M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs.

It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25.

The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet after a few months and savers will be informed by post if the rate changes.

Fleur Carruthers, savings and investments manager at M&S Money said: “We hope that keeping Advantage Cash ISA simple will reassure customers that their tax-free money is in safe hands.

“We have handled thousands of ISA transfers from other providers in recent years, so customers can be confident that transferring their other ISAs to us will be simple and straightforward.”

An unlimited amount of withdrawals and top-ups are allowed, but once a saver reaches their annual deposit limit, withdrawals cannot be re-invested in an ISA.

Another new ISA coming onto the market is Lloyds TSB’s Junior Cash ISA which will be available from 13 February.

It will be offered at a tax free flat rate of 3 per cent AER, compared with the average rate currently available with Junior ISAs of 2.63 per cent.

Greg Coughlan, head of savings for Lloyds TSB, said: “The Junior ISA allows parents to set aside money throughout their child’s life in a tax efficient way, building that all important nest egg which could either help fund their university education or help them take that first step on the property ladder.”

“We are delighted to be the first of the major high street banks to announce such an account for customers.”

The Junior ISA locks away savings until the child turns 18 and will then mature into an Adult Cash ISA.

Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected.

Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site.

Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including moneysupermarket.com and comparethemarket.com.

Prior to closing the UK site, Google had already closed its US mortgage comparison site.

This was launched on a trial basis in 2009 and eventually became part of Google Advisor, a site designed to help visitors find financial products.

The UK mortgage comparison service was suspended in September to undergo a revamp but following a review of its products Google has decided to close the site down, although a final decision on its future has not been made.

The company said: “We tested a mortgage comparison product in the UK for a short time during the summer of 2011.

“That test is no longer running and we have not made a decision on our next mortgage comparison step in the UK.”

There was further bad news for Google in the US, with security researchers revealing concerns over Google Wallet, a Near Field Communication (NFC) payment service which turns a mobile phone into a credit card.

Security firm Zvelo revealed that the Google Wallet PIN can be accessed by cyber criminals through an exhaustive numerical search.

Gaining access to the PIN would allow them to make purchases.

Google is working with Zvelo to resolve the issue.

The company is believed to be in talks with UK retailers, distributors and banks over trials of the device in the UK and the service could be available in time for the 2012 Olympics.

It would allow Android phone users to tap their device on a reader in order to pay for goods and services.

The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year.

Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing.

A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent in a year.

Young males are the most heavily penalised, with the average insurance quote for a male driver aged between 17 and 20 totalling £3,730, while a female driver in the same age group would pay £1,959.

With premiums at this high level, the AA’s latest policy is likely to be welcomed, even though it requires the driver’s performance to be monitored.

Under the Drivesafe scheme a black box device is fitted to the policy holder’s car to monitor a range of driving skills and conditions including speed, braking severity, cornering and the types of roads used during certain times of day.

The system relays the data it collects to the insurer and the driver can check their performance online.

They will also be warned by email if they are driving dangerously.

Although the information could be used as evidence in the case of an accident, it will only be revealed if a court order is presented.

Similar black box technology is already being used by the Co-Op and Coverbox and Direct Line is planning to launch a similar system shortly.

Insurance broker Motaquote today revealed a partnership with sat-nav manufacturer TomTom which will allow drivers to check their performance in real time via an online dashboard.

Simon Douglas, director of AA Insurance said: “Most people can improve their driving standard and Drivesafe can help them to do that.

“I believe that in time, systems of this type will become increasingly widely used by drivers of all ages,” he continued.”

ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year.

The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad.

An increase in the number of holidays booked online and of flight-only trips has meant that many holidays are not covered by the ATOL scheme.

From 30 April 2012 “flight-plus” holidays, which are not currently covered by ATOL, will come under the scheme’s protection.

These are holidays comprising a number of elements, including a flight, where the different elements were bought within specified period of time.

The reforms also mean that passengers will be given a certificate when they purchase their holiday, clearly stating whether their trip is protected by ATOL or not.

Further changes could be introduced under the Civil Aviation Bill currently going through Parliament, including bringing holidays sold by airlines, and holidays arranged on an “agent for the consumer” basis under the scheme’s protection.

The fund which covers ATOL’s payouts to holiday makers is running at a deficit and it is hoped that the reforms will strengthen its financial position.

Travel organisation Abta has warned that the reforms could lead to rising prices for holidaymakers.

In related news AA Travel Insurance revealed that nearly one fifth of travellers do not take out insurance for their winter holiday, even though winter sports such as skiing pose considerable risks.

Eighteen per cent of respondents to an AA/Populus study of 2,000 AA members who are taking a winter holiday said they don’t bother to buy travel insurance.

Only 34 per cent of those who do buy insurance make sure that the cover is adequate for their needs.

Alan Purvis, director of AA Travel Insurance, said: “More than a million people go on a snow holiday every winter so potentially, up to 200,000 are uninsured”.

The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed.

With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007.

However, with unemployment in the UK reaching 8.4% in January, its highest level since 1994, the number of repossessions is expected to rise this year.

The number of mortgages with arrears equivalent to 2.5% or more of the mortgage balance fell to 159,400 at the end of last year, a decline of 7.5% compared with the end of the previous year.

The CML’s director general Paul Smee said: “Anyone worried about their finances should talk to their mortgage lender and take advice on their other debts as soon as possible.

“This will give them the best possible chance of staying in their home even if they have a spell of financial difficulty.”

The number of buy-to-let properties being repossessed increased by 25% to 5,900 in 2011, compared with 4,700 in 2010.

Housing minister Grant Shapps has announced a £20m ‘Preventing Repossessions Fund’ which will help people at risk of losing their homes.

Councils will receive £19m in cash to offer interest-free loans of up to £5,000 to homeowners who are unable to meet their mortgage payments.

Meanwhile, the demand for rented properties has soared to record levels according to a new survey by estate agency Countrywide.

Over 275,000 new tenants registered for private rental accommodation with Countrywide in 2011, 24% more than in 2010.

In August the estate agency received the highest number of tenancy enquiries since its records began.

The figures revealed that a growing number of families are entering the private rental market, especially in the North and South East of the UK.

Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank.

This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money.

The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start feeling the pinch just one week after being paid while more than half are struggling by the final week of the month.

Not surprisingly, given this level of concern, the study found that 5 per cent of people check their bank balance at least once a day, while 40 per cent know how much is in their accounts to the nearest £5.

Twenty-two per cent of those surveyed said they check their bank accounts more than three times a week.

Anthony Warrington, director of current accounts at Halifax, said: “With mobile banking apps and internet banking, it’s much easier to stay on top of spending and account activity whilst on the move.

“It’s encouraging to see people take control of their bank balance.”

The TUC recently warned that workers are taking home £60 billion a year less in real terms than they were 30 years ago.

Workers’ incomes have been eroded by poor earnings growth, an increase in personal debt and a widening pay gap with bosses.

Even though workers have become more productive, the ratio of pay between company chiefs and other workers increased from 47:1 in 2000 to 102:1 in 2011.

PricewaterhouseCoopers’ ‘Precious Plastic’ report revealed that UK families are among the most indebted in the world.

Even though the average UK family reduced its debt by £355 last year, it still owes £7,900 in personal loans, overdrafts and credit cards.

Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned.

Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, into an approved pension scheme.

Workers will contribute 5 per cent of their wages and employers will top this up with another 3 percent.

Only workers earning at least £7,475 a year will be included, but this threshold could now be increased in line with the income tax personal allowance which currently stands at £8,105, but could rise to £10,000.

As the majority of low-earners are female, the change would exclude 1.8 million women and 500,000 men from auto-enrolment, although they would still have the option of opting in to a pension scheme if they wished to.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: “Whether this is the best way to help the low-paid is an interesting debate, but it would be disastrous if it had the unintended consequence of excluding a significant proportion of women workers from pensions saving”.

Meanwhile the government has announced plans to launch a consultation into private sector pensions later this year.

With the majority of final salary retirement schemes now closed to new members it wants to look into how workplace pensions can be “reinvigorated”.

The cost of final salary pension schemes has caused companies such as Shell and Unilever to move workers into defined contribution scheme, which provide a much less generous pension.

The consultation will aim to create a new type of pension scheme which will bridge the gap between the two options.

The proposed middle-ground scheme has been called “defined aspiration”.

Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October.

The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs.

It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 will be around £10 million lower, while adjusted pretax profit for the year to 31 March 2012 is expected be in line with market expectations of £127 million.

Homeserve, which calls itself “Britain’s fifth emergency service”, provides insurance cover against domestic emergencies such as burst pipes and boiler breakdowns.

It was unable to deal with the high volume of requests for boiler repairs during last year’s severe winter weather and a subsequent audit of its sales techniques by Deloitte revealed issues with standards and raised concern that it could be mis-selling products.

This led to Homeserve suspending it operations in order to retrain staff and overhaul its marketing techniques, but this is taking longer to complete than expected and costing significantly more than anticipated.

The company has restarted taking inbound calls in all but one region and has re-launched its mail marketing campaign.

Earlier this year Homeserve promoted its group chief financial officer, Martin Bennett, to the new position of group chief operating officer.

His new role gives him responsibility for best practice and risk management.

David Bower, HomeServe’s Financial Director is covering the interim CFO role while a permanent replacement is recruited.

Homeserve, which was created as a joint venture with South Staffordshire Water in 1993, operates in the US, France, Spain and Belgium as well as in the UK.

It has issued more than 10 million policies to 4.5 million customers.

South Staffordshire Water plc demerged from the group in 2004.

There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations.

The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual standstill the performance of the Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks has suffered.

NAB says the review is aimed at repositioning the banks to improve returns but analysts believe that this could signal that they could be offloaded, allowing NAB to focus on expansion in Asia.

In a statement accompanying NAB’s quarterly results, the group’s chief executive Cameron Clyne highlighted the eurozone crisis and the UK government’s austerity measure as factors which would extend the UK’s subdued growth.

“UK GDP declined by 0.2% in the December quarter. These difficult conditions have adversely affected the performance of UK Banking,” he said.

“Given our view that recovery is now a longer term prospect, NAB has commenced a strategic review, and will work with UK management to appropriately reposition its business mix and structure for the changed economic environment and improve returns,” he continued.

David Thorburn, chief executive of Clydesdale Bank, said “We will continue to support our branch network and invest in developing online and telephone banking services for both retail and business customers.

“We will also remain committed to providing support for savers and mortgage customers across the UK.”

There is speculation that NAB’s UK banking division may become a takeover target for NBNK, a newly formed UK bank run by former Northern Rock chief executive Gary Hoffman.

Meanwhile Lloyd’s Banking Group has announced the closure of three offices, with the loss of around 1,000 jobs, as part of its strategic review.

Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years.

The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness.

Women in Debt’s director, Georgina Earle, said: “Females have fought for equality over the last decade or so … We have wanted independence from our spouses and to be able to afford a lifestyle based on this equality.”

However, in their efforts to achieve equality, many women have taken on debts they can’t afford, she warns, and the economic decline in recent years has made the situation worse.

“More females have been able to secure credit based on better jobs [and] higher salaries … However the past few years have seen a huge change and I believe that women will fare the worst,” Ms Earle said.

Labour MP and anti-debt campaigner Stella Creasy recently warned that women are being targeted by payday loan companies.

There has been a rapid increase in the number of payday lenders operating in the UK in recent years as household incomes have been squeezed by the recession.

Payday loan companies offer instant loans of small amounts for a short period, typically around a month.

If the loan is paid off in full at the end of the term there usually isn’t a problem, but rolling over a loan to the following month can quickly cause difficulties because of the extremely high interest rates charged by payday lenders.

Payday loan companies have set up websites targeting women and are advertising on television programmes such as Glee and Friends.

Ms Creasy said women are being taken in by payday lenders.

“Because they are working and have a regular income they are able to pay back at least some of the loan. But if they can’t make a payment they make money for the firm through paying penalties and extensions,” she commented.

At the end of last year accountancy firm RSM Tenon reported that women account for nearly half of all insolvencies, while in the 1980s it was very rare for women to become bankrupt.