The HfP chat thread – Friday 12th March

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• FFoxSake says:

  12 Mar12 March 08:13

  @JaneD many thanks for your Igloo Energy referral link posted in January (I used it to switch from Octopus). My £50 bonus is due to hit my account in the next week so I hope you get your £50 for referring me soon too.
  In the spirit of “paying it forward” if anyone would like to use my referral link we would both get £50 one month after a switch:
  https://refer.igloo.energy/simont6679

  Obviously check prices elsewhere as well, but the sums worked out well for me, especially as a credit balance of up to £1000 earns interest of 3% and you can pay in to the account with an Amex card (so that’s useful for hitting spend targets too!).

  • Jane says:

    12 Mar12 March 08:55

    It’s due next week apparently – thanks for using. What I’m struggling to work out though is how to reduce the direct debit to a minimum amount. I thought if I got ahead with a credit card payment it might allow me but the direct debit still keeps coming out – do you have to cancel the DD totaly does anyone know ? thanks.

    • idontfly says:

      12 Mar12 March 09:21

      I am in the same boat, topped up £400 into it with 3% interest but cant seem to amend the DD.

      • KP says:

        12 Mar12 March 10:22

        Im looking to move suppliers. Looking into igloo and octopus. Anyone else to consider? Also any tips (apart from referral codes)? Thanks

        • Rhys says:

          12 Mar12 March 10:32

          If you’re in London, London Power which is basically just Octopus but priced marginally cheaper (when I looked at least). Octopus referrals etc still work though!

        • Harrier25 says:

          12 Mar12 March 10:35

          Ovo.

        • BJ says:

          12 Mar12 March 11:30

          Do not consider Scottish Power, I’ve been with them only two months and it has been one problem after another and hours to get through on the phone. Used a referral and got £100 so I think I’ll now switch to Bulb just to get out of it.

    • FFoxSake says:

      12 Mar12 March 15:01

      The help page here suggests it can be done…
      https://support.igloo.energy/hc/en-us/articles/360003853977-Can-I-change-the-amount-I-pay-you-each-month-

      It might still take a phone call to set a low figure, hard to say (I haven’t had my first bill yet):
      “…The minimum you can choose to pay each month is 80% of your recommended payment. The self-serve feature is designed to allow you to manage your Direct Debit payments… …If you need to lower it further please get in touch with us, we can help you manage your payments in different ways, but it is a good idea to talk this through together beforehand.”

• Barry says:

  12 Mar12 March 08:14

  Morning all
  I have a Lloyds voucher booking in Apr that BA have cancelled and rebooked to the next day. It was originally booked in Oct 2020 in the half price redemptions sale.

  I called Avios to request to be rebooked to the end of Oct 2021 but they said the only way to do it would be to cancel the booking and create a new one, therefore I will lose the sale discount on the original booking.

  They said this was because the booking is only valid for 12 months after it was originally made. If changes are required outside of this, a new booking is needed.

  Is this correct?

  • Matthew says:

    12 Mar12 March 08:23

    The tricky and confusing thing here is that Avios.com act as a TA so although in theory you are correct, you’ll get passed from pillar to post trying to sort it out and sadly prob won’t get it done without going via arbitration.

  • George K says:

    12 Mar12 March 10:27

    I’ve got two bookings, both cancelled, and I’ve had conflicting information, but the main theme appears to be that you can’t extend it to October 2021 based on the rules attached to the original sale, which stipulated travel until June 2021. So June 2021 appears to override the one-year ticketing window. I’ve had an agent offer to rebook anytime before end of June free of charge and extra avios, which unfortunately is not of interest…

    I also have a ticket for a cancelled route, and refund appears the only option…

  • Joe says:

    12 Mar12 March 13:53

    I had a cancelled BA booking last week. Booked Oct 2020 with 50% off, rearranged several times, and ultimately cancelled for April.

    Called and rebooked by phone for late Oct/Nov 2021 (beyond 365 days from original booking) and without Avios availability. Absolutely no issue from BA – they just did it all by phone, and said I could pick any date I wanted!

  • memesweeper says:

    12 Mar12 March 14:19

    We had a similar experience recently with Avios.com. It took multiple calls, escalations, and threats of legal action to get the correct result (rebooking at a future date for the same price and conditions).

• Will says:

  12 Mar12 March 08:30

  Anyone else see their nectar offers diminish this week. Normal several hundred point items available but this week almost all are 10 points so has become almost worthless.

  • The real John says:

    12 Mar12 March 08:32

    Yes, discussed in the comments daily

  • lumma says:

    12 Mar12 March 08:35

    Yeah, last Friday’s was terrible, some expensive stuff was only 10 points. Only 2 decent ones, 150 points for a pizza and 100 for any jam, marmalade or chocolate spread.

    I’ve tried to avoid buying the 10 point options so hopefully when today’s offers come out they’re back higher

  • Red Flyer says:

    12 Mar12 March 08:42

    Yep same here – 14 offers and all are 10 or 20 points only. Have been doing elderly in-laws shop with ours since lockdown 3 at @£250pw and also no paper coupons at check-out for last 4 weeks. 😢

  • Brian Stevens says:

    12 Mar12 March 10:20

    I have found if you shop there each week the offers get progressively lower. I have found shop elsewhere for a couple of weeks, results in a sudden improvement in the offers to encourage me back.

    • The real John says:

      12 Mar12 March 12:59

      Not for me, Sainsbury’s is the only walkable supermarket so have only shopped there since I moved to current address.

      I have been getting good offers since the revamped scheme launched in late 2019 – until last week like everyone else.

  • Patrick Cold says:

    12 Mar12 March 10:48

    Yes. Once the various bonuses for credit card/insurance have posted I have a feeling that earning Nectar points will become a redundant exercise. Sainsbury`s range, price and quality simply do not justify shopping there in my opinion.

    • BJ says:

      12 Mar12 March 11:34

      Not so because you can churn the cards and insurance offers alone twice a year easily enough.

• BuildBackBetter says:

  12 Mar12 March 08:41

  https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-12/british-airways-mulls-biggest-jets-for-summer-jaunts-to-greece

  Good news!

  • Eugene says:

    12 Mar12 March 09:38

    My 1A &C to Crete i might be on a CW seat then..as you say good news

    • YC says:

      12 Mar12 March 10:15

      Are you already seeing the bigger plane layouts on the seat map?

  • The Lord says:

    12 Mar12 March 12:20

    Wondering how many of the Greek runways are long enough for these long haul aircraft

    • Peggerz says:

      12 Mar12 March 12:50

      HER has taken B747 in the past. CFU B787. SKG & ATH obviously are Ok.
      I was never happy going into JSI on a B737, so nothing bigger there.

  • AJA says:

    12 Mar12 March 15:11

    The Daily Telegraph had a similar report (unfortunately behind a paywall). I wish BA would use them on flights to the Canaries.

• TM says:

  12 Mar12 March 08:50

  Morning All,
  Whilst not a strictly Miles & Points related question, I note from the previous daily threads there are many here who have a lot of experience with Equity ISA’s (and topping them up with miles earning cards)

  Putting the miles earning element to one side (but feel free to add anything relevant) what recommendations do people have for a hands off, monthly investment, £ cost averaging approach to ETF investing within a tax efficient wrapper? I am leaning towards Vanguard so any advice appreciated.

  For context, I plan to use the full 20K allowance per year and I am a single man, early 30’s.

  Cheers

  • BuildBackBetter says:

    12 Mar12 March 09:02

    Vanguard is a good platform to start with. But for bigger portfolios, it can get expensive.
    Couple of sources to compare platforms / brokers:
    Search for Monevator broker comparison or ‘compare fund platforms’.

    • TM says:

      12 Mar12 March 09:07

      Thanks, sounds good. I will take a look!

  • Andrew (@andrewseftel) says:

    12 Mar12 March 09:03

    Vanguard is as good a place as anywhere to start with those requirements (assuming that you are happy with their selection of funds). Other platforms that charge a fixed fee rather than a percentage get a bit cheaper when you’ve got more than ~£50k invested.

    • TM says:

      12 Mar12 March 09:11

      Thanks Andrew. I read something similar. I understand that using Interactive investor to buy Vanguard funds (whilst having the option to buy others) is a cheaper way for larger portfolios?

      One query I had on ii was around the buying of funds on a monthly basis. I understand the yearly fixed fee element but are there extra charges for drip feeding into funds each month?

      • Scallder says:

        12 Mar12 March 09:34

        Hi TM – apologies, only seen this comment after my one already – yes there’s £1 regular investing per share/fund so can indeed be cheaper for larger portfolios.

  • Ste Cox says:

    12 Mar12 March 09:04

    I would have a look at the lifetime ISA as well, if you top up the max of £4000 a year you get an extra £1000 plus whatever interest you earn so unless you are very confident in your stocks and shares its an easy £1000 and you can still put the rest of your £20k (£16k) into an Equity ISA.

    • TM says:

      12 Mar12 March 09:08

      Thanks Ste, very good point which I had not fully considered.

  • Scallder says:

    12 Mar12 March 09:33

    For larger amounts look at Interactive Investor. Much wider choice, £1 regular investing fee and fixed price much cheaper than others when getting to slightly higher amounts which sounds like you’ll get to within a couple of years.

  • Genghis says:

    12 Mar12 March 12:35

    If just ISA, consider iWeb. Now it’s £100 upfront cost and £5 a trade so for a buy and hold investor, buying an accumulating product (say the HSBC all world c fund) it’s ideal.

    If SIPP and ISA, overall costs aren’t actually too bad for Vanguard Investor vs competition, especially if you buy regularly, whenever you can afford to.

    Selecting the right brokers depends on what you want to invest in, keeping costs low, and spreading risk between different brokers and fund offerings.

    • TM says:

      12 Mar12 March 13:42

      Thanks Genghis. Yes I should have been more specific- looking at just an ISA.

      Call me cynical but who knows when I’ll actually be allowed to access a SIPP. Considering my age and the likely changes over the next 25 years.
      Whilst I do understand the tax benefits of a SIPP, my logic is to use my employee pension (which is quite generous) for the long term and the ISA wrapper to build a portfolio that I could access earlier if needed.

      Considering the 9-5 and my property investments (which take up most weekends) I really just wanted to have a very low cost, hands off, diversified portfolio.

      Then if there is any time left I can join the ever growing ranks of millennials on Freetrade/Trading 212 to try my hand at trading (for the more speculative individual stocks that may take my fancy).

      Sounds like Iweb might be worth a look.
      I appreciate the advice, thanks.

      All I need now is for some changes in the ISA rules to allow investments into more than one in a single tax year and I’m good to go!!

      • memesweeper says:

        12 Mar12 March 14:21

        @TM

        Get a SIPP — it may seem like too long to tie up your money but you won’t reget it.

        Thanks

        Gary

      • Genghis says:

        12 Mar12 March 14:34

        You don’t need a SIPP. I have one almost as a shell just in case but keep most money in two workplace pension schemes since I’m able to buy what I want for cheaper than I could do through a SIPP. My wife however pays into workplace pension for employer contribution, instant tax relief, ‘ee NI saving and also gets the full employer NI back (which wouldn’t be the case with a SIPP) but as the workplace scheme isn’t cheap and doesn’t provide exactly what we want, we transfer out occasionally.

        Yes, there’s political risk when it comes to pensions but if you’re getting the employer contribution, it’s worth it as a vehicle.

      • Jerry says:

        12 Mar12 March 18:35

        @TM I’m with Interactive Investor. The regular investment day – 3rd Wednesday of every month is now free to buy funds (no charge). You can buy as many as you want across SIPP, Trading Account and ISA. The lowest monthly fee is £9.99 which includes 1 free trade per month worth £7.99 (includes selling, so you can buy for free and use credits to sell). It is £10 extra per month for a SIPP. Good for larger portfolios and wide selection of funds. Customer service a bit hit and miss but good research tools.

        • The Savage Squirrel says:

          12 Mar12 March 20:40

          +1 for iWeb.

          SIPPs can be very very useful depending on circumstances. One simple example: earning £120k a year (or might do in future?). Suddenly throwing £20k in your SIPP looks very attractive as it will take you back out of the evil effective 60% marginal band (due to loss of personal allowance).

• Louise K says:

  12 Mar12 March 09:14

  I am a Curve newbie…..

  Can I pay my CT with curve blue?

  • Anna says:

    12 Mar12 March 09:18

    Depends what CT is! If it’s Council Tax then usually you can pay this with a normal MC or Visa so don’t need to use Curve. Or do you mean fronted for Amex?

    • Anna says:

      12 Mar12 March 09:19

      Or check if they take Paypal, like mine.

    • Louise K says:

      12 Mar12 March 09:57

      Yes, Council tax! I did not know any of this. Will check this out. Tks

  • Doug M says:

    12 Mar12 March 11:17

    The best advice for almost all can I pay with Curve questions, is try with small amounts. The underlying card is a factor, and whether you get charged interest on the amount like a cash advance is another. You can ignore lots of what’s posted here as your own experience will vary, Curve fairly inconsistent I think.

• idontfly says:

  12 Mar12 March 09:22

  Morning, I have a couple of IHG free night vouchers, can anyone recommend an IHG hotel in Istanbul for this summer, thank you!

  • johnny_c-l says:

    12 Mar12 March 10:00

    InterContinental at Taksim Square is a solid choice.

    • idontfly says:

      12 Mar12 March 10:58

      Thank you Jonny

    • Binks says:

      12 Mar12 March 16:51

      You will get an absolutely amazing Turkish breakfast – best Turkish breakfast I’ve had. It’s in a great location off Istaklal St ( pedestrianised and equip at to London’s Oxford St).

• JustLetMeFlyAgain says:

  12 Mar12 March 10:06

  Question re: BA cancellations. I’ve just received a cancellation for both LHR-HKG-LHR flights in August/September. They’ve moved me onto the other rotation on the same days.

  I’m happy with the flights they’ve arranged but want to keep the flexibility to get my money back if I choose not to travel at a later date.

  Am I correct in thinking I can ignore their cancellation and rebooking email (i.e. not accept the new flights) until I’ve decided that I want to fly for sure. How long can I ignore the rebooking for?

  Thx

  • Alex says:

    12 Mar12 March 11:17

    You can indeed, you have up until 24hrs before your flight I believe to cancel and get all your money back as they have cancelled on you. You could also now change to any dates you wanted within 365 days if you did have any preferred dates.

    • JustLetMeFlyAgain says:

      12 Mar12 March 12:41

      Perfect, thanks. I’ve already moved these once and they’re right up against the 1 year validity so I think I’ll just wait it out and see how things look in summer.

      Thanks again!

      • The real John says:

        12 Mar12 March 17:05

        I give it 50% chance that HK will still be banning direct flights from the UK in August

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