Save nearly £4,000 a year and protect your wallet from interest rate changes
22 November 2006
Moneyextra’s latest quarterly review of financial services shows how you could put thousands of pounds a year back into your wallet by making the right choices.
The total annual savings available by replacing near-worst with near-best products across a range of financial services in the third quarter of 2006 was £3,976.02, up £167.24 on the same figure three months earlier. The savings available demonstrate the importance of choosing the right financial products, whether you’re borrowing money or saving it, especially when interest rates are rising.
Robin Amlôt of Moneyextra.com said, “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.
“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!”
Among mortgages, credit cards and personal loans, the potential savings you can make by shopping around to get the right personal loan have jumped by almost a third (£99.24) to £396.36 in just three months. That move reflects the increasing cost of the poorest value loans. At the most competitive end of the market, the rates on offer were barely affected by the base rate rise during the quarter.
Travel insurance has become more expensive, with prices rising sharply at the less competitive end, increasing the gap between near worst and near best to £145.34 a year, a near 40% increase on the previous quarter.
Elsewhere, higher interest rates have actually paid dividends to those with the right current account with the returns available going up, on an annualised basis, by 20% in three months.
