The Government has today announced the four external members of the new Financial Policy Committee (FPC). The FPC, which was first unveiled by Chancellor George Osborne last June, has been established to regulate financial services and markets. The idea behind the FPC follows the Government’s criticism of the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for not doing [...]
Norwich & Peterborough Building Society has been hit with claims of mis-selling of investments between 2006 and 2009. The building society, which is Britain’s tenth largest, is expected to receive letters tomorrow from solicitors acting on behalf of 250 customers, demanding compensation for investment advice they received in the society’s branches about its Keydata products. [...]
The Unite union last week announced plans to ballot its 12,000 cabin crew members on Tuesday, however, it will now be postponed following an offer from British Airways (BA). So far, cabin crews have held 22 days of strikes after being involved in a long-running dispute with the airline over cost-cutting measures, which include a [...]
It emerged in December that Yorkshire Building Society and Chelsea Building Society were in advanced merger talks and the deal is moving a step closer after YBS members voted in favour of the merger. Around 87% of savers and 85% of borrowers voted in favour of the merger, which members of the Chelsea have already [...]
Fears over the future of final salary pension schemes has reared its ugly head again after a report from the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA) revealed that nine out of 10 such schemes are now closed to new members. The ACA, which questioned over 300 companies, found that employers continue to shy away from these [...]
A survey of over 250 employers by consultants Watson Wyatt has revealed that half of Britain’s companies will close final salary pension schemes in the private sector to existing employees between now and 2012. The survey, conducted in July, also found that another 28% will keep their scheme open to existing members but on less [...]
Oil giant BP announced yesterday it is to close its UK final salary pension scheme to new members from April next year, in a bid to cut costs for the company. The scheme currently has more than 60,000 members, with 12,000 staff paying in. In the meantime, banking giant Barclays has announced today that it [...]
Prior to today’s part nationalisation of Royal Bank of Scotland, HBOS and Lloyds TSB, the Intermediary Mortgages Lenders’ Association (IMLA) had reported a slight improvement in its members’ expectations. According to an IMLA poll of 486 intermediaries, mortgage brokers expect volumes to decline by 2.3% for first-time buyers over the next two months. In the [...]
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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