How much have you saved?

karenj

Not really utilised the site as I should have done since joining, but a few handy tips came in for us:

Use 18866 for all calls - must have saved a fortune as many of my calls are to my parents in Spain on a mobile phone!! 15p per minute - how much is BT charging????

Other half bought a second hand car last September and I told him to put it on his credit card which has 0% interest for purchases. Debt has now been transferred to Cap 1 18 month 0% interest free for BT, so no interest charges there...

First Direct - opened up bank account paying in £100 and got £35 paid in for opening it. This was through a mailing though, but I first saw the £25 on this site.... In one month I have earned 9p interest on £135 balance - more than my other current account - not much, but hey pennies make pounds!!

Just looking at the ISA First Direct interest rate offer till 6 October, so will put some money in there.

7% interest on Halifax regular savings account opened in October last year.

Refuse to phone 0870 numbers and look on the saynoto0870 website for the geographical number, or alternatively get them to ring me back!

Probably only minimal to some of you MSEers, but wow, the way to do it to save money is the real crux of it!! Never thought of putting salary into a high interest account and paying for everything on CC. OK if 0% purchase offer, but even so, would be able to pay full amount off due on CC each month and still gain some interest in my account!!

Thanks to everyone's postings and to Martin for setting this site up. What an eye opener!! Only problem is I should look at the site 24/7 to see what offers are available instead of every couple of days, then I could save even more!!

beefyburt

Last year i wanted to buy a digital camera. In Jessops it cost £180(Nikon Coolpix 2100 for you geeks). I went in ,had a look and a play, and as i was leaving the shop the assisitant said" dont forget we price match, even internet site". Talk about a challenge! So i went onto the 'net and found a site selling them for £135.Plus they had flash cards cheaper. Printed off the web pages and went back to Jessops, who were a bit shocked at the price, so much that the Manager had to ring Head office. BUT, they agreed to match the price, bless 'em. So bought the camera, safe in the knowlege that the shop will be around for a while and i could easily take the camera back if there was a problem. As if that wasnt good enough, the day after Nikon advertised a £20 cashback on the camera, so saved even more. The great thing about MSE is that it puts you in the frame of mind to save money, it makes you think that you can, and of course you should always try. Keep up the fight for the right to SAVE DOSH!!!

Gonzo1966

What a brill site this is.

My wife and I have had a recent purge due to the fact that we would like to purchase a house in about 12 to 18 months time, but our finances are in a pretty rubbish condition at the moment.

Anyway, after finding MSE (I can't remember how I got here), I have been totally addicted to this site. The articles relating to the 'credit card shuffle' caught my eye.

If our card balances remain the same (which they won't), we will save an amazing £1344 in interest payments alone. This will also be the first month in 10 years that our bank account will be in the 'Black'...

Many, many thanks for this valuable piece of education and superb money saving tips

quester

Since joining this wonderful site a few weeks ago, so far I have saved from discounts, haggling, special offers etc £145.68 to date.

Many thanks to Martin and all MSE members for your contributions, I'm learning so much!

before_hollywood

it's surprising how much can be saved.
in my case i can afford what i want- recently personal cd player (panasonic) £19.99, freeview box £34.99. read the mse book and it is fab!

Sofa_Sogood

About to save about £30 per month (at least - it could be double ) by cancelling all newspapers & magazines.

Small time I know, and I'm not a 'real' moneysaver, but it's £30 in a jar that I can see.

And I can always watch the news or look in "discussions" on here And Mr S agrees

gooismeid

Mobile phone - haggled 100 mins instead of 30 for £15 on 2 contracts, plus 2 new phones! - at least £200 a year
life insurance - ditched critical illness and a portion of life insurance after checking with my employer that I already had a fair bit of cover as a perk, took Martin's advice on Cavendishonline for a new cheaper policy - £1600 a year
Car insurance - shaved about £400 off two policies!
House insurance - shaved £200 off it this year!
Bank account - was costing £10 a month, now we get interest when in credit! - Saved over £120 a year
Travel insurance - get it free with bank account! - saved £50
Innumerable freebies and cheap deals - I reckon about £500 this year
Put our meagre savings into a cash ISA - that's about £100 extra interest
So that's over £3000 this year I've saved, just for a few hours' work and signing a few forms. Getting into the habit of looking for bargains and budgeting properly will also mean big savings - which helps when you've got a huge mortgage and 2 kids... Thanks Martin!

DMDz

Spend £100 a month phoning Dubai - found 1899.com thanks to MSE. Savings? £11 on my first call, £6.50 on my second call. NTL Charge 75p a minute - 1899.com just 4p! Thanks Martin!

RachelD

So far I've saved a heap on telephone bills with 18866 and since I was with them from the first that's over a years's worth . £30 a month easy.
I've passed them on to the entire office and my sister and 6 people are making similar savings and spreading the word too.

I usually stay with my sister when I go to Ireland and instead of buying flowers, taking them out for a meal etc I bought a digital phone with two handsets- recommended cheap at Argos- set it up on 18866 and left it as my parting gift. They were reluctant to change from BT but are now wholly converted and have passed the deal on to all their friends.

My latest saving is £24 a month by switching from SWEB.

MSE_Martin

Nice to read RachelD - but i hope you're telling them about this site and joining up the email too