Your weekly money saving deals and news from money expert Andy Webb
"The Bank of England will be meeting today and it probably means another hike to the base interest rate. I'll publish an article on the blog and video on YouTube this afternoon with all the details, so keep an eye out." Andy
My top content this week
BLOG, VIDEO & ARTICLES
Drip feed savings hack: Is it worth it?
Regular savers are great for new money you're adding to savings each month, especially with rates up to 7%. But are they worth it for existing lump sums?
I've taken a look at whether you should be drip feeding into them from an easy-access account or just going for fixed rate accounts. Find out which is best.
Why you’re paying too much for medication
There are a lot of bugs going around right now, and if that's meant you've reached for the Lemsip, Neurofen or other branded meds, it's very likely you're overpaying.
Here's how to work out whether own-brand options will do the same job and save you money too.
Premium Bond prize rate increases to 3%
From January you'll win bigger prizes from your Premium Bonds. Here's what that could mean for your savings, and how to take advantage.
Don’t make these expensive last-minute Christmas mistakes
With just 10 days to go, if you've not sorted deliveries, post, presents, travel and food for Christmas then you could be forced to pay a premium. Here are my top ways to avoid paying more than you have to.
CASH CHATS PODCAST
297 | Getting the best rate on lump sum savings, last minute Xmas and cheaper meds
In the latest episode of the pod I’m talking about:
- Drip-feeding savings into regular savers
- Fixed rates vs higher rate accounts
- Beat last-minute Christmas spending on post, deliveries, travel, food and more
- How to compare branded vs generic medicines
- A listener question about the Halifax Reward hack
- And more!
You can listen to episodes via all the normal podcasting apps or over on the blog.
If you do listen on one of these apps, please do remember to hit follow so you get each episode as soon as it's released.
YOUR QUESTIONS
Ask Andy: Live Q&A Wednesday 21 December @ 7pm
My live Q&As are the best place to ask me your questions. The last one this year will be on Wednesday 21 December at 7pm.
Make sure you follow me on YouTube or Instagram to join in. The earlier you ask your question the more likely I'll have time to answer it.
Ask a question in the Facebook group
Or, join the Facebook community to ask your questions and share your money experiences and ideas. There are 2,800 of us in there so far!
THIS WEEK'S TOP DEALS
I only share deals and special offers on the blog which I think are really good value. Click the titles or links for more information.
I'll also share a quick update on Instagram on Saturday morning.
1. Asda: £10 reward with £50 spend
If you've got the Asda Reward app, check to see if you've a bonus offer to earn an extra tenner if you spend £50 by the end of the weekend. More here.
2. ITVx: £12 off for a year
The new ITV streaming service (replacing ITV Hub and Britbox) launched last week and there's an offer to pay £3.99 a month rather than £5.99 for a year. You can cancel anytime, but compared to the also discounted yearly price, you'll save £12. More here.
3. Gift cards: Up to 20% off Apple, AirBnb, Vue, Uber & more
Head to Amazon for discounts on some gift cards, including rare money off Uber, Apple and AirBnb. More here.
4. Craft beer: £16.49 advent calendar deal stack
Though it's not much use as an advent calendar now, you can now pick up Brewdog's festive collection of 24 beers and a glass from Living Social for £35 (plus a £1.49 admin fee), rather than £60. And if you opt into a special £20 bonus from Quidco, that makes it just £16.49. More here.
5. Tidal: Two months for £2
If you're looking to save on music streaming it's a good time to try Tidal as new users can get two months for £2. More here.
6. Odeon: Tickets from £5 from Groupon
The latest Odeon Groupon offer isn't as good as previous ones, especially as you've got to add a £1 booking fee for each ticket. However, if you can combine it with a discount code it becomes much better value. More here.
SAVINGS, BANKING & CREDIT CARD BEST BUYS
Banks
Three bank switch offers end this week
You don't have much time to get switching deals from Halifax (£175 ends Monday), Co-operative Bank (£125 ends Friday) and TSB (up to £100 also ends Friday). Links below.
Top banking switch and welcome offers:
- Co-operative Bank: £125 refer-a-friend switch offer
- First Direct switch: £175 bonus
- Halifax switch: £175 bonus
- HSBC switch: Up to £250 cash bonus
- TSB switch: Up to £100 cash bonus
- Monzo welcome: Free £5 offer
- Monese welcome: Up to £30 offer
- Tide business welcome: £75 cash bonus
Top banking best buys:
- Top reward account: £5 a month from Halifax
- Top cashback on bills: Up to 1% back with Santander Edge
- Top cashback on spending: 1% back with Chase
- Top ethical bank: £60 voucher or donation via Triodos
Savings
Chip’s new savings account: Is it any good?
Chip hiked interest rates on its Instant Access account just in time to make last week's email, but not enough time to for me to analyse it further. I've now written an article about how it works - as there are some catches to be aware of.
Barclays offers 4% limited access ISA
Elsewhere, there's a new 4% paying flexible ISA from Barclays. You can only take money out three times and the rate lasts for one year. More on this and other latest best buys here.
Top savings best buys:
- Top regular saver: 7% with First Direct
- Top current account linked interest: 5.12% with Barclays
- Top easy access account: 2.9% with Chip
- Top 1-year fixed account: 4.32% with Smart Save
Credit cards
Top cashback credit card best buys:
- Top welcome bonus: American Express Preferred Rewards Gold (20,000 points = up to £167)
- 0% purchase welcome: £20 bonus and £19 cashback
- Top non-Amex cashback: Barclaycard Avios
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MORE DEALS!
Here are a few ongoing and recent offers you might have missed:
Cashback offers
- JamDoughnut: £4.50 welcome offer
- Cashback: Up to £91 for free
Shopping vouchers and other deals
- Amazon: Up to £10 off for some
- Snoop: Free £5 Amazon voucher
- Flowers: £10 off Bloom & Wild
- LNER: Free £5 train travel credit
- NUS card: Alumni card trick
- Birthday freebies: Food, drink and vouchers
Entertainment deals
- Spotify: Including 12 months for the price of 10
- NOW TV: 40% off passes
- Apple TV+: Up to 11 months free
- Odeon: Free weekly ticket
- Vue: Free ticket and movie rental
- Disney+: Save £2 a month
- Ethical Consumer: Free issue of the magazine
Food and drink offers
- Tesco Clubcard Plus: One-month free trial
- Tastecard: 60-day free trial
- Ocado: £20 off your first order
- Gousto & Hello Fresh: More than 90% off your first boxes
- Pringles: Free pack
- GreenJinn: £1 welcome credit
- Greene King: Free pint or spirit & mixer
- Deliveroo Plus: Free year via Prime
- Brewdog: £150 bar credit for £99
- McDonald's & Burger King: Freebies from loyalty schemes
- Caffe Nero: 25% off drinks and pastries
- Aperol: Two cocktails for £5
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Recent content you might have missed
I know it can be tricky to read, watch and listen to everything I create each week, so here are some articles, videos and podcasts from the last few weeks you might have missed.
- Halifax Reward £360 a year hack
- Gift cards: Should you ever use or buy them?
- Natwest 5.12% Digital Regular Saver review – is it worth it?
- My month in money #11
- Savings round-up & news, including earn 7% interest
- Current account news, including £175 Halifax switch
- Monese adds charge for debit card top-ups
- Changed your mind? Your refund rights
- Santander Edge review: Earn 4% interest and 1% cashback
- Where to price match and save cash
- The problems with Buy Now, Pay Later
- Autumn Statement 2022: What it means for your money
- How to improve your credit score
- The best price comparison sites for your shopping
- Regular savings accounts explained: Are they worth it?
- Avios to Nectar swap range cut
- More than books: 9 ways your library can save you money
- Credit card stoozing: Earn interest from 0% borrowing
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