Earn 5% on savings, why 13% energy price rise is voluntary, £200 John Lewis beauty box £65, last chance FREE £210, Ninja blender £27

Plus... What 3 laws would Martin introduce?, help for disabled/ill pensioners, fast Sky fibre £18/mth

                                                           

02 June 2026 | View in browser

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THE TOP TIPS IN THIS EMAIL → Martin's Savers' Masterclass: - Top 5% easy-access savings - Top 4.88% fixed savings - Specialist rate boosters - How the tax on savings works → Why 13% energy price rise is voluntary → £4,000+ help for disabled / ill pensioners → What 3 laws would Martin introduce? → Top FREE £210 bank switch Ends Wed → £200 John Lewis beauty box £65 → Mass legal action against Facebook / Insta over scams → 150Mb Sky broadband £18/mth Ends Fri → Ninja Blast blender £27 delivered → 25% off Eurostar, eg, Paris return £66 → Martin's Money Assembly - sign up free → Cancel old credit cards? | Bigger pay or better pension? Question pod → Add us to Google's 'Preferred Sources' → M&S 'up to 50% off' sale → FREE '£200' Longevity Show tickets → Chase user? Cashback's doubling, but... → Free kids' West End tickets to 50+ shows → 30% off code for men's suits, shirts, etc → Martin: Some question charities' impact... → This week's best buys: 14mth no-fee 0% debt shift, 35GB Sim £3/mth, 5.7% loan → Money Moral Dilemma: Should I pay unfair littering fine? → Freebies: Krispy Kreme, Lego, & coffee

Martin's Savers' Masterclass Stop the savings rip off! You can now earn up to 5% easy access or 4.88% fixed. Check what you get now. Ditch, switch & save! Owt under 4% and you're letting them rip you off. Millions of you are allowing banks, and some building societies, to rip you off with paltry interest. The shift in the UK's interest rate prospects means top savings rates have recently increased, with a strong set of deals paying over 4.5%. Yet many savers still leave their money at a paltry average 2%. Stop it! Make 'em pay for your business. I was spurred to this by a question on my Question Time Podcast this week, from someone on a very low income, unable to work, and wanted to know: 'We have £115,000 in savings and earn £2,300 interest annually... do we have to pay tax on our savings?' As I explained, I thought that was the wrong question (though I answered "likely not") - the priority is to ask "Why am I earning such little interest?" On that amount, I'd expect it to be nearer £5,000! The solution was a combination of savings accounts, mixing and matching. To help you boost your interest, here are my tips, explanations and, of course, today's best buys... - Top easy-access savings: Up to 5% but 'variable' rate. - Top fixed savings: Guaranteed rate up to 4.88% if you lock money away, or 4.6% with some access. - Specialist rate boosters: 7% on regular monthly savings | 25% boost for first time buyers | 50% boost if on Universal Credit - How the tax on savings works: and ways to reduce it ALL SAVINGS ACCOUNTS & CASH ISAs LISTED HERE have the full UK £120,000 savings safety protection & all interest rates listed below are the standard AER (annual equivalent rate). Three 'Don't save without first checking' tips Saving is investing's poorer cousin - should you be investing? The first place to put spare money is always to build up a cash emergency fund of 3-6mths' worth of bills. But for money you won't use for 5+ years, saving isn't usually the winner. It's worth considering putting some of the rest in a broad spread of investments (eg, a global tracker fund that mirrors the performance of a huge range of companies). Do have a read of my new Beginners guide to investing.   Got costly debt? It's usually best to use spare cash to clear it first. After all, pay off a grand on a credit card at 25% APR rather than save at 5% and you're £200 a year better off. See Should I pay debt with savings? Is overpaying your mortgage a better way to save? If your mortgage rate is the same or higher than you earn in savings, check our Mortgage Overpayment Calc to see if it may be worth you overpaying. If it looks likely, read Should I overpay my mortgage? for full pros & cons. Top easy-access (variable) savings  The SIMPLE start point Not sure what to do with your savings? At least put it in the top easy-access account while you take time to work it out. These accounts let you put money in and withdraw whenever you want, so you get decent interest and the flexibility to move it elsewhere. The key word here is 'top', as not all savings accounts are equal. All easy-access accounts are variable rate, so what they pay can change - often when the Bank of England base rate moves, but also at a provider's whim. Many suck you in with a high rate, then after a year or so slap that rate down (eg, when an 'intro bonus' ends) while offering new customers a better deal. You'll be notified of rate changes though, so check then - and if it no longer compares well, take your money out and put it elsewhere. Now on to today's best buys... For the latest updates, use our Top easy-access savings & Top cash ISAs guide. There are lots of different options, so I'll start with a straightforward(ish) one, then build on it. The Benchmark 4.5%: Top unlimited withdrawals on large amounts. Chase (part of JP Morgan) pays 4.5%* (min £1, max £3m), though 2.25% of this is a newbie bonus lasting a year, so diarise to ditch & switch after. You can only get it via opening its free current account (it's quick, you needn't switch or use it & only requires an ID check, not a full credit check, so doesn't impact your credit worthiness). If you've already got it and the bonus is over, look elsewhere as the rate isn't good. Earn 5% - but only on up to £3,000. Cahoot's (part of Santander) 5% Sunny Day Saver (min £1, max £3,000). Even if you've more to save, there's no harm maxing this to £3,000 first, then using one of the others for the rest. Do note, you can put more in, it just won't pay you interest on anything above £3,000. Earn 4.55% on up to £20,000. Tembo's Homesaver 4.55%* (min £10, max £20,000) also includes a 1.55% 1yr introductory bonus, but this time that's only paid after a year, so you must keep the account open for a full 12mths (if the rate drops, just take everything but £1 out and you'll still get the bonus for the time you had the real amount in there). Earn 4.76% if you've not used a cash ISA since April. A cash ISA is just a savings account you can put up to £20,000 per tax year in, and the interest isn't ever taxable. The tax year started on 6 Apr, so if you haven't put new money in an ISA since then, your ISA for this year is unused (though do consider too if you would want it for a shares ISAs). Even if you don't need the savings tax benefit, as the rates are higher, you can just use it for normal savings.   Trading 212 is 4.76%* via this link (min £1, max £20,000) with unlimited withdrawals. The rate includes a 1yr 1.16% bonus for newbies putting new money in (ie not for ISA transfers).   For those wanting to transfer existing cash ISA money in too, Moneybox is 4.75% (min £500, max £20,000), again including a 1yr 1.3% newbie bonus. Yet here, you can only make three withdrawals per year, or you face an interest penalty. More options in top cash ISAs. Earn 6% interest on up to £4,000 via a Santander current account (and get up to £180 for switching to it). If you have a Santander Edge account you can earn the highest easy-access interest possible, but only on up to £4,000. Right now you can open it and get £30 free, or switch to it too and get £180. See our Santander Edge deal below for pros and cons. Or... just want the top totally straight savings rate? The top no-bonus, open-to-all, no-withdrawal-limit savings account is Hampshire Trust Bank's 4.2% (min £1, max £250k). Yet remember, it's still a variable rate, so there's no guarantee it won't change. Can't I just get a long term consistent rate account? For that you need a fixed-rate account, which I'm coming on to next. Yet there you sometimes have to lock your money away. For easy-access, to maximise the interest, I'm afraid you must be an active saver. But that can just mean checking your interest rate a couple of times a year, and withdrawing it and opening a new account if the rate is bad.    Bigger savers, with multiple accounts, may find savings hubs - where you can move accounts between a panel of firms with just a click - far less hassle. Top fixed savings Earn a GUARANTEED RATE up to 4.88% If you want rate certainty without needing to monitor it - this is for you. Usually you have to lock your money away, but right now there are a few options with a little wriggle room. Fixed rates have jumped considerably since the start of the Middle East crisis, as they are set based on predictions of future UK interest rates. They were expected to drop, but aren't now. In early March, the top 1yr fix was 4.23%, now it's 4.85%. The advantage of fixes is that you know the rate, and it sticks even if UK rates were to drop. The disadvantage is that, in addition to the money being locked away, if rates rise elsewhere you're stuck until the fix ends. How to fix without locking your money away Normally, the only way to do this is within a cash ISA, as the rules there mean you must be allowed to close the account and withdraw whenever you want. Though providers can (and all do) charge you an interest penalty of 90 to 365 days, depending on the fix length.    Yet, as some who fix tend to have larger sums or have already used their ISAs, this can be limiting. Currently Marcus (part of Goldman Sachs) pays 4.6%* (min £1, max £250k) on its 1yr fixed savings and - crucially - it also allows you to close the account early to withdraw, for a 90-day interest penalty (or all interest earned within the first 90 days). As you'll see below, it's not too far below the very best payers.   That makes it, alongside the cash ISA fixes below, a useful option for those who think they can lock the money away, but worry there's a slight risk they may need access in the future. Now on to today's top rates. As I know some prefer names they know (though all have the full £120,000 UK savings safety protection), I've added a top big name as an option. All the ISAs below allow transfers in, except for Hodge Bank. Top 1 year fixes Savings: MBNA (part of Lloyds) 4.85% (min £1k, max £750k) Recognise Bank 4.85% (min £1k, max £250k) Cash ISAs: Hodge Bank 4.67% (min £1k - no transfers), UBL UK 4.66% (min £2k), Tesco Bank 4.6% (min £1) Top 2 year fixes Savings: Recognise Bank 4.85% (min £1k, max £250k) Hodge Bank 4.83% (min £1k, max £1m), NS&I 4.48% (min £500, max £1m and as NS&I is govt-owned, all money is effectively protected) Cash ISAs: RCI Bank 4.72%* (min £1k), Hodge Bank 4.71% (min £1k - no transfers), Lloyds Bank 4.65% (min £500) Top 3 year fixes Savings: Oxbury Bank 4.83% (min £1k, max £500k), Thisbank 4.82% (min £100, max £500k), NS&I 4.45% (min £500, max £1m) Cash ISAs: Hodge Bank 4.66% (min £1k - no transfers), Close Brothers 4.66% (min £10k), Nationwide 4.6% (min £1, new Nationwide customers must open in branch) Top 5 year fixes Savings: Oxbury Bank 4.88% (min £1k, max £500k), GB Bank 4.87% (min £1k, max £100k), NS&I 4.4% (min £500, max £1m) Cash ISAs: Hodge Bank 4.71% (min £1k - no transfers), Close Brothers 4.71% (min £10k), Halifax 4.65% (min £500) How long should you fix for? After the recent rises in fixed rates, the moves mean there's now very little difference between the top rates for 1yr and 3yr fixes. To an extent, you can read that as the market suggesting it doesn't think rates will drop much anytime soon. With that taken out of the equation, ultimately, guessing further into the future in our volatile world is impossible. So rather than basing it on externalities, look inward. The more you value certainty, the longer you should fix for. Though a reminder: if you can lock cash away for a long time, say 5+yrs, have an emergency fund and no debt issues, on the balance of probability investing your money in a broad spread of assets should substantially outperform saving (watch how sensible investing returns compare to savings), and do read my Investing for beginners guide. Three SPECIALIST rate boosters The basic savings building blocks are the easy-access and fixed accounts above. Yet there are some savings products paying more but either: a) limit who can get them, or  b) limit the amount you can put in.  If they apply to you, they're worth having. Think of this like a savings 'champagne' fountain: you pour your cash into the best possible product, then when it's full, move to the next one down, and so on. 1. Help to Save: An unbeatable 50% boost on what you save, if you work & are on Universal Credit. If you're on Universal Credit (UC), and earn anything from working, you can open a Help to Save account on the Gov.uk website. Once it's open, you can continue to use it even if you stop being eligible for UC. You can save up to £50/mth and, after two years, you get a 50% bonus on the max you had in - even if you've withdrawn the money. There's nowt else close to it. My wee graphic should help...  After you get the first two-year bonus, you can do it again for two more years and get another 50% bonus. See full how Help to Save works. Many people who try this rave to me about it.  2. Lifetime ISA (LISA): A 25% boost for first-time buyers aged 18 to 39. A Lifetime ISA is a tax-free savings or investment account anyone aged 18 to 39 can open (once open, you can keep it going even after you're 40).  Its primary use is to help first-time buyers build a deposit, though it can also be used to save towards older age. It's complex, so always first read our Top Lifetime ISAs help guide, but in brief... You can put in up to £4,000 each tax year until you're 50 and get a 25% bonus added to it. Put the max £4,000 in and you get £1,000 a year added. This can be used as a deposit on your first home. As long as the property costs under £450,000, you're getting a mortgage and you've had the LISA open for at least a year. Alternatively, you take the money out when aged 60. Two first-time buyers buying together can have one each. That's because the LISA is an individual product. This also means a first-timer can still use it even if buying with someone who's owned before.  The problem: If you want to take money out before you're 60, and it's not towards your first mortgage on a qualifying property, you effectively have to pay a penalty. This works out at you getting roughly 6.25% LESS than you put in (see how LISA withdrawal fees work).  So LISAs are only good for first-timers who know they'll buy a home under £450,000. If that's you, read our full Top Lifetime ISAs guide. If you've already got the LISA's predecessor - the Help to Buy ISA - there's also help in there about which is best for you. PS. The Chancellor had said this year she'd look at replacing the LISA. Things seem to have gone a little quiet on that amid the current political uncertainty. Yet if a LISA is right for you and you'd buy in the next few years, it's worth a look at.  3. Top Regular Savings Accounts. Earn 7% on small amounts saved monthly. As the name suggests, the top regular savings accounts pay high interest on money put aside each month. Often the best rates are with accounts linked to current accounts (ie, you usually must have a provider's current account to open it). These are likely loss-leaders to win or keep your banking custom - affordable for the banks, as the amounts are small; usually the maximum you can put in is up to £300/mth.  To put lump-sum savings in, just arrange to drip-feed the maximum amount from those savings in each month. There's nothing stopping you opening a whole range of regular savers with different institutions. Here's the highest paying regular savers: Regular Savers where you must have (or get) their current account Zopa*: 7.1% variable for 6mths on up to £300/mth (max £36 interest) First Direct* + FREE £200 for bank switchers: 7% fixed for 1yr on up to £300/mth (max £135 interest) Co-op: 7% variable for 1yr on up to £250/mth (max £113 interest) Nationwide (+ FREE £175 for bank switchers): 6.5% variable for 1yr on up to £200/mth (max £84 interest) Lloyds: 6.25% fixed for 1yr on up to £400/mth (max £161 interest) There are many other bank-linked accounts paying over 5%. See our Regular Savers guide for more - and to check if your bank offers one. Regular Savers open to all and often allow bigger amounts Monmouthshire Building Society 6% variable for 1yr on up to £500/mth (max £193 interest) Manchester BS 5.4% variable for 2yrs on up to £500/mth (max interest over 2yrs £684) PS. Why does the amount regular savings pay feel less than it should? In simple terms, it's because you drip-feed money in rather than having a lump sum all year. See my Why regular savers are the best payers, but it won't be that much explanation. The TAX on savings & ways to reduce it There's a lot of confusion about tax on savings - so, to be plain... Savings aren't taxed, but the interest earned on them is. Yet even then, many needn't pay it, as there are substantial tax-free allowances and products you can use where the interest isn't taxable... 1. Your tax-free allowances. Best to watch my most people miss out on using all four savings tax allowances (on my YouTube channel, and while there, do subscribe for more easy explainers), which I hope is an easy way to understand it quickly. But let me take you through the allowances here too. Your Personal Allowance: most can earn up to £12,570 tax-free. This is how much you can earn (from anything, eg, work, pension, interest) before paying Income Tax. If your total earnings are less than that, then all your interest is therefore tax-free. For more on this, see our Income Tax Calculator. Starting Savings Rate: for those with low other (including work) earnings but bigger savings interest. The Starting Rate for Savings means some can earn up to £18,570 of earnings and interest combined without paying any tax on it (do click the link to read it how it works, it needs a bit of explaining). The Personal Savings Allowance: you can earn up to £1,000 interest tax-free each year. Your Personal Savings Allowance (PSA) is on top of the allowances above - it's the amount of interest you can earn from ANY & ALL SAVINGS without paying tax on it. - Basic 20% rate taxpayers can earn £1,000 interest a tax year. - Higher 40% rate taxpayers can earn £500 interest a tax year. - Top 45% rate taxpayers do not get a PSA. At today's top easy-access rates you'd need well over £20,000 to generate £1,000 interest, so only basic-rate taxpayers with more would pay tax (for higher-rate taxpayers, it's half that). This, combined with cash ISAs below, means all but bigger savers or earners needn't pay any tax on interest. How you pay tax on savings if you need to. If you're sent a self-assessment tax form (ie, a tax return) to do each year, you do it via that. If not, and your interest is under £10,000/yr, you don't need to do anything - the tax office (HMRC) will simply change your tax code. If you get more than £10,000 interest, you'll need to do a tax return. See more on how to pay tax on savings interest. 2. You can save £20,000 tax-free each year in an ISA ON TOP of the other allowances. I ran through Cash ISA best-buys in the easy-access and fixes sections above. Cash ISAs are just savings accounts where the interest is tax-free. That means the interest... - is never taxed - doesn't have to be reported to HMRC - doesn't count towards the interest in the allowances above (eg, the £1,000 PSA for basic-rate taxpayers doesn't include cash ISA interest). All this makes ISAs a crucial extra allowance, which anyone who earns or saves enough to pay tax on savings interest (or thinks they may do in future) should take advantage of (though if you both save and invest, a shares ISA's tax benefits can outweigh cash ISAs). After all, if you've £20,000 and would pay tax on it, you'd earn £950 in the top cash ISA, but after basic 20% tax just £720 in the top normal savings account (£540 after higher 40% tax, £500 after top 45% tax).  Once you've put money in an ISA, it stays tax-free year after year. Some have £100,000s protected from tax after maxing their ISAs year after year. Sadly, for those age under 65, the Chancellor has announced that while the total you can put in ISAs will stay at £20,000, the maximum new money you can deposit in cash ISAs will drop to £12,000 in the next tax year. This doesn't affect any money you already have in cash ISAs by then. This has been done to 'encourage younger people to invest'.  Don't let your money fester in existing poor cash ISA rates Too many think they put their money in a cash ISA and it's done. Not so. You've a right to transfer it to a new top payer. Yet don't just withdraw the cash - you'll lose its ISA status. Instead, apply for a new cash ISA, and as part of the application, you'll be asked whether you want them to transfer your existing cash ISA over... - You don't need to be adding any money to do this. - It doesn't use up your £20,000 allowance - only new money does that. - Locked in a fixed-rate cash ISA? Use our 'Should I ditch my fixed ISA?' calc to see if it's worth switching. 3. You can put £50,000 tax-free in Premium Bonds - the prize fund rate is rising to 3.8% from July. I'm not a big fan of Premium Bonds for most people. The vast majority of those with typical luck will do better just putting money in top savings (see the Premium Bond Prediction Calc). However, Premium Bonds' tax-free nature does mean they come into their own for people who pay tax on savings and have used up their ISA allowance. In that case, provided you're putting a larger amount in (as you need to do that to have a decent chance of winning closer to the published prize rate), they can be a good option. For a full explanation, see our Are Premium Bonds worth it? 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.

 

 

 

Confirmed: The Energy Price Cap will rise 13% next month  Martin: For many people, this rise is VOLUNTARY - it can and should be avoided! You can lock in a fix right now at 4% less than today's Cap, never mind when it rises The Energy Price Cap is time-lagged - it reflects the wholesale energy costs from two to five months before, so it's slow to rise and slow to fall. That's why the Middle East conflict will only finally force its way onto most people's energy bills from July, when the Cap will rise 13%. The hit will be biggest for higher users, especially of gas, as the rise is mainly due to an increase in the cost of each unit of energy used, rather than the daily standing charge. The gas unit rate is up 28%, electricity up 6% (see new Price Cap rates). Yet my big message is... The rise only applies to firms' bog-standard tariffs. Fixes aren't price-capped, so won't rise. So if you're on the Price Cap (see Am I on the Cap?) consider getting off it, if you can... Don't stick with your own firm's fix though, as many don't have cheap deals. As your winner depends on region and usage, the simple way is to do a whole-of-market comparison and lock in a fix below the current Cap. Do that and you start saving straight away - and then from July, today's cheapest fix will be 15% cheaper than the new higher Cap. Sadly though, there are currently no decent fixes if you're not paying by Direct Debit, so finding a deal's much harder. The energy fixes cheaper than the current (Apr-Jun) Cap - Links go via our comparison to give you a bespoke result (exact standing charges & unit rates listed there). - All three allow both new and existing customers to switch. Ecotricity EcoFixed - MS 1 Year May 26 v2 12mth fix. Dual fuel or single fuel | Monthly fixed or variable Direct Debit | £75/fuel early-exit fees | Smart meter is required (unless it isn't practicable to fit one). Save avg 3.8% compared with today's Price Cap (15.2% less than July's Cap), incl £20 MSE dual-fuel cashback. Outfox Energy Fix'd Dual Jun26 12M v2 12mth fix. Dual fuel only | Monthly fixed Direct Debit only | £75/fuel early-exit fees | No smart meter required. Save avg 2.1% compared with today's Price Cap (13.7% less than July's Cap). E.on Next Fixed 12m Exclusive v1 12mth fix. Dual fuel or elec-only | Monthly fixed Direct Debit only | £50/fuel early-exit fees | No smart meter required. Save avg 2% compared with today's Price Cap (13.6% less than July's Cap), incl £20 MSE dual-fuel cashback. What is MSE cashback? Some providers pay energy comparisons to facilitate the switch (at the same price as going direct). Unlike other sites, we don't hide tariffs that don't pay. We show them all, and when we get paid, we give you a chunk as cashback. So they're relatively cheaper for you, and more people are likely switch to them. Win-win. Q. What will happen after the July Price Cap ends? The following Cap starts 1 October and runs to the end the year, so into winter. We're two weeks through the 13-week assessment period that wholesale energy costs are averaged over for deciding that Cap - and sadly, they've been very high. Analysts currently predict a 2-3% rise on top of the July rise. Even if the Middle East conflict ended tomorrow, while the Cap may drop a bit rather than rise in October, it's unlikely we'd see it return to where it is today. So, a cheap fix seems the risk-averse bet for most on the Cap. Q. I'm already on a fix - should I consider switching again?' Unlike people on the Cap, you're likely currently paying less than the cheapest fixes, so you'd need to pay more to fix now. When your fix ends matters. You can't be charged early exit penalties if your fix has 49 days or less left to go, so if that's you, and you're risk-averse and want the safety of locking in, do a comparison and aim for a fix cheaper than the current Price Cap. If your fix ends later, without a crystal ball, there's no right answer. Yet it'd feel odd to pay an exit fee in order to move to a more expensive tariff. So my instinct (based on pure guesswork) is stick on your cheap fix as long as you can, and hope fixes will be a similar price or cheaper than now when you near the end. At least you'll have saved meanwhile. Q. I'm on the Cap - if I wait, could it be cheaper to get a fix in a few weeks? Yes! It could be cheaper - or much more expensive. If the Middle East conflict properly ends, it's possible much cheaper fixes will be available. Yet if you can fix at less than the current Cap, every day you wait is a day paying more. That's why the real message is to focus on how risk-averse you are: the less you can afford big hikes, the safer it is to fix now. And if things did radically change in future and much cheaper tariffs became available, you could always pay your fix's early exit fees and leave.  Q. Are there alternatives to fixing? For most, a fix is the simplest way to guarantee a saving, but there are alternatives that are better for some. These include special tariffs for electric vehicle drivers and solar panel owners, Price Cap tracker tariffs that discount the unit rates (better for high users) or standing charges (better for lower users), and rapid price-change tariffs including Agile Octopus and Octopus Tracker. Q. I fixed at a cheaper rate, but my Direct Debit went up? The rate you pay dictates your total cost. Yet monthly Direct Debits are based on your firm's estimate of your usage. So even if you move to a cheaper rate, if it estimates you'll use more, it can ask for more each month - though if that's too high, you should get it back eventually. See our is my Direct Debit fair? help. Q. I'm struggling to afford my energy bills - what do I do? Start by cutting your usage with our 70+ energy saving tips and energy mythbusting guides. If you still need help, it's always worth talking to your energy firm as there can be hardship & debt grants. For far more guidance, see our full What to do if you're struggling to pay energy bills help.

 

Martin, what three consumer laws would you introduce if you could? He was asked this in his Question Time podcast, so - from bailiffs to student loans - we thought some of you'd be interested in the three laws he picked. Ends 1pm Wed. FREE £210 to switch to top bills (or joint bills) current account. Newbies who switch to Santander Edge* via this link by 1pm tomorrow (Wed) get a £30 Amazon voucher on top of its ongoing £180 upfront cash. The account has a £3/mth fee, but for that you get 1% cashback on bills paid by Direct Debit (max £10/mth), which puts most homes easily in profit - making it the top-pick account for paying bills. Alternatively, if you just want to open it without switching, you can get the £30 voucher. Or, top-for-service account First Direct* has boosted its switch cash to £200. It also gives a top overseas debit card, a 7% regular saver and a £250 0% overdraft for many. More options in Top bank accounts. £196 John Lewis beauty box £65 incl Clinique, Rodial, Trinny London etc. 10-item set. Lewis' box Law firms signing people up for mass action against Facebook and Instagram over scams. Social media is a cesspit of fake scam adverts (44% of them include Martin), with deepfakes promising nonsense get-rich-quick schemes. The big tech firms are said to make billions from the scammers. Now, a group claim against Meta is in the works, and the firms behind it say 100,000s could be eligible to join. See potential scams action. Related: Dear Prime Minister, why have you done almost nothing to tackle scam ads? Ends Fri. 150Mb Sky broadband '£18/mth'. Switchers can get this 150Mb Sky broadband & digital line deal for £23/mth and you'll be emailed your choice of a £120 prepaid Mastercard or shopping voucher within 4mths of your first bill (do check your junk folder if not received). Factor that in as a discount and it's equivalent to £18/mth over the 2yr contract. Sky tends to increase prices each April - if it does, you can leave penalty-free - so in reality it's likely to cost a quid or two more each month. Want other options? Use our full broadband comparison. Ninja Blast cordless portable blender £27 delivered. MSE Blagged. 8,000 available. USB-chargeable portable blender with strong reviews, normally £50 (current cheapest elsewhere £40). Ninja blender 25% off Eurostar, eg, Paris return £66. For travel between 24 Jun and 23 Sep. Book by Mon. Eurostar sale Martin to give first National Money Assembly - sign your school up for free. Financial education matters! Organised by Young Enterprise's Young Money arm, it's on 15 Jun at 9am for students aged 14+. He'll talk about real-life money challenges and take questions. Teachers in schools & sixth-form colleges can sign up here: National Money Assembly. Should you cancel old unused credit cards? | Martin, what three laws would you introduce? | Should I go for the job with bigger pay or better pension? Martin's new Question Time podcast. This is the pod where you can ask anything and everything (within reason!). The answers to these and more in this week's Martin's Question Time podcast. Listen via BBC Sounds | Apple | Spotify  Please add us to Google's 'Preferred Sources' so you still see MSE high in search results. Google now lets you choose preferred sites for its AI search and news results. Please click this special Source Preferences link, then tick the MoneySavingExpert box, and you're done.

 

 

BLAGGED FOR MSE - £50 Ninja cordless blender for £27 8,000 available - 30% off Savile Row Company with code Ends Tue 9 Jun	DID YOU MISS? - Free pasta, 50% off Magnums & more supermarket coupons. - Nationwide customer? Check whether you'll get a free £100. - Martin: Mileage allowance rise 'really important change'. - NS&I to pay £367m to thousands of bereaved families. - Should I cover fees when I transfer money to my grandchild?

 

 

Success of the Week...  'I finally checked and was astounded to qualify for £6,000/yr help!' Disabled or ill State Pensioners may now be due £4,000+ a year 'Attendance Allowance' daily living help. Income is irrelevant as it's NOT means-tested, so do check if you or someone you know is missing out For older people who are ill or living with mental or physical disabilities, life gets costlier as it gets tougher. And those conditions can often make it harder to find out what help's available. Our Attendance Allowance (AA) guide (known as Pension Age Disability Payment in Scotland) is a little over two years old and successes keep coming in. Yet it remains massively underclaimed, with potentially up to one million eligible pensioners missing out (source: Policy in Practice). The amount of help available is now worth even more after a 3.8% boost in April. So let's start with some inspiration... Moira emailed in April: "After hearing from Martin's various communications about Attendance Allowance, I finally decided to give it a go. I really didn't think there was any chance at all, but I made an appointment with my local Citizens Advice Bureau to get help choosing the right things to include in the application. I am astounded but so so happy to say I have been successful and at the higher rate [of £5,959/yr] with a back payment of over £500. It has already made a difference as I had run out of heating oil, so I can now order some and be able to pay for it! Thank you Martin." Attendance Allowance is for those of State Pension age who need some daily help with living. This isn't about specific conditions - it's about the impact of a mental or physical disability and/or illness. You must've needed either help or supervision for six consecutive months (even if you didn't get it). It's common for those with Parkinson's, dementia, terminal illness, blindness, learning difficulties and more. - Help means: Assistance with daily living / bodily functions, eg, washing and eating, so even if you don't think of yourself as disabled, you may be eligible - it's worth clicking the link to read the detailed definitions. - Supervision means: Someone to watch you to avoid danger to yourself or others. Want to help someone else claim? You can apply on someone's behalf too. If you're looking after someone who meets the criteria, you can apply for them as long as they can sign the form (or you've Power of Attorney to sign).   It's NOT means-tested - the minimum is currently worth £76.70 a week, that's £3,988 a year. Eligibility is dependent on need, not finances. So if you need the help, you can get it. - Need help during the DAY OR NIGHT? You get the LOWER rate of £76.70/wk (£3,988/yr)  - Need help during the DAY AND NIGHT? You get the HIGHER rate of £114.60/wk (£5,959/yr)  - UNDER 12MTHS TO LIVE? You get the HIGHER rate of £114.60/wk (£5,959/yr)   How you apply matters... While you can apply online, Martin's tip is to call and request an application form. Firstly, the online form is long and it must be done in one go, as it has no save function. More importantly, if you call and get sent the form, as long as you fill it in and return it within six weeks, claims are backdated to the day you requested the form, not to when it was submitted (online claims are only backdated to the day you submit). When applying, do have your National Insurance number, GP prescriptions and hospital records handy, and fill in the form with as much detail as possible. We've further detail in ⁠help to apply for Attendance Allowance, which includes info on the free helplines available from charities (as the form can be confusing), as well as how to appeal. You won't usually need to attend an assessment to get it - though it can happen. Please let us know how you get on. Warning. Do you get Personal Independence Payment, Adult Disability Payment or Disability Living Allowance? These are usually worth as much as, and often more than, Attendance Allowance - and you can't claim both. See our clashing benefits help and, if unsure, get free benefits adviser help before doing anything. Attendance Allowance can unlock £1,000s of extra help too. Acceptance is often the key to eligibility, or an indicator you may be due other support, including... - YOU WILL qualify for a Disabled Person's Railcard. Costs £20 for 1 year getting you & a companion 1/3 off. - YOU MAY get a blue badge to park in places others can't, often for free, decided council-by-council. - YOU MAY get Council Tax help via the Severe Mental Impairment (SMI) discount, which can mean 25% off for some or 100% off for those who live alone (or with someone else with an SMI). - HAVE A CARER? If someone close to you looks after you unpaid for 20 to 35 hours/wk, your AA may mean they get Carer's Credit. If they do over 35 hours/wk on low pay, they may get paid Carer's Allowance, though how this interacts with AA is complex - see Carer's Allowance with Attendance Allowance help. - LOW INCOME? You may also get up to £86/wk extra Pension Credit, or up to £429/mth extra Universal Credit. - LIVE-IN CARER? You may be entitled to a 25% or 50% Council Tax discount.

 

M&S 'up to 50% off' sale. Includes Ted Baker, FatFace & more, plus own-brand items. See our M&S sale analysis. FREE '£200 list price' tickets to 2-day Longevity Show health festival. 1,000 available. 26-27 June in London. Chase user? Cashback's doubling, but there are new hoops to jump through. Chase cashback changes. Free kids' West End tickets to 50+ shows with a paying grown-up. Includes Lion King, Harry Potter, Matilda, Wicked. The annual 'Kids Week' promo is returning soon. Full info in 'free' kids' theatre. 30% off code for men's suits, shirts & more at Savile Row Company, including sale items. MSE Blagged. Plus free delivery from the upmarket menswear retailer, eg, £55 shirt for £18 delivered. Savile Row Co Martin: 'Some people question how much impact charities can have...' I'm blown away by the impact the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute has had since it started 10 years ago. Read the full impact report.

 

 

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS 0% balance transfers Longest definite 0%: HSBC (check eligibility; existing customers use this link), 36mths 0%, 3.19% fee, 24.9% rep APR No-fee 0%: Barclaycard (check eligibility) up to 14mths 0%, 24.9% rep APR Best bank accounts Ends Wed. Free '£210' + 1% on bills: Santander Edge Free £200 + top service: First Direct Broadband top picks Fast fibre (100Mb+): Sky '£18/mth' Superfast fibre (500Mb+): Vodafone '£23/mth' On Universal Credit or similar? Check all discounted social tariffs 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: M&S Bank (check eligibility), 5.7% rep APR Top savings accounts Top easy-access savings: Cahoot 5%, min £1 Top easy-access ISA: Trading 212 4.76%, min £1 Top one-year fix: MBNA 4.85%, min £1,000 Top energy deals Use our whole-of-market Cheap Energy Club Cheap Sims Up to 3GB data: Lebara, '£2.84/mth' for 3GB 4GB to 9GB data: Lebara, '£2.86/mth' for 5GB 10GB to 30GB data: Lebara, '£2.92/mth' for 15GB 31GB+ data: Lebara, '£2.99/mth' for 35GB

 

 

MSE NEWS - Top story: M&S Bank completes official transfer to HSBC - what it means for savers and borrowers

 

 

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA My council fined me for littering when I didn't - do I pay up or take it to court? I received a fixed penalty notice from my local council for supposedly 'littering' near my estate's recycling bins. What likely happened is a box with my name and address blew off or was knocked off one of the open bins. The council's given no evidence, and there's no CCTV. The fine's £140 if I pay within 10 days, £200 after, yet there's no formal appeal - to contest it, I'd have to go to court, risking a £2,500 penalty and a criminal record if I lose. So, do I just pay up, or go to court to maintain my innocence? Enter the Money Moral Maze: My council fined me for littering when I didn't - do I pay up or take it to court? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma (MMD) | View past MMDs

 

QUICK DEALS - Krispy Kreme: FREE Original Glazed doughnut (normally £3), Fri 5 Jun only - Lego: FREE Lego football trophy or FREE Lego duck, Sat 6 Jun only - Coffee#1: FREE barista-made drink code for app newbies (normally up to £5) - Co-op: Two steaks & a pack of fries for £4 (normally up to £8) - Kellogg's: Free football day camps for kids aged 5 to 15, via promo packs of £2 to £4 cereal - Flying Tiger: Everything £5 or less, ends Wed 3 Jun

 

 

MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (WED 3 JUN ONWARDS) Wed 3 Jun - Peston, ITV1, 10:45pm Thu 4 Jun - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, 12 noon Tue 9 Jun - This Morning, ITV1, 10:20am

 

 

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