Martin Lewis shared a cheeky moment with a member of his audience when he jokingly pointed out that she had used a calculator to calculate a “simple sum”.
The money saving expert, 52, was explaining lifetime ISAs on The Martin Lewis Money Show Live on ITV when the awkward interaction took place.
He discussed who was eligible to open this particular ISA and warned that there was a risk of receiving a 25 per cent penalty if you withdraw the money too early or if you don’t purchase an eligible property.
Speaking to the crowd, Lewis said: “Someone here has a calculator, who has the calculator?”
A woman waved the device in the air, to which Lewis said, “Are you in finance or something?” She smiled and replied, ‘I am, yes.’
He then asked her to do a “simple addition” and told her to add 25 per cent to 10,000, before telling her she needed to multiply 10,000 by 1.25.
The audience member then typed the sum into his calculator and responded, “Um, 12,500.”
Martin then quickly responded to the response, saying live on television: “What you could have done mentally.”
Martin Lewis told the woman, who was in the audience, live on television that he could have made that sum “in his head”.
Regardless, the audience member was a good sport and laughed at the comment before agreeing with the show’s host.
But Lewis then gave him another sum to calculate on the calculator and admitted: “You couldn’t (do it mentally) next.”
He then asked the woman to subtract 25 percent from 12,500 by multiplying the number by 0.75.
Entering the numbers into the calculator, the woman said, “9,375,” with a slight stumble over her words.
Lewis then quickly abandoned the awkward exchange and warned that people can be penalized for withdrawing cash prematurely.
If people withdraw their savings to buy a home, they must be first-time buyers and purchase a property worth a maximum of £450,000, a rule that has not changed since 2017.
Each week, Lewis interacts with a live audience in the studio and also answers questions from people online about the different accounts they can open and the financial benefits they can receive from banks and the government.
This comes as the money journalist revealed. that now is the best time to start festive shopping and warned against waiting for last-minute sales before Christmas – during last week’s episode of the show.
The woman, who said she worked in finance, laughed at the comment, apparently embarrassed.
The woman did the sum on her calculator, but Lewis told her he could have calculated it without it.
The money saving expert, 52, was explaining lifetime ISAs on The Martin Lewis Money Show Live on ITV.
Martin urged tightwads to take advantage of Black Friday deals, telling viewers they could save an average of 10 percent more than waiting for last-minute deals.
Black Friday is the annual money-saving month and brands around the world are reducing their prices for a limited time. This year’s Savings Day falls on Friday, November 29.
Pre-Christmas sales are usually known as Boxing Day sales, which take place just before the big day and can be a tempting option for last-minute shoppers hoping to save on gifts.
During last week’s Tuesday episode, Martin answered a viewer’s question about when is “the optimal time to buy Christmas gifts.”
They asked: ‘When is the optimal time to buy Christmas gifts? I often find that items are discounted before I even give the gift. And should gift vouchers be avoided?
She revealed that “the optimal time to buy Christmas gifts is January,” but explained that using Black Friday deals could also be cheaper to keep a tight rein on the purse strings.
‘In general, the January sales are the cheapest. There are two ways to do it: buy them well in advance or give someone an IOU if you’re brave enough and say: I’ll buy it once the price is lower, then we won’t be hostage to this retail festival we seem to live in. .’
Offering a “more practical answer,” Martin then revealed a side-by-side comparison conducted on 50 items to determine which is the cheapest time to buy: Black Friday or the pre-Christmas sales.
The money-saving expert revealed that ’70 per cent of items were cheaper on Black Friday, 12 per cent were cheaper in the pre-Christmas sales and 18 per cent were the same.
‘So if you’re shopping for Christmas, Black Friday is the time to do it.
“I know it’s trash talk, but if you get the right item and it’s something you need, it’s time to buy it.”
Your best tips for making the most of Black Friday deals. He urged buyers to check prices of desired items immediately.