Make £4,000 in an afternoon
Switching to the best-value loans, credit cards, mortgages, and savings accounts can save £4,000 a year
Wednesday, 22, Nov 2006 09:51
Britons can make themselves almost £4,000 a year better off by switching to the best-value loans, credit cards, mortgages, and savings accounts.
That is according to the latest figures from Moneyextra.com, which show people moving from the near-worst to the near-best financial products can make £3,976.02 extra a year.
This is £167.24 more money than was available by switching three months ago.
"At this time of year, when consumers’ minds are turning to spending perhaps not wisely but all too well for Christmas, it’s more important than ever to make sure we’re getting value for money for our money," said Robin Amlot of Moneyextra.
"Shopping around for just the right present for the person you love is second nature. Shopping around for just the right financial product or service for yourself should be too."
Mortgages are where the most money can be saved.
If someone switches from one of the worst-value mortgages on the market to one of the cheapest mortgage rates they can save £2,486 a year in payments on a £110,000 interest-only mortgage.
The next largest saving available is on credit cards, where moving to the best-value credit card deal can save £462 in interest payments a year on a balance of £2,500.
Personal loans and savings accounts can also see people far better off by moving.
Moving £5,000 in savings to one of the best value instant-access savings accounts can see you £235 better off, while taking out a £9,000 loan with a poor-value provider costs £396 more than it would with the cheapest personal loan on the market.
There are also savings of £145 available on travel insurance, £140 available on term assurance, £60 on current accounts and £51 on ISAs.