Some Fools have been getting free mobiles and free contracts through cashback details. Now you can get the same deal plus £35 extra!
In 8 Cashback Mobile Phone Tips! I explained the dodgy practices that you face when attempting to get a free, or very cheap, mobile deal.
My concerns still stand, although since then I have had some anecdotal evidence saying that these deals do work, albeit often with much inconvenience and irritation, caused by a narrow window for requesting your cash back, slow processing of cashback, and arguments as to the amount due.
Still, if you are organised, and you can be bothered to put in the effort, and if you stick to vendors that have generally paid cashback properly, it's a great money-saver.
Taking it to the next level
These cashback deals sometimes grant you a free phone, plus they refund every penny you spent on your package. So, if you're paying £35 per month, this adds up to £420 by the end of the year. With the best cashback deals, you'll get the whole lot back (eventually).
But a friend of mine discovered a way to get the same deal, plus he got an extra £30 cashback, meaning that he ended up getting paid to take out a mobile phone and contract.
How it works is you use the same websites to get cashback as you'd normally use, but you get to those sites through another one called Quidco. Taking a quick look at the links, I can see that by going through Quidco to the mobile retailer 'Cool New Mobile' you can get a free phone and 12-month cashback deal that costs you nothing by the end. Plus, Quidco will give you £35.
In order to find out how much cashback you've earned, you submit an 'earnings enquiry' with Quidco. You usually get your cash back three to four months after the purchase. Quidco keeps the first £5 of cashback you make each year.
It's worth considering the sorts of catches you can expect. Going back to Cool New Mobile, Quidco warns that, when you buy from that vendor, you must submit an earnings enquiry to Quidco 3 to 14 days afterwards in order to get your cash back. Quidco says that this is because of Cool New Mobile's terms.
No doubt these sorts of conditions will vary from shop to shop, so make sure you read about it before you click through to the vendor. Always read the small print!
> Don't forget to read 8 Cashback Mobile Phone Tips! for more guidance.
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> Six Steps To Cheaper Broadband