Free £255 bank switch, free Tastecard, Save £10,000s overpaying mortgage?, 13 motoring cost-cutters, top 0% debt shift + £25 ends, 50GB Sim £4/mth

Plus... Plan 2 student loan warning, 5 must-do mobile security tips, freebies, Credit FILE check

                                                           

27 January 2026 | View in browser

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THE TOP TIPS IN THIS EMAIL 13 speedy motoring cost-cutters, eg: - Reclaim £100s for pothole damage - Slash car insurance costs - Fill up for less | Get fuel cashback - Full breakdown cover £57/yr - Avoid common MOT fails Save £10,000s overpaying mortgage? 'Bogus info was ruining my Credit FILE' New. FREE £255 for switching bank Free Tastecard - no payment info needed Martin: Beware! On Plan 2 student loan? FREEBIES: £3.50 protein bowl & more Ends Thu. Top 0% debt shift + £25 Martin: 5 must-do mobile security tips Ends Thu. 50GB Sim less than £4/mth Spend McDonald's rewards points now... Grüum beauty for £1 incl delivery Martin pod: Life lessons for all ages Pod video: Warning if booking hol abroad Question pod: Help to Buy ISA vs LISA? On district or communal heating? BT & EE hike prices by £48/yr for some Ends Thu. 300Mb fibre + Sky TV £34/mth 850,000+ OVERPAY for prescriptions £3 pint of Guinness at 800+ pubs Ground rents to be capped at £250/yr No Big Energy Switch this week This week's best buys: 4.4% cash ISA, 5.7% loan & more Money Moral Dilemma: Should unwell friend pay for restaurant cancellation? BEST BUYS & TOOLS MSE Cheap Mobile Finder 0% balance transfers Best bank accounts Top savings accounts Credit cards for bad credit Credit Card Eligibility Calculator Loans Eligibility Calculator Mortgage comparison Cheap Energy Club

13 speedy motoring cost-cutters Including: Reclaim £100s for pothole damage | Fuel up for less | Save £100s on car insurance | Avoid common MOT fails | Full breakdown cover £57/yr | Car finance... when? For the second year running, both fuel prices and insurance costs are DOWN. Yet with both, there's a risk drivers may not see the savings unless they actively seek them out. So we've put together our motorists' tips, to... drive down... the cost of these and far more. 1. Car one of 600,000+ damaged by a pothole last year? Check if you can claim compensation. The AA attended 613,638 pothole incidents last year and estimates that fixing pothole damage cost UK drivers a stonking £645 million. Plus, if you're in England, you can now check the condition of roads in your area via new Govt ratings showing how councils are tackling potholes. If your car's been pranged by a pothole, check our step-by-step Can you get pothole compensation guide. As Andy emailed in 2025: "I successfully claimed £500 from a Cheshire council for pothole damage using advice from your site. The matter was resolved after 12 months of emails & letters. Thankfully, after not giving up, the council admitted liability & fault. I finally claimed the full £500 repair bill for the paint / bodywork repair to my front bumper which was damaged when my vehicle grounded after hitting a large deep pothole at a road junction." 2. Are you one of likely millions whose driving licence expires this year - or has already expired? Check NOW. Don't panic, but do sort it. Just check the 4b section on your driving licence.  If your licence is out of date just go and get it renewed - if you ignore it and continue to drive you ultimately risk a fine of up to £1,000, see how to quickly check your photocard's expiry date & how to renew. 3. Car insurance DOWN 11% in the last year, so if your renewal stays the same, don't accept it... put yourself in the driver's seat and save £100s The cost of car insurance is now at its cheapest for two years, down nearly 26% since 2024 and down 11% since last year (source: pricing consultancy Pearson Ham). So, even if your renewal price is cheaper, don't be fooled - your insurer is likely still keeping some of the savings for itself. The golden rule: always check how your renewal price compares against the market - and the easy route to do this is via our Compare+ Car Insurance tool. As Abi emailed on Sunday: "Just wanted to let you know that I saved £199 on my car insurance renewal today by using your price comparison tool. My current insurer quoted £586 to insure my 5-year-old Toyota hybrid, up a little on last year. I got a like-for-like quote for £387 in just a few minutes and only filled in my details once. I'll definitely recommend it to family and friends! Thanks for taking the hard work out of it." Here's how it works... You fill in one form. We borrowed a traditional comparison questionnaire from MoneySupermarket (so if you've used it before, your answers can be auto-filled). Then... Get MSE cost-cutting tips as you answer. Such as our Job Picker tool or best time to buy car insurance analysis. See your cheapest insurers as a benchmark. But of course, we want you to beat the comparison results, so we add... Personalised tips to try for an even bigger saving. These include whether you should look to add an additional driver or pay annually, not monthly - and some have one-click checks, so you can easily find out whether they work for you. See whether other sites can further slice costs. We give you our latest comparison site order of others to try, as MoneySupermarket may not be your cheapest. More than one car at home? Comparison sites don't check multicar cover, so check manually whether it saves you cash. Martin's rule of thumb: "If you're on a multicar policy, check separate policies to see if you can save; if you're on separate, check multicar." Again, always get the Compare+ quotes first. - Multicar (one policy for all): Probably the best known is Admiral*, but LV*, Aviva, Diamond* and Elephant* also offer these policies. Don't worry if your renewals are at different dates, their systems work with that. - Discounts on separate policies: Axa*, Direct Line, Churchill and Privilege all offer discounts for multiple cars - so it's worth checking, especially if they're cheapest for one car. This can also work combined with home insurance.  Not at renewal? It's still worth a quick check now to see whether you can save with a mid-year switch. If not, bookmark the tool for nearer the time. PS: For more, watch Martin's Car & home insurance cost cutting show tonight, Tue 7.15pm ITV. 4. Find a cheaper place to fill up. While the average price of petrol is down 6p a litre compared to Jan 2025, the CMA last month said retailers' fuel margins remain "persistently high". Fuel prices also vary significantly across the country, and even across towns and cities - use this handy fuel price tool for the cheapest fuel court near you.  For example, for a postcode in Durham today (Tue), we found prices ranging from 128p/L to 156p/L within just five miles. PS: Got a Costco near you? Many unknowingly qualify for membership (£42/yr) and petrol savings alone may pay for it. As Andrew confirmed on our Facebook: "Costco's worth it for the fuel alone. Probably saved me 4x the cost of membership this year." See Costco petrol. 5. Got an electric vehicle (EV)? Check out the top EV tariffs. There are a number of different types of EV tariff. There are deals where you fix your main rate but get a special cheaper rate just for charging your car. And then there are two-rate tariffs where you get cheap overnight rates (c. 7p-10p/kWh) for charging your car and can then shift other electricity use to that period (be careful with tumble dryers, they're a fire risk overnight). See our full special EV energy tariffs guide for a full breakdown (of tariffs, not your car). - Charge EVs for free? It's limited, but see our free EV charging info. - Considering an EV? See Electric vehicles - right for you? 6. MOT due? The nine common fails to check for first... When your motor's 3+ years old (4+ in N. Ireland), a yearly MOT is a legal requirement. Around a quarter of vehicles fail first time, usually for simple reasons. You can swerve these by using our key checks on suspension, brakes, windscreen wipers, lights and more. Don't worry, checking doesn't require any mechanical know-how, though while some of the fails you can sort yourself, others will need professional assistance. Either way, sorting them before the test is usually cheaper than after. See our nine pre-MOT DIY must-do's.  7. Then choose which type of MOT test centre to use (there's more to it than you might think). If no or only minor fails are likely, check our list of 'hidden' council MOT centres. These centres generally only do tests - they don't fix your car - and anecdotally some people find they get fewer fails, so there's less chance of shelling out for needless repairs. However, if your car's likely to need work, you're best off finding a reasonably priced garage that can do both testing and repairs, as you may not be able to drive away from the test centre if you have major fails. See how to choose the right MOT centre. 8. Get full service breakdown cover from £57/yr (including home start & onward travel). AutoAid's* been one of our top picks for well over a decade. It covers you and your partner in any car you or they drive. Newbies via our link pay £57/yr (£79 if the car's 16+ yrs old, and there's a £25 call-out fee if the car's 10+ yrs old). Call-out time and service feedback is decent.  Alternatively, Eversure* at £57.50/yr is similar, though won't cover cars more than 15yrs old. Equivalent cover if you buy direct from the big providers can be £100+. See Cheap breakdown cover for more options. Also see how to get RAC or AA cover from £69/yr for equivalent cover, plus far more help, in Cheap breakdown cover. 9. Bought a car on PCP or HP finance between 2007 and 2024? Use our free tool to see if you may be able to reclaim. Check if you're likely affected and are due a share of around £8bn compensation. Get your complaint in now (if you haven't already) so that when the redress scheme launches this year, you'll likely be part of the 'opt-out' group - meaning it'll be done automatically and faster.  As for when the redress scheme will launch, over to Martin: 'I'm being asked this a lot. From the feelers I have out, I think it will most likely be March when we get to hear the outcome of the FCA consultation and it announces (if it's happening, which I'd say is 90% likely) the redress scheme. Though it will take many months longer for payouts to start.' 10. Get PAID to pay for your fuel - by getting cashback for using the right plastic. For those who drive a lot, fuel is a big expenditure - a £50/wk top-up is £2,600/yr. So you may as well get a little return via a free cashback card. cashback. - Top Pick: For most, the Lloyds' Ultra credit card is the simple winner as it pays 1% cashback, uncapped, on all spending, including fuel. So use it for all your normal everyday spending and you're effectively paid each time you spend. It also has near-perfect exchange rates abroad and you get cashback on spending there too, meaning you're effectively getting a better-than-perfect rate. Yet only do this if you'll pay the card off IN FULL each month so there's no interest, and don't withdraw cash on it or bust the credit limit. Full help in our Lloyds Ultra review. As Ed emailed in October: "I took out the Lloyds Ultra Credit card after it was flagged in your weekly email. Whilst the email said 1% cashback for a year, I had expected that things like insurance wouldn't qualify for cashback. Imagine my great surprise when I put through my car insurance last week, to discover I'd earned 1% cashback on it! Pretty cool, thanks." Easy to get: You need to pass a credit check to get Lloyds Ultra. Alternatively, with the free app-only Chase* bank account, you get 1% cashback up to £15/mth, usually within days, but only on petrol, diesel, (non-household) EV charging, grocery and domestic transport spending. There's no need to switch or pass a hard credit-check to get the account. It also gives newbies the top 4.5% easy-access savings. Full eligibility in our Chase review. 11. Think of your brakes as a money burner, and the accelerator as a money pump. The faster you accelerate, the more fuel you use. The more you brake, the more you burn off the acceleration you paid to create. Being aware of your road position, speeding up and slowing down more gently, and shifting up gears sooner can all have a big impact on fuel efficiency. See eight ways to drive more efficiently. 12. Too much junk in your trunk? Lighten the load. There are some easy ways to cut your car's fuel consumption, including removing roof racks, keeping tyres at the right pressure and clearing any clutter from your trunk (or elsewhere). It can have a bigger impact than you might think, especially when combined with driving more efficiently. See make your vehicle more fuel efficient. 13. Could you scrap your car? (Not literally.) It's not for everyone, but if you don't drive too often and live in or near a city or larger town, you could switch to catching the occasional taxi or using a car club and cut out the many costs of owning a car entirely. If you're looking to reduce pollution as well as spend less, check out our MoneySaving tips for cyclists and cheap train ticket guides. And if walking is your way, see how Martin averaged 26,000 steps a day in 2025 (and if you can get 'paid' to walk). This is just the start line - race over to 50+ Motoring MoneySavers for our complete checklist.

 

 

DON'T believe the fake 'Martin Lewis' or 'MSE' ads Lots of scam ads litter social media and even newspaper websites - some of these lie that we or Martin promote Bitcoin, binary trading etc. See Fake ads warning.

 

 

 

Martin: 'Should you overpay your mortgage with any savings or spare cash? My eight need-to-knows to decide (some can gain £10,000s)' UK base rates were cut again last month to 3.75%. Market expectations are for further cuts to below 3.5%, with some analysts even saying 3% by the end of 2026. On the back of that, many savings rates are edging down. Yet while the cost of new fixed-rate mortgages are now down to 3.5%, those already locked into two, three or five-year mortgage fixed deals won't see their rate move until the fix ends. So, it's a good time for those lucky enough to have savings, or spare cash, to examine whether you can and should overpay your mortgage... 1. Do you have more expensive card, loan or overdraft debt? If so, they're generally worth prioritising using spare cash to clear ahead of your mortgage. See Should I overpay cards & loans? 2. If your mortgage rate's higher than the interest you can earn in savings, overpaying adds up. Here's a simplified example: £10,000 saved at top 4.5% savings earns £450 interest (£360 for those who pay basic-rate tax on it), yet use it to overpay a 6% mortgage and it saves you £600 interest. So using savings to overpay makes sense. It's a bit like saving, tax-free, at the mortgage rate. Then again, if you're still on a legacy cheap mortgage at 1% or 2%, there's no point in overpaying that for now (see point 7). Use our Mortgage Overpayment Calculator, which shows both your absolute gain from overpaying and the relative gain compared to putting money in savings. The Overpay Calculator shows on a £200,000 repayment mortgage at 5% with a 25yr term Overpayment amount Interest saved Mortgage cleared A one-off £5,000 £11,870 1yr 2mths earlier £200 every month £41,880 6yrs 2mths earlier Both one-off £5,000 & £200/mth £49,400 6yrs 11mths earlier As Deb emailed last year: "Hello! I wanted to say a huge thank you. This afternoon I redeemed my mortgage 11 years early, thanks to your site! Nearly 14 years ago, I was a single mum, buying my first property. I was pretty feckless when it came to understanding financial terms. Then I read that you advised overpaying on a mortgage, if possible, and happily and fortuitously I have been able to make lump sum pay offs over the years and now, aged 57, I feel I can relax and even contemplate retirement. Raising a glass to you and your team, Martin, tonight! Heartfelt thanks." 3. Yet compare YOUR best possible mortgage against YOUR best possible savings. If your mortgage could be better and you're free to move, then check what the best rate you're likely to get is. Use our Mortgage Best Buys comparison for a benchmark, and free Remortgage guide for step-by-step help. The same's true with savings. If your accounts pay a paltry rate, as too many do, it's easy to ditch and switch (unless they're locked away in a fix). On lump sums, you can earn up to 4.5% in top savings and 7% on regular savings up to £300/mth, so that's what you should be comparing with. 4. TWO KEY CHECKS before you act. If overpaying looks a winner, check...  Are there overpayment penalties? Many lenders let you annually overpay 10% of your mortgage balance penalty-free. Above that, there are often penalties, which could wipe out much of the gain, so do check. Always keep a cash emergency fund. The fact you've overpaid your mortgage doesn't automatically mean if circumstances change and you suddenly can't repay, the lender will say 'oh, no probs' - you'd still be in arrears. So my rule of thumb is always have enough money to cover 3 to 6 months' bills accessible in savings, and only overpay with any money above that (unless it's a specific offset mortgage). 5. Got under 40% equity in your home? Even where the maths doesn't quite add up, overpaying may pay. If you can save at a higher rate than your mortgage, use our Mortgage Overpay vs Savings Calc to see the pound-for-pound difference. If savings are substantially better, save. Yet if they're only marginally better and your mortgage borrowing is over 60% LTV (loan-to-value) - the proportion of your home's current value you're borrowing - reducing your mortgage debt may lower the rate of future remortgaging offers (ie, when you get a new deal). With 1.8m fixed-rate deals ending this year, it's a consideration for many. See the LTV thresholds that may improve mortgage rates. 6. When overpaying, ensure the overpayments reduce your TOTAL MORTGAGE BALANCE (ie, reducing the term). Overpay and some lenders just reduce your next or future monthly repayments. That may help your future cash flow, but you won't see a big reduction in what you pay overall. That comes from ensuring overpayments reduce your mortgage balance while keeping the same monthly repayment. This has the practical effect of helping you clear your mortgage sooner, resulting in an interest (and time-saving) gain. So, when you overpay, tell the lender you want it to reduce the capital owed and/or the mortgage term and keep your monthly repayment the same. To be clear, that's NOT saying ask to reduce your term - that'll often need an affordability test. The priority is that what you repay reduces your mortgage balance and you keep up the same contractual repayments, so you'll be mortgage-free quicker (see my now very old Decrease term or overpay? blog for the general concept). If your lender makes this difficult by recalculating your monthly repayments, then just ensure you keep paying what you were or more (so effectively overpaying each time) and it'll have the same impact. 7. Still on a very cheap mortgage rate? Save the right way. If you're one of the few where your mortgage rate is still really cheap, say 1% or 2%, then you'll likely be better off in top savings. Yet it's worth being aware that at some point that deal will end and your new mortgage costs will likely be much higher.  So you may want to consider having savings available at that point to reduce what you'll need to borrow. To do that, you'll want money in easy-access savings. This doesn't mean you can't use fixed savings before then, just make sure they mature just before your mortgage fix ends. 8. What about overpaying the mortgage vs investing? That's a much trickier call. If we're talking about money you don't and won't need for at least five years (which is when investing comes into its own and should be the prime option), then if your mortgage rate is low and likely to stay that way, investing looks more attractive. If your mortgage rate is higher, it's less so. The balance is a personal call based on risk attitudes (a bit of both is probably the right answer), I discussed this 'ponderable' in my Question Time podcast last week.

 

New. FREE TSB £255 for switching bank - biggest mainstream switcher this year. New customers switching their current account to TSB's Spend & Save* via this specific link get £150 upfront cash, plus £50 in April, and £5/mth cashback for 6mths (for making 20+/mth debit card payments) - and now a £25 Amazon voucher too (you'll get an email to claim it within 90 days). To get the £150, you must pay in £1,000+ once, log into its mobile app, and do 5 debit card spends. Pay in £1,000+ in April for a further £50. Full help & eligibility in our TSB review or see best bank accounts for more options. Ends Thu. Free 90-day Tastecard - no payment info or subscription needed. Gets 2for1 or 25% off the total bill at independent restaurants, as well as chains like Pizza Express, Zizzi, Burger King & more. Tastecard Martin: 'Beware! On a Plan 2 student loan? The Govt is freezing the repayment threshold - should you overpay now?' (Spoiler: yes for some, no for many.) In Martin's new long-read Plan 2 student loans help blog for mainly Eng & Welsh graduates who started uni from 2012/13 to 2022/23, things he covers include: What's changed to make Plan 2 worse? | A repayment threshold freeze warning | Millions have overpaid & can reclaim £100s | If you can overpay, should you? (inc an AI calc) | How Plan 2 compares to current Plan 5 loans and more. FREEBIES: £3.50 protein bowl, £2.50 dog treats, £2.40 kids' yogurt & more. See this month's freebies and discounts in 40+ supermarket coupons. Ends Thu. Shift debt to top 'all accepted get it' 36mths 0% card + poss £25 cashback & free Apple TV. A 0% balance transfer is where you get a new card that pays off debts on existing cards for you, so you owe it instead but interest-free for a set time. That way more of your repayments clear the actual debt. Barclaycard's 36mth 0% (3.45% fee) card is the longest definite 0% card on the market, plus accepted newbies who apply by 10am Thu and transfer £2,500+ within 60 days will also get £25 cashback & 12mths Apple TV. Golden rules: Repay at least the monthly minimum & clear the card before the 0% ends, or it jumps to 24.9% rep APR interest. Full info & more options in Top balance transfers. Martin: '5 must-do's to secure your data in case your mobile's nicked!' Watch Martin's 3min mobile security briefing via his YouTube (do subscribe). Or better, watch his full Slash the cost of your mobile show from last week on ITVX. Ends Thu. 50GB monthly data Sim less than '£4/mth'. This 50GB iD Mobile Sim (uses Three's network), with unlimited mins & texts, is £2/mth for the first 3mths, then £8/mth. Plus you'll be emailed a £32.50 Amazon, Sainsburys, Argos, etc, voucher within 4mths (check your junk folder). Factor that in and over 12mths, it's equivalent to £3.80/mth. Want different data? See Cheap Mobile Finder. Tonight (Tue) at 7.15pm ITV1 or after on ITVX The Martin Lewis Money Show LIVE: Slash car & home insurance costs! Martin: I've a big warning I want to explain for anyone coming up to renewal, and I want to take you through step-by-step how to save. Including... Should you combine car & home insurance? What about young drivers? Can secure locks cut home insurance costs? And far more. Plus, of course, the usual News You Can Use. Do give it a watch.  Related MSE help: Try our Compare+ Car Insurance & Compare+ Home Insurance tools.' Spend McDonald's rewards points now, as they'll soon be worth less. More burger for your buck. Choose a Grüum hair, skin or lip care item for just £1 including delivery (normally up to £14). MSE Blagged. 20,000 available. Grüum New Martin pod. Life lessons for all ages: money, work & more | A warning for anyone who's just booked a holiday | Where are 'no Standing Charge' energy tariffs? This and more in Martin's main podcast this week. Listen via BBC Sounds | Apple | Spotify etc. Martin pod video: Crucial warning if booked/booking a holiday abroad.... Watch Martin's 2min vid via his YouTube channel (& do subscribe). Question Time pod. Help to Buy ISA vs LISA? Sell shares each year to use Cap Gains allowance? Broken broadband compensation? In Martin's Question Time podcast, you can ask whatever you like (within reason) and many do, including this week: 'what'd be your fantasy four ball!'. Listen via BBC Sounds | Apple | Spotify etc.

 

 

BLAGGED FOR MSE - Grüum hair, skin or lip care item £1 delivered 20,000 available	DID YOU MISS? - Cheapest mortgage fixes 3.5% - lock in now or wait? - Ends Sat. £55 off Asda groceries code - Martin: 'Five life lessons I wish I'd been told when I was younger' - Amazon 1-tap check for £5 off £15+ - £176 beauty £55: Elemis, Sol de Janeiro, Color Wow & more

 

 

You may know your Credit Score but have you checked your Credit FILE? That's what really counts. 'Problem sorted, thanks MSE. I'd never have fixed the bogus missed payments ruining my creditworthiness otherwise' Contrary to what many believe, in the UK you don't actually have a universal Credit Score - no one number that dictates whether lenders will lend to you. Instead, each lender scores you based on its own wish list of what makes a profitable customer (the Credit Scores you get are just a credit agency's estimate of how a typical lender may view you).  When a lender assesses you, it's aiming to predict your future behaviour based on your past. Most use three pieces of info for that: i) Your application form; ii) Any past dealings they've had with you; iii) Your Credit File/Report. And it's absolutely crucial you check your Credit File, as the email we just got from Andrew shows.  To: successes@moneysavingexpert.com From: Andrew Date: January 2026 Subject: Problem sorted thanks to MSE A few months ago, I checked my Credit Report via the [free] MSE Credit Club and was horrified to see numerous 'missed payments' for Scottish Power, who I do not have an account with. Long story short, many years ago I started getting bills from Scottish Power addressed to 'owner/occupier' at a similar address. I sent them back saying 'not known at this address', but they kept coming. I phoned and they said they would sort it out. But all it seems they did was add my name to the mystery account and when I didn't pay the bill (for a mystery meter not in my house, and totally unconnected to me), they told the credit company I had missed payments. Anyway, eight weeks to the day since I complained, I checked my Credit Report and all reference to Scottish Power has disappeared. It now reads 'excellent' instead of 'poor' - which it had been through no fault of mine. I would never have known about this if it hadn't been for MSE Credit Club. The easy way to do all this is via the free MSE Credit Club (even better do it via the MSE App on iOS or Android). This provides your unique Credit Eligibility Rating, Credit Score, Affordability Score, help to improve them and, of course, your Credit File - as well as all our help and explanations. Now, though, let's focus on Credit Files/Reports... What's on a Credit File? The report covers electoral roll information, any County Court Judgements (CCJs) about you (for debt, bankruptcies etc), and your detailed payment history with all credit products. See what credit reference agencies know about you. Check your Credit REPORT for errors at least annually - incorrect info can torpedo acceptance. Go through line-by-line looking for any error, even a simple one, such as an unused but still open credit card account at the wrong address, or a default unfairly marked as paid late.  Check at least one of the three agencies, and all three if you've an imminent big application. There are three credit reference agencies (CRAs): TransUnion, Equifax and Experian. All have files on you and they will be pretty similar but may not be identical. If you're just doing an annual financial housekeeping check-up, use one, as if you find an error, the lender with the wrong information should communicate any correction with the other CRAs (but it's often a good idea to contact the lender directly to make sure this happens). If you've an important application to do soon, like a mortgage, best to check all three. You have a legal right to get a free statutory report from them, though it isn't always that simple or quick, but there are lots of ways to get it for free anyway. Our How to check your Credit Report for free guide has full info but in brief: - TransUnion's Credit Report: Available as part of our free MSE Credit Club or TransUnion - Equifax Credit Report: Free via ClearScore* or Equifax Basic - Experian Credit Report: Free via the Experian app or its statutory credit report.  Spot an error on your Credit Report? You can dispute it. If you notice anything wrong in your Credit Report and want to challenge the information, all CRAs allow you to raise a dispute (you can do this via MSE Credit Club too) via your account or by emailing/calling. Before you do it prepare your evidence, including supporting screenshots or documents. Any information that's in the process of being disputed will be flagged as such on your Credit Report so other lenders can see, and should be resolved within 30 days. However, if the lender or company you're in dispute with refuses to update its info, and disagrees, there are two steps you can take...  - Short term: If the error on your file looks bad to lenders, you can add a 'Notice of Correction' to the item. This is a short statement giving some context to the problem, eg "it's a debt for an item I never received, I'm disputing it". This will likely slow down your applications, as lenders may do manual checks.  - Longer term fix: Complain to the firm asking for it to remove the error, explaining why you think its unfair. If it rejects, you can make a formal complaint to the relevant ombudsman - the Financial Ombudsman Service for complaints about financial firms, the Energy Ombudsman for complaints about energy suppliers or the Communications Ombudsman for issues with broadband, mobile bills - as they have the power to order firms to remove the info from your credit file. More help in fight credit report errors.

 

On district or communal heating? You now have stronger rights if something goes wrong. Regulations starting today (Tue) mean providers must treat all customers fairly, especially if you're vulnerable. See heat network latest. BT and EE to hike prices by up to £48/yr for out-of-contract customers. You're likely impacted if it's been 2+ years since you last switched. Full info & how to save £100s in BT/EE price hike. Ends Thu. Fast 300Mb broadband, Sky TV, Netflix & Discovery+ '£34/mth'. Sky newbies can get its 300Mb broadband, digital line & Sky Stream TV including Netflix (with ads), Discovery+ and Sky Atlantic for £35/mth (less than many are paying for slower broadband alone), plus you'll be emailed a £30 prepaid Mastercard within 4mths of signing up (do check your spam box). Factor that in and it's equivalent to £33.75/mth over the 2yr contract. The deal's accessible to 75% UK homes. Just want broadband? There's also this superfast 500Mb broadband & line-only Sky deal for '£24/mth'. New. Are you one of 850,000+ who OVERPAID for NHS prescriptions in 2024/25? If you pay for prescriptions (ie, you're in England), check NOW if you can save with a prescription 'season ticket'. £3 pint of Guinness at 800+ pubs this weekend via app. Excl N. Ire. See cheap Guinness (please be Drinkaware). Ground rents to be capped at £250/yr for leaseholders in Eng/Wal... But this and other leasehold reforms aren't expected to come in till 2028 at the earliest. More info in our leasehold update. Related: Should you extend your lease? No Big Energy Switch this week, we're afraid. We hoped to bring back our Big Energy Switch this week, but rising wholesale costs mean prices aren't good, so we're postponing until we get a deal worthy of the name. To get involved, you'll just need to either be receiving this email or be signed up to Cheap Energy Club. Don't want to wait? Check the top deals right now by doing a full market comparison.

 

 

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS 0% balance transfers Ends Thu. Longest definite 0%: Barclaycard (check eligibility) 36mths 0% + possible £25, 3.45% fee, 24.9% rep APR No-fee 0%: Barclaycard (check eligibility) up to 14mths 0%, 24.9% rep APR Best bank accounts Boosted. Free £200 + £30 cashback + £25 Amazon: TSB Free £250 + perks: Club Lloyds  Free £200 + 1% bills cashback: Santander Edge Free £175 + top service: First Direct 1st Account Top energy deals Try 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: M&S Bank (check eligibility), 5.7% rep APR Top savings accounts Top easy-access savings: Chase 4.5%, min £1 Top easy-access ISA: Trading 212 4.4%, min £1 Top one-year fix: Cynergy Bank 4.24%, min £1,000 Broadband top picks Fast fibre (100Mb+): Vodafone '£21.17/mth' Superfast fibre (500Mb+): Sky '£24/mth' On Universal Credit or similar? Check all discounted social tariffs Cheap Sims Up to 3GB data: Lebara, '£3.10/mth' for 3GB 4GB to 9GB data: Lebara, '£3.20/mth' for 5GB 10GB to 30GB data: iD Mobile, '£3.50/mth' for 15GB 31GB+ data: iD Mobile, '£3.80/mth' for 50GB

 

 

MSE NEWS - Top story: Free or cheap loans for solar panels among key measures in Government's 'Warm Homes Plan'

 

 

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA Should I ask my unwell friend to contribute to our restaurant cancellation fee? My friends and I had a restaurant reservation, but on the day one of them, who is a type 1 diabetic, was unwell. We had to cancel the table, which came with a £25 cancellation fee. I was happy to absorb this as it was out of her control, and didn't say anything to my friends. A couple of weeks later, I checked my credit card statement and there was a £100 charge from the restaurant - the cancellation fee was £25 per head, not per booking. Paying £100 myself seems very different from paying £25. Should I ask my friends, including the one who was unwell, for the money or do I let it slide? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should my unwell friend pay towards our restaurant cancellation fee? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma (MMD) | View past MMDs

 

Some Valentine's Day competitions... - Win a £200 Italian meal for two - Win a chocolate selection box - Win a £5,500 ruby and diamond pendant - Win a trio of romantic novels ...from the MSE Forum competitions board - Win £50 to spend on personalised Valentine's gifts - Win a Valentine's movie night hamper - Win a heart necklace - Win a Valentine's selection box for your dog

 

 

MARTIN'S BLOG - On a Plan 2 student loan? Beware! The govt is freezing the repayment threshold	MSE TEAM BLOG - MSE Forum highlights: motorbikes, coach holidays & eloping to Greece

 

 

MARTIN'S APPEARANCES (WED 28 JAN ONWARDS) Thu 29 Jan - Ask Martin Lewis, BBC Radio 5 Live, midday

 

 

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