Many banks will set up a monthly “sweep” facility on your bank account in order to help you save. “This means that whatever is left in your current account on the day before payday can be transferred into a savings account without you having to lift a finger,” says James Charles in The Times. Abbey, HSBC, First Direct, the Co-operative and Intelligent Finance offer this service for free, but Royal Bank of Scotland and NatWest customers shouldn’t bother – they charge £35 a year for the service.
Surf for a bargain
The internet has hundreds of websites ,“which enable consumers to get money off a whole range of items all year round”, says Melanie Wright in The Sunday Telegraph. Offeroftheday.co.uk has up-to-date information on the latest offers from well-known shops. Some goods on the site can be reduced by up to 90%. Or try Myretailcodes.co.uk & 123vouchercodes.co.uk, which lists discount 123vouchercodes.co.uk that can be used when shopping online on many big-name sites.
Earn free petrol
You can make £70-£200 a month, or get free petrol by allowing companies to put adverts on your car, says Jasmine Birtles in the Daily Express. Simply go to AdsOnCars, fill in the form and wait for them to contact you. Once your application has been accepted you will be matched up with someone looking to advertise in your area. Your car will be taken away and given a special advertising “skin” that doesn’t damage the paintwork. It’s an easy way to make money and it “will probably deter thieves too”, says Birtles.
Use the office kettle
“If 35-year-olds put the £1.80 spent on a daily cup of coffee into their pension pots instead, at 65 they would receive £3,843 more every year for the rest of their lives,” says financial planner Malcolm Cuthbert of Killik & Co in The Times.
Get what’s owed to you
An “estimated £15bn lies unclaimed in forgotten life insurance policies, investment and pensions, as well as unclaimed Premium Bond prizes and free shares from former mutual building societies”, says Niki Chesworth in The Daily Telegraph. To check for forgotten assets you can search the Unclaimed Assets Register. A search costs £18 with 10% going to charity.
Cheap accommodation
From today – 6 June – Travelodge is having a sale with rooms in its British hotels available for £19 a night. Bookings must be for between 27th June and 31st August. Reservations need to be made before the sale ends on 29 June.
And one tip to avoid…
Enjoy some free entertainment by going to watch your favourite TV shows being recorded for free, says the Daily Express. Surely its cheaper to avoid the transport costs of getting to the studio and just watch your favourite TV shows at home?