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Took a trip to Manchester last night to chat on the BBC Breakfast sofa this morning with Jon, Sally and Ben about gift cards.

Giving a gift card can seem the ‘easy option’ if you’re stuck for present ideas and want to give a gift this Christmas but there’s lots of small print to wade through first to stay smart.

Some gift cards have time limits, or sneakily claw back some of the gift card value if you don’t use them fast enough, plus there’s always the risk of the card being worthless if the store goes bust before you can use it.

And it’s not just stores we were talking about – you can buy gift vouchers for ‘experiences’, so everything from Afternoon Tea to adrenalin fuelled adventures and with these, often a case of booking in advance.

Took a quick snap after the fabulous Ally had worked her magic on me at Channel 5 News and transformed me from windswept to telly ready!

Always love being invited on 5 News and tonight Dan Walker and I were talking moneysaving tips for the festive season.

Christmas can be a tough time for many people, both financially and emotionally, and news out today from the debt charity StepChange shows that one in four of us struggle to afford Christmas.  And a separate piece of research from Royal London says among those people who borrowed money to pay for last Christmas, a whopping one in eight are still paying off the bill this Christmas!

I was sharing lots of moneysaving tips on the programme but I also metioned where you can get free help and advice if you are struggling financially. This includes absolutely fantastic organisations such as StepChange, National Debtline and Citizens Advice.

Always love being a guest on the Cash Clinic on Steph’s Packed Lunch with a chance to run through the day’s news and consumer stories and chat about anything from kids’ savings deals to renting Lego, cheap days out, used car scams and how to get more power for your pound.

This time round on the show we were discussing kids’ savings accounts and the best way to get your kids started when it comes to a savings habit, student bank accounts and how to track down forgotten Child Trust Funds!

Back in the radio studio today as I’m getting ready for a whole host of radio chats about pension savings and how much you really need for retirement.

Will be on the airwaves across the UK chatting to as many radio stations as I can!

Whether it’s your local coffee shop, high street store or supermarket, retailers are keen for us to sign up for their loyalty cards, either as plastic cards on via your phone in app form.

I’ve often written and chatted about the different loyalty schemes, so it was great to be invited on the Jeremy Vine Show this morning for a chat with the fabulous Storm Huntley discussing which cards offer best value and how to maximise your savings.

We all know supermarket prices are going up while household budgets are being squeezed and food inflation has now topped a whopping 17%.

This means even if you only stick the same stuff in your trolley each week and don’t buy anything different – you can expect to fork out another £811 a year according to retail research group Kantar who regularly number crunch food prices.

And even the cost of basic brands have shot up with pasta probably the most widely publicised case. A budget bag of dried pasta has now almost doubled in price over the last two years.

I’ve been asked about ways to cut the cost of food shopping a lot recently in chats on different radio stations so here’s some of the ideas I’ve suggested.

Swap fresh for frozen

I wrote a feature recently on why some supermarkets are now rationing fresh fruit and vegetables and if you can’t get fresh or just want to save some cash – try frozen.

Buying packs of frozen veg can save money compared with the price for fresh, plus there’s less chance of waste as you only get out what you need.

If you don’t have enough room in the freezer, stock up on tinned fruit and veg – which can last years.

And don’t forget your local market and supporting small traders when shopping for fresh food – most will knock down prices even more later in the day as they clear their stalls.

Buy food nearing its ‘best before’ date

Important to know the difference between ‘best before’ and ‘use by’ dates. ‘Use by’ is all about food safety and goes on items like your meat and fish – never eat any fresh food beyond its use by date.

But ‘best before’ is all about quality and tends to be on tins of soup and beans, packets, cereals and biscuits. You can bulk buy food nearing its best before date and save money from sites like Approved Food

Find your cheapest supermarket

Supermarkets are desperate to compete with each other, and while Aldi may have taken the crown for ‘cheapest supermarket’ last year, they’re all still trying to lure us in with deals and discounts on a weekly basis.

Can mean sticking with the same supermarket every week may not be the best deal. Save time and money checking out the Trolley app or website where you can plug in your shopping list and find the cheapest place to shop.

This site number crunches prices across 15 of the biggest stores like Tesco and Morrisons and can knock a third off your weekly shop.

Shop later in the day

Most supermarkets start discounting fresh food with a short shelf life from midday onwards. The exact time varies according to the supermarket store but you’ll often start to see those little yellow discount stickers appearing from around midday.

If you can hold out till around 7pm you may well bag discounts of around 70% on fresh food. You can’t be fussy, so it’s often a case of snapping up what’s in the bargain section and using it that night or freezing it.

Worth befriending the staff who may be able to give you a heads up on what time they start discounting food. And if it’s a store with a cafe, you may find reductions on the fresh food there too.

Loving today’s studio display for Valentines Day on Steph’s Packed Lunch.  I’ll be nack in the Cash Clinic hot seat chatting money news with Steph.

On today’s menu we have the latest news on ‘buy now pay later’, rising credit card fraud and what you can do to protect yourself and how to beat mobile and broadband price hikes…..

Had a brilliant time yesterday filming a new TV Holiday Show for Channel 5.

Can’t say too much right now but as you might expect, there’ll be lots of tips, tricks and advice on ways to get the best deal and more power for your holiday pound.   So watch this space………

Great to be back on the Cash Clinic today for a chance to chat money news with Steph.

I’ll be talking bank switching and how you can get a shiny new bank account plus £175 to boot.

And why it pays hang on to your till receipt – some stores will pop you in a free prize draw for a chance to win £1,000 of free cash – if you spend a few minutes giving them feedback!

Plus today’s money news headlines, Marriage Allowance and more – tune in if you can!

And today’s TV outfit includes an Oasis skirt I picked up on eBay and jumper from Mango (paid full price for that one!)

I was on the Jeremy Kyle show on Talk TV last with a look ahead to this week’s annual Black Friday event.

Don’t be fooled into thinking this is the last day to ever bag a bargain, or even snap up one at all.  Research from consumer group Which?  always shows that well over 90% of the ‘deals’ and ‘bargains’ available on Black Friday could have been bought for less at other times of the year so stay smart when you’re shopping.

Here’s an article I wrote a while back on ways to stay smart on Black Friday and much of the advice still holds!

I’m a big fan of Steph’s Packed Lunch and absolutely loved my first time on the show today chatting over the day’s money and consumer headlines with Steph.

The last time Steph and I met was on a building site for BBC Breakfast, when we were both sporting hard hats and safety goggles, for a piece talking about jobs, wages and the economy, so was great to get more glammed up on this occasion, thanks to the amazing make up team.

And the crew were so welcoming and friendly, and even brought me a toasted cheese sarnie before going on air.

I’m a big easyJet fan.  The bright orange planes are always my first choice of budget airline and I’ve been travelling with them across Europe for nearly 20 years.

First time round was for a friend’s wedding in France and since then I’ve flown with them on heaps of European trips to Amsterdam, Venice, Geneva, Paris, Gibraltar, Berlin, Barcelona, Kos and closer to home with trips to Belfast, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

But budget airlines do what they say on the tin; they’ll get you there and back for a rock bottom rate, (if you book early enough), but any extras are down to you.

So here’s how to beat the budget airlines and save some cash.

Be first at check in

No I don’t mean racing to be first in the queue at the airport.

Once booked, I stick a note in my diary to remind me when online check-in opens.   With easyJet it’s 30 days before and I jump online and check in as soon as I can.  So far, even with three of us, we’ve never found ourselves separated by the booking system unlike the common complaints you hear about other budget airlines.

Plus means you can print out your boarding pass well in advance of your flight.   Or easier still download it to your phone to save printer nightmares or having to face extra charges if you lose your paper version on the way to the airport.

Cabin bags only

Forget hold luggage.  You’ll pay for each bag on each flight and spend ages waiting for it to arrive the other end.

I pack light with a cabin bag and ready to go with no waiting around once you arrive. If it’s a beach break it’s easily done and with some clever packing you can get a fair bit in, though trickier if you’re going somewhere colder where you’ll need bulky layers or ski stuff.  Or if you can’t cope without a bigger bag, book one for the hold and share it!

Size matters  

Yes it’s got to the stage where you pretty much need a different case for every airline, especially if you’re going to do the cabin bag trick.

Don’t second guess the size or assume you’ll make it through with a bigger one, or try and sneak on with a second bag.  Ok so the ground staff don’t get down on their hands and knees and measure every bag but it’s the luck of the draw whether you’ll be asked to pop yours in the size gauge machine.   And if your bag is taken off you at the gate because it’s too big it can cost you around £40.

In all the years I’ve flown with easyJet I’ve only once been asked to pop my cabin case in the size machine and that was at Majorca airport several years ago.  And while I make sure my case is the right size, it has on occasion been over some of the budget airline weight limits especially on the trip home!

And while there’s no guarantee, I have ‘tested’ the ‘one bag only ‘ policy with easyJet and found you can often get away with a rucksack or shoulder bag as well as your cabin case on the return flight, especially at smaller airports if its busy.  However it’s pretty much guaranteed that you’re unlikely to get away with this on your way out of the UK.

Don’t eat on the plane

The mark up on plane grub is huge.  So stock up ‘airside’ on snacks.

While even a ‘meal deal’ from Boots or bars of chocolate from the airport WH Smith may be more pricey than the cheapest deal on the high street, stocking up on snacks is still bound to save you money compared with rates in the air.

The one concession I do make is having a coffee or glass of wine (depending on the time of day!), once I’m airborne but funny enough compared with the bar prices at the airport, I’ve usually found on board ‘bar’ rates are actually pretty competitive.

Price rises are never good news, especially when they’re on the ‘essentials’ like food and energy.

For some people faced with rising prices, a spot of cutting back on spending and tightening their purse strings may make enough in the household pot to cover the extra living costs.

But if you’re already struggling to keep your head above water and any price rise, however small, is going to tip you over the financial edge and into serious debt, you need to get help.

Get free help if you’re struggling

Citizens Advice, National Debtline and StepChange are all brilliant organisations that offer free advice. And don’t put off contacting them for fear of being judged, or given a hard time as that’s not what they’re about at all. They’re there to offer free help, support and advice.

And contact your lenders too, so your mortgage lender or landlord, energy supplier, local council if you’re struggling with council tax, credit card companies and so on; basically whoever you owe money to, and find out about making reduced payments and any financial help.

Check you’re claiming every penny

If you’re on a low income, it’s worth checking you’re getting all the benefits and payments you’re due.

There’s often no ‘one size fits all’ criteria, as with some benefits the level of payment and what you’re entitled to depends on your personal circumstances.

You can plug your details into this handy free benefits calculator for a quick five minute financial check up.

Quick cut blitz tips

Go through all your bills and if you’re out of contract on your TV package, mobile deal or gym membership, ditch it to save money, or try and haggle down the price.

When going for a ‘haggle’, always ask for ‘disconnections’ as they’re the ‘power people’ who can authorise the biggest discounts to keep you as a customer.

Switching was once my favourite moneysaving tip, but right now, certainly within the energy world, sticking with your supplier’s standard deal with the price cap is likely to be your best bet, but there’s still ways to switch and bag some cash.

Some banks offer free cash if you switch. Right now Nationwide dish out £100 to new customers switching to its FlexDirect account and it’s £130 with First Direct

Check your bank statement

Yes it’s never going to be fun bedtime reading but five minutes ‘work’ could save you some serious cash.

Check for old direct debits and standing orders you’re still paying out on. Stuff like old subscriptions for magazines you don’t read, gym memberships you don’t use, extended warranty insurance for gadgets you no longer have or even those pesky anti virus ‘auto renewal’ things. Yes I’m looking at your Norton! Once again you can haggle down the price.

Smart supermarket shopping

I’m a big Aldi fan and having ‘consumer tested’ lots of products in their range for my magazine column I really can’t tell the difference, beyond the packaging. But what I do know is our grocery bill is so much cheaper than my usual supermarket. So well worth giving the likes of Aldi or Lidl a go, as you can save serious cash.

When it comes to Christmas presents, it’s the season of goodwill, so what happens if you’ve been given a gift you won’t use or like?

A jumper that’s too big? Too small? Or not your colour? Or maybe you’ve been given duplicate presents, like two fabulous coffee makers, but only need one?

When it comes to getting a refund or exchange on unwanted Christmas gifts, you can be at the mercy of the retailer.

Returns rights on the high street

Bricks and mortar stores don’t legally have to offer refunds or exchanges on unwanted items, although many do have very generous returns policies.

These are typically around 30 days, although can be far longer over Christmas, often well into the New Year.

However whether you can get a refund, exchange or gift card depends on the store’s own returns rules. Some may insist on the original receipt, or a gift receipt, while others may just be happy to see the item’s unused with the store branding on the label, wrapping or box.

Watch out with refunds. Even if stores offer refunds on unwanted goods, in most cases, they’ll only process them back on the original payment card. So unless the buyer paid cash, or comes with you to return items, you may have to accept an exchange or gift card.

Gift receipts

These are a valuable tool, as they ‘transfer’ the buyer’s rights to the person they give the gift to. Plus it means any refund or exchange is given at the original price paid, not the current selling price, which may now be discounted by 70% in the sale.

If items are faulty, and you produce a gift receipt, you should get a refund or replacement, rather than the buyer having to return the item.

Returns rights online

When buying online, you get a whole heap more rights than buying on the high street, and can get a full refund on unused items, simply because you change your mind.

Great if you’re the one buying, but with presents bought online, it’s the original ‘buyer’ who gets these rights. And even if you pluck up the courage to ask them to return your present, chances are post Christmas, they may be beyond any time limits set out under the Consumer Contracts Regulations.

This gives the buyer 14 days after receiving items to tell the seller they’re returning the item, and another 14 days to send it back. So if friends and family are early shoppers and snapped up your pressy way back in October, any returns limit may have long since gone.

That said, once again, always worth eamailing the retailer, to ask if you can get a swap or exchange if the item’s clearly branded.

Black Friday is a massive American import that’s now flagged up both sides of the Atlantic as an annual shopping bonanza, with stores eager to lure us in with the promise of deals and discounts in the hope we’ll splash the cash.

Before you dash out in the hope of bargain hunting, here’s my five easy ways to stay smart on Black Friday!

Use a price tracker

Most important message first – Black Friday isn’t the last day on earth to ever bag a bargain! So don’t get carried away and give yourself a financial hangover by overspending and racking up a massive credit card bill.

You know the old saying ‘all that glitters’ and all that? Yes many Black Friday deals aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.

In fact well over 90% of last year’s Black Friday deals were actually cheaper in the six months before the much hyped sales event last year according to consumer group Which?

So if you’re buying on Amazon always use its exclusive price tracker tool that number crunches prices all year round to check if today’s deal really is the best one.

Watch out for scams

Fraudsters are jumping aboard the Black Friday bandwagon, eager to rip us off and relieve us of our hard earned cash, so be on your guard for random emails with links to ‘special offers’. And if you’re expecting parcels to be delivered, don’t fall for any of the spoof texts claiming to be from the likes of DPD and Royal Mail needing payment before delivery.

Shopping online? Always make sure online sites have a padlock in the address bar and the website starts with ‘https’ to ensure they’re super secure for payment.

Comparison sites are your best friend

Saves trekking round the shops comparing prices, just pop in what you want and see who’s got the best deal with price comparison sites like Idealo and Pricespy

Remember to factor in any delivery charges, or check the minimum spend for free delivery, and check model numbers carefully on gadgets and tech. One wrong letter or number and you can be comparing prices on last year’s model instead of the newest one!

Check returns rights

You’ve more rights buying online than in bricks and mortar stores, as you get 14 days to change your mind, plus another 14 to send stuff back.

Unless stuff’s faulty, you may be liable for return postage if you change your mind, so always check returns rules on the website before buying.

On the high street, many stores have generous ‘goodwill’ returns policies, so you may still be able to get a refund or exchange if you change your mind on an impulse purchase, but check before you buy. So hang on to that receipt – just in case!

Best way to pay

Pay by credit card if what you’re buying costs over £100.

Means instant legal protection under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, so if the company you buy from goes bust, or goods arrive faulty and the company won’t play ball, you can tap up your credit card company for a refund as ‘Section 75’ makes both the ‘supplier’ and your card company jointly liable!

Debit card payment also offers protection under the Chargeback scheme but it’s not legally binding and PayPal has its own refund scheme too.

Just make sure you never ever pay by bank transfer whatever the seller’s excuse!

Breakdown insurance can save big bills if you run into car trouble, but there’s no ‘one size fits all’ policy, so here’s the nuts and bolts of what you need to know.

When it comes to the big players of the breakdown world, the AA and RAC are the most well known, and both use their own branded patrol vehicles. There’s lots of other providers on the road including Green Flag, Start Rescue, Gem and Emergency Assist, and they usually hook up with local breakdown providers and garages to help you out.

Basic breakdown cover costs from under £25 a year, so just £2 a month, but with ‘basic’, you get what it says on the tin. If you need help, you’ll get a free call out, usually around an hour’s help at the roadside and if your vehicle can’t be fixed, a tow to the nearest garage.

Cover for you or your car?

Vehicle cover is cheapest, and the one to go for if you only drive one motor.

If you drive other cars, then ‘personal’ cover can be a better, though pricier option. This means you’re covered both as a driver or passenger in any vehicle.

Most breakdown policies cover petrol, diesel, electric and hybrid vehicles, but do check before buying.

How much cover do you need?

On top of the ‘basic’ cover, you can choose other options, like ‘Home’ which can be invaluable on cold Winter mornings as means a mechanic at your door.

The most expensive package usually includes basic, home plus ‘Onward Travel’, or ‘Relay’, which usually covers the cost of taking you, and your passengers, to your final destination, along with the cost of a hire car while your wheels are being fixed. So if you breakdown on the way to the airport, you’ll get taken there even if your wheels aren’t up to the job.

You can pay more to extend UK cover across Europe in case of unexpected holiday breakdowns too.

Call out limits

Handy to have, but breakdown cover isn’t a licence to call a mechanic for every niggling problem or save money on servicing.

Most breakdown companies won’t come out for recurrent faults, and with some, having a regular service may be a condition of policy cover.

Watch for call out limits. Some providers, like Emergency Assist, have a four call out limit per year on basic cover, while Green Flag has unlimited call outs, even on its most basic ‘Rescue’ option.

The RAC’s cheapest ‘Standard’ policy offers five call outs a year, although it’s more expensive packages are unlimited.