A Martin Lewis fan managed to get a free £1,000 boost thanks to advice from MoneySavingExpert.
In a recent newsletter, the MSE team shared the story of Paul who had made the decision to ditch his old Cash ISAs. Paul said he had two fixed-rate ISAs that both had a penalty fee totalling £346 for leaving early.
Paul used the MSE website's ISA calculator to check and see if it was worth it to switch his savings and it turned out it was. He then moved his money over to a new ISA with a better interest rate which would give him an extra £1,328 worth of interest - which made him better off by £982.
Read More: Martin Lewis explains how 'pimping your pension' with key steps could help you gain thousands
He told the MSE team: "I was pleasantly surprised. I had two fixed-rate ISAs which incurred early closure penalties of £346 in total. But by switching to a new ISA with a better interest rate I'm gaining an extra £1,328 interest, so I'm better off by £982. Many thanks."
Martin Lewis was once renowned for saying that your money was "nicer in a cash ISA" - however that changed in 2016 where the personal savings allowance (PSA) was launched. He now says that cash ISAs are only beneficial if you are at risk of paying tax on your savings, reports The Mirror.
If your savings pot is smaller and not putting you at risk of paying tax, then there is no point in having the cash ISA and you should look for the best paying savings account instead. If you've got a cash ISA and are not at risk of paying tax on it, then the Money Saving Expert recommends that you move it to where you can earn more money as the savings product is renowned for paying "diddly squat".
How to move from one Cash ISA to another
The Money Saving Expert website says that if you want to move your money out of one cash ISA to another then you will need to "do it the right way". If you are moving money, then you should never withdraw it from your Cash ISA as you'll immediately lose all the tax benefits of it.
Instead, you should speak to the new provider and fill in an ISA transfer form first, and your new provider should then sort it all out, including moving the money over for you.
The transfer should take around 15 working days to complete. You are able to transfer multiple old ISAs into a new one but you will need to inform your provider.
You are able to have multiple different ISAs if you are eligible for them, however, you can only pay into one every year.
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