Could You Be Throwing Away Free Cash?
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Junk-mail is the bane of many peoples lives. However, if you’re throwing it straight in the bin you could well be throwing money away. . .
Like most people, I get a lot of Junk-mail through my door. I probably actually get more Junk-Mail than normal post, if I’m being honest.
And there’s nothing more disheartening than hearing the familiar thud of the postman when you’re awaiting a special letter or parcel only discover a pile of leaflets, takeaway menus and advertisements instead of your long-awaited mail.
Junk-Mail. Could You Be Throwing Away Free Cash?
But recently I’ve discovered it’s actually worth taking a closer look at what might seem like a pile of junk – because it could actually start saving you money.
I’ve mentioned before my love of couponing to save money on groceries and here were lots of money off vouchers being delivered straight to my door. No hunting them down online, no uploading receipts, no printing them out. Vouchers ready to use to save me money. Not just on food and takeaways either. I’ve had vouchers for places like Specsavers too.
Food Vouchers
Of course these leaflets are designed to get you to spend money. But what I love is they often showcase many of that weeks special offers – this helps greatly if you like to meal plan. You can see what’s cheap or the best value and plan your meals accordingly. Plus if the vouchers are for somewhere you would usually shop anyway then you are definitely saving money.
One of the most frequent supermarkets I get offers through my door for is Farmfoods – usually offering £2.50 off of a £25 spend or £5 off of a £50 spend. These are what’s known as conditional spend vouchers. However, there’s another hack which you might not have thought of which uses these vouchers as a sort of saving scheme for Christmas.
Here’s what you do:
If you were going to spend over £50 at Farmfoods anyway then use the voucher for £5 off your shopping which will take your bill down by £5 to £45. Then before you pay ask to put £5 on a Farmfoods gift card. Your total bill is still £50.
If you’d have spent £50 anyway you won’t notice not having the £5 off but if you keep this process up every week/month you’ll soon have a fair bit saved up on the Giftcard (just keep adding to the same giftcard each week) which could be used in the run up to Christmas. I know farm foods don’t sell gifts etc but it could give you a free normal weeks shop in December and then that shopping money on presents elsewhere!
It could also be a useful way to save for emergencies or unexpected expenses. At least you know you would have some money for food saved up. You could do this with other supermarkets too – Sainsbury’s often send me conditional spend vouchers in the post or spit them at the till.
Speaking of Sainsbury’s they often send vouchers if you’re registered with their loyalty Scheme, Nectar. These do sort of look like Junk-Mail as they’re not a proper letter as such, but they are usually addressed to the recipient and sealed. I recently has some which were for money off quite low spends – such as £4.50 off £30 which isn’t bad at all. Sometimes they’ll just be for extra Nectar points, but then it’s always worth grabbing these when you can too.
Other Vouchers to Look Out For
Other vouchers I’ve recently had drop through my letterbox include:
- Specsavers – Eyetest for £10 saving £15. I think this voucher can often be found online but it does save the hassle of having to print it ourselves.
- Buy One Get One Free Voucher for a local restaurant. Always worth looking out for – we love eating out and not everywhere accepts our usual money-savers such as Tastecard.
- Boots – If you’re signed up to Boots Advantage Card they often send vouchers in the post – these are usually for bonus points when spending a large amount of money – great if you were going to buy something anyway and like to save your points up for spending at Christmas.
Thank you for sharing this info, I think I will take a better look at the leaflets that come through the door before throwing any out.
I had some “junk mail” come through the door once, I opened it and it was a £5 M&S gift card from a local company that was doing work in the area to say sorry for the noise. I dread to think how many of those went in the bin.
These are great tips! Aren’t there also companies who will pay you for your junk mail?
Definitely agree it’s worth scanning junk mail and fliers in case there are useful money off vouchers. I like the conditional spend vouchers, so I can choose what to buy, including fruit, veg and own brand products. I’m less keen on vouchers for money off big brands, as even with the saving, often the branded product is still more expensive than an own-brand version. Thanks so much for joining #MondayMoney!