Savings Masterclass: 4.75% easy-access!, 25% off railcards, O2 users warning, £11 Baileys, Ninja over £160 off, cheapest long energy fix, Black Fri predictions

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28 October 2025 | View in browser

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THE TOP TIPS IN THIS EMAIL Martin's Savings Masterclass: - New. Get 4.75% easy-access! - Lock in top 4.5% savings fix - 3 ways to boost interest up to 50% - 3 ways to minimise tax on interest Ends. 500Mb broadband £25/mth or less 25% off railcards + more train savers News. O2 mobile contract bill warning! New. Top 35mth 0% balance transfer Black Fri predictions, eg, Amazon, Apple Ends Thu. FREE £235 bank switch More get Warm Home Discount news New. Cheapest long energy fix £11 for one-litre Baileys New. Find cheap console & PC games Over £160 off Ninja outdoor oven 'We got £700 civil partnership tax refund' Ovo to double EV charge cost for some £59 Grüum home fragrance set £18 Make Halloween spook-tacular... for free Aged 66+ with low income? Spotify hikes prices by up to £24/yr This week's best buys: 40GB Sim £4/mth, 5.8% loan & more Money Moral Dilemma: Do we get say in our child's wedding which we're funding? 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

Martin's Savings Masterclass New. Top 4.75% easy-access savings now available. Check & boost what you earn now Includes full savings, fixes & cash ISA best buys...  Two things happening right now make it worth all savers examining if you're maxing out the possible interest... a) We've just seen a new top 4.75% easy-access savings account launched, on top of a host of other hot easy-access deals. 4.75% is the highest since summer, when base rates were cut, so for safety's sake, CHECK NOW what your savings pay to see if you can switch to a better rate. b) Last week's inflation numbers weren't quite as bad as expected, holding at 3.8%, so while most analysts suggest the Bank of England will hold the UK base rate at 4% in its meeting next week, they think it's more likely they'll be cut either in the Dec or Feb meeting to 3.75%. This is unlikely to yet be reflected in savings rates, so it's a good time to do it. Below I'll run you through the top deals & key info on...  - 4.75% easy-access (variable) savings: Withdraw when you want. - 4.5% fixed savings: Lock money away at a guaranteed rate. - Three ways to boost your interest to up to 50%. - Three ways to minimise tax, including cash ISAs & Premium Bonds. ... remember, you can pick 'n' mix as many savings account as you want, to combine terms that suit you. Before saving... 3 important questions Got costly debt? If so, it's usually best to use spare cash to clear it first. A grand's debt on a credit card at a typical 25% costs £250/yr, while the same saved at 5% earns £50. Pay off the debt with the savings and you're £200/yr better off. For more on how to do this safely, see Should I pay debt with savings? Mortgage rate the same or higher than you can earn in savings? If so, check our Mortgage Overpayment Calc to see whether it's worth you overpaying (though do always keep a savings emergency fund of a few months' worth of bills). Most can overpay 10% a year penalty-free, but do check. Full help in our Should I overpay my mortgage? guide. Putting away money for 5+ years? Consider INVESTING. On the balance of probability, investing in a wide spread of assets will likely substantially outperform saving. We Brits often make the mistake of putting all our eggs in the safety basket, rather than invest some for greater growth. For help on where to start, listen to my 'Beginner's guide to investing' podcast from a few months ago and read our Investment ISA guide. Two SIMPLE routes to good interest With savings, it's important to ask yourself: 'Do I want an easy life with good rates, or am I prepared to put in more work to maximise the interest on every penny?' Be honest with yourself. Don't set out to become a SuperSaver if you won't keep it up - as then it's better to play safe and first focus on these two simple, less-effort routes... 1. New. Top bog-standard EASY-ACCESS savings pay 4.75% (variable) Easy-access is the simplest form of savings, and right now the highest-paying form of standard savings, so... ... if you do nowt else, put all cash you don't imminently need in a top easy-access account. That's far better than leaving it lingering at a low rate in a poor standard savings account, or worse, a zero interest current account. - Pros: You can put money in and take it out when you want, giving total flexibility. Plus, when you need to switch, it's easy, just withdraw from your existing account and put it in the new one.  - Cons: Rates are variable, so they move, often with Bank of England base rates, but many do also often drop them after a while, hoping you won't react. So monitor the rate (at least every few months) and be prepared to ditch & switch if needed. Below are the current best buys. As rates can change, updates go in our top easy-access savings & top cash ISAs guides. Which is right for you depends, so read down till you find one that suits... Top 4.75% easy-access savings, but it's a bit of faff. App-based Zopa's 4.75%* (min £1, max £250k) includes a 1yr 1.5% fixed bonus. To get it, you must open its free Biscuit current account (there's no hard credit-check and you needn't switch bank account to do it). You'll then need to have £500+/mth going into the current account to keep the bonus rate, but if you don't want to use that account, you can get round the rule by just moving the money from another bank and then back again (or into the saver) straightaway. ALL SAVINGS ACCOUNTS & CASH ISAs LISTED here, including Zopa, have the full UK £85,000 savings safety protection & all interest rates are AER (annual equivalent rate). Two big-name 4.5% easy-access accounts with less faff. Ulster Bank (part of NatWest) 4.5%* (min £5,000, max £3m) includes a 1yr 2.75% fixed bonus - effectively a year's minimum rate guarantee, but after a year the rate will drop, so as long as you're ready to ditch & switch then, it's a simple deal. And in a way, as you know when it'll drop, unlike others which could at any point, at least there's some certainty. Chase (part of JPMorgan) 4.5%* (min £1, max £3m) includes a 1yr 2.25% bonus but only for customers new to Chase Bank - if that's you, it's a strong deal. And while, like Zopa, you also have to get it via its app-only current account (it doesn't do a hard credit-check), crucially here there's no minimum monthly pay-in, so it's easier. Top notice account 4.54%, but no instant withdrawals. This is a notice NOT easy-access account, but the rate is strong and otherwise it's simple, so I wanted to include it. OakNorth Bank's 4.54% variable* (min £1, max £500k) requires 95 days' notice to withdraw cash, so as long as you will know in advance when you'll need it (eg, buying a house) it's a useful option. Top tax-free 4.53% easy-access cash ISA. A cash ISA is just a savings account you can put up to £20,000 per tax year in, where the interest is NEVER taxed. Right now, the top payers are close to the top normal savings, and if you're likely to pay tax on savings (see below, for who that is) and haven't yet used your £20,000 ISA allowance for this tax year, they are winners. Trading 212's 4.53%* (min £1) allows unlimited withdrawals. The rate includes a 1yr 0.68% bonus for new Trading 212 customers. There's also MoneyBox 4.52% (min £500) which includes a 1yr 0.82% bonus, but you can only withdraw penalty-free from it three times a year. More options in Top cash ISAs. Get a FREE £100 Amazon and 6% interest on up to £4,000. This is more complex, but for savvy savers it's worth a note. Go via this link (it's not available direct) and you can currently get a £100 Amazon voucher for getting the Santander Edge current account* even without switching to it, so you needn't move bank. This pays an unbeatable 6% interest on the first £4,000 saved there. While the account costs £3/mth, the extra interest on the £4,000 easily covers that, and you also get 1% cashback (max £10/mth) on most bills paid from it via Direct Debit. More on the current account in our Santander Edge review. PS: Just want the £100 voucher but not the savings? Go for the Everyday* account which has no monthly fee or min pay-in. And finally... the top totally straight simple savings rate. The top no bonus, open to all, no withdrawal limits savings account is Hodge Bank 4.21% (min £1, max £250k). 2. Top FIXED-RATE savings pay 4.55% and here the rate is guaranteed not to drop. If you want the certainty of a guaranteed rate that won't change, without needing to monitor it - this is for you. Yet you have to lock the money away to do that (except in ISAs), so most people are best to have some easy-access savings and some fixed, to get the best of both worlds. With fixes... - Pros: Certainty. Base rate drops won't affect you. So while easy-access rates are currently higher, if the UK base rate drops as predicted, fix now and the rate you're locked in to may look very good. - Cons: The money is usually locked away without access, so only put money in you definitely don't need to touch within that time. Plus, if rates rise elsewhere (not seen as imminently likely), you'd be stuck with this till the fix ends. Top open-to-all fixed savings (AERs) Normal savings Savings are locked away without access during the fix. Cash ISAs You can withdraw by closing it early, but you will lose 60 to 365 days' interest. 1-year fixes Habib Bank 4.44% (min £5,000) Bigger name  MBNA (part of Lloyds) 4.36% (min £1,000) Vida 4.28% (min £100) Investec 4.27% (min £1,000) Bigger name NatWest 4.2% (min £1,000) 2-year fixes JN Bank 4.42% (min £100) DF Capital 4.41% (min £1,000) Bigger name Tesco Bank 4.01% (min £2,000) UBL 4.16% (min £2,000) Vida 4.12% (min £100)  Bigger name  NatWest 4% (min £1,000) 3-year fixes JN Bank 4.45% (min £100) Oxbury Bank 4.44% (min £1,000) Bigger name Skipton BS 4.02% (min £500) UBL 4.12% (min £2,000) Secure Trust 4.11% (min £1,000) Bigger name  Skipton 3.9% (min £500) 5-year fixes Afin Bank 4.55%* (min £1,000) JN Bank 4.5% (min £100) Bigger name Skipton BS 4.06% (min £500) UBL UK 4.22% (min £2,000) Secure Trust 4.21% (min £1,000) Bigger name  Skipton BS 4.01% (min £500) How long should you fix for? Provided you're comfortable locking the money away, the more you value certainty, the longer you should fix. It's worth noting five-year fixes are the top payers, though there are no guarantees that with hindsight fixing long will be the best option. Also, it's worth remembering while fixed rates are... well... fixed, if UK interest rates look like they'll fall further than currently thought, the rate you'll be able to fix at in future will drop. So there is a time element to the decision, and with the sentiment having strengthened on future UK base rate cuts, that may see fixed rates shaving down relatively soon. Bigger saver? Get up to £150 cashback... If you've a lot of savings accounts, the admin of doing many switches can mean you don't bother - and lose interest because of it. A range of savings platforms like Raisin's*, Flagstone's and Hargreaves Lansdown's are trying to make that easier. These allow you access to many different banks' savings products, so once you put your money in them, you can open & switch accounts with no admin, just a click. Importantly, your money is still held by the underlying bank, so has the bank's £85,000 savings protection. Rates tend to be slightly less than the very best buys we list, though sometimes they do have exclusives that beat them... Open Raisin with £10,000+ and get £40 to £150 if you fix. Newbies via this Raisin* link using the code VAULTBYRAISIN, putting in £10,000+ in a single transaction by 30 Nov, then fixing for at least a year, will get cashback of at least £40. Factor that in to the interest, and it usually means its top payers (eg, 1yr fix 4.35%) beat the market's.  Three ways to boost your interest The basic savings building blocks are the easy-access and fixed accounts above. Yet there are some savings products paying more, that 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. So let's run through this in order of maximum returns... 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 become no longer eligible for UC. With Help to Save, you can put up to £50/mth in 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. I get huge numbers of successes all raving about this. 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 that anyone aged 18 to 39 can open (once it's 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. So, put the max £4,000 in and you get £1,000 a year added. This can then be used as a deposit on your first residential mortgage, as long as the property costs under £450,000. It's an individual product, so two first-time buyers buying together can have one each, while a first-timer can still use it even if buying with someone who's owned before. A warning. There are only three ways to keep the bonus and take money out penalty-free: i) when getting a mortgage on a first home under £450,000 done via your conveyancing solicitor OR ii) once you're aged 60+ OR iii) if you die or have less than 12mths to live. If not, withdraw and you effectively get back 6.25% LESS than you put in (see how LISA penalties work). So LISAs are only good for first-timers who know they'll buy a home under £450,000. If that's you, see our list of Top Lifetime ISA payers. 3. Regular savings accounts. Earn 7% on smaller amounts (plus a possible free £175) As the name suggests, the top regular savings accounts give high interest on money put aside each month. You can have multiple regular savers in different places, so you can save a combined £1,000+/mth. Some of 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. If you've got lump-sum savings and want these rates, just arrange to move the max amount from those savings into these each month.  Top-paying regular savers (min 1 yr) Bank account linked: Zopa Biscuit 7.1% variable on up to £300/mth (max £137 interest) Bank account linked: First Direct* (FREE £175 for current acc switchers) 7% fixed for 1yr on £25/mth to £300/mth (max £135 interest) Open-to-all: Progressive BS 7% variable for 1yr on up to £300/mth (max £135 interest) Bank account linked: Co-op 7% variable for 1yr on up to £250/mth (max £113 interest) Open-to-all: Scottish BS 6.5% variable for 1yr on up to £250/mth (max £105 interest) Bank account linked: Nationwide (FREE £175 for current acc switchers)  6.5% variable for 1yr on up to £200/mth (max £84 interest) Bank account linked: NatWest/RBS (FREE £175 for current acc switchers) 5.5% variable, but open ended on up to £150/mth (max £53 year 1), but here the account doesn't have an end date, so can keep growing after. - More open-to-all 6%+ payers: Monmouthshire BS and Principality BS - More 5%+ paying bank account linked: Bank of Scotland, Halifax, HSBC, Lloyds, Santander, TSB, Skipton BS Why regular payers' interest often feels less than it is. In simple terms, it's because you drip feed money in there 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. Let's talk about tax, baby...  Three ways to minimise it (you see) There's a lot of confusion about tax on savings - so it's worth starting with my new beginners' guide to tax-free savings allowances video easy explainer on my YouTube page. Then read on... 1. There are more tax-free savings allowances than most people know Savings aren't taxed - it's the interest on them that is. Yet even then, many needn't pay it, as there are substantial tax-free allowances: 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: If you've low 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 (the link explains how). Personal Savings Allowance: Up to £1,000 tax-free interest if you earn under £125,000/yr. Your Personal Savings Allowance (PSA) is on top of the allowance 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. As the top easy-access rate is currently 4.75%, you'd need roughly £21,000 to generate £1,000 interest, so only basic-rate taxpayers with more would pay tax (for higher-rate taxpayers, it's over £10,500). This, combined with cash ISAs below, means all but the biggest 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. 2. You can save £20,000 tax-free each year in a cash ISA - this is on top of other allowances Cash ISAs are just savings accounts where the interest is NEVER taxed. Plus the interest doesn't count towards your Starting Savings Rate or Personal Savings Allowance, so it's an extra on top of those. See my 'Understanding ISAs is a piece of cake' video on my YouTube channel as a primer. It's 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. Imagine £20,000 that would otherwise be taxed, over a year, on the top easy-access accounts... Effective interest on £20,000 Top Cash ISA Top Normal Savings No tax 4.53% (£910 interest) 4.75% (£950 interest) After basic 20% tax 4.53% (£910 interest) 3.80% (£760 interest) After higher 40% tax 4.53% (£910 interest) 2.85% (£570 interest) After top 45% tax 4.53% (£910 interest) 2.61% (£520 interest)  And, crucially, once you've put money in a cash ISA, it stays tax-free year after year. So you could have put £20,000 in last year, £20,000 in this tax year, and (unless the limit changes in the Budget, which may happen) £20,000 in the next tax year etc. It can end up being a huge sum. All the best buys are in the easy-access and top fixes sections above. Don't let your money fester in poor cash ISA rates Too many think they put their money in a cash ISA and it's stuck there. It's not - 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. - Got an old fixed-rate cash ISA? See whether it's worth paying the penalty to move it via our 'Should I ditch my fixed ISA?' calc. - Most of the top fixed & top easy-access cash ISAs allow transfers, though you don't usually get any newbie bonus. 3. You can put £50,000 tax-free in Premium Bonds - the prize fund rate is now 3.6% I'm not the biggest fan of Premium Bonds for most people. The vast majority of those with typical luck will do better just putting money in top savings. Premium Bonds' tax-free nature, though, 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. PS: A few people have asked me about using govt gilts as a tax beneficial savings alternative. We're working on a new guide & tool for that.

 

 

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Ends Thu. Seriously fast 500Mb broadband £25/mth or less  Many pay more than double for a fraction of the speed Seven million people are out of contract on broadband, free to switch, but being ripped off by paying many £100s a year more than needed for paltry speeds. Check what you pay, you may be surprised! As always, the key to broadband is to pounce on short-lived promotional deals via comparison sites (not direct), and this week a raft of them have launched, most of which only last a few days. Our Broadband Comparison tool collates these new-customer offers from 32 providers, including a growing cohort of low-cost local firms. Here are the headline deals. Today's cheapest broadband deals include... All via our Broadband Comparison as which you can get is postcode-specific Cheapest superfast 500Mb broadband deals Ends 3 Nov. Community Fibre 500Mb broadband-only '£17/mth' (2yr contract) Service rating (1): 7.5/10 ('Good') Local Available in many London boroughs, parts of Surrey & Sussex. This deal is currently £17.50/mth (rises by £2/mth in April 2026 & 2027), so costs £472 over the 2yr contract. You'll be emailed a choice of a £55 voucher for Amazon, Tesco, Selfridges etc within 4mths of your first bill from Broadband Genie (check your junk folder if not received). Factor all that in and it's equivalent to £17.38/mth.  Ends Thu 9am. Vodafone 500Mb broadband & line '£25/mth' (2yr contract) Available to 70% of homes Service rating (1): 5.5/10 ('OK') National Cheapest national 500Mb+ full fibre. This deal is £27/mth (rises by £3/mth in April 2026 & 2027), so you'll pay £726 over the 2yr contract. But you'll be emailed a choice of a £130 voucher for Amazon, Tesco, Sainsbury's or M&S within 4mths of your first bill (check your junk folder if not received). Factor all that in and it's equivalent to £24.84/mth. Ends Thu 11.59pm. Sky 500Mb broadband & line '£25/mth' (2yr contract) Available to 70% of homes Service rating (1): 5/10 ('OK') National Cheap national 500Mb+ full fibre. You pay £30/mth, plus you'll be emailed a choice of a £120 prepaid Mastercard or an M&S, Tesco etc voucher within 4mths (check your junk folder if not received). Factor that in and on current pricing, it's equivalent to £25/mth over the 2yr contract. Actual price likely to be a tad higher: Sky doesn't state mid-contract price rises upfront but does normally raise prices by £1 to £2 each April (it must then let you leave penalty-free if you choose), so, purely guessing, over the contract it'll probably average £27/mth. Cheapest 150Mb broadband - not as quick, but many don't need such speed Ends 3 Nov. Hyperoptic 158Mb broadband-only '£17/mth' (2yr contract) Service rating (1): 7.7/10 ('Good') Local Available in most big towns and cities across Eng, Scot & Wal. This deal is £14/mth (rises by £3/mth in April 2026 & 2027), so you'll pay £414 over the 2yr contract, which is an average of £17.25/mth. Ends Thu 9am. Vodafone 150Mb broadband & line '£20/mth' (2yr contract) Available to 70% of homes Service rating (1): 5.5/10 ('OK') National Cheapest national 150Mb+ full fibre deal we've seen. This deal is £23/mth (rises by £3/mth in April 2026 & 2027), so you'll pay £630 over the 2yr contract. But you'll be emailed a choice of a £155 voucher for Amazon, Tesco, Selfridges etc within 4mths of your first bill (check your junk folder if not received). Factor all that in and it's equivalent to £19.80/mth. Long-term cheap 'social tariffs' for some On Universal Credit or similar benefits? Try a social tariff. Many providers offer special discounted social broadband tariffs, which give long-term cheap prices of usually £13/mth to £20/mth for 30Mb+. Add your postcode via the link above and, within your search results, you'll see the social tariffs local to you. Our 'equivalent cost' adds all costs, deducts promo credits & averages over the contract so you can compare easily. (1) Service results above are from our last poll done in April 2025. We are currently doing a new poll - do give your service feedback & see latest results. You no longer need to contact your current provider to switch. Until recently, switch broadband and with some providers you had to contact both your old and new firm (sometimes leaving you paying both during the overlap). Now, regulator Ofcom has rolled out a 'One Touch Switch' service, so the new firm should seamlessly sort it for you. Don't want to switch? Haggle. In our December poll, the vast majority of those who'd haggled with the big broadband firms were successful. Use the deals above as a benchmark. Read full broadband haggling tips. Slow broadband? Before switching, test your speed - is it the Wi-Fi or the connection? Do a speed check - first via Wi-Fi, then by plugging your device into the router (if you can). If Wi-Fi's a lot slower, try our speed-boosters. At least 50% of customers must get the advertised speeds at peak times. Plus all bigger providers must also indicate your estimated minimum speed pre-application. Switching usually only means about 2hrs' downtime. You're told the switch time, and most don't need an engineer, even if you're getting fibre to the premises, though someone may need to look at the externals of your home (you needn't be there). There are exceptions, eg, if moving to or from Virgin (you're told before applying). Members of cashback sites can sometimes undercut deals. In some cases, the cashback can mean these sites undercut promos elsewhere, though sometimes the deal differs - so check carefully. More in Top cashback sites.

 

News. O2 mobile contract customer bills to rise 40% more than it told you when you joined! It 'makes a mockery' of Ofcom's consumer protections. Yet you have rights. See full help and Martin's view in You can ditch O2 for its price rise - best deals to move to. New. Top 0% balance transfer card - shift debt to 35mths 0% for a lower fee. A balance transfer's where you get a new card that pays off old cards for you, so you owe it instead, but interest-free for a set period. The new HSBC 35mth 0% (3.19% fee) is the joint-longest card, but with a lower one-off balance transfer fee. The link goes via our eligibility calc so you can see acceptance chances for this & other cards. Golden rules: Repay at least the monthly min, don't spend/withdraw cash on the card & clear the card before the 0% ends, or it jumps to 24.9% rep APR interest. Full help in Top balance transfers. What Black Friday deals can you expect this year? Amazon, Apple, John Lewis, Boots & more. Even though it's a month away, some deals are expected to launch soon. See our regularly-updated Black Friday predictions page. Ends 5pm Thu. FREE £235 bank switch - biggest available for most. Newbies switching to the TSB Spend & Save* current account via this link get: a) A FREE £150 cash. b) £60 for spending 20+ times per month on the debit card (if that's a lot, just split your supermarket shopping up to qualify) c) And until Thu, a free £25 Amazon voucher. It's one of 7 current accounts paying you to switch in time for Christmas, but currently the highest payer for most (high earners can get more). Full help & eligibility info in our get the cash before Christmas note from last week. 2.7 million more homes qualify for the £150 Warm Home Discount this year. Are you one? More than 6m households now qualify for this year's £150 discount off your electricity bill, after the Govt broadened the criteria. The discount's automatic in Eng & Wales, though most in Scotland MUST apply and it's first come, first served (it's not available at all in N Ireland). Letters are starting to be sent out now, so keep your eyes open. Full help, including how to avoid what sadly will be inevitable scams, in Warm Home Discount news. New. Cheapest long energy fix, lock in for 18mths at 9% under the Price Cap. The new E.on Next 18mth 'Next Fixed 18m v19' tariff is a winner if you want longer-term price certainty (or don't want to have to switch as frequently). It includes boosted £30 MSE cashback (£15 for elec-only). As always, your price depends on your location & usage, so for full info and to see how it stacks up against others for you, use our Cheap Energy Club comparison. £11 for one-litre Baileys. Cheapest price so far this year, normally c. £22. See Cheap Baileys (Eng & Wales only). New. How to find cheap games for... PS5 | PC | Switch| Xbox. We've just published first iterations of not one but four new MoneySaving gaming guides to help you bag bargains whatever your platform. See our new cheap PS5 games | cheap PC games | cheap Switch games | cheap Xbox games guides and please send us your feedback. £350 Ninja Woodfire outdoor oven £189 via code. Pizza oven, smoker, roaster etc. MSE Blagged. We've not covered an outdoor oven deal before, but as this Ninja one is cheaper than we've ever seen it, we thought we'd dip our toe in the water to see if enough people have one on their shopping lists (just don't buy it on impulse). Ninja code

 

 

BLAGGED FOR MSE - £350 Ninja outdoor oven for £189 4,800 available - £59 Grüum home fragrance set for £18 8,000 available	DID YOU MISS? - Ends Fri. Free pint of Heineken at 1,000+ pubs in England - Student maintenance loans and tuition fees set to rise - Longest 0% spending card gives 25mths interest-free - Menopause help: 'Free' HRT, travel insurance check & more - Ends 10am. Extra 10% off clearance groceries, eg, 23p beans

 

 

25% off railcards & four more ways to slash train fares This is the perfect time to start booking trains for Christmas & New Year Let the train take the strain... if only! Sadly, the rail ticketing system's so convoluted, you need to throw logic out the window to get the cheapest tickets. Our Cheap train tickets guide will take you through what's needed, but here are the basic need-to-knows to keep costs down. 25% off all major railcards (and some can get 'em for just a tenner). Railcards get you 1/3 off most fares, which means in some cases, even if you just do one long trip a year, it can be a saving. We've blagged 25% off digital railcards for TrainPal or Trip.com newbies (10% off for existing customers) which brings a one-year card down from £35 to £26.25. Or, if you'll need it, go for a three-year card, down from £80 to £60. Cards included are: 16-17 Saver | 16-25 | 26-30 | Senior (over-60s) | Two Together (two named people travelling together) | Family & Friends, for adult(s) travelling with child(ren) | Network (London and south-east England). Plus, if you've a pal who has a season ticket in the south of England, East Anglia or the West Midlands, you can bag a £10 railcard. More offers in Railcard deals. Book Christmas trains NOW to bag the cheap fares. Cheap advance fares always disappear faster than the sherry and mince pies left out for Father Christmas, so if you know you'll use the train, start looking now. Rail firms usually confirm timetables and release cheap advance tickets around 12 weeks ahead, but those for Christmas and New Year often go on sale a bit later, so this is usually the right time to start looking for the lowest-priced fares, eg, we found 24 Dec to 1 Jan London to Leeds return tickets for £55 vs £147 on the day. We've a firm-by-firm list of advance Christmas ticket availability, plus a wily way to be first in line. Single all the way - buying two one-way tickets can be cheaper than a return fare. While returns should be better value, weirdly, that's not always the case. This applies all year round, but is especially worth checking over the festive season when the cheapest returns tend to get snapped up more quickly. See singles vs returns. Split your ticket, slash the cost. Martin was one of the earliest to popularise this way back in the early noughties, and later on we even built a tool to help. These days, there are split ticket tools aplenty, so we let them do it. Split ticketing is where you catch the same train at the same time, but by buying multiple tickets to cover the journey, you can save large. For example, we found a Birmingham to Edinburgh ticket for £114. That train stops at Wigan, Preston and Penrith. Yet if instead of booking one ticket you book four, from Birmingham to Wigan, Wigan to Preston, Preston to Penrith, and Penrith to Edinburgh, you can travel on the SAME TRAIN but at a total cost of just £62. Bonkers eh! See how to do it & the best tools to use in split ticket tips. Booking app competition means short-term promos may be possible. More competition among train booking sites has led to more deals to keep you keen, so look out for offers you can take advantage of, eg, Amex often offers 5% to 10% cashback on Avanti and Transport for Wales | LNER offers £5 credit to newbies & 2% credit back thereafter | Uber One members get 10% credit back every time they buy train tickets. But always make finding the cheapest ticket your priority. See is there a rail loyalty scheme to save you cash?

 

'We got a £700 civil partnership tax refund [married couples can too] thanks to Martin's podcast.' Success of the week. If you're in a civil partnership or married, and one of you is a basic 20% taxpayer & the other doesn't pay Income Tax, the Marriage Tax Allowance could be worth many £100s to you, as it was for Debbie who emailed last week: "Dear Martin, I love listening to your podcast and especially loved the 'Ask Martin ANYTHING' episode in July that brought the Marriage/Civil Partnership Tax Allowance to my attention. In recent years, we've had to be more careful with our finances after my partner unfortunately suffered a stroke. I was therefore delighted when I contacted HMRC and we got nearly £700 back - plus a bit less tax going forward. Thanks." If we've helped you save or reclaim (on anything), please tell us about it. Ovo Energy to DOUBLE home electric vehicle charging costs for some - should you ditch & switch? Its 'Charge Anytime' add-on was among the cheapest ways to charge an electric vehicle, but Charge Anytime changes next week. £59 Grüum home fragrance set £18 delivered. MSE Blagged. Incl six candles, diffuser and room spray. Grüum Craft-ily make Halloween spook-tacular... for free. Avoid Halloween spending horror shows by thriftily using stuff you already have at home to make your own totally spend-free costumes, decorations & more. Aged 66+ with income under £245/wk, or £365/wk if in a couple? If so, it's worth checking in case you're one of 760,000 people missing out on Pension Credit. It's worth a typical £2,100/yr and is a gateway to other benefits such as Council Tax discounts. We wanted to remind you as it's 'Pension Credit Week of Action'. Full help in Martin's Are you missing out on Pension Credit blog. Spotify hikes prices by up to £24/yr. Here's how you can cut costs - see Spotify price hikes.

 

 

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS 0% balance transfers Longest 0%: HSBC (check eligibility) 35mths 0%, 3.19% fee (min £5), 24.9% rep APR interest No-fee 0%: Barclaycard (check eligibility) up to 14mths 0%, 24.9% rep APR interest Best bank accounts Free £150 + £25 Amazon + £60 cashback: TSB Spend & Save Free £200 + perks: Barclays Bank Account Broadband top picks Fast fibre (100Mb+): Vodafone '£19.80/mth' Superfast fibre (500Mb+): Vodafone '£24.84/mth' On Universal Credit or similar? Check all discounted social tariffs Car insurance Car: Use our Compare+ Car Insurance tool Home: Try our Compare+ Home Insurance tool Cheap loans £5,000 to £7,499: M&S (check eligibility), 6.9% rep APR interest £7,500 to £15,000: M&S (check eligibility), 5.8% rep APR interest Top savings accounts Top easy-access savings: Zopa 4.75%, min £1 Top easy-access ISA: Trading 212 4.53%, min £1 Top one-year fix: LHV Bank 4.46%, min £1,000 Top energy deals Use our whole-of-market Cheap Energy Club Cheap Sims Up to 3GB data: Lebara, '£3.20/mth' for 3GB 4GB to 9GB data: Lebara, '£3.45/mth' for 5GB 10GB to 30GB data: Lebara, '£3.62/mth' for 10GB 31GB+ data: iD Mobile, '£3.84/mth' for 40GB

 

 

MSE NEWS - Top story: Don't cut Cash ISA limit, MPs and Martin urge Government - Last chance to bag Tesco Christmas delivery early access - plus full supermarket round-up - Real living wage to rise to at least £13.45 an hour - State Pension to rise 4.8% next year as final 'triple lock' figure published

 

 

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA We're funding our child's wedding - do we have any say in how the money's spent? My ex-partner and I have offered to fund most of our child's wedding. While we're only too happy to do so, we're a little concerned about how the money's being spent, with a significant amount going towards luxuries like a tattoo station and mixologist, rather than towards essentials like the food and photography. We'd also like to invite some of our friends that our child doesn't know that well. Do we have any right to an opinion about how our money is being spent, or any say regarding who is invited? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Do we have any say on our child's wedding? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma (MMD) | View past MMDs

 

 

MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (TUE 28 OCT ONWARDS) Thu 30 Oct - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, midday Tue 4 Nov - This Morning, phone-in, ITV1, 10.20am Tue 4 Nov - The Martin Lewis Money Show Live, ITV1, 8pm

 

 

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