Petar Lekarski

Assistant Editor – News & Investigations

Petar joined MoneySavingExpert in 2019, but his passion for all things MoneySaving goes back much further – as evidenced by his 'Part of the furniture' badge on the MSE Forum.

He developed his in-depth knowledge of bank accounts, credit cards, loans and savings in the Money team before moving across to MSE News. He has written about a wide range of personal finance topics, covering everything from mobile roaming charges to supermarket loyalty schemes to railcards.

In 2021, Petar researched and wrote MSE's comprehensive and massively popular guide to diesel emissions legal claims, and he continues to maintain it as the cases progress.

Petar has also worked directly with Martin Lewis as his researcher, supporting the MoneySavingExpert with his eponymous ITV show and other media appearances over a period of 18 months.

When he's not polishing prose or crunching numbers, you'll find Petar at the cinema, eating spicy food or cycling around London on a rented bike. He also enjoys playing video games, bouldering and lists of three.

Latest from Petar Lekarski

School uniform grants – urgently check if you can reduce costs by up to £200 with support from your council

If you're on a low income and struggling with the cost of school uniform, you could get up to £200 to put towards it in the form of a non-repayable grant. To help, we've searched through council websites to find which offer it – check below to see if you qualify and what you could get. But go quick as some deadlines have already passed and late applications may not continue to be accepted for long.

28 August 2023

Broadband customers switching to or from cable networks including Virgin Media, Hyperoptic and others will still have to contact both their new and existing provider when moving across, as plans to introduce easier 'one touch' switching from April 2023 have been delayed.

13 August 2023

The new bank branches – 'banking hubs' to spread across the UK.

Seven 'banking hubs' are now up and running in the UK, after the latest opened in Carnoustie in Scotland this week – and four more locations have been announced today (Wednesday 12 July).

8 August 2023

Over six million disabled people claiming certain benefits have now been sent a £150 one-off cost of living payment. If you haven't got yours, don't panic – we've got all you need to know on how to claim your missing payment.

6 August 2023

"Incorrect and likely misleading" information about maintenance loans in England on Gov.uk could lead to a material number of students not getting the full amount they're entitled to. That's why MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis has written to the chief executive of the Student Loans Company – the body responsible for the relevant pages – urging it to fix the errors.

27 July 2023

Image shows person using a buy now, pay later service on their mobile

Plans to give buy now, pay later users much-needed new rights and protections should not be scrapped, MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis has urged. It comes as a report has emerged that the Government plans to delay the introduction of vital new laws.

17 July 2023

A frightening new scam video of MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis is circulating on social media, using artificial intelligence to mimic his face AND voice to purportedly promote an app associated with Tesla and Twitter owner Elon Musk. It is completely fake – Martin has nothing to do with it.

6 July 2023

First Direct has scrapped all fees for overseas spending and cash withdrawals on its debit card for both new and existing customers, MoneySavingExpert.com can reveal.

29 June 2023

The UK's biggest mortgage lenders have today agreed to introduce a new set of support measures for struggling borrowers, including allowing homeowners to increase their mortgage term or switch to interest-only repayments temporarily without any impact on their credit rating. These reflect several of the measures MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis has been calling for since last autumn.

26 June 2023

If you pay for energy by topping up and you're on a traditional (non-smart) meter, you have just days left to redeem your six Government energy support vouchers worth £66 or £67 each before they expire on Friday 30 June. Here's what you can do if you haven't got your vouchers, you're having problems redeeming them or they've expired.

25 June 2023

Royal British Legion to launch grants to help veterans struggling with their bills

The Royal British Legion, the UK's largest charity dedicated to supporting the armed forces community, has launched a grant scheme for veterans and their families who are struggling to pay their energy bills. The initiative will provide non-repayable emergency grants of up to £1,200 (£200 a month for up to six months), and is available across the UK.

22 June 2023

If you're booking your next holiday, watch out for fake deals, clone websites and bogus cancellations, as criminals are ramping up their efforts to trick holidaymakers out of their money this summer.

19 June 2023

E.on Next will pay 500,000 customers £8 each in compensation after they struggled to get through to the firm on the phone last year. Below we explain who will get these payments and how.

13 June 2023

Nationwide is to pay some customers £100.

If you get a £100 payment into your Nationwide current account over the next couple of weeks, don't worry – it's not a scam. The building society is making the payments to millions of its current account customers who also have savings or a mortgage with it. Here's what you need to know.

12 June 2023

The deadline to top up missing national insurance years between 2006 and 2016 has been extended for a second time – now to 5 April 2025 – and the price of doing so will remain frozen at current costs during this period. The changes mean you'll have more time to check your record and see if you can boost your state pension.

11 June 2023

Morrisons has brought back a revamped version of its 'More' loyalty scheme, including its popular 'Morrisons Fivers' perk, which lets you redeem points for £5 vouchers to spend in store or online. However, you'll now only be able to earn points on fuel and other "selected products". Here's what you need to know.

29 May 2023