In The News

When the lockdowns were imposed last year and people were told to work from home, the UK’s road network became strangely deserted and insurance premiums fell. In fact, the streets were so empty that insurance companies were able to radically reduce their motor cover premiums because there were far fewer accident claims. However, the CEO … Read more

Standard gas and electricity bills are expected to rise to an average of £1,250 due to a surge in commodity prices to near 13-year highs. Millions of UK homes face a hike of more than £110 per year in their winter energy bill, say industry experts. A standard bill for both gas and electricity is … Read more

The forecast by the Resolution Foundation think-tank raises new concerns about household budgets as the planned cut in universal credit is due to take place later this year. According to the foundation, the Government should prepare for a rise in inflation this year that will squeeze household living standards and force more low-income families into … Read more

Bosses are pleading for the opportunity to trade out of trouble as they fear another month of curbs will hit sales by £3bn. Amid rising expectations that the Prime Minister will delay the ending of Covid-19 restrictions later this month, pub and tourism bosses representing more than 150,000 workers have issued a desperate plea for … Read more

Vulnerable consumers claim to have been ‘bullied and criminalised’ by HMRC after losing their pensions. Victims of pension scams have been pushed to their limits after losing their life savings and then being pursued by HM Revenue and Customs for substantial tax bills. The taxman has been described as implacable and relentless, charging people hundreds … Read more

New rules designed to protect those who remain with the same insurers will hit consumers who shop around for insurance, the City watchdog has warned. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says a decision to ban the so-called loyalty penalty will save customers a total of £4.2bn over the next decade, but will increase costs for … Read more

If you have bought new clothes, filled the car’s fuel tank or treated yourself to a beer recently, you’ll know what economists confirmed on Wednesday. The price of goods and services, also known as inflation, is rising rapidly. The annual rate of inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), more than doubled last … Read more

Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs no longer uses debt collectors, instead its systems take money straight out of your earnings and pension income. The taxman is using special powers to recover unpaid bills directly from wage packets and pensions because the pandemic has made it impossible to deal with rising numbers of tax debtors in … Read more

So-called green energy plans supply a third of British homes but the great majority of tariffs may not be as green as their customers believe. Many energy customers on ‘green’ tariffs are unknowingly paying for power from non-renewable sources. A third of British homes are supplied by green energy plans, leading customers to believe their … Read more

Why it is crucial that the new online safety bill to be presented to parliament next week includes criminal activity such as fraud, scams and con adverts. Scams are sadly a daily hazard of modern life: the email about a puzzling DHL parcel that couldn’t be delivered; the text message from HMRC concerning a Covid-19 … Read more