The Norwich and Peterborough Building Society (N&P) is to repay £57 million in compensation to customers who were sold its Keydata product. N&P sold Keydata products from 2005 but it was placed into administration in 2009, with 30,000 UK investors facing the loss of £450 million. The collapse of Keydata represents the largest investment failure [...]
Shares in Rolls-Royce fell again this morning after the cause of the engine failure on last week’s Qantas flight remains unclear. Qantas today said it had found oil leaks in engines made by Rolls-Royce after the Australian airline had to make an emergency landing last Thursday. The plane was forced to turn back to Singapore [...]
Chancellor George Osborne will proceed with a bank levy despite the failure to agree a universal tax at this weekend’s G20 summit. The summit, which was Mr Osborne’s first G20 meeting, saw no mention of a proposal for a bank levy. Speaking after the summit, the Chancellor said: “We’ll introduce a levy regardless of whether [...]
A record fine for JP Morgan Securities has been imposed by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for failing to protect client money over a period that spanned almost seven years. The largest ever fine of £33.32 million ($48.2 million) would have actually been £47.6 million but the firm agreed to co-operate during the investigation, thereby [...]
Smaller stockbrokers are winning more clients as a result of the economic downturn, the Sunday Times reported this week. According to research seen by The Times, larger stockbrokers such as Dresdner Kleinwort and UBS are losing clients to smaller rivals such as Collins Stewart and Cenkos. UBS, for example, has lost more than 20% of [...]
The Government is being accused of failing to enforce its sustainable buildings code. The Energy Saving Trust (EST), which provides free advice to homeowners wanting to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, believes local authorities currently have insufficient funding to ensure the code is followed. The UK is committed to EU directives that aim to achieve energy [...]
Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey has announced that it has failed to secure £500 million from shareholders in a bid to shore up its balance sheet. Following the news today, shares in the company plummeted 46% to 32.25p. The company, which was formed by the merger of Taylor Woodrow and George Wimpey last July, said that if [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
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 [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
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 [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
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 [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
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 [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
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, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
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 [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
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, [...]
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 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
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 [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
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, [...]
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