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April 9, 2019   |   Deals

Cheapest way to watch the new Game of Thrones

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Winter is here! Game of Thrones is finally returning to Sky Atlantic for season 8 – the very final one. Here are the vouchers, offers and tricks to watch it for less. You can even get paid for the pleasure!

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Contents

Some articles on the blog contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund the blog. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or the blog’s independence. Read more here.

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Game of Thrones may be the most pirated show in TV history, but there are a few very low-cost ways for you to watch it legally in the UK – a far better option.

How to watch Game of Thrones season 8

The new series begins on Monday 15th April 2019, airing in the UK on Sky Atlantic first thing in the morning (2am) and repeating later in the evening (9pm).

The problem for most people is this channel is exclusive to Sky. You can’t get this channel on BT, Virgin, Talk Talk or any other pay TV provider (no wonder so many people download the series illegally!).

However you don’t need to have a Sky dish and subscription. You can watch it instead contract free via Sky’s NOW TV service. Like iPlayer or Netflix you can watch all the Sky entertainment channels live or catch up on-demand. So you can sign up to watch the new series then cancel once you’ve seen all the episodes.

You’ll need the Entertainment package which currently costs £7.99 a month. There are only six episodes in this final series of Game of Thrones, which means you’d need to sign up for two months at a cost of £15.98.

Cheapest ways to watch Game of Thrones season eight

Fortunately, there are some ways to pay less. Here’s a round-up of the best tricks and deals:

1. Get paid to watch it after cashback

Total cost: £5.50 profit

This is the best deal but only works if you’ve not used cashback site Quidco or NOW TV before as you can get two lots of cashback.

First, sign up to my weekly newsletter and you’ll get an exclusive link for an £18 bonus when you first join and use Quidco. You need to spend at least £15 via Quidco to get the bonus.

Then search for NOW TV and you’ll see a couple of options for the Entertainment pass. These can change frequently, but at the time of writing you can get:

  • £5 cashback when you buy a NOW TV Entertainment bundle
  • £7.50 cashback when you buy a NOW TV Stick and two month Entertainment pass

The first option has a three-month bundle for £17.99, meaning you’ll earn £23 cashback and make a profit of £5. The second lasts for a month less, but you do get a NOW TV stick – useful if you don’t have the app on your TV. This will cost you £19.99 and earn you £25.50 in cashback, providing a profit of £5.50.

When you sign up with these passes, they will auto-renew at full price (£7.99 a month), so make a note to cancel if you don’t want to continue.

> Get an £18 cashback bonus at Quidco when you subscribe to my newsletter

2. Wait one week and save £7.99

Total cost: £7.99

If you’ve previously used NOW TV and just want to watch Game of Thrones, the cheapest option is to wait one week – if you can! Since you get 30 days with the pass, starting it on the 22nd May when the second episode is broadcast will allow you to still have access to watch the final episode on the date it airs (20th May).

Though the big risk here is episode one spoilers! So avoid all social media and contact with other people in general for that first week.

3. Buy a two-month gift card and save £5.98

Total cost: £10

If you don’t want to wait you may as well grab this deal as you essentially get a third off. It’s also the best deal right now if you think you’ll carry on with NOW TV after Game of Thrones.

You can currently get a cut-price Now TV gift card with two months of NOW TV entertainment for just £10 at Currys. You can also pick up two months with a NOW TV stick for £15.

The stick is pretty handy and includes iPlayer, ITV Player and All 4 catch up services making this a decent saving.

> Buy a NOW TV 3 month entertainment pass from Currys for £10 (worth £15.98)

Cheapest way to stream the previous series of Game of Thrones

All the previous episodes are available on NOW TV too, so the above deals are the best ones. They are available until 31st May 2019, though will come back at times throughout the year.

 

April 7, 2019   |   Podcast

Cash Chats #82 – Happy New Financial Year

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It’s the start of a new tax year and with it are a fair few changes to your finances. Here’s a quick run through of the major things you need to know.

I’ve put some bullets below of the main points, but I’ve gone into more detail in this week’s podcast episode.

Don’t forget to subscribe and please do leave me a review and rating – it really helps other people find the podcast. iTunes is the most popular way to listen, but there’s also Spotify and lots of other podcast apps.

Changes affecting your earnings

  • Tax threshold increases
    • Personal allowance up to £12,500 from £11,850
    • Higher rate threshold up to £50000 from £46,350
    • In Scotland the personal allowance is also rising to £12,500, but above that tax rates are different so check it out
  • National Insurance thresholds also going up.
    • You’ll now start paying 12% NI after you earn £8,632. But you pay it until you earn £50,024 (when it drops to 2%).
  • Minimum wage aka the National Living Wage increases across all age groups
  • Pension auto-enrolment levels to increase
    • Employees 3% to 5%
    • Employers 2% to 3% 

Price rises

  • Council tax 
    • BBC report increase of 4.5% in England on average
    • It’s less in Scotland. Half increasing by 3% but some going for the cap of 4.79%.
    • In Wales can go as high as 9.92%.
  • TV licence up £4 a year (read more here)
  • Energy cap increase – typically £117 a year added to variable bills (read more about the cap)
  • Water bills up slightly – 2% on average
  • Car tax up for most between £5 and £15
  • Prescriptions up 20p to £9 in England – everywhere else gets it for free (read about how to pay less)
  • Dental charges up to £22.70 (up £1.10)
  • Stamps went up at the end of March by 3p each.
    • a second class stamp is 61p
    • a first class stamp is 70p

 

April 1, 2019   |   Podcast

Cash Chats #81 – Do you need an ISA?

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Tax-free interest on savings is great – and you don’t need an ISA to get it.

As we approach the end of the financial year and the start of the new one, banks and building societies are pushing ISAs hard. Newspapers are full of adverts encouraging you to max your allowance or open a new account. But is that the best thing to do with your savings?

In this episode of the podcast, I’ve shared why most people won’t benefit from an ISA – largely thanks to the Personal Savings Allowance. Plus, why they can be good for anyone with lots of money saved up, or if you’re a first-time home buyer.

I hope you enjoy this week’s episode. Please do leave a review and subscribe over on iTunes – it really makes it easier for others to find the podcast. You can also now listen on Spotify!

 

Read more on ISAs from the blog

The ISA that’ll give you a free £1,000 – but there’s a catch

The ISA that’ll give you a free £1,000 – but there’s a catch

 

March 26, 2019   |   Articles

American Express welcome bonus – what the rule changes mean

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It’s now harder to switch Amex cards to get a new welcome bonus as you need to have been without a card for two years to be eligible.

I’ve taken a look to see if it’s worth getting rid of your card and waiting, or if it’s better just sticking with it.

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Contents

  • Why I use American Express
  • The new welcome bonus rules
  • Is a bonus worth cancelling your card for?
  • Is there a way around the new rules?

Some articles on the blog contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund the blog. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or the blog’s independence. Read more here.

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Regular readers will know one of my favourite money making tools is my American Express credit card. I put as much of my day-to-day spending on my “Amex” as possible. Basically, if somewhere accepts it, I use it. It means I rarely use my current accounts or cash. It’s almost all American Express.

Why I use American Express

Up to 1.25% cashback

The main motivation is for the cashback. I’m currently getting 1.25% on every £1 I spend, and since we’ve been renovating our kitchen we’ve managed to rack up a few hundred extra quid this way. Other Amex cards collect membership rewards points, which can be swapped for gift cards, or Avios points.

Extra offers

There are also regular offers that give you further money back as credit on your bill. These change all the time, and many aren’t relevant. But there are always a few that are right for me. I’ve just got £10 back from spending £20 at Beer52. And every December there’s the brilliant Shop Small promotion. I think I probably make another £100 to £200 or so each year with these offers.

The welcome bonus

The other big boost to my return has been the welcome bonus you get when you apply and get accepted for a new card. Sometimes it’s in the form of 5% cashback for your first three months, and other times it’s a huge number of bonus points once you’ve spent a certain amount. These bonuses are usually worth around £100.

For the last five years or so I’ve opened a new card every year to take advantage of this bonus – as well as to avoid any annual fees which kick in after the first year.

However, there’s been a big rule change which makes it more difficult for me – and you – to open up new cards for the bonus.

The new American Express welcome bonus rules

First, all the different reward and cashback cards have been grouped together. Previously these were separated, so you could have a cashback card one year, and a rewards or Nectar Amex the next, and then go back to a cashback card. And so on.

You can now only get an Amex bonus if you’ve not had a relevant cashback or reward card for 24 months – that’s up from six months. So if you’ve got an Amex card now and want to get the bonus again, you’d need to close your card and wait two years.

Is the bonus worth cancelling your card for?

So let’s say you do just that. Close your existing card, and wait two years. That means in two years you’ll get a bonus worth around £100 on top of the cashback you earn. This assumes the offers running will be similar to those around today.

But how much cashback and offer credits could you earn in those two years? If you put a large chunk of your regular spending on your Amex then you should get more than £100 a year. And the extra offers could be worth more on top.

So by cancelling your Amex and waiting for two years, you’re probably missing out on at least £100, and probably a fair bit more.

But if you don’t like spending regularly on credit cards and just want to use one when there’s a big purchase to be made, then it might be worth taking the break and nabbing new welcome bonuses every couple of years.

Is there a way around the new rules?

There is one way you can still switch around and claim multiple welcome bonuses – though it’s nowhere near as profitable as the previous rules. And you need a wife/husband/girlfriend/boyfriend/significant other.

With your Amex, you are allowed to have a supplementary card for your partner to use. This is great as it helps you earn more cashback and you can add the account credit offers to each card – essentially getting them twice.

Though this supplementary card might have your partner’s name on it, it’s not their card. So they are new customers and able to apply for and get the welcome bonus, as long as they haven’t had their own card in two years.

This means you can still earn cashback every year, and get a welcome bonus every two years. Here’s how it could work:

Year 1

  • You open (or have) an American Express credit card
  • You get a supplementary card for your partner

Year 2

  • At the end of your first year (and when you’ve got your welcome bonus) you cancel your card
  • Your partner then applies for a card to get the welcome bonus
  • You get a supplementary card from your partner’s account

Year 3

  • You and your partner continue to spend on your partner’s account to earn cashback

Year 4

  • At the start of this year, your partner closes their account
  • You’ve now not had an Amex for two years, so you can apply for a new one and get the bonus
  • You get a supplementary card for your partner

Year 5

  • You and your partner continue to spend and earn cashback on your account

Year 6

  • At the start of this year (and when you’ve got your welcome bonus), you cancel your card
  • Your partner now hasn’t has a card for two years, so then applies for a card to get the welcome bonus
  • You get a supplementary card for your partner’s account

And so on! This might seem a bit of a faff, but you’ll get an extra £100 or so in bonuses every two years.

Which American Express cards are best now?

I’ve written about cashback credit cards elsewhere, so check out that article to help you decide which Amex is the right one for you. However, the rule changes could make a difference to which one you pick if you’re thinking of having the card for two years.

Some of the cards have a fee, which is either waived in the first year (the Gold card for instance) or cancelled out by an increased welcome bonus or cashback via a cashback site (the Platinum Cashback card for example). Though these could still be the best bet for you in the first year, they might not be in the second.

This means you might want to cancel the card at the end of year one, and open up a fee-free card for the second year, even if it pays a lower rate of cashback. That way you’ll still get access to the additional offers. Or, if you’re a high enough spender, you might still be better off sticking with the card, even with the second year fee.

The best cashback debit and credit cards (March 2025)

March 25, 2019   |   Podcast

Cash Chats #80 – Should you pay the TV Licence fee?

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Does paying to watch normal TV represent good value for money? And if not, do you have to pay the Licence Fee?

Over the next few weeks, quite a few bills are going up. One – from the 1st April – is the TV Licence, which will increase by £4 a year. It means you’re paying the equivalent of £12.88 a month to watch live TV (and not just the BBC).

With the rise of streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, it might seem like you could do without the BBC and other terrestrial broadcasters – potentially saving yourself £154.50 a year. So in this week’s podcast episode I’ve taken a look at what you actually get for your money from the Licence Fee, and if you then choose it’s not worth it, the circumstances which mean you don’t have to pay for one.

(Spoiler… I think it’s well worth paying for one).

Listen here, or you can read more via the link below.

I hope you enjoy this week’s episode. Please do leave a review and subscribe over on iTunes – it really makes it easier for others to find the podcast. You can also now listen on Spotify!

Should you ditch the TV Licence for other TV, radio and online services?

March 15, 2019   |   Podcast

Cash Chats #79 – My 14 current accounts

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Are you still with the same bank you joined when you first got an account? Chances are that’s the case, or perhaps you’ve switched once, maybe twice. If so, you’re losing out.

There’s no reason you can’t have more than one account, and there are definitely advantages to having more. This week on Cash Chats I’ve delved into my wallet to take you through each of my 14 current accounts – and why I’ve got them.

The benefits include high interest on savings, cashback on bills, monthly rewards, free cash bonuses and fee-free spending overseas. You don’t need as many as me, but two or three in your wallet can make and save you some serious cash.

In the episode I’ve also shared a few additional bank accounts you might want to consider which I’ve already had but switched away from.

You can subscribe over on Apple Podcasts, Podbean and Stitcher (and everywhere else). Please do leave a review and subscribe over on iTunes – it really makes it easier for others to find the podcast. You can also now listen on Spotify!

Enjoyed this? Check out other podcast episodes in the Cash Chats archive.

Read more:

> All the different bank account offers right now

The best bank switching, cashback, interest & overdraft offers (May 2021)

March 13, 2019   |   Articles

How much mobile data do you really need?

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You’re probably paying for far more data than you actually use. Here’s how to work out the right allowance for your phone.

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Contents

  •  How to check how much data you use
  •  How to reduce how much data you need
  • Reduce how much you pay for your mobile data

Some articles on the blog contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund the blog. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or the blog’s independence. Read more here.

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It’s now more common than not for mobile deals to come with unlimited text messages and even unlimited minutes as standard, which I think is great. If these are standard it means the difference in tariff prices is often down to the size of your data allowance. So the more you pay, the more data you’ll have every month.

And I’ve seen some ridiculous deals recently offering huge amounts of data for quite low prices. Unlimited data for £20 a month seems good, doesn’t it? And it is. If you need unlimited data.

But I’m going to say that you don’t need unlimited data. Or 40GB. Even 12GB is more than most of you should be using. So even with these cut-price contract special offers, it’s likely your bill will still be bigger than it needs to be.

Instead you’ll probably be far better off with a lower allowance at an even lower price. The key is to work out how much data you need.

How to check how much data you use

If your network has an app or online account, there’s a good chance you can check your usage through it. You should see your history over the last few months, as well as the running total for the current month. If you don’t have this in our account, you can call up your network and ask them to share this data with you.

I’m with Three and the app shows I usually use just under 2GB each month, and my usage only edges closer to 3GB on occasion. I very, very rarely head towards 4GB, and never more than this.

From this data I know I don’t need more than 4GB – and that’s likely enough for the average user. It’s possible to find SIM-only deals at this level for under a tenner every month – which is probably a lot less than you’re paying now.

So, first of all, check your current usage and compare that to what you’re paying for. Just doing this could significantly cut your bill. The next step is to look at how you actually use the data in your allowance. 

How to reduce how much data you need

Me being me, I’m careful with my data usage. By using some simple tricks I avoid unnecessarily racking up the megabytes. You won’t be able to copy me 100%, but following these principles will mean you avoid wasting data. And the less data you waste, the lower monthly allowance you actually need.  

Download music and movies rather than stream

Movies and TV are two of the biggest drains on your data allowance. Streaming a two-hour movie in SD could use close to 2GB. If it’s in HD it’s double. So don’t stream video.

Instead you should download it when you’re connected to Wi-Fi. The videos are then ready for you to watch offline. You can do this with iPlayer, Netflix, Amazon Prime and NOW TV and the other catch up services too. 

Though music files are a lot smaller you should download your Spotify playlists and podcasts too. It takes no time at all.

Turn off mobile data

Once you’ve done this you need to turn off the ability for some apps to use mobile data. I do this for anything that could eat up a lot of data, so not just video and music apps. Doing this means they’ll only work when you’re connected to Wi-Fi. It’s easy to quickly flick this option back on if you do need to use the app via mobile data.

While you’re at it, you can go through all the settings on your phone to reduce background data use by apps. Pick and choose. You don’t need your email folder to constantly check for new messages, though you probably do want to get What’s App messages when they are sent.

Use Wi-Fi as much as you can

You should always be connected to Wi-Fi at home, and ideally at work too. This will reduce a huge amount of your data use.

Be careful though about using certain apps if the Wi-Fi isn’t secure. If you’re not sure, quickly flick back to mobile data to log-in to things like mobile banking or when paying for something. But most of the time if you’re just browsing the web this makes a big difference.

Watch out for auto-play videos

Even by following the above steps it’s possible to get caught out. Some webpages and apps will autoplay videos, often adverts. If you’re worried about your data allowance and this happens just close the tab on your browser. 

With social networks it’s worth checking the settings so videos only autoplay on Wi-Fi. You can still choose to watch those videos, but at least you’re in control.

Use data exempt apps

Some SIM deals will let you use certain apps without impacting your data usage. For example, Three has Go Binge with unlimited streaming of Netflix, Apple Music, Deezer and others; Sky Mobile includes unlimited Sky Go streaming; and EE offers six months of Apple Music and Amazon Video.

Carry unused data over

A couple of networks let you carry unused data over each month, rather than lose it. Sky, ID and Virgin are among those which allow data rollover, while Smarty will refund £1.25 to your bill for every 1GB you don’t use.

Reduce how much you pay for your mobile data

Once you know how much you actually need, it’s time to change what you pay. This might be as simple as moving down a level with your existing network. Or you could shop around to see what some of the smaller networks are offering – it’ll likely be cheaper.

But you can also use this information to haggle for a better deal. Some networks are desperate to keep you and will offer big discounts. I threatened to quit Three last month and in response they offered me 20GB for £15 a month.

I knew I didn’t need that much data, and I also didn’t want to pay that much money. So I stood firm. In the end I accepted an offer of 8GB for £10 – that’s £2 less than I’d previously been paying for just 4GB.

Even though that’s way more than I need, the price is at a level I’m happy to pay. And it also means I’ve got a little more wiggle room on data every month.

Read more about cutting the cost of your mobile phone

How to get the best price on your mobile phone contract and save

14 apps to save you money on your holiday

How to sell your old phone and make some money

March 7, 2019   |   Podcast

Cash Chats ep78 – Your money MOT

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Don’t ignore your money, get a true understanding of where it all goes.

In this week’s episode I want to take you through a little warm-up. You can make sure everything is working ok with your finances before you start doing anything good or bad with your money.

It’s not complicated and won’t take you long, but at the end of this MOT you should know the true state of your finances.

So enjoy this week’s episode. Please do leave a review and subscribe over on iTunes – it really makes it easier for others to find the podcast. You can also now listen on Spotify!

Further reading

> The Money Advice Service budget planner

> Step Change free debt advice

Fix your finances in 2019 pt1: Know your money

Apps to take advantage of your open banking data

When Direct Debits are a bad idea

March 6, 2019   |   Articles

Slow broadband? How to leave penalty free

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New rules should make it easier for you to get the broadband you’re paying for. Though it won’t solve wi-fi issues.

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Contents

Some articles on the blog contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund the blog. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or the blog’s independence. Read more here.

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There’s little more frustrating in modern life that bad broadband. My work is mainly online, so a decent connection is essential, and most of the time it’s sufficient. But when it comes to streaming films and TV, I’ve had to give up when dropped connections and slow speeds cause constant buffering. So some new rules this month are more than welcome.

Your new rights

There are a few parts to the ‘code of practice’. Although participation is voluntary, BT, Virgin, TalkTalk, Sky, EE and Plusnet have all signed up – which amounts to 95% of the market. Here’s what you can expect as a consumer:

Companies have 30 days to fix speed problems or let you leave fee-free

When I’ve had speed and connection issues my major frustration has been the cycle of deferment to get anything done. Most recently it took three or four calls to get an engineer booked to take a look at my Virgin connection. Hopefully this new rule will make providers act faster.

If they don’t you can cancel and take your business elsewhere. There are likely to be some great new customer deals for you to take advantage of. Though ask neighbours who they are with and what speeds they get – it could be a case of better the devil you know.

You can cancel TV and phone contracts at the same time

One major issue with bundled telecoms is you’re often tied into the other parts of your package even if you can leave one. Now, as long as you took out the additional services at the same time as your broadband, you can cancel them all without penalties if the speed issue isn’t fixed within 30 days.

You’ll be told the minimum speed you’ll get at peak times

This only really applies to new customers – though if you’re a keen money saver then this could be you every 12 to 18 months. Now when you sign up, you’ll be told the minimum guaranteed speed at peak times, which Ofcom says are 8pm to 10pm. It’s these hours, when more people are at home and more devices are being used that more strain is put on the broadband infrastructure, and speeds drop as a result.

This applies to all connections

Until now cable wasn’t included in fairness rules. These changes cover all connection types, whether copper, fibre or cable – as long as the provider is signed up.

Ofcom broadband rules graphic
Ofcom’s guide to the new rules

What it doesn’t cover

I’ve noticed more and more when I contact Virgin about low speeds that they try to fob the issues off as wi-fi problems.  So if the problem with speeds is actually down to the size of your house, positioning of walls or placement of the router, it won’t be something the code of practice covers. I think this will be the excuse used to get around the rules – though in fairness, the speeds advertised are only into the home via a connection.

How to improve bad wi-fi signal

You can try wi-fi boosters to help improve your signal. These include powerline adaptors you put plug sockets so the signal is transferred via the electrical wiring. You plug one into a socket near your router and connect them via a cable. Then you put your other adaptors in sockets in rooms the signal can’t reach. I installed a set similar to this at my parent’s house and it works well to give them coverage in a black spot.

However they didn’t work for me at my house, possible because the wiring was on different circuits. So I tried instead a wireless extender. This acts as a relay point and works well.  They can cost more though – this is the one I got on offer last Prime Day to make it more affordable.  and

Or if this doesn’t work, you can try very expensive “mesh” systems” (like this one from BT) which create a new network for you. Or something. 

How to check your internet speed

Ideally you should connect your computer or laptop to the router via a cable to get the most accurate speeds – and those are the figures the broadband companies will use as a benchmark. But you can test on wi-fi too to get an idea. I tend to use Speedtest.net on my devices (there’s an app for phones and tablets too), and Ofcom has it’s own checker too.

How to get cheaper broadband

I’ve written a few guides to help you cut what you pay for your internet connection. Take a read off the following articles to learn more:

How to cut the cost of your broadband and landline bills

How to beat broadband price hikes

The seven levels of Talk Talk hell