Cashback deals? How to take the money and run!

Take the money and run!

That’s the advice for people thinking about certain deals that seem too good to be true - and they can be if you are not careful.

But if you play your cards right they could be worth grabbing – as long as you keep your wits about you.

But some are like cheese in a mouse-trap. You can still “take the money and run” but remember the “run” bit or you’ll feel cold hard steel slamming down on the back of your neck!

It’s no coincidence that Bank of Ireland, ESB and Permanent TSB have the best cashback mortgage deals – and some the highest variable interest rates at up to 4.5%.

Cashback mortgages offer a nice chunk of cheese in their trap -  2-3% of your mortgage is offered back in cash as soon as you get the loan.

That can tot up to €4k-€6k on a €200k home loan.

The higher variable rates could cost you €35k more over the lifetime of the loan.  So you’re losing out to the tune of €30k as the mousetrap hits your neck. Snap!

But that’s only if you leave your neck in the trap. What if you snaffle the €4k, say thank you very much, and then move to a cheap new lender like AIB or KBC? You can savour the cheese without getting your mousey neck broken.

There are even serial switchers who have gone from mouse-trap to mouse-trap, snaffling cheese without triggering the trap.

One poster on the Askaboutmoney.com forum raked in €28,500 in switching bonuses from several banks after moving mortgage several times. Another apparently got €20k.

Banks have clamped down on serial switchers by setting minimum periods with previous lenders before switching is allowed and fees may apply. But it’s still only a year in most cases and the fees can be small enough.

Another poster advises getting multiple approval from several banks when applying for a loan, so the banks have to accept you when you switch. Anyway, you can check it out on Askaboutmoney.com – and get switching.

So what other cheesy traps can we raid?

Over 50s life cover offered by An Post, for example, is another good one.

This works out relatively pricey  – if you’re in good health. So just go to a regular insurer in that case. But if you’ve a long standing medical issue that will send your life cover spiralling, or even rule it out, then it can be a very good deal because you don’t need to do a medical. And they won’t ask the awkward medical questions that could scupper your cover with other insurers.

Also watch out for special offers for kids on health insurance, which can help compensate for recent hikes in the cost of cover.  The trap is that the plans with the free kids deal may not be the best for adults. The trick to removing the cheese from the trap is that your children don’t have to be on the same plan as yourself. Just split your cover.

The adults go on to a better mid-range plan for around €1200 with cover for non routine expenses – such as GP visits and optical, physio and dental care, the things children probably won’t need. 

The best of these plans are aimed at corporate clients but you can get them too. Check out www.totalhealthcover.ie for how to do it.

Then to grab an even better deal, make sure to use those freebies. These are great for marketing purposes but most people don’t bother using them. If you do bother, then you can regain much of the cost of your health cover.

I use my free GP video consultations and always make sure to use and claim back money for eyecare, physio care etc so that I get back hundreds every year.

Energy and TV/broadband deals are another classic cheesy trap. They all offer good discounts for the first year or so – but then you have to switch - or you’ll feel that steel slamming on your neck.

Online voucher deals can save you lots of money on restaurant bills and pressies. But the trap here is that you’ll get addicted and buy too many. The trick here is: don’t sign up for automatic email alerts that will have you pestered into spending more than you should – or buying a giant green beanbag, even if it is at a knockdown price!