Martin Lewis warns over buying popular Christmas present he is 'not a fan of'

Martin Lewis has warned over the popular Christmas present to avoid. Mr Lewis, the BBC star, says gift vouchers are a danger item, because companies could go bust, admitting he "is not a fan" because of hidden used-by dates or the threat of companies collapsing.

Mr Lewis said waiting to see if an item gets cheaper will “more often than not be fruitless”. “The idea that Black Friday discounts are a complete washout is not backed up by the data,” he said during his ITV show this week.

“If the item you've been planning to buy has a decent discount on Black Friday, and you need it by Christmas, the chances are you should buy it – waiting to see if it gets cheaper in the pre-Christmas sales will more often than not be fruitless.”

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He added there was no hard and fast rule but given patterns in recent years it is likely the price will not get cheaper before Christmas Day. He explained during the hour-long special: "Years ago discounts ran across November and December.

"Then, as Black Friday became popular in the UK, deals started to concertina around that date. In the past couple of years we've seen that loosen though with the discount date range spreading and I expect to see that pattern continue this year."

On Twitter/X, he wrote: "When’s the cheapest time to buy presents for Christmas?..." He said: "The optimal time to buy Christmas gifts is in January, generally, in the January sales - buy them very early or give somebody an IOU. Then we aren't held hostage by this retail festival we tend to live in.

"We have done a study of 50 items - was it cheaper to buy on Black Friday or Christmas sales? 12 per cent were Christmas sales, so if you're buying before Christmas, then Black Friday's the time you want to be buying. If it's the right item - and it's something you need."