Car insurance alert, free £100 supermarket voucher, £243 Boots No7 £55, £150 energy help, 26mths 0% spending card, 2for1 movies

Plus... £50 free shares, 59p/mth Sim, slash water bills, £28,000 State Pension success

                                                           

11 August 2026 | View in browser

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THE TOP TIPS IN THIS EMAIL Car insurance prices DOWN so beware overpaying... - Use our Compare+ tool to quickly check - The sweet spot to get quotes - Not at renewal? Still check now - Never just auto-renew New. Top spending card - up to 26mths 0% Wat-er saving! 6 ways to slash bills £243 of Boots No7 for £55 New. Free £100 supermarket voucher for OPENING a bank account 2for1 movies for ALL New. Free £50 in shares on £100 investment £11m Clubcard vouchers expiring - act NOW Outlet bargains, eg, 94% off Nike trainers '28,000 thank yous - I got £28k backdated State Pension!' Ends Wed. 1GB data Sim '59p/mth' Petrol prices soar - how to cut costs £150 winter energy help - don't miss out Beware paying to apply for Attendance Allowance Use Starbucks 'stars' before 3 Sept School uniform grants - up to £200 help 'Free' food if getting GCSE / A-Level results FREE ways to feel good - eg, puppy live streams, ASMR This week's Best Buys: 5.9% loan, £19/mth broadband, 5% savings & more Money Moral Dilemma: Should I get grandpa to tip more?

Car insurance DOWN 30% from 2023 highs, so... Don't just autorenew - even if your quote's the same as last year, you're likely OVERPAYING Our Compare+ tool speedily shows you how to get the best price September's a busy time for car insurance renewals as it's a new car registration month. Yet the best time to find the cheapest quotes is three to four weeks before renewal, so RIGHT NOW if your policy's up next month. The easy route to do this is via our Compare+ Car Insurance tool (it's still worth checking even if you're not at renewal). It's always crucial to know how your price compares against the market, especially at the moment, as things may be about to shift.  After almost three years of car insurance prices dropping for new customers - by almost 30% (source: Confused.com) - this may be coming to an end. Analysts at Defaqto say prices are now trending up. And consultancy firm Ernst & Young says this is likely to continue for another two years, so it could be the ideal time to lock in a price. Therefore... With average prices still down on a year ago, if you've not claimed or had an incident, new customers should aim for a price less than last year. Four steps to speedily check car insurance deals 1. Fill in just one questionnaire via our Compare+ Car Insurance tool. For years we had a huge guide full of tricks to cut your costs, then we automated it and put them all in our Compare+ Car Insurance tool. With it, you just fill in the question set (we borrow MoneySupermarket's - we're part of the same group - so if you've used that before, your answers auto-fill). It'll then.... Give you a benchmark quote using the cheapest deal from MoneySupermarket's comparison. Use our unique Price Impact Indicators to show you which questions really matter cost-wise (and if there are any changes you can make to cut costs). Show you which other comparisons to add in, and in what order. Take you through whether you're getting your quotes at the best time. Give personalised tips - about the level of the excess, the best way to pay, the cheapest acceptable job title, adding extra drivers, whether it's worth combining with home insurance, and more. Chetan emailed in May: "I used MSE's Compare+ tool recently! A real game-changer, so thank you. My existing provider quoted £642 renewal. After a quick and simple few minutes, your tool quoted me a price of £422. This is for more cover than I had previously, so a real win-win! A saving of £220... thanks very much!" Want to find the cheapest home or travel insurance? We also have Compare+ Home Insurance and Compare+ Travel Insurance. 2. The SWEET SPOT to get quotes which could halve your price. We analysed 100,000s of policies to find the optimum time before you want your cover to start to get quotes from new firms. The data shows it bottoms out at 25 days before renewal, though any time between 22 and 26 days should do the job... The key's to avoid leaving it till the last 10 days or so, as that's when prices really start to go up. This is because insurance is priced on risk, and providers' "actuarial charts" apparently show those who renew last-minute are often a higher risk. Now this is about averages, so it won't work for all, but many could save £100s. Nikki emailed in July: "Even at 80 you are never too old to learn! I have just saved £167 by going online via MSE to renew my car insurance 22 days before the expiry date. I am with LV and their automatic renewal price was £652. I went onto MSE website and got a quote for the same cover with the same company for £485. Thank you Martin." Not at renewal? Still CHECK now in case you can save big by renewing early Many wrongly assume you can't change insurer mid-year. You can. And if the predictions are right and prices do climb, getting a new policy now means you benefit from locking in the current lower prices for a year.  This is only worth doing if you haven't claimed and can find a materially cheaper price than you currently pay. So it's worth a few minutes on Compare+ to check - remember to set your policy date to start 25 days ahead.  If you can save, sign up for your new policy, then cancel your old one. You should get a pro-rata refund for the rest of the year (bar a £50ish admin fee), but you usually won't earn the year's no-claims bonus. Eunice emailed in April: "I decided to check out my car insurance (not due until July but wanted to pay in a less expensive month for me). So asked for beginning of May start...using the 'sweet spot rule'. The best quote was £150 less than last year and I got a refund of £116 from my previous insurance company. Thanks - your newsletters are always helpful." Keep track of your car insurance renewals. In the MSE App (download via iOS | Android), our Bill Buster feature can track your renewal date - tell us when your policy ends and we'll send you alerts when you're in the pricing sweet-spot. 3. More than one car at home? Comparison sites don't check multicar cover, so you'll need to check manually whether it saves you money. Our rule of thumb is: 'If you're on a multicar policy, check separate policies to see if you can save; if you're on separate, check multicar.' - 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 of your vehicles. 4. Should you combine car and home cover? It's trial and error, so get prices separately first (see home insurance cost-cutting). Then, especially if one of these is coming up cheapest, check all-in-one policies at Admiral* and LV* (it works even if they have different start dates) and discounts on separate policies at Direct Line, Aviva and Churchill. Never just auto-renew... You may have heard that since January 2022, car and home insurers have been banned from charging renewing customers more than they charge new customers - to stop the annual 'price-walk' of pushing up prices at each renewal, so that after a few years you've paid a massive loyalty premium. Yet even though that's gone, auto-renewing is still likely to cost more... - Some firms simply boosted prices for all. - The 'same price for both' rule is channel-specific. Eg, if you got insurance direct, your renewal must cost the same as if you were a new direct customer. If via a comparison site, it must cost the same as if you were a new customer via THAT site. - Pricing varies hugely by firm & by the type of customer that they want to recruit. - Many firms own multiple brands. They may leave existing brands at higher prices, and win new customers with new brands. All of which means many still see sky-high auto-renewal quotes. Dipesh emailed in May after his quote went up a crazy amount: "I was with the same insurer for the past 7 years with no claims made and all details staying the same... but my renewal went up by £2k. After reading your car insurance tips, I saved £2,065 compared with my renewal quote." Of course, of the millions of readers of this email, some will find their renewal is cheapest. If so, fab. The key is to never assume your renewal is the winner without checking. Happy with your insurer? HAGGLE If you can find a cheaper quote elsewhere, but like your current insurer's service, then ask it to match your cheapest quote. There's full help in Car & home insurance haggling, but here are a few tips to start you off... - Do it when you're nearing renewal so the polite threat of losing your custom is stronger. - Get an actual quote as a benchmark to ask it to beat or match. - Use charm, chutzpah, cheek and a smile (never aggression). - Don't get rushed into accepting the first offer. Success rates for car insurance haggling are pretty high. For example, in our latest haggling poll, over 80% of Admiral, AA and Hastings Direct customers who'd tried to haggle told us they'd succeeded. It can really pay, as Leo found out: "I'm an 18-year-old apprentice, and I was originally quoted £740 for my second year of car insurance. However, after following the tips in your insurance haggling guide, I got it down to £480 - £260 off for just a 13-minute phone call! If I earned £260 every 13 minutes I'd certainly not be doing an apprenticeship! Thanks so much." Check the policy is right for you... As with any insurance, check the policy details and read exactly what's covered before signing up. Do also ensure the insurer is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (all via the main comparison sites should be). That means if you feel you've been treated unfairly, or that your claim has been unfairly rejected (or the payout is too small), you have a right to take 'em to the free Financial Ombudsman.

 

 

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.

 

 

 

New. Top 0% spending credit card - you can borrow INTEREST-FREE for 26mths If you NEED to borrow, you can't do it cheaper than this Nothing beats interest-free if you need to borrow, and the longer you have to pay, the less pressure there is to clear what you owe within the deadline. The longest 0% deals for new spending come on 0% purchase credit cards (don't confuse with 0% balance transfers, which are for cutting the cost of existing card debts). And there's a new top deal just launched. What counts as 'need'? Unless you're stoozing, only borrow for a planned, affordable, necessary one-off purchase - don't do it to plug gaps in your income, that's a slippery slope. If in doubt, don't! Now, quick tips, then best buys. Find which card you're most likely to be accepted for via our eligibility calc. It shows your odds for each top card (and some cards for poorer credit) BEFORE you apply, minimising applications & protecting your creditworthiness. If a card is an 'up to', check its 'backup' rate. With up-to cards, some accepted customers get a backup rate that's not as good as the headline rate. We flag it in our eligibility calc so you can factor it in. Usually rejected when you apply? Our eligibility calc also includes 0% cards for poor credit scorers, while MSE's free Credit Club (available via the MSE App on Apple | Android) can analyse the problem. Top-pick 0% purchase cards for NEW customers (Most links via our eligibility calc, so you can see whether you'll be accepted) Longest DEFINITE 0% cards. So ALL accepted get the full 0% length. New. M&S Bank DEFINITE 26mths 0%. 24.9% rep APR after. All accepted via our eligibility calc get the full 26mths at 0%. Plus, you get one M&S point per £5 you spend. Tesco Bank DEFINITE 22mths 0%. 26.9% rep APR after. All accepted get the full 22mths at 0%.  Longest 'UP TO' 0% cards. Some accepted customers get a shorter 'backup' 0% length. TSB (not available via MSE eligibility calc, so link goes direct) UP TO 26mths 0%. 24.9% rep APR after. Some accepted customers may get 22mths or 19mths at 0% (28.95% or 30.95% rep APR after). Lloyds Bank UP TO 25mths 0%. 24.9% rep APR after. Our eligibility calc will tell you the 0% deal you'll get before you apply. Some accepted customers may get 24mths, 18mths, 14mths or 12mths at 0%. If you borrow on these cards, follow the golden rules... a) Pay at least the monthly minimum and stick within your credit limit, or you can lose the 0% and get hit with fees. b) Clear the card (or balance-transfer) before the 0% ends, or these cards charge at least 24.9% rep APR interest. c) Don't withdraw cash - it's not at 0%.

 

£243 of Boots No7 for £55... in an Advent calendar (yes, we know it's August!). Sign up to the waitlist now, and you'll get £10 off if you buy it next Tue (18 Aug) or £5 off next Wed (19 Aug). There's a £65 version (worth £243) or a £180 one (worth £411) - both are pre-discount prices. Use now or wait till Dec. No(ël) time like the present New. Get £100 supermarket voucher for OPENING (not switching to) a new bank account. New customers to Santander (ie, you don't have ANY Santander products) who open a new current account via the links below and spend £200+ at supermarkets or grocery stores in 4+ transactions in each of Sept, Oct and Nov will be emailed a link to claim a £100 supermarket voucher from 14 Dec (if not, check your spam). Full info's in our Santander review, but the eligible accounts are...  - The Everyday* is its bog-standard fee-free account, so your best bet if you just want to grab the voucher.  - The Edge* account costs £3/mth but pays 1% cashback (max £10/mth) on household bills paid by Direct Debit (or look at the Edge Up* if you've bigger bills, as it pays a max £15/mth cashback on bills for a £5/mth fee). Now FREE for all: 2for1 Meerkat Movies cinema tickets every Tue or Wed. You no longer need to buy insurance (or other products) from Compare The Market to access this deal. Simples New. Free £50 in shares if you invest £100+. 20,000 available. MSE Blagged. This is for newbies to Trading 212* - use code MSE50 on sign-up, then put £100+ in its stocks & shares ISA or investment account (both offer a wide range of funds and shares). It gets you a free £50-worth of shares in a randomly-selected firm, eg, Apple, Google, Nvidia, Coca-Cola. The share's added within 3 working days, you can then keep it or sell it (but can't withdraw the proceeds for 30 days). And, of course, as with any investment, its value can go down as well as up. Other options: JPMorgan's £100 cashback on £1,000 invested | Santander £50 Amazon voucher on £300. Full details: Stocks & shares ISAs. Tesco Clubcard vouchers worth £11m expire on 31 Aug - how to find and extend 'em. See Tesco trick. Updated. 94% off Nike trainers? Grab a bargain... from an outlet. Big names such as Asda, Argos, John Lewis, Schuh - and even Greggs - offer big discounts on unsold stock through (mostly online) outlets. See the latest bargains. '28,000 thank yous - I got £28,000 in backdated State Pension!' Success of the week. Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) errors mean some who cared for a child or someone with a long-term disability between 1978 and 2010 could have incorrect National Insurance gaps that reduce their State Pension. As Ann emailed: "I retired 13 years ago and for reasons I couldn't understand I was on a reduced State Pension. I wrote to HMRC and, having gone through the processes and questions regarding HRP, I have - after seven months - received a back payment of £28,000. Thank you Martin, 28,000 times. This has made the rest of my retirement a lot easier." If we've helped you save or reclaim (on anything), let us know. Ends Wed. Cheapest Sim we've ever seen - 1GB data just '59p/mth'. This 1GB/mth Sky Sim (uses O2's network) is £1/mth. Plus, you'll be emailed a £5 Sainsbury's, M&S, John Lewis or food delivery voucher within 4mths (check your spam folder). Factor that in, and over the year's contract it's equivalent to 59p/mth. Need more data? See Cheap Mobile Finder. Petrol prices at their highest since 2023 - how to cut costs. See fuel savers. Related: 5% off fuel at Tesco Are you about to miss out on £150 winter energy bill help? To get the Warm Home Discount this winter, you need to both receive a qualifying benefit AND, crucially, also be named on your energy bill by 23 Aug. Warm Home Discount

 

 

BLAGGED FOR MSE - Free £50 in shares if you invest £100+ 20,000 available	DID YOU MISS? - Is your old compact digital camera worth £100s? - Teacher? Get 30% off Disney+, 20% off Wagamama & more - High Court backs car makers on diesel emissions - now what? - M&S 'up to 50% off' sale

 

 

Wat-er saving! You may not be able to switch provider, but millions can still cut costs by £100s 'We're now saving £1,068/yr by paying for what little we use' Cutting water use is on many people's minds at the moment. This week it was confirmed that all of Wales and most of England are in drought, with another heatwave expected  - though it's been a different, rainier story in Scotland and Northern Ireland. But for many, cutting how much you pay for water is also a factor, especially after April's bill rises. We've help on both. Full info in Cut water bills, but in brief... England & Wales: Can you save £100s with a FREE water meter so you're billed for what you actually use? If you don't have a meter, bills are based on the pre-1990 'rates' system, where you pay based on your home's rental value, NOT what you use. So bigger homes tend to pay more, even if they're using little. If that's you, look at a free water meter, which measures how much you use, so you're billed accordingly. Martin's simple rule of thumb... ... then there's a good chance you can save, so use a water meter calculator.  For some, especially those in bigger houses with few people, the savings can be large. Debbie emailed us: "I took your tips on installing a water meter, and my Direct Debit has gone from £108/month to £19/month [a saving of £1,068/year]. Thank you Martin. If the calc shows savings are likely, you can ask your firm for a more formal assessment if you want before asking for a meter.  Got a meter and want to switch back? If you voluntarily had a meter fitted, most (but not all) firms give you up to two years to change your mind (see firms' water meter switch-back policies). Told you can't get a meter? Ask for an 'assessed charge'. Some with shared pipes or in flats are told by water firms they can't 'practicably' have a meter fitted. If so, ask for an 'assessed-charge bill', which works out how much you'd likely pay if you had a meter. If that's cheaper than your normal bill, switch to it. If not, don't. It worked for Lorraine: "I contacted Thames Water having seen Martin's article re assessed charges. A water meter could not be fitted, but my bill went from £700 for 2025/26 to £100. Thank you very much." On a low income? Some could save £400+/yr with a water social tariff. These are offered by all firms and can cut what you pay by up to 90%. But it's not automatic, you have to apply. Frustratingly, there's no single definition of a social tariff, so who's eligible and what you get varies by water company. Trevor found he qualified: "Saw your piece about social tariffs and phoned to ask if I was eligible. After an hour on the phone I was told I was. Saved 50% off my £807 bill [a saving of £404]. Thank you so much to Martin and the team." On benefits, and have 3+ children OR certain medical conditions? Your bills could be capped. If you have medical conditions which mean you need to use more water, or a larger family, you may be able to have bills capped under the WaterSure scheme. Cut your usage with one of 100,000s of water-saving freebies. Households across much of the UK can bag a range of FREE water-saving gadgets - eg, £20 shower heads, £5 tap inserts, £2 cistern bags etc. So check for water-saving freebies - it's hit-and-miss depending on where you live, but even if you miss out, you can still... Cut your water use - we've 30 other ways to save. There are lots of ways to cut usage, including: - Running your tap to temperature? Fill up bottles while you wait and use them for watering plants etc. - Don't wallow in the bath, sprint through the shower. A quick shower uses far less water than a long soak in the tub. - Don't wash up as you cook. Save it up and do it in one go to minimise hot water use. - Get a dual-flush loo. Small flush for number ones, stronger flush for (ahem) bigger jobs.

 

Beware paying to apply for Attendance Allowance. If you're aged 66+ and need support with daily living tasks, you might be eligible for Attendance Allowance. If so, see how to apply for Attendance Allowance for FREE. Got Starbucks reward 'stars'? Use them before 3 Sept. Its reward scheme's getting less generous. School uniform grants - check if you're eligible for up to £200 help. If you claim an eligible benefit (eg, Universal Credit) and qualify for means-tested free school meals, check if you can get one. We've council-by-council help for England, plus info on grants available in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Related: School uniform MoneySaving 'Free' food at Nando's, Zizzi, Bella Italia & more if you're getting GCSE / A-Level results. Exam 'freebies'. 20 FREE ways to feel good - meditation apps, puppy live streams, ASMR, fitness challenges & more. It's National Wellness Month, so here's MSE Liv's free ways to look after yourself blog.

 

 

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AT A GLANCE BEST BUYS 0% balance transfers Top definite 0% card: HSBC (check eligibility; existing customers use this link), 36mths 0%, 3.09% fee, 24.9% rep APR No-fee 0%: Virgin (check eligibility) 12mths 0%, 24.9% rep APR Best bank accounts Free £220: HSBC Free £200: Barclays Broadband top picks Fast fibre (100Mb+): Sky '£19.25/mth'  Superfast fibre (500Mb+): Sky '£22.88/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 New. Travel: Use our Compare+ Travel 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), 5.9% rep APR Top savings accounts Top easy-access savings: Cahoot 5% up to £3k, min £1 Top easy-access ISA: Trading 212 4.55%, min £1 Top one-year fix: Oxbury Bank 4.87%, min £1k Top energy deals Use our whole-of-market Cheap Energy Club Cheap Sims Up to 3GB data: Sky, '59p/mth' for 1GB  4GB to 9GB data: Lebara, '£2.68/mth' for 5GB  10GB to 30GB data: Lebara, '£2.70/mth' for 10GB  31GB+ data: Lebara, '£2.74/mth' for 35GB

 

MONEY MORAL DILEMMA Should I push my grandad to tip more when we go for dinner? Every couple of months my grandad and I go for dinner and split the bill, but he often leaves a tiny tip - or none - even when the food and service are good. I end up leaving more so the staff get a reasonable tip. I've mentioned it, as I know he can afford it, but he laughs it off or says he forgot. Should I push him to tip more, or accept it's his choice? Enter the Money Moral Maze: Should I push my grandad to tip more when we eat out? | Suggest a Money Moral Dilemma (MMD) | View past MMDs

 

Some back-to-school competitions... - Win a stationery bundle - Win a back-to-school tech & appliance package - Win a £500+ books and vouchers bundle ...from the MSE Forum comping boards - Win a £50 voucher for backpacks and accessories - Win a pair of school shoes - Win a subscription to reading and maths workbooks

 

 

MSE TEAM BLOG - MSE Forum highlights: Doomscrolling, houseplants & getting ready to retire

 

 

 

Important. Please read how MoneySavingExpert.com works We think it's important you understand the strengths and limitations of this email and the site. We're a journalistic website, and aim to provide the best MoneySaving guides, tips, tools and techniques - but can't promise to be perfect, so do note you use the information at your own risk and we can't accept liability if things go wrong. What you need to know This info does not constitute financial advice, always do your own research on top to ensure it's right for your specific circumstances - and remember we focus on rates not service. We don't as a general policy investigate the solvency of companies mentioned, how likely they are to go bust, but there is a risk any company can struggle and it's rarely made public until it's too late (see the Section 75 guide for protection tips). We often link to other websites, but can't be responsible for their content. Always remember anyone can post on the MSE forums, so it can be very different from our opinion. Please read the Full Terms & Conditions, Privacy Policy, How This Site is Financed and Editorial Code. Martin Lewis is a registered trade mark belonging to Martin S Lewis. More about MoneySavingExpert and Martin Lewis What is MoneySavingExpert.com? Founded in February 2003, it is now the UK's biggest consumer help website, with around 9.5 million users and 45 million page views a month, and about 9 million receiving this email. In September 2012 it became part of the MoneySupermarket Group PLC. Its focus is simple - saving cash and fighting for financial justice on anything and everything. The site has over 80 full-time staff, more than a third of whom are editorial - researching, analysing and writing to continually find ways to save money. More info: See About MSE. Who is Martin Lewis? Martin Lewis CBE is the founder and executive chair of MSE, as well as the founder of the MMHPI charity. He's an ultra-focused MoneySaving journalist and consumer campaigner with his own prime-time ITV programme The Martin Lewis Money Show, Radio 5 Live Wednesday show Ask Martin Lewis and weekly slot on This Morning, among others. More info: See Martin Lewis' biography. What do the links with an * mean? Any links with an * by them are affiliated, which means get a product via this link and a contribution may be made to MoneySavingExpert.com, which helps it stay free to use. You shouldn't notice any difference; the links don't impact the products at all and the editorial line (the things we write) isn't changed due to them. If it isn't possible to get an affiliate link for the best product, it's still included in the same way. More info: See How This Site is Financed. As we believe transparency is important, we're including the following 'un-affiliated' web-addresses for content too: Unaffiliated web-addresses for links in this email admiral.com, lv.com, aviva.co.uk, axa.co.uk, santander.co.uk, trading212.com Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Note MONY Group Financial Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA FRN: 303190). MoneySavingExpert.com Ltd is a company registered in England and Wales. Company Registration Number: 8021764. Registered office: One Dean Street, London, W1D 3RB. MoneySavingExpert.com Limited is an appointed representative of MONY Group Financial Limited. To change your email or stop receiving the weekly tips (unsubscribe): Go to:www.moneysavingexpert.com/unsubscribe.