Cheap Night In – 16th April 2020

Here’s my pick of free and cheap events for you to watch and listen to over the next seven days.

Don’t forget I’m also always checking for the cheapest streaming deals and offers, and there’s more information on these links.

 

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Andy’s money makeover part 3: Cut your broadband bill

Pay less for your internet and landline.

In the latest part of my £1,000 money makeover I’ve looked at broadband and landline bills. 

If you’re still with the same provider as you were 12 months ago then you’re paying more than you need. Plus you could be paying for extras you don’t need or use. 

Follow these steps and you should be able to save hundreds of pounds each year on your internet and phone bill. 

There will another 10 episodes after this helping you get on top of all your finances. You can see the full playlist for my money makeover as videos are added here 

If you find this useful, please click to watch this video over on YouTube and then click the “thumbs up” icon as it helps the video appear higher up in YouTube’s search results.

For subtitles, press play and then hit the CC button at the bottom of the video (you might need to tap the video or hover your mouse over it) and you’ll be able to get auto-generated subtitles.

For a transcript you’ll need to click through to YouTube. Then hit the three dots under the video to access all the subtitles at once. Remember they have been auto-generated by YouTube so there might be the odd word where it thinks I’ve said something else.

Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more videos.

Further reading

My guide to cutting your broadband bill 

A decent broadband comparison site 

Work out how fast your broadband needs to be 

My video on how cashback sites

> Get a new user bonus when you sign up to Quidco or TopCashback

 

See more in my £1,000 Money Makeover series

What benefits and financial help are you entitled to?

Help is available for those you need it.

Benefits aren’t just for the unemployed or the sick. There’s support available for a broad variety of people – from parents to the bereaved, from low-earners to carers, from the young to the old. Even people will a decent income might be eligible for certain support.

And it’s not all money. Some benefits come in the form of discounts on bills, housing, travel and more. Others might provide you with food, a blue badge for parking, free dental treatment or even things like school uniforms.

There could even be a grant you can apply for, where the money and support you get comes from charities rather than the government.

Ok, so the amount you’ll get in cash or kind from any of these routes might not be great. And at times the processes can be mired in bureaucracy and injustice. But if you are entitled to any of these benefits it means you need it. And it will in turn help you and your finances.

Don’t be too proud. Don’t think you can’t claim. If you’re struggling then it really is worth making a claim.

So how do you go about doing this? Well, first of all, you need to find out what – if anything – is available to you.

Find out what benefits you can claim

There are so many different benefits I’m not going to list them here. Instead it’s worth taking 10 minutes to check what you personally can get.

The way to do this is to use a benefits calculator. There are a number out there, and these are regarded as good ones to try.

You’ll need some basic information to complete the calculators including your household income and level of savings, details of any benefits you already claim and all your bills.

Go through the calculator and you’ll get a list of what you can apply for and how.

Where to get advice about benefits

Need more help? Well there’s plenty of free advice out there.

Citizens Advice is a great source of help for people needing advice on many topics, including benefits. However, demand always outstrips availability so you might struggle to get an appointment. You can find more information about how to get in touch with your local Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) here.

There are also specialist benefit advice lines for individuals suffering from cancer, the elderly, single parents and more. The Money Advice Service has a good list of these groups here.

How to get a food bank referral

Food banks work slightly differently, and you need to have a referral in order to get one of the food parcels.

Places you can get a referral from include local organisations and individuals such as your local CAB, your GP and social workers.

The Trussell Trust, which runs the country’s largest network of food banks, suggests you contact your local food bank to see who they work with locally. 

Once you get your referral voucher you can visit your food bank and you’ll be given a parcel that should last you three days.

It’s worth noting that most food banks are only open for a couple of days each week (the one near me is just Tuesday and Friday), so you need to plan ahead if you are close to running out of all your food.

Cash Chats #119 – Getting to payday

This week I’ve looked at what you can do if you think you’ll struggle to have enough cash left towards the end of the month and your next payday.

SUBSCRIBE & LISTEN TO OTHER EPISODES OF CASH CHATS (it’s free!): 

Please do leave a review and rating. Here’s how to do it on Apple Podcasts and iTunes. 

Further reading

How to survive until payday

How to make a budget

How to stick to a budget

How to stick to a budget

How to stop spending money

Spend less by using what you’ve already got

 

 

Andy’s deals of the week 9th April 2020

Your last chance to get 5% on your savings, how to get free and cheap Kindle books, where to find cheap Easter Eggs and more.

Watch the latest episode

This week’s deals

Nationwide to cut 5% current account

Sadly the last of the high-interest current accounts is about to go. From the start of May new applicants to Nationwide’s FlexDirect will only get 2% for a year – but there’s still time for you to apply and get the full 5%!

As long as you haven’t already had this offer you can open up a new account in the next few weeks and still get 5% for one year on savings up to £2,500. If you have the full amount that’s worth £125 over 12 months. You need to pay in £1,000 every month to get the interest, but that money doesn’t have to stay there – you can pay it straight back into your normal account.

You can only have one solo account per person, but you can have a joint account too, so if you have a partner there’s the potential to open up three of these accounts and get 5% on up to £7,500.

Unfortunately the £100 refer-a-friend programme was paused on Monday so there’s no extra bonus available. However, here’s no need to switch to get the interest – you can just open this up as an extra account for your savings.

Kindle book savings

I’m actually as busy as ever right now, but if you have found you’ve more spare time to read then a Kindle can actually be a cheap way to get new books.

I’ve rounded up here how to get top titles for just 99p every day, how to find free books and tool that’ll let you track price drops on your favourite authors.

Magazine deals including The Big Issue

I’ve had a look at a few different digital magazine offers, including a year-long subscription service for £24 and four issues of Vogue for £1.

However, the deal I’ve signed up for isn’t necessarily a special offer – but I think it’s fantastic value for money. As you’ve probably realised, it’s impossible for sellers of The Big Issue to sell copies, meaning they’re going without vital income.

However you can now buy a three months subscription to get delivered to your home for £32.50, with 50% off the proceeds going to the street vendors.

Easter Egg reductions

Supermarkets and shops are already reducing Easter chocolates, and if you can wait there should be some rich pickings next week as there’s far more left on shelves than normal. Here are a few places to look for savings.

Also, don’t forget most shops will be closed on Sunday.

Get credit from BT Sport

If you pay for BT Sport you can now get credit for two months or choose for that money to be donated to the NHS. There’s also an option to pause it and get three months free later on. Here’s how to do it.

Cheap Night In picks

A very quick rundown of some of the cheap and free films, TV shows, theatre productions and music sets you can watch from home this weekend.

 

Cheap Night In – 9th April 2020

Free and cheap things to do at home this weekend.

UPDATE 16th April  – It looks like the wrong link was in this week’s email – click here for my guide for 16th April onwards.

While we’re all in lockdown I thought it would be good to bring back my Cheap Night In feature, which I ran when I first started the blog back in 2014.

It’s essentially my pick of the free and cheap entertainment available to you at home. Here are a few things for this weekend. Hopefully there’s something here that works for you.

TV

Here’s my guide to the different TV and film streaming deals and trials right now.

Red Dwarf

A new feature-length episode of the sci-fi comedy premiers on Dave Thursday night and will be on catch-up too.

Community

We recently blitzed through all six seasons of US comedy Community over on Amazon Prime, but it’s just moved over to Netflix. It’s one of my favourites.

Film

Spiderman Far From Home / Yesterday

A couple of big films are coming to the Sky Cinema pass of NOW TV this weekend. It’s possible to get a 7-day free trial, or pick up a pass for under £4.

Theatre

Here’s a wider guide to watching theatre, dance and opera at home.

Jane Eyre

This National Theatre production starts Thursday at 7pm and will be available for a week.

Jesus Christ Superstar

From Friday at 7pm for 48 hours you can watch Tim Minchin, Mel C and Chris Moyles (yep!) in Andrew Llloyd Webber’s 2012 revival. Watch here.

Art

Andy Warhol at the Tate Modern

It’s only 7 minutes long, but this short curated walk around this Warhol exhibition will hopefully give you your art fix.

Music

BBC 6 Music Festival

You can still watch live sets on iPlayer from last month’s festival. Acts include Bombay Bicycle Club, Roisin Murphy and Kate Tempest.

Sport

1990 World Cup Semi: England v Germany 

The BBC Sport website and iPlayer will be streaming this classic football match on Sunday at 3pm.

Andy’s £1,000 Money Makeover part 2: Cut your mobile phone bill

It’s easy to reduce how much you pay each month on your mobile phone bill thanks to these tricks and savings.

In the second part of my £1,000 money makeover, I’ve shared the main ways you’re overspending and how to bring those costs down.

That includes only paying for the data you need, going SIM-only and switching network. 

I’m confident you can get your bill down to under £10 a month for your minutes, texts and data, and knock extra off your phone payments too, potentially saving you hundreds of pound a year just on this one bill.

There will another 10 episodes after this helping you get on top of all your finances. You can see the full playlist for my money makeover as videos are added here 

If you find this useful, please click to watch this video over on YouTube and then click the “thumbs up” icon as it helps the video appear higher up in YouTube’s search results.

For subtitles, press play and then hit the CC button at the bottom of the video (you might need to tap the video or hover your mouse over it) and you’ll be able to get auto-generated subtitles.

For a transcript you’ll need to click through to YouTube. Then hit the three dots under the video to access all the subtitles at once. Remember they have been auto-generated by YouTube so there might be the odd word where it thinks I’ve said something else.

Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more videos.

Further reading

My guide to getting the best price on your mobile phone bill

How much data do you really need? 

Virtual networks explained 

Check your mobile network signal where you live 

How to keep your old phone number when you switch network 

 How to avoid 0845 and 0870 numbers 

How to sell your old phone 

Mobile phone 0% finance and SIM-only deals 

Airtime Rewards review 

 

See more in my £1,000 Money Makeover series

Banking during the coronavirus crisis: Mortgages, overdrafts, savings, loans and credit cards

From mortgage holidays through to disappearing deals, here’s what you need to know about how your bank is working during the crisis.

Like everything right now, our banks aren’t able to offer a normal service – and it’s at a time when we’ve all got lots of questions. But many are also adding new policies and processes to help those struggling.

So here’s a round-up of some of the things that have changed, and some of the things that have stayed the same.

Obviously, it’s best to check the website for your own bank, and I’ve included links to each of the main banks’ policies at the bottom of this article.

Your borrowing

Update 9th April 2020 

The FCA has told banks to extend interest-free overdrafts and freeze other debts for “consumers negatively impacted by coronavirus”.

This means all banks will offer a £500 interest-free overdraft, but you will need to ask for this in most cases if  you don’t already have an arranged overdraft.

You can also now ask for a three month payment holiday on your credit cards and most regulated loans as well as mortgages. 

These new policies might not be up and running until Tuesday 14th April.

New overdraft buffers 

The new overdraft charges that have been coming for a while now are still going to go ahead in most cases. However, most banks have relaxed charges or introduced interest-free buffers to help people over the next few months.

Here’s what the main banks are doing:

  • Barclays – no interest charged between 27th March and 30th April 2020
  • First Direct – no change to existing £250 interest-free overdraft
  • Halifax – £300 interest-free overdraft from 6th April until 6th July 2020
  • HSBC – £300 interest-free overdraft until further notice
  • Lloyds – £300 interest-free overdraft from 6th April until 6th July 2020
  • M&S Bank – no change to existing £250 interest-free overdraft
  • Nationwide – you can request an interest holiday if your finances are affected by Covid-19
  • NatWest – interest rates staying at 19.89% rather than increase to 39.49%
  • RBS – interest rates staying at 19.89% rather than increase to 39.49%
  • Santander – £350 interest-free overdraft from 6th April until 6th July 2020

Don’t forget, any money in these buffers once the restrictions are lifted will begin to be hit with rates of up to 40%. You can read more about what your overdraft is really costing you here.

You must agree any changes

Though the above-mentioned changes to overdrafts are mostly automatic, that’s not the case if you need to stop payments for loans, credit cards and overdrafts.

If you just cancel these payments you’ll likely face penalty fees and see your credit report take a hit.

Instead you need to get in touch with your bank to agree whether you can take a break.

Credit cards and loan help available

Some banks are saying that there will be no fees for missing payments, while others will let you agree a breathing space break. Talk to your card or loan provider to see what they can do.

Mortgages holidays for most

If you have a mortgage then you can ask your lender to give you a holiday for three months. Most of the time you can make this application online.

If you choose to take the holiday you’ll still have to make the payments, and this could be added to the total cost and then spread out across your other payments – which means they’ll all increase a bit when the holiday is over.

Alternatively, they might just increase the length of your mortgage to reflect the extra three months.

With both options, which will probably be decided by the bank, you’ll still be charged interest on your mortgage debt.

New deals getting pulled

It’s been reported that lenders are tightening their criteria, meaning it could be harder to get new cards and loans, so if you think you’ll need to get hold of one then it’s worth doing it sooner rather than later. For example, a 0% purchase credit card could be back-up in your wallet for emergencies.

Here’s how 0% Balance Transfer cards work, and here’s how 0% Money Transfer cards work.

If you’re thinking of remortgaging due to the cut in rates, you might also find it harder to get a decent deal. Some lenders, such as Halifax and Barclays, have removed all new deals for anyone with an LTV (Loan to Value) of less than 60%. This means you’ll need to have at least 40% of the value of the property paid off.

If you need more help

Though these measures will help you weather this storm, it might not be enough to deal with large debts that could get bigger. 

If you are worried about what to do, then you should talk to a free debt charity such as StepChange. Here’s more about how you should deal with problem debts. 

Your banking

Customer support struggling

As I predicted a few weeks ago a mix of less staff in call centres and increased demand means getting through to banks on the phone is requiring waits of hours and hours. Many branches have also closed or reduced opening hours.

If your enquiry isn’t urgent then it’s worth just waiting, or seeing if there are alternative ways to get the help you need. For example, most applications can be done online, and there’s often a help section on the bank’s websites which might give the guidance you need.

As I mentioned a few weeks ago in my guide to your money during social distancing, it really is worth setting up internet banking if you haven’t already (though this could take longer than normal).

Opening new current accounts

First Direct has stopped accepting new customers for the moment, and this could be something other banks look to do while they cope with demand elsewhere.

So if you do need to open a new account for whatever reason I wouldn’t leave it too long – especially since it could take longer for you to get all the documents you need.

Bank switching offers dropped

HSBC, Natwest and RBS all removed their £175 switching bonuses earlier than planned, meaning the only cash bonus available right now for switching is at Nationwide – but only if you have a friend who can refer you.

Of course that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make sure you’ve got the best bank for you. The Santander 123 Lite account still offers up to 3% cashback on bills, while the Nationwide FlexDirect gives 5% in interest for a year, worth £125.

Here’s my full list of the different incentives and deals on offer from the banks.

Are you paying for features you can’t use?

For a monthly fee there are a number of packaged bank accounts which will give you freebies such as travel insurance and breakdown cover. These accounts can cost anywhere from £13 to around £20, depending on the features and the bank.

Since you won’t be able to use most of the included features I’d consider cancelling these and downgrade to standard free accounts for the time being. Once the social distancing restrictions are lifted you can always move back to it.

However, only do this if you don’t still need the benefits. For example, if you’ve got a holiday booked for later this year that hasn’t been cancelled you don’t want to lose the cover in the meantime. 

Plus if you do go back it’s likely the included travel insurance won’t cover future outbreaks of coronavirus – so bear that in mind.

Your savings

Emergency access to fixed savings

Most fixed-term savings accounts don’t let you make early withdrawals, but during the crisis you might actually be able to do this without paying any penalties.

Your money is safe up to £85,000

If a bank was to go under during this crisis your money is likely going to be safe thanks to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). 

This guarantees money of up to £85,000 so as long as you don’t have more than this you’ll get your money back. It extends to £1 million for six months if you’ve got extra due to things like selling a house or inheritance.

The protection is per UK-regulated institution, which means you can spread your money across different financial institutions. Watch out though as some such as Halifax and Bank of Scotland count as one.

This tool from Money Saving Expert lets you check which banks are combined.

Rate cuts are on the cards

Though we’ve seen two huge cuts to the base rate in the last few weeks, quite a few fixed-rate savings rates haven’t dropped yet. 

So if you want to lock in your money now in case they do fall even lower then you don’t want to delay. Here’s more on your options.

Full coronavirus policies for the main banks

Cash Chats #118 – Why you need to talk about dying

There are a couple of taboos people tend to avoid talking about. Money is one, another is dying. So combined must be some kind of super-taboo! But it’s really important that you do have that conversation.

Here’s what you need to think about in terms of your own finances and plans, as well as how to discuss it with family members.

It might not be the cheeriest of subjects but it’s vital you have some plans in place to make sure your money goes where you want it to go and the loved ones you leave behind aren’t forced into debt to pay for your funeral.

 Please do leave a review and rating. Here’s how to do it on Apple Podcasts and iTunes 

SUBSCRIBE & LISTEN TO OTHER EPISODES OF CASH CHATS (it’s free!): 

 

Further reading

> My article on why it’s time to talk about dying and your money

> Different ways to get a will (Which? online)

> Prepaid funeral plan guide (Money Saving Expert)

> Deals of the week