Martin Lewis money tips: 25 of his best bits of advice to take into 2025 on savings, energy and more
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Martin Lewis has helped millions of consumers save money over the years with his advice on household bills, mortgages and your consumer rights, to name a few. For many families, it has been another tough year for their finances, with interest rates still high and energy bills set to rise again next year. But thankfully, there are ways to cut your costs - so as 2024 comes to a close, we've rounded up the best tips from the MoneySavingExpert.com founder to help you into the New Year.
Martin says you could potentially boost your state pension by thousands by plugging the gaps in your National Insurance record. Most people need 35 qualifying years on their National Insurance record to get the full new state pension and ten years to receive anything at all. If you have gaps in your record, you could receive less state pension than you were expecting.
At the moment, you can buy back missing National Insurance years dating back to 2006 - but the rules are changing so that after April 5, 2025, you will only be able to go back six tax years. Martin says this is the "most lucrative" thing you can do. It costs £824 to buy a missing National Insurance year, and this adds up to £328 each year to your pre-tax state pension.
Martin has urged first-time buyers to open a Lifetime ISA (LISA) savings account to help give them free cash towards the purchase of their first home. A LISA is a tax-free savings account in which the government gives you a 25% bonus on your savings. You can open one anytime between the ages of 18 and 39 years.
