Spectator money

Wednesday

Helen Nugent

Brexit, HSBC, energy and pensions

Some gloomy news this morning as toy manufacturers and brewers announce price hikes to their products. The Guardian reports that the price of some toys, including Lego and Peppa Pig merchandise, could increase by up to 15 per cent as a result of the plunging pound. Natasha Crookes, spokeswoman for the British Toy and Hobby Association, said most UK toy makers, who typically design products in Britain but have them manufactured and imported from east Asia, had managed to contain price rises until now. Meanwhile, Heineken and Carlsberg have become the latest beer makers to raise prices, following MolsonCoors – maker of the UK’s most popular beer, Carling – and ABInBev, whose stable of

Tuesday

Tom Bill

Don’t blame Brexit: the vote to leave the EU has had little effect on the housing market

As a former property journalist I understand why the media uses Brexit to explain the performance of the UK housing market. Or even, at a stretch, Donald Trump. House prices are a national obsession, but a Brexit headline gives the story an extra dimension. Coverage of all three subjects is likely to intensify in 2017, as this morning’s Article 50 verdict reminded us, so it seems like an appropriate moment to examine how close the links are between house prices, the UK’s decision to leave the European Union and the new US President. First, let’s look at prime central London (PCL), where you would expect the biggest impact to be

Helen Nugent

Sterling, banks, British Gas and fraud

There’s just one story in the UK this morning: the Supreme Court has ruled that the Government cannot trigger article 50 without an act of parliament. News that parliament must vote on starting the Brexit process led to a slight drop in the pound. At the time of writing, the pound is 0.6 per cent lower against the dollar at $1.246. Against the euro, sterling is 0.3 per cent lower at €1.160. Banks A think tank has urged banks to offer basic bank accounts to people with mental health problems. At present, basic account options are offered to other vulnerable groups. Now the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute say that setting spending

Monday

Andrew Hagger

Overdone it on the overdraft? Help is at hand

After being been paid a week or two early due to Christmas, and then shelling out on festive gifts and nights on the town, for many of us there’s too much month left at the end of the money. It’s at this time of the year that the overdraft facility from your bank can be a real lifesaver; it might cost a few quid for the privilege but at least you can get on with your life without worrying about not being able to pay the bills. However, not everybody relies on their overdraft on an occasional basis or for a little flexibility now and again to tide them over

Helen Nugent

Financial data, housing, business rates and customer service

Some worrying news from consumer group Which? this morning regarding trading of personal and financial data on a ‘huge scale’, sometimes illegally and in breach of guidelines from the Information Commissioner’s Office. The BBC reports that after contacting 14 companies that sell data, undercover Which? researchers were able to access personal information on approximately half a million people over the age of 50, including details about their salary and pensions, sometimes for as little as 4p an item. Information like this can be instrumental in helping scammers who con people out of their pension savings, or persuade them to move money from their bank accounts. Housing The Guardian reports on new research

Friday

Violet Hudson

Trump, Theresa and trade wars

It’s inauguration day, and as the world watches with bated breath to see how President Trump’s first days in office pan out, the dollar is dwindling. Reuters reports that it fell 0.1 pc in the hours before Trump’s speech, which economists hope will shed some light on his economic policies. Hitherto, his pledges have been sketchy and inconsistent; some investors have paused trading to see whether he can adopt a more presidential tone in his speeches today. Anyone without their gaze glued to Washington will have been keeping a close eye on Davos this week, with the World Economic Forum closing today. Amid talks from renowned economic experts Shakira, Princess

Thursday

Laura Whitcombe

Are you due a refund from EE? Here’s how to find out

Britain’s biggest mobile operator EE has been fined £2.7 million for overcharging more than 30,000 customers. Between July 2014 and July 2015, the company added almost £250,000 to the bills of customers who called its 150 helpline while abroad in the European Union. They were incorrectly billed as though they had made a call to the United States and charged a rate of £1.20 a minute instead of 19p. EE was fined more than 10 times the amount it overcharged as punishment for failing to refund affected customers until its regulator, Ofcom, stepped in. The company had previously maintained it was unable to trace individuals who had been mistakenly billed

Helen Nugent

Housing, banking, cash machines and car insurance

Hardly a day goes by without commentary and new research on Britain’s housing market. Now the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has said that the market ‘stuttered’ at the end of last year and has started slowly in 2017. The Guardian reports that sales activity fell in December and estate agents are less optimistic about prospects over the coming months. Rics said: ‘It remains to be seen if this is a temporary setback. The number of house sales in the UK faltered in December, and predictions for expected new sales over the next three months were also pared back.’ Banking jobs ThisisMoney reports on comments from Stuart Gulliver, the head of HSBC,

Wednesday

Julian Marr

If you want some advice…hire a financial adviser

Asked earlier this month for his 2017 financial resolution, the newly knighted former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb replied it could be summarised in four words: ‘get a financial adviser’. No matter how much assistance you can find online these days, most people would still think twice before setting out to sell their own house or draft their own will. Nor would they be inclined to fit their own boiler or do their own dentistry. And yet, for whatever reason, people tend not to think of financial advice in the same way. I say ‘for whatever reason’ but, historically, two elements have tended to loom pretty large: trust and cost.

Helen Nugent

Ofcom, unemployment, pay and national insurance

Britain’s biggest mobile network has been fined £2.7 million for overcharging tens of thousands of customers. The telecoms regulator Ofcom found that EE, which is owned by telecoms giant BT, broke a billing rule on two occasions. According to the BBC, ‘users who called its 150 customer services number while roaming within the EU were incorrectly charged as if they had called the US. That meant customers were charged £1.20 a minute, rather than 19p. As a result, more than 32,145 customers were overcharged a total of £245,000.’ Unemployment Figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) this morning show that unemployment fell by 52,000 to 1.6 million in three months

Tuesday

Rebecca O'Connor

Mortgage rates are fuelling the generational wealth imbalance

At some point a few years ago, after the financial crisis had passed but the economic stats still showed the effects, while wandering down the posh bit of my local high street where all the top-end furniture retailers, Italian delis and estate agents reside, I suddenly got it. I noticed that the ones carrying the White Company, Fenwicks and Russell & Bromley shopping bags were all roughly between 50 and 60. Despite the country apparently being in the doldrums, this well-dressed, insouciant and slightly aimless tribe had money to spend. All the economic indicators were telling us GDP was still pretty flat, unemployment and wages were still struggling, food bank

Helen Nugent

Inflation, pensions, housing and fraud

Inflation has risen more than expected and the headline rate is now at its highest level since July 2014. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the Consumer Price Index (CPI) hit an annual rate of 1.6 per cent in December – up from 1.2 per cent the previous month. Economists had predicted an increase to 1.4 per cent. Weaker sterling since the Brexit vote has affected the cost of many prices. The ONS said that higher food prices and air fares helped to increase the CPI. Ben Brettell, senior economist at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: ‘December’s producer price data contains a strong indicator that higher inflation is coming. Input

Monday

Mike Fotis

When did second-rate financial products become acceptable? We must get better at complaining

When asked recently by a waiter if I was enjoying my pizza, I replied: ‘It’s great, thanks.’ But I was lying. It tasted no better than a £2 supermarket pizza, and I was further put off by a rather persistent fly hovering above the table. While we’re all good at moaning – a reassuringly British sign as we head further down Brexit Road, and Donald Trump becomes the most powerful man in the world – we’re dreadful at doing it publicly or in a way that actually makes a difference. But for the good of the financial services industry (and Newcastle’s Pizza Express), we need to stop putting up with the

Helen Nugent

Private medical insurance, housing, savings and energy costs

As fears over the state of the NHS continue to hit the headlines, new data shows that the number of people buying private medical insurance has increased significantly for the first time since the financial crisis. Figures compiled by LaingBuisson, a healthcare consultancy, and reported in The Guardian, reveal that ‘after falling steeply between 2008 and 2011 and then staying flat, demand for private medical insurance cover in Britain rose by 2.1 per cent in 2015 with just over 4 million people insured’. Housing ThisisMoney reports on Rightmove’s latest index which shows that house prices soared by more than 6 per cent in some parts of the country in 2016.

Friday

Helen Nugent

Money management stressing you out? Don’t let fraudsters take advantage

I’m drowning in a sea of Post-it notes. They are everywhere. Yellow, blue, orange, pink. They dominate my life to the point where, every now and then, I consolidate the lot into one big pile in the hope that will force me to deal with them. Life admin is exhausting. From the endless list of things to do jotted on said Post-it notes to the additional chores recorded in my diary and on my phone, it’s a wonder I have time to earn a living. Added into the mix of ‘must buy cat litter’ and ‘must pay lecky bill’ is the myriad of personal finance-related contracts and accounts. Money management

Helen Nugent

First-time buyers, wages, pensions and car insurance

There’s a glut of data about first-time buyers from the Halifax this morning, including the news that the number of this type of home-buyer has hit a ten-year high. The Halifax First-Time Buyer Review said the number of buyers entering the market hit 335,750 last year, up 7.3 per cent on 2015. But the bank also said that the the average first-time deposit has more than doubled compared with 2007 to reach more than £32,000. And in a sign that the traditional 25-year mortgage term could be falling out of fashion, growing numbers of first-time buyers are opting for deals lasting 30 or 35 years – suggesting that many will still be burdened with

Thursday

Laura Whitcombe

Just 19 days left to file your tax return: here’s what to do

There are just 19 dreary January days left to complete your online self-assessment tax return and – here’s the important bit – pay what you owe. Miss the midnight deadline on Tuesday 31st January and you could face a stiff financial penalty. More than 10 million of us were organised and settled our annual accounts on time last year, but nearly 900,000 let it go down to the wire. HM Revenue & Customs reported that 823,000 taxpayers waited until the 30th and 31st to file their returns. The Revenue’s single busiest day for returns was the 29th January, when 513,271 people submitted their records. Men were the most likely to pay

Helen Nugent

Retail Super Thursday, Lloyds, economy and equity release

More bumper retail results today with M&S reporting an increase in clothing and homeware sales over Christmas for the first time in two years. Surpassing expectations, sales in the division rose by 2.3 per cent. John Lewis also reported results this morning, revealing that Christmas sales increased by 2.7 per cent. Meanwhile, a demand for fresh food helped Tesco over the festive period. According to the BBC, the supermarket giant reported that Christmas like-for-like sales, which strip out the impact of new store openings, grew 0.7 per cent in the UK, and were up by 0.3 per cent across the group as a whole. In addition, Dunelm, the homeware retailer, has reported

Wednesday

Emma Lunn

New Year, New You: cut the cost of getting fit

Ah, January. The month when the nation’s gyms are full of red-faced newbies looking confused on the cross-trainer or baffled by the battle ropes. According to new research by American Express, the most popular New Year’s resolution for 2017 is to achieve a healthier lifestyle, with a third (33 per cent) of Britons planning to exercise more and a further 30 per cent hoping to eat healthier. This commitment to physical wellbeing ranks ahead of saving money which 28 per cent of respondents cited as their New Year resolution. The two rarely go hand in hand – if you splash out on membership of a big fancy gym, losing lbs

Helen Nugent

Supermarkets, tax, housing and income

Supermarkets continue to reap the benefits from our Christmas spending with two major retailers reporting record sales today. Sainsbury’s said it witnessed Christmas sales of more than £1 billion across the group, adding that like-for-like sales increased 0.1 per cent in the 15 weeks to January 7. According to the BBC, this surpassed analyst expectations. It also emerged that Sainsbury’s Bank plans to start selling mortgages by early 2018. Meanwhile, Lidl said it saw record sales over the Christmas period. In a sign that shoppers are visiting budget supermarkets to buy luxury items, Lidl said that lobsters were one of the best-sellers. The German chain said group sales increased 10 per