Money Saving News for December 2008
- Scottish Widows 'to support Heart Foundation' - 16th December, 2008
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Cheap life insurance provider Scottish Widows has announced that throughout this month it will be donating part of the profits from every new life insurance policy sold to the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
Customers who purchase a Protection For Life policy with the insurance provider will be effectively giving £1 to the BHF as part of Lloyds TSB and Scottish Widows two year partnership with the charity... - Homes not 'safe as houses' - 16th December, 2008
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Many UK homes are not as safe as their owners believe them to be, according to research published by cheap insurance provider Legal & General.
The survey conducted by the insurer found that while many UK homes had safety features such as smoke alarms, window locks and heavy duty door locks fitted, many homeowners were not doing enough to maintain these features.
Over one-third of those surveyed said they are putting off home repairs and although 40 per cent of respondents said they had an intruder alarm fitted, under half of them had checked if it worked... - Car insurance fraud 'on the rise' - 16th December, 2008
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Insurers are seeing increased evidence of car insurance underwriting fraud as credit-crunched customers seek to dishonestly shave money off their premiums, new research has revealed.
According to the study, conducted by Norwich Union, the extra costs of dealing with these fraudulent cases are passed on to other customers by insurance companies.
Fraud currently costs the insurance industry more than £1.6 billion a year, a sum which adds between £50 and £60 to every honest driver's premium... - Credit card companies agree to act 'fairly' - 15th December, 2008
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Credit card companies have responded to the government's call to produce a statement of fair principles for the treatment of cash-strapped borrowers.
According to the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), credit card companies have agreed not to increase interest rates for customers who have failed to meet their minimum payments for two months or more... - Halifax launches new bank account - 15th December, 2008
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Halifax has announced the launch of a new current account today, which replaces the traditional interest rates rewards with a fixed monthly payment.
Customers who open one of the new Halifax Reward Accounts will receive a payment of £5 per month regardless of their balance, so long as they deposit at least £1,000 a month in the account... - State pensions set to rise - 15th December, 2008
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State pensions will rise from April next year according to the government, which announced the move as part of a series of measures aimed at easing the financial burden borne by retirees.
The rise of five per cent in the state pension will see pensioners' weekly income rise from £90.70 to £95.25 if they claim full retirement benefits... - Brits still saving, but saving less, says survey - 12th December, 2008
Brits have managed to keep themselves in the habit of saving regularly despite the banking crisis, a new survey has revealed....
- Weak pound 'makes travel to Europe expensive' - 12th December, 2008
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The weakened state of sterling means that travellers are getting much fewer euros for their pounds, which could make travel to Europe more expensive.
According to data compiled by FairFX, a currency exchange service, some travellers buying their currency at regional airports are particularly suffering because of weak exchange rates... - Consumers 'can negotiate credit card interest rates' - 12th December, 2008
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Consumers may be missing out on lower interest rates on balance transfer credit cards because they are unaware that Annual Percentage Rates (APRs) can be negotiable.
According to Fool.co.uk, a financial advice website, 27 million people in the UK could be paying higher interest rates than is necessary because three-quarters of Brits are unaware that it is possible to negotiate lower interest rates... - Personal loans 'are becoming more expensive' - 11th December, 2008
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Cheap loans are all but disappearing from high street banks and building societies, a recently published study has discovered.
According to the latest data released by uSwitch.com, six months ago, 23 per cent of loans on offer in the UK demanded interest payments of under eight per cent.
The price comparison website said that now not a single lender is offering less than eight per cent interest on a loan and the cheapest rate is now 8.2 per cent.
Louise Bond, personal finance manager at uSwitch.com, said: "This has marked the death of the sub-eight per cent best buy loan era which is really bad news for consumers trying to consolidate debts."
She added: "The cuts by the Bank of England are not being felt by people looking to take out a personal loan."
Earlier this month the Bank of England reduced the base rate of interest to two per cent, in an attempt to help cash-strapped customers struggling with expensive loans and mortgages...