. All your unused allowance is passed to your spouse. So leave them everything and they can leave up to £1m with no IHT. Again, this only applies to those who are married or Civil Partners, not cohabiting. It works because they then effectively get your £500,000 allowance added to their £500,000. So, as I explain my IHT video, if 'Hal' and 'Lou' are married, and have combined assets worth £1m (half each for ease), and Hal passes first and leaves all his assets and home to Lou, then organised right Lou can leave all their assets to their children without any Inheritance Tax.  If they weren't married and Hal leaves everything to Lou, then he'd use up his allowance on that, and would pay tax on passing his house across (as it's not left to a child). Then, when Lou passes, if it all goes to their children, in total they'd have paid £242,000 in Inheritance Tax. That shows you why I wrote the 9 financial benefits of marriage blog as this is huge money, so much so I'm racking up quite serious numbers of long term couples, who've got married or Civil Partnerships after hearing this, let us know if you're one. IHT is usually charged at 40% of everything above the total allowance. The IHT tax rate is a straight 40% if you have no exemptions. So for every £1 above the allowance you pay 40% (as noted above there are exemptions, eg this rate is reduced to 36% if you leave 10%+ of your estate to charity). If it's likely your estate will pay IHT, giving assets or money away while alive can reduce or cancel it. Any regular gifts you can comfortably afford out of surplus income are exempt from IHT (though proving it can be tricky). Plus there are a range of other gifting allowances...  The most important one is: give anything away without reservation (eg, no conditions which look like it's being done as a loophole) and if you live 3+ years after that, the rate of IHT you'd need to pay on that gift (if it's above the exempt allowance) starts to be reduced, and it tapers away until by the time it's 7+ years, it is exempt from IHT. For a full explanation, see gifting rules and/or listen to my IHT podcast. 4. Preparing for the end & funeral planning One way to make your passing easier on those left behind is by avoiding adding financial difficulty and admin to the grief. While some methods are covered above, our jollily named 22 death-planning checks guide is a good one-stop checklist of some of the things to look at. It's not the only resource though. Some won't be imminently useful but are worth remembering... What to do when someone dies. Our What to do when someone dies guide helps you through the practicalities, as well as details of where to find support, as you go through the grieving process. DIY Probate guide. The Probate DIY guide is there if you are the executor of someone's will, to give you a place to start. Funeral planning. Funerals are expensive, from a direct cremation at c.£2,000, to a traditional burial service at £4,000+. So prepaying for a funeral plan (which can beat inflation by paying for a future funeral at today's prices) saves your loved ones the stress of organising your funeral. Leaving them notes about your preferences helps too. Funeral plans are safer these days as the sector is FCA regulated, which helps protect your money and means you can take a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman. The team's Prepaid funeral plans guide takes you through it, including plan providers - many of which offer discounts to MSE readers. Yet be aware plans often exclude things such as burial plots, headstones, flowers, embalming and wake costs, so there can be £100s or £1,000s more to be paid by loved ones - and due to the way probate works, at that point they may well be unable to access any of the funds you've left them to pay for it.  So it's important to know exactly what's included in a plan before buying one. Had a funeral plan but can't find it? Details can get lost or misplaced over time. Helpfully, you can fill in a short form on the 'find my plan' tab of the National Association of Funeral Plan Providers (NAFPP) website. Almost all authorised firms are part of the NAFPP.  If that doesn't work, you'll have to individually contact the remaining authorised funeral plan providers listed on the Financial Conduct Authority register. Beware over-50s' life insurance plans. They work in a very different way and can be a waste of cash for many. See our Beware over-50s' plans 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.

 

 

 

'I'm over 70 and cut my medical insurance cost by £3,400 - thank you' How to get the cheapest Private Medical Insurance Including: young-ish, fit-ish? Use it to get an Apple Watch 11 for £9 The NHS and its staff are true national treasures. Yet, in recent years even the Prime Minister has called it 'broken'. So no surprise we've seen growing demand for cheap Private Medical Insurance (PMI). This is policy you pay for so that when you need medical help you can usually bypass the NHS. It covers private consultations, treatments and operations - from hips to hearts to toes - and sometimes mental health too. Its main advantages are speed and hotel-like hospital accommodation. It isn't cheap, plus it's a lifestyle choice and unaffordable for many, which means a two-tier system. Yet, as always, if you're doing it our Cheap PMI guide will show you how to cut costs. Here are the brief must‑knows... 1) Do a comparison & get up to £120 voucher/cashback on top. There are only really three underlying comparison engines out there. Most sites you see are just white labels (same thing, different logo) so we aim to find where you get the best perks on top. Do check as many of the three as you can.  PMI comparisons plus cashback MoneySupermarket* £120 Amazon voucher. MSE Blagged. The underlying comparison engine is ActiveQuote (also used by Gocompare). It compares seven firms & brokers. Via our link, after six monthly payments, you'll get a £120 Amazon voucher emailed to you (max 1 per year). Howden Life & Health* £100 cashback. MSE Blagged It is its own underlying comparison provider (also powers Confused, uSwitch, Compare the Market). It compares 11 firms. Via our link, after six monthly payments, you get £100 cashback paid into your account. Which Health Cover* £100 cashback OR month free (good on costlier plans). MSE Blagged Nothing to do with Which?, the consumer site. Compares seven insurers and uses its own tech. Via our link, you can choose £100 cashback OR a month's premium paid. It'll be paid into your account after six monthly payments. Annoyance alert: All three want your phone number, and may try to contact you to discuss a quote. There's no opt out.... we hope you don't accidentally put in a non-working phone number, that'd be terrible, we hope it doesn't happen. It's worth considering whether you want moratorium cover or full underwriting. The first basically means each claim in the first two years you need prove it wasn't pre-existing. The second means you get a full medical screen at the start and they tell you what's covered. So moratorium = less paperwork at the start, but possibly more argument later.  2) Already got PMI? Don't just auto-renew... BUT, be careful if you've made recent claims. PMI prices usually rise at renewal each year, so before you know it, they're far higher than when you started. So, no surprise, a comparison often reveals BIG savings. This is great if you've never claimed - switch away. But if you've had treatments within the last five years, and the issue reoccurs within two, a new provider will likely exclude it, as it's a pre-existing condition (do check). If that's an issue, the only route is to haggle with your current provider to try to reduce the cost. Young(ish), fit(ish), go to the gym and/or fancy a £9 Apple Watch? Vitality may pay for itself... The Vitality Healthcare* policy is focused on rewarding staying fit and active. For some under-45s, if you'd have spent money on doing that anyway, the perks may come close to covering the PMI fees. They are... Apple Watch Series 11 offer. Take out a new Vitality PMI policy and you can get the latest upgraded £369 Apple Watch 11 for a £9 upfront payment (or £1 for the SE watch). What you pay after that depends on how many 'Activity Points' you earn - eg, at the top level, which is 12,500 steps for five days a week, you DON'T PAY ANY MORE. Even at lower activity levels, there are decent savings. Up to 50% off many Virgin, Nuffield and PureGym monthly fees. While they're off the full price (many may be able to bring that down by negotiating, see cheap gyms), it's still usually a big discount, and works even if you're already a member. Eg, Virgin Active Sheffield's listed price is £100/mth, but you could get it for £50/mth through Vitality. There are also discounts on Caffè Nero, Odeon, Vue, Waitrose and others. Top tip: Get Vitality via one of the comparison site links above. All three list it, so as well as seeing how it compares with others, that means you can also get the £100+ back on top. How this could stack up... it works best for under-45s who pay for a gym and will earn the max activity points over three years. We got a £54/mth Vitality quote for a 35-year-old in London, which was far more than the cheapest equivalent quote from other firms, of about £20/mth. Yet if you were buying an Apple Watch anyway, at the top activity level that's £120/yr saved on payments, and a further £50/mth fee reduction at a local Virgin gym. In other words, those savings are more than Vitality's cost. So it's worth doing the sums for your situation. Note: as with all firms, your policy cost will likely increase yearly. 3) The excess has a huge impact. This how much you pay towards each individual claim or - better but costlier - towards all claims each year. A £56/mth policy with no excess reduces to under £35/mth with a £500 excess. So think about whether you want a 'cover everything' policy or a 'cover big things only' policy.  One radical strategy is to combine a cheaper, very high excess (£1,000+) policy with self-insuring, where you put cash aside each month in top savings. Then if you need to pay the excess or have smaller treatments, you have the money. This way, you're covered for bigger treatments, but for the rest you're NHS or pay-as-you-go private. 4) PMI can be a great employment perk, even if your employer doesn't pay (as it's often cheaper), but... if you need treatment and claim, and then later decide to leave your employer, check whether you'll be able to continue your membership with the healthcare firm on the same terms. If not, you may be unable to get a new insurer to cover that pre-existing condition and it can be a nightmare. 5) Confused, can't find what you want or need an expert? Use a broker - it saved Marie £3,400/yr. If you're confused or have conditions that make finding a policy hard(er), a broker can help. As Marie emailed us last week: "As a 70+, active person I was aghast when my PMI rose to £6,000 with a provider I'd been with for over 40 years! I followed Martin's tip and found a helpful broker who helped me to ensure I was going to buy like-for-like cover at a more affordable rate. I am happy to report I was offered £2,595/yr [saving £3,405/yr]." You can get advice via the comparisons above or look a broker up on the Association of Medical Insurers and Intermediaries register. Most brokers are free to you because they take commission from insurers if you get a policy - though check! 6) As always, with any insurance, if you feel your claim's been unfairly rejected, go to the ombudsman. Picking the right policy's only half the journey - the provider needs to deliver if you claim too. Like all insurance, these PMI providers are regulated and must TREAT YOU FAIRLY. If not, make a formal complaint, and if it rejects you unfairly, you can take it to the free Financial Ombudsman Service to adjudicate.

 

Stop press: Important. UK energy wholesale rates spiking due to conflict in the Middle East 1. If you can get off the Energy Price Cap right now, you should... and urgently. The wholesale gas rate is spiking due to the Middle East conflict, up 90% on last week. This rate is a prime driver of UK electricity prices. If the spike's sustained (big if), it will likely push the Price Cap rate up from July. If you're in Eng, Scot, Wales and on your firm's standard tariff, this impacts you (see am I on the Price Cap?).  For peace of mind your price won't rise, you can fix, but many firms have already urgently repriced their cheapest fixes upwards. At the time we sent this email, you can still just about lock-in at up to 14% less than the current Cap, but it's slim pickings otherwise. Action: Compare & Fix or read Martin's Middle East conflict: Get off the Price Cap mini-briefing. 2. Ends 4pm Thu. Sticking on the Price Cap, low user or on Smart Prepay? Save £170. If you're staying on the Price Cap, quickly consider an alternative, especially good for lower users or those on Smart Prepay: the EDF Simply Tracker Extra matches the Price Cap rate (which drops 6.7% on 1 April) but with £100 lower Standing Charge for a year, plus via our link via the Energy Club you get £50 dual-fuel EDF cashback + £20 MSE cashback (both halved for elec only). 3. Already on an energy fix? See Martin's Already on an energy fix?... It'll get CHEAPER on 1 April video. It's from before the Middle East conflict started, but the concepts haven't changed. 1p Hellmann's mayo, 2p Jacob's crackers, 3p Knorr stock cubes etc via 10% off code for past 'best-before' foods. MSE Blagged. Approved Food sells super-cheap groceries near or past their 'best-before' date, which is just a view of 'optimum quality' (different from 'use-by', which is about safety). Full info in Approved Food. Don't accept a 'same price' car insurance renewal, most should be LOWER. March is the second-busiest car insurance month, so many are renewing. But be aware average car cover costs are DOWN 11% on last year. So if nowt's changed and your renewal isn't cheaper, don't accept it... put yourself in the driver's seat and use our Compare+ Car Insurance tool, which guides you through every trick in our book. Anne emailed: "My renewal quote was £820. Last year it was £595 for the same car. I phoned my insurer and the best it could offer was a £100 reduction. So I used your Compare+ tool and got the same cover with Aviva for £497! A saving of £323, thank you so much." Stranded abroad by conflict in the Middle East or unable to go on a planned trip? Your rights explained. This is a fast-moving situation, but we're working on answering your key travel questions (and adding more all the time). Battle of the high earners' bank switch bonuses! Now FREE £500. Last week we were surprised how many plumped for Barclays Premier's FREE £400 & free Apple TV* (min £75,000 pre-tax income). Now Lloyds has launched its Premier FREE £500 + 1% cashback (min £5,000/mth pay-in, likely equiv to £85,000 to £90,000 pre-tax depending on pension contributions). Ineligible? See all top free-cash bank switches, which includes Nationwide's free £175, ending Wed. £130 Shark handheld cordless vacuum £70 with code. MSE Blagged. 3,000 available. Shark ICYMI: Longest debt shift cards for years - pay 0% interest till 2029. Last week we told you balance transfer deals are improving with lower fees on long cards and 'definite' rather than up to offers. Top 'definite 0%' picks where all accepted get the headline offer now include Barclaycard's 36mth 0% (3.15% fee) | Tesco 36mths 0% (3.45% fee) | Virgin 35mths 0% (2.95% fee). Full step-by-step & more options in our slash the cost of your credit card debt from last week's email. Golden rules: Repay at least the monthly minimum & clear the card before the 0% ends, or they jump to 24.9% rep APR interest. News. Blue badge holders can now qualify for a Disabled Person's Railcard. The criteria have been extended - now if you've a blue badge, disabled person's bus pass or can't drive for medical reasons you can get the 1/3-off-train-fares railcard. See who now qualifies & how to apply. M&S 'up to 50% off' sale. Not just any sale? See our M&S up to 50% off analysis. Question Time pod. (A beautiful tale...) Homeless to homeowner - what next? Debt making me ill.. help! Save, or pay on 0% card? Close old accounts? They're just some of the questions you asked in Martin's Question Time podcast this week. Listen via BBC Sounds | Apple | Spotify etc. New Martin pod. All energy bills to fall from April! Changes coming to Plan 2 student loans? This was recorded before the Middle East conflict, so many of the cheap deals discussed have gone, but it still goes through all the crucial energy bill questions and changes coming. Plus retirement tips, Inheritance Tax and more in Martin's main podcast this week. Listen via BBC Sounds | Apple | Spotify etc.

 

 

BLAGGED FOR MSE - Extra 10% off past-best-before foods Ends 11 Mar - £130 Shark handheld vac £70 3,000 available - 90 days' free audiobooks & e-books Ends 14 Apr	DID YOU MISS? - 40+ birthday FREEBIES from Greggs, Costa & more - 25% off railcards code - Ends Thu. TWO branded prescription specs from £25 - £60 for £205 of Sol de Janeiro, Fenty, Medik8 beauty - Sky to hike broadband, TV & home phone costs

 

 

WARNING. If you're not good with money, this isn't for you You stooze, they lose. Stoozing is the art of getting paid interest on cash that credit card firms lend you interest-free  'Stoozing makes me £100s/yr, sometimes even £1,000+' Stoozing is the art of intentionally creating a false debt to make money. In a nutshell, you take a 0% credit card and save the money it gives you at high interest. Martin often talks about what he calls the MoneySaving poetry from the earlier days of this, when former card firm Egg was lending him money at 0% which he then put in their own high interest savings account so they paid him 6% on it! Back then, some even had £80,000+ in their 'stooze pot', offsetting mortgages and making gains of £5,000+ a year. We've a full Stoozing guide, but here's a quick summary... This takes discipline, it's ONLY for the debt-free, financially savvy. If you're not very financially organised, unsure of how it works, don't have financial self-discipline, or have other credit card, overdraft or loan debt, this ISN'T for you. If in doubt, DON'T. Plus you'll also need a reasonable credit history. Step 1. Get a long 0% new borrowing card. This is a card you can do new spending on without paying interest. Our 0% Card Eligibility Calculator will show you which top cards you're most likely to get, therefore minimising applications which mark your credit file.  Some of the best cards for this are those with long 0% periods which give you rewards when you spend too. So there's the new M&S 25mths 0% + free £25, which gives you M&S points on spending, plus right now a £25 M&S voucher if you spend £500+ on it within 30 days (easy if you're stoozing). There's also Tesco 22mths 0% which gives you Clubcard points on spending. After the 0% ends these jump to 24.9% and 26.9% rep APR. Full list in top 0% spending cards. Step 2. Do ALL normal spending on the card. Do all your normal spending (and possibly your family's too) on it up to the credit limit - but this isn't a reason to spend more. You will still need to make monthly repayments, and this is a rare occasion where the right tactic is to just pay the minimum. Step 3. Put the unspent money from your bank account in top savings. As you've spent on your credit, not debit, card this should build up a mirror amount of unspent income in your current account. So each month sweep that into the top savings account or top cash ISA. For ultimate safety, keep it in top easy-access as technically card debt can be called in at any time, though we've not heard of it happening when stoozing.  Currently within top easy-access (variable), Chase's 4.5%* (min £1) new customer deal is the highest payer. In cash ISAs, it's Moneybox's 4.46% (min £500, max 3 withdrawals/yr), also for newbies. So normal savings pay most, but if you may pay tax on savings interest and haven't used this year's £20k/yr ISA allowance, that's worth doing before you lose it on 5 Apr. Or you could lock some away in top fixed savings (1yr 4.23%) as long as it ends BEFORE THE 0% ENDS, so the debt can be paid off. Step 4. Stop there, prolong or even increase the stooze... In the MONTH BEFORE THE 0% ENDS, either use the money in savings to clear the 0% debt before any interest is charged, or shift it to a 0% balance transfer, a fee-free one's best to maximise the gains. Of course, with a decent credit score and careful management, you can do this with more than one card and build your stooze pot, so you're earning more. As Dan emailed a while back... "I'll take out 2 or 3 credit cards that have a 0% promotional offer, usually over a 12-24mth period. My combined credit limit might be around £20-30k. Month on month I'll use the cards, then use my salary to pay the balance into high interest savings. Just before the 0% period ends, I'll withdraw the savings, pay off the credit provider and close the account, having pocketed the interest from the saving accounts. Then, I wait a month till my credit score stabilises and repeat. "It's simple to do. You just have to ensure you've a guaranteed annual income that covers the cost of credit borrowed. And you must be savvy enough to ensure you put that money into savings and not touch it! Overall this tactic makes me several hundred pounds yearly, possibly £1,000+ when saving rates are high. Money I'd rather have in my pocket." Stoozing golden safety rules. Full info in the Stoozing guide. a) Pay the monthly minimum (for safety by Direct Debit) and don't bust the credit limit, or you can lose the 0%. b) Don't use these cards for anything else, such as cash withdrawals or shifting debt. c) Clear the card or balance-transfer before the 0% ends, or the interest jumps to 25%ish rep APR, killing any gain. d) Do not take risks with the stooze pot, or you could find the manufactured deliberate debt becomes real debt. e) Stoozing builds up 'debt', which can impact your ability to get credit in the future. So if you plan to get a mortgage deal you need to be careful, as too much 'debt' or 'available credit' could impact that.

 

Ends 11.59pm Wed. 145Mb Plusnet broadband '£19/mth' with 'GOOD' service. Switchers can get this 145Mb Plusnet broadband-only deal (no line) for £22.99/mth (available to 70% of homes). Do so and you'll be emailed a £135 prepaid Mastercard from Plusnet - check spam folders if not. There's no price rise in 2026, but it'll be £26.99/mth from Apr '27. Factor all that in and it's equivalent to £19.37/mth over the 2yr contract. Want other options? Use our broadband comparison. PM Law collapse - what to do if you're one of 10,000s impacted. Former clients of the shuttered conveyancing and personal injury law firm say they're struggling to reclaim funds and files. See your options. News. British Gas, Eon, EDF & Octopus to offer low or no Standing Charge tariff pilot from April. MSE and Martin have long campaigned for lower Standing Charges. This isn't that, but it is a mild improvement. See full info, incl Martin's interview with the Ofgem boss about the pilot. Mother's Day deals: £1.29 personalised card, £25 couriered flowers, 40% off Hot Diamonds & more. It's a week on Sunday (15 March) - see our full Mother's Day deals round-up. As Amazon, eBay & others introduce 'Pay by Bank', should you do it? It's quick and easy, but loses you key protections that come with debit / credit cards. See Pay by Bank rights. 90 days' free access to over a million audiobooks & e-books. MSE Blagged. For BookBeat newbies. Read on. Related: Free & cheap World Book Day costumes.

 

 

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS 0% balance transfers Longest definite 0%: Barclaycard (check eligibility) 36mths 0%, 3.15% fee, 24.9% rep APR No-fee 0%: Barclaycard (check eligibility) up to 14mths 0%, 24.9% rep APR Best bank accounts Free £200 + cashback: Santander Edge Free £200 + perks: Club Lloyds Free £175 + top service: First Direct Top energy deals Use our whole-of-market Cheap Energy Club Insurance Car: Use our Compare+ Car Insurance tool Home: Use our Compare+ Home Insurance tool Cheap loans £5,000 to £7,499: M&S Bank (check eligibility), 6.9% rep APR £7,500 to £15,000: TSB (check eligibility), 5.6% rep APR Top savings accounts Top easy-access savings: Chase 4.5%, min £1 Top easy-access ISA: Moneybox 4.46%, min £500 Top one-year fix: Union Bank of India UK 4.23%, min £1k Broadband top picks Fast fibre (100Mb+): Plusnet '£19.37/mth' Superfast fibre (500Mb+): Vodafone '£21.75/mth' On Universal Credit or similar? Check all discounted social tariffs Cheap Sims Up to 3GB data: Lebara, '£3.18/mth' for 3GB 4GB to 9GB data: Lebara, '£3.28/mth' for 5GB 10GB to 30GB data: Lebara, '£3.34/mth' for 10GB 31GB+ data: iD Mobile, '£3.75/mth' for 50GB

 

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA Should I ask friends to pay for their meal when I can't remember if I said it was my treat? I recently went to a few pubs with some old friends, then to our favourite Indian restaurant. I had a great time but have little recollection of getting home [pls be Drinkaware]. I assumed we'd split the food bill, but I've found the receipt and I paid it all. I'd have no problem asking for their share, but I'm not sure if, in my merry state, I said the meal was on me! Do I ask them and risk looking a numpty if I said I'd pay? Or say nothing and risk having treated them without them being able to remember? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should I ask my mates if I said I'd pay for our meal? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma (MMD) | View past MMDs

 

Some Mother's Day competitions... - Win a year's flower delivery subscription - Win a bundle of travel books - Win a jewellery and chocolate combo ...from the MSE Forum competitions board - Win a spa voucher and drinks hamper - Win a personalised letterbox cake - Win a Lindt chocolate bundle

 

 

MSE TEAM BLOG - MSE Forum highlights: dashcams, defective cars & multi-destination holidays

 

 

MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (WED 4 MAR ONWARDS) Thu 5 Mar - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, midday Tue 10 Mar - This Morning, ITV1, 10:20am Tue 10 Mar - The Martin Lewis Money Show Live, ITV1, 7:15pm

 

 

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