Martin Lewis has revealed a trick that will see savvy Brits get a free four-year Railcard which would usually cost a steep £100.
The hack applies to those who will be aged between 20 and 25 on June 30 this year and offers a 16-25 Railcard via Santander bank.
The money saving expert, 52, explained that Brits will be eligible as long as they are UK residents and have not received the train fare freebie from Santander before.
To get the Railcard, which slices a third off the price of most rail fares, keen bargain hunters must put £50 in one of Santander’s savings accounts by the end of May.
However, the Manchester-born finance guru urged those eligible to work fast in case the demand for the deal becomes too expensive for the bank to sustain.
‘I would do it right now, in case there’s so much demand it’s costing it too much and it pulls this offer sooner,’ Lewis said in a video posted on X.
Once the money has been deposited, it must stay in the account until at least June 30 or whenever the Railcard has been delivered – whichever is later.
Another condition is that the new Santander customer must must also set up mobile or online banking by the end of May – a move Mr Lewis said is designed to ‘entice’ potential customers.
Money saving expert Martin Lewis (pictured) has shared how Brits can get a free four-year railcard that offers a third of most train fares
The deal is via Santander bank, and requires customers to deposit £50 into a savings account before they can apply (File image)
‘You’ll get 50 quid saved, you’ll get a little bit of interest and you’ve got a free Railcard, so this is a no-brainer for most people,’ Lewis added.
He recommended keeping the money in the bank’s ‘simple’ 1.2% easy Access Savers’ Account, then withdrawing it when the Railcard has arrived.
Lewis directed those who plan to save money with the bank towards its ‘one-year fixed cash ISA’ that pays a more optimistic 4.25 per cent in interest.
But there is a catch – the better savings account requires a minimum of £500 before it can be opened.
Alternatively, the bank’s ‘edge saver’ account pays six per cent interest on up to £4,000, described by Lewis as a ‘cracking’ deal for those looking to save seriously.
But to unlock the edge saver, you must have an edge current account with the bank first.
Students can skip the hassle, as they get the same Railcard when opening a student account with Santander. But, Lewis explained, there are a few caveats.
In order to qualify for the deal you must be aged between 20 and 25, be a UK resident and you must not have received the freebie before, Lewis explained
The deal could save you £100 – the price of the railcard when paid in full (File image)
Firstly, Santander could pull the offer before savers get a chance to reap the benefits and, secondly, your savings could not track.
‘Worse comes to worst, you take your money out and you’ve not lost anything,’ he said.
It comes amid a rise in rail prices last month which saw fees and the price of most railcards increase by 4.6 per cent.
The rising cost of train travel has faced criticism, particularly in light of the fact that 554 trains have been cancelled across the UK every Sunday since August last year.
Mr Lewis’s top tip follows advice he issued to homeowners up and down the UK on how to check if they’re owed money in council tax rebates.
The money saving expert, 52, revealed if you’ve moved house in the last 31 years, especially to a different council area, you could be owed cash in overpaid council tax.
A post on the Manchester-born money guru’s website revealed 800,000 households may be eligible for a council tax refund worth hundreds of pounds without even knowing it.
According to data gathered from Freedom of Information requests a whopping £141 million is owed to people across 349 local authority areas in England, Scotland and Wales.
Council Tax is used to pay for vital local services like schools, rubbish and recycling collections, repairs to parks and leisure facilities.
However the price we pay annually is based on the price your property would have sold for on the open market on 1 April 1991 in England – or 2003 for Wales.
The post read: ‘Essentially, a Council Tax account will be in credit if you’ve paid more than you owe at any point.
‘Normally, this isn’t a problem – in fact, as Council Tax is usually paid in advance, you’ll often be in credit.
‘However, when an account is closed while in credit – which can happen if you move to another area, for example – this can be an issue.’
The post went onto explain how you can check if you are owed any money and how to claim it back.
It claimed the simplest way to do this is to see if your council area has an online form called: ‘Council Tax refund form.’
If you are owed money then you won’t have to do anything else as this should be refunded automatically.
However if your council doesn’t have an online form, the post recommended emailing them or calling them to ask directly.