Should you panic buy fuel? A true prisoner’s dilemma
Many forecourts across the UK have queues, and shortages are starting. I’ve already scootered past one "sold out of diesel" sign. While the potential truckers’ strike was the catalyst, that’s no longer the problem. The issue is the resultant panic. It’s a classic prisoner’s dilemma. The concern is if you don’t act and everyone else does, it’s...
Why stamps that say ‘1st’ stay valid in perpetuity (so hoard ’em)
Stamp prices will be hiked on 30 April, so bulk buy "1sts" and "2nds" now and they stay valid so you can beat this. I’ve been yelling this to anyone who’ll listen, but some have questioned whether this will always be the case. So I thought I’d explain. What’s happening? From 30 April, 1st class letter-sized stamps...
Stamp Duty – can you fix Britain’s worst tax?
I hate stamp duty. It’s not that I object to a tax on purchasing property. It’s this distortive tax that has absurd cliff hangers meaning an extra penny on a house’s price can cost thousands. So on the back of last week’s Budget, which fiddled with the rates but did nowt to change the problem, I’ve a...
Tesco scores second own goal in the ‘£50 iPad’ fiasco
First there was the price error – Tesco Direct offering the new iPad online for £49.99. Cue lots of people asking "I’ve bought it, does it have to honour it?", only to be disappointed that the answer was no. While other companies like M&S, and famously Zappos, have previously honoured such breaches regardless of the law, Tesco...
A new danger for anyone who shares a flat / house
Update 22 March: Hoorah! Since writing the blog, Experian contacted us to say it’d read it and seen your responses and has now changed its mind about the ‘financial linking’ element. See Experian u-turn for the full details. It is also going to think more about how to protect the ‘joint and severally liable’ if their flatmate...
PIP breast implant refunds via credit card companies – will it work for everyone?
PIP breast implant refunds via credit card companies – will it work for everyone? There’s big news today that a woman got a refund off Lloyds TSB for her PIP breast implants which had burst. This happened as she’d paid on a credit card and the purchase cost over £100, meaning under Section 75 law the card...
The UK’s mortgage ticking time bomb
Mortgage costs for most are hugely expensive –- a ticking time bomb ready to blight the finances of millions and put the economy at risk. Whether it’s a lack of political will, clout, or ideas, nowt’s being done to stop it. If you feel a sense of déjà vu over that sentence, don’t worry. It’s not you,...
We don’t hate banks — busting this and other myths about MoneySavingExpert.com
No one has ever quite said to me, "you run that one man, bank-hating website charity, to help those in debt stop spending". But in combination, that’s some of the assumptions people make about the site. So I thought it time for a bit of myth busting. MoneySavingExpert.com hates banks. Not true. We hate bad bank behaviour,...
“Gambling Introductory Offer Loopholes board” – consultation results
A few weeks ago, I launched a user consultation into the future of the forum’s Gambling Introductory Offer Loopholes board. The board was originally set up to discuss taking advantage of risk-free intro loopholes, but over recent years their growing complexity has made it difficult for the forum team to manage. You can read the full explanation...
Eek, my competitiveness embarrassed me at the Ultimate News Quiz
The Ultimate News Quiz is an annual event, where teams/tables from across broadcast news organisations compete in aid of Action for Children. The room was jammed with many big names from TV and radio news – Andrew Marr, Adam Boulton, Emily Maitlis and others like Martha Lane Fox, Rory Bremner and more. My agent had put a...
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Recent Blogs
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Is it time to ban Christmas presents?
14 September 2020
Update September 2017: It’s eight years since I first braved this subject, expecting a snowstorm of protest. Instead, year after year more join in, like Julia who recently tweeted me, “@MartinSLewis, finally took your advice and told my family I can’t afford Christmas presents. What a weight off my mind. Thank you.” One year even the Archbishop of... -
Martin Lewis: I confess, I did a 'decoy effect' experiment on my Twitter and Facebook followers… and it may be why they're buying more Jaffa Cakes
7 September 2020
Behavioural economics is a powerful science. Some retailers are undoubtedly using it to make us pay more to get less. One element is the 'decoy effect' – where a higher-priced item is sold, to make items next to it look like bargains. So I wanted to do a little experiment to test it -
Martin Lewis: Payment holidays extended – but should you take one? Mortgages, credit cards, loans, payday loans, car finance and more
11 August 2020
Within the last week, we've seen the extension of coronavirus credit card, personal loan and overdraft help to 31 October 2020, with mortgage payment holidays already extended. The regulator's other help schemes are also likely to be extended too, including car finance and payday loans, yet should you do it?
