Your weekly money saving deals and news from money expert Andy Webb
My top content this week
BLOG, VIDEO & ARTICLES
Interest rate at 4%: what does the rise mean for you?
Last week the Bank of England increased the base rate by 0.5% points to 4%. Find out what the outlook is for future hikes and inflation, as well as what this latest change means for savings and mortgages.
MVNOs: The piggyback hack that’ll cut hundreds from your mobile phone bill
One of the best ways to save on your mobile without sacrificing signal is to piggyback with a "virtual" network. Here's how they work and which ones will give you the same reception as the big four - EE, O2, Vodafone and Three.
Green Savings Bond at 4.2%: the best ethical savings?
If you're looking for an ethical place for savings and are happy to put money away for three years, then the increase this week from 3% to 4.2% for Green Savings Bonds are worth a look. Here's how they work.
February 2023’s current account news & offers
In this month's current account news update, I'm looking at how to make £50 from sharing bank data, virtual cards from Starling, Club Lloyds changes, Halifax's Travel Ready add-on and more, including the latest bank switch deals.
CASH CHATS PODCAST
305 | Interest rate at 4%, cinema savings & beating bill hikes
In the latest episode of the pod I’m talking about:
- What the latest base rate increase means for your savings and mortgage
- How to switch or haggle to beat 14% hikes to broadband, mobile and TV bills
- Ways to save at the cinema every day of the week
- 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 #64: Your money questions answered
My live Q&As are the best place to ask me your questions, and you can catch up on Tuesday's edition via this link.
The next one will be in a couple of weeks, and I'll confirm the exact time in next week's newsletter. 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 3,400 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. Nationwide: Get 5% supermarket cashback
From 9.30am today you'll be able to earn cashback at the supermarket via your Nationwide debit card. Here's how it'll work.
2. National Trust: Free family passes
If you buy certain local papers this week you'll get a voucher to use at National Trust locations until the end of March More here.
3. eBay: 30x Nectar Points offer
Next Tuesday for one hour you'll be able to get 30 Nectar points back (the equivalent of 15%) on most purchases. More here.
4. Echo Dot: £22 "upgrade" offer
If you're after a 5th general Echo Dot speaker from Amazon, you might be able to can save extra £8 off the current reduced price. More here.
5. Natwest: Free Malwarebytes software
Natwest customers can grab free software to protect their computers and devices. More here.
6. Flowers: Up to £15 off
With Valentine's Day in next week, it's worth signing up for some deals on flowers, including £10 off your first Bloom & Wild order, and another £5 credit available too. More here.
SAVINGS, BANKING & CREDIT CARD BEST BUYS
Banks
Top banking switch and welcome offers:
- First Direct switch: £175 bonus
- Lloyds switch: £200 bonus
- Santander: £200 switching deal
- TSB: Up to £200 switch offer
- Co-operative Bank: Refer-a-friend and switch for £125 each
- 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 3% back with Santander 123
- Top cashback on spending: 1% back with Chase
Savings
A few banks - Tandem, OakNorth and Sainsbury's are now offering 3.05% on easy or limited access accounts, while on Saturday Chip's rate moves up to 3.04%. More details in my best buy tables article.
Top savings best buys:
- Top regular saver: 7% with First Direct
- Top current account linked interest: 5.12% with Barclays
- Top easy access account: 3.05% with Tandem
- Top 1-year fixed account: 4.18% with My Community Finance
Credit cards
Top cashback credit card best buys:
- Top welcome bonus: British Airways American Express Premium Plus (70,000 Avios = up to £430 profit in Nectar points)
- Top non-Amex cashback welcome: 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
- YouGov: £50 cash for sharing bank data
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
- Trainline: £15 off season tickets
- 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
- Discovery+: Free with BT Sport and Sky
- Ethical Consumer: Free issue of the magazine
Food and drink offers
- Tesco Clubcard Plus: One-month free trial
- Tastecard: 60-day free trial
- Ocado: 25% 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
- Brewdog: £150 bar credit for £99
- McDonald's & Burger King: Freebies from loyalty schemes
- Caffe Nero: 25% off drinks and pastries
- Franco Manca: £5 Pizzas
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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.
- 5 steps to haggle down your bills
- February 2023’s savings round-up & news
- My month in money #13
- 66 Natwest branch closures set for 2023
- Barclays to close 41 branches – find out which ones
- The best American Express credit cards
- Premium Bond prize rate increases to 3.15%
- How to save at the cinema every day of the week
- 40 more Halifax and Lloyds branches to close in 2023
- How to earn rewards & freebies from your current account
- The best ways to use and earn Tesco Clubcard points
- What’s in my wallet for 2023?
- The best auto savings apps and hacks
- How to get multiple American Express sign-up bonuses
- The top savings accounts for 2023
- Best Current Accounts for 2023
- 9 ways to cut your household bills
- Be a seat filler and get cheap tickets
- Are savings challenges worth it?
- Top credit cards for 2023
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