Find money you didn't know was yours

Applies if: You (or your child) were born in the UK between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011.

Every child born in this window got a government-funded savings account. Around 758,000 are still unclaimed, worth about £1.6 billion. If you never claimed yours at 18, it is still sitting there.

Applies if: You have changed jobs at least once and did not transfer the old workplace pension.

There is an estimated £31 billion sitting in forgotten UK pension pots. Every job you have had since 2012 auto-enrolled you into one. The government tracing service finds the provider free.

Applies if: You have ever moved house and lost track of an old account, or inherited from someone who might have.

Billions sit in forgotten current accounts, savings accounts and cash ISAs. One free service checks most UK banks and building societies at once.

Applies if: You or a relative have ever held Premium Bonds (check childhood gifts from grandparents).

NS&I holds millions of unclaimed prizes because winners moved house. Prizes never expire. Checking takes one minute with your holder number.

Applies if: You have changed jobs, had two jobs, or seen codes like BR, 0T, W1 or M1 on a payslip.

Millions of people are on the wrong tax code and never find out. You can reclaim overpaid tax for the current year plus the previous four.

Applies if: You are married or in a civil partnership, one of you earns under £12,570 and the other is a basic-rate taxpayer.

The lower earner transfers £1,260 of unused Personal Allowance to their partner. Claims backdate four tax years, and HMRC pays the arrears as a cheque or bank transfer.

Applies if: You wash a uniform, buy tools, pay professional fees, or worked from home under employer instruction.

HMRC has flat-rate allowances by occupation (nurses £125, some trades £120 to £140). Claim yourself with form P87 in minutes; never give a claims firm 30% for this.

Applies if: You pay 40% or 45% tax and contribute to a personal pension or a relief-at-source workplace scheme.

Only basic-rate relief is added automatically. The extra 20% or 25% must be claimed through Self Assessment or a tax code change, and huge amounts are never claimed. Backdates four years.

Applies if: You (or a parent) are over State Pension age with a modest income, roughly under £220 a week single.

Hundreds of thousands of pensioners qualify and never claim. It also unlocks help with rent, council tax, heating and a free TV licence over 75. Check for yourself or your parents.

Applies if: Your home is in a higher band than identical neighbouring properties.

Up to 400,000 homes in England and Scotland are estimated to be in the wrong band from the rushed 1991 valuation. A successful challenge lowers your bill and refunds every year you overpaid.

Applies if: You live alone, with students, with someone severely mentally impaired, or on a low income.

The single-person discount alone is 25% off. Full-time students, carers and several other groups are "disregarded". Many discounts can be backdated if you should have had them earlier.

Applies if: You repaid in a year you earned under the annual threshold, repaid on the wrong plan, or repaid before the April after graduating.

Bonus months and part-year work often trigger deductions you did not owe. Refunds are claimed free from the Student Loans Company, though the money can instead reduce your balance if you prefer.

Applies if: You pay for childcare for a child under 12, both parents work, and neither earns over £100,000.

The government adds £2 for every £8 you pay into a childcare account, yet hundreds of thousands of eligible families never open one. It works alongside free childcare hours.

Applies if: Anyone on a low or middle income, especially with children, rent to pay, or a disability in the household.

Universal Credit, Child Benefit, Carer's Allowance and council tax support are missed by millions who assume they earn too much. A ten-minute check settles it.