Saving Money With Coupons And Vouchers

Where should I look for useful coupons and vouchers?

You can find all sorts of coupons or money-off vouchers on the internet. Just key in to any search engine "discount vouchers." There are absolutely hundreds of sites now. Then check out what it is you're planning to buy and see if you save money using vouchers or coupons before you begin. Don't forget magazines and newspapers-- they're great for discount coupons as well.

Do coupons and vouchers really 'help me save pounds'?

Coupons and vouchers can really help you save pounds, if you use them before the date runs out, of course. So, keep them in your purse or wallet, and know what you have. Send off for freebies immediately. I'm always sending off for this or that. But, I tell you what. I've stopped bothering on the internet with portals that offer you money off shops that you're going to shop at anyway. I've never found that I've ever had any actual money back, and I just don't believe it anymore, I'm afraid.

Should I use coupons immediately or save them up?

What are you saving your reward coupons for? You can't put them in the bank or the building society and get interest on them. You'll just forget about reward coupons, and they'll go to the bottom of your bag in a kind of mush that you'll regretfully find a year later.

Are store cards a good idea?

Are store cards a good idea? Only during sales and to buy something you always intended buying anyway because the rates of interest on these store cards well, if I were a private money lender I might very well be prosecuted for charging such massive whacks of interest. But if you've got your eye on something in a window of a shop, it's reduced anyway, and on the day you go in there having a promotion saying another ten percent off if you have your store card on this day, then use it. Just get the discount and then immediately and without fail I want you to destroy that card, or wrap it up in clingfilm, put it in a tin of water, and freeze it in your freezer. I don't want you to be beguiled into thinking that store cards are not real money, and do you know, they're not even credit cards. They're a kind of private slush fund that you hit when you feel really low and the bank of fairyland is going to come back and repay that money one day. I can tell you now, its not.

Are reward cards a good idea?

Reward cards are a great idea. Remember to keep them in your purse because they can save the average family £56 a year. Boots is the most generous reward scheme. Other supermarkets can be good, but I don't like the ones that send you vouchers for future purchases you may not actually want for their shop, rather than money off your bill. I like getting points on my reward cards and also paying with a credit card that gives me extras like air miles. In fact, the last family holiday I had, for four in Florence, Italy, was entirely financed by air miles that I'd received as an extra through paying in supermarkets, and also getting my points on my reward cards at the same time.