Money

Where will your pound go further in summer 2013?

Sandra Haurant — 2013-05-23T19:01:00+00:00

Filed under: Holidays

British tourists heading abroad for their holidays will find the price of a local meal feels steeper than last year as the pound has lost value against 80% of global currencies in the past 12 months.
According to foreign exchange specialists Moneycorp, sterling is weaker against 38 of 50 global currencies compared with a year ago, and people travelling to Europe, or further afield to the States and Australia, may find their holiday money does not go as far as they hoped.

"The weak performance of sterling over the past 12 months means our summer pounds aren't going to stretch quite as far this year as they did last year," said Matthijs Boon, Moneycorp's director of travel money.

Moneycorp's Boon said British travellers could get more for their pound in countries where sterling has strengthened against local currencies, such as Argentina, South Africa and Brazil. However, he added: "Cheaper destination costs will need to be weighed up against the higher price of flights to get there, when compared to hopping on a plane over to mainland Europe."

However, there are still some far flung destinations where British holidaymakers' pounds will stretch further this summer compared to 12 months ago:

For those intent on staying in Europe, the picture isn't helped by the cost of petrol. A recent report by the Post Office showed that motorists travelling to mainland Europe will find filling up with fuel a pricey business. The Post Office's Motoring on the Continent report showed that unleaded petrol prices have increased by 9p per litre over the past 12 months in Spain, and by 7p per litre in France, and as sterling remains weak the increases will be felt even more keenly for British travellers.

Moneycorp has the following advice for travellers to help their holiday money go that little bit further:

Don't use a credit card to withdraw money from an ATM abroad, you will pay the bank's exchange rate as well as a foreign exchange fee and an ATM fee. You will also owe interest on your withdrawal immediately.
Use a pre-paid currency card, such as Moneycorp's Explorer card, which you can load with money before you leave. You won't pay a foreign exchange fee when you withdraw cash from an ATM, and you'll also get a better exchange rate.
Avoid withdrawing from ATMs in shops as they are likely to charge a fee.
Take a combination of cash and cards to cover the first few days of your break. You may need cash for taxis or tipping in restaurants.
Order travel money online to get the best exchange rates. It can even be delivered to your home or a bureau de change at the airport you leave from.

Energy bills could overtake mortgage repayments by 2025

lovemoney.com — 2013-05-23T12:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Utilities

Energy company First Utility has issued a chilling warning about the future of energy prices.

Gas and electricity bills are on course to become our biggest household expense.

First Utility found the annual cost of energy could soon exceed what some people pay towards their mortgage each year.

It's warning that should prices keep increasing at the same rate they will exceed average annual mortgage repayments in some parts of the country by 2025.

Could you save money by remortgaging? See the latest rates and get expert advice

How could it happen?
First Utility's analysis of Ofgem data found that the cost of gas and electricity has risen by 8.5% in each of the last five years, leaving us with an average annual dual fuel energy bill of £1,420.

At the current rate, in 12 years' time an energy bill might reach £3,761 - which is £125 more than the typical annual mortgage repayment in Stoke-on-Trent.

By 2029 the soaring cost of energy could mean an annual energy bill reaches £4,808, surpassing average yearly mortgage repayments of £4,776 for homeowners in Liverpool by £32.

And just one year later, in 2030, homeowners in Norwich and Birmingham will be in the same boat; paying £223 and £103 more respectively for energy than their mortgage that year.

Who will be to blame?
First Utility's grim prediction for future price rises assumes average annual mortgage repayments stay the same for the next 30 years and energy bills rise in a uniform manner.

That may seem like a stretch, but the energy company says it's quite a likely scenario if interest rates remain low, our consumption behaviour stays the same and government energy policies don't change.

Everyone else, it seems, will be to blame but the energy companies.

Shifting blame
Back in April First Utility joined the long line of energy companies to hike prices by announcing an 18.6% price rise.

Though the level of hikes varies between companies, the increased cost of wholesale gas and oil was used by all as the reason for driving prices up, as well as the cost of implementing government energy policies.

First Utility believes the cost of updating outdated infrastructure, subsidising energy efficiency measures, implementing renewable energy schemes like wind farms and an unfair energy market that lacks competition will contribute to the potential future price rises it predicts.

But government figures tell a different story.

Opposing figures
While First Utility's data suggests dual fuel energy will cost £2,505 by 2020 - rising by over £1,000 compared to current costs - the government predicts energy bills should only rise by £76 by 2020.

The smaller change is dependent on the take up of government policies like the Green Deal loan scheme.

The Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) published a report earlier this year where it predicted energy bills are likely to continue on an upward trend, with or without policies, as a result of rising wholesale energy and network costs.

The report looked at the impact of government energy and climate change policies and found that increased costs of £268 would be greatly outweighed by the eventual savings of £452 by 2020.

In all the government's energy-saving policies, like better gas boilers, tighter building regulations, the Green Deal loan scheme and smart meters could save householders around £166 a year by 2020.
Limiting the impact

Whoever's to blame one thing we can't deny is that energy bills are rising and one solution is to be more energy efficient.

Ian McCaig, CEO at First Utility said: "To address the inevitability of energy price rises, two things need to happen: We need industry reform to level the playing field and encourage more competition and we need to help consumers reduce their energy usage and get more efficient."

Strangely the boss at First Utility is actually encouraging us to use less energy. He added: "First Utility has an entirely different mindset to the Big Six in that it wants consumers to actually use less energy and helps them find ways to do so, giving people real and tangible ways to use less energy and lower their bills."

First Utility was the first UK energy supplier to offer smart meters to all its customers in 2008. In 2012 it launched my:energy, an online analytics service which provides households and businesses with personalised information regarding their energy usage.

The cheapest energy deals
As well as becoming more energy efficient in your home you can also make sure you are on the most cost effective energy tariff.

Here are the top cheapest energy tariffs around at the moment:

Supplier	Tariff	Average cost	Saving vs typical bill*	Payment method	Notes	Cancellation period
Sainsbury's Energy	Online July 2014	£1,157	£263	Monthly DD	Discounted variable tariff. 4% discount on Clear & Simple tariff rates until 31st July 2014	£30 per fuel until 31 July 2014
SSE	Discounted Energy Bonus October 2014	£1,158	£262	Monthly DD	Discounted variable tariff. Prices are guaranteed to be 11% cheaper until 1st October 2014.	£50 if you switch away before 1st October 2014
ScottishPower	Online Energy Saver 22	£1,180	£240	Monthly DD	Discounted variable tariff. Prices will always remain 6.3% lower than ScottishPower's standard gas and electricity prices until 31st July 2014	£25 per fuel until 31 July 2014.
npower	Energy Online August 2014	£1,182	£238	Monthly DD	Discounted variable tariff. Customers on this tariff are guaranteed at least 2% lower bill than npower's current Standard (off-line) variable prices until 31st August 2014	£30 per fuel until end of discount period 31/8/2014
npower	Online Price Fix August 2014	£1,184	£236	Monthly DD	Fixed until the 31 August 2014	£30 per fuel until end of discount period 31/8/2014
EDF	Blue +Price Promise February 2015	£1,192	£228	Monthly DD	Prices fixed until 28 February 2015	None
First Utility	iSave V15	£1,199	£221	Monthly DD	Discounted variable tariff.	None
ScottishPower	Online Fixed Price Energy October 2014	£1,201	£219	Monthly DD	Fixed until the 30th of September 2014	£25 per fuel before fix end
British Gas	Online Variable May 2014	£1,219	£201	Monthly DD	Discounted variable tariff. 4% discount against Clear & Simple prices until 31st May 2014	£30 per fuel until end of discount period 31/05/2014
E.ON	Energy Discount	£1,222	£198	Monthly DD	Discounted variable tariff. At least 3% cheaper than standard prices for 12 months	There is a cancellation fee of £10 if you switch away before the end of the guarantee period

*Saving calculated against an average bill as decared by OFGEM in winter 2013 (£1,420)

All calculations are for an average usage dual fuel household paying by monthly direct debit. Average usage as defined by OFGEM is 16,500 kWh pa of gas and 3,300 kWh pa of electricity

See if you can save on your gas and electricity bills

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

We're living longer, but when will longevity plateau?

Michelle McGagh — 2013-05-23T11:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Retirement

The government is worried but our ageing population but what will be the cut off for longevity and will all our poor lifestyle choices actually start to reverse the years we have gained on our lives.

Longevity has been increasing steadily since the two World Wars, and certainly since the introduction of the state pension in 1948 when a person who retired at 65 was only expected to live another two years.

This is compared to a man aged 65 who can expect to live to 83 and a woman aged 65 who will live to 85.

But how long can longevity carry on increasing? Granted we've got a few more years to go but it has to stop at some point. We might have more people living to 100 but the real issue is quality of life.

Unfortunately the number of healthy years in retirement isn't keeping pace with increasing longevity. Men and women who retire at age 65 can expect to spend 56% and 57% respectively, of their retirement in good health.

So there are two main questions to answer; what is the cut off point for longevity and how many of those extra years will be of a decent standard where we are free from illness and disability?

I don't believe Dr Aubrey De Grey's prediction that humans will eventually live to 1000-years-old due to medical advancement. However, much medicine has advanced to diagnose illnesses earlier, treat them more effectively and keep us alive for longer, medical advancement cannot stop us from shortening our lives.

There is still a quarter of the UK population who smoke and the number of people who are considered obese has trebled over the past 25 years.

These factors, and others such as alcohol mis-use and increased stress levels, all have a negative impact on longevity but it will be interested to see whether our bad lifestyle choices will become so detrimental that we slow down longevity increases substantially or even reverse the trend altogether.

Our retired lives are becoming shorter by government order in that it is increasing the age at which we receive our state pension, which the majority of people rely on as their main income in old age. All of the poor lifestyle choices that we make mean we are shortening our lives at the other end of retirement and dying earlier.

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Checkout staff bonus pot halved

Press Association — 2013-05-23T10:35:00+00:00

Filed under: Career

Checkout staff at Tesco have seen their annual shares bonus pot halved after the supermarket giant slumped to its first annual profits fall in nearly 20 years.

The retailer said 280,000 UK staff will share a payout worth £56 million, down from £110 million a year earlier and worth a maximum of £1,625 per worker.

About 5,000 top managers and its board have also been denied bonuses and long-term shares awards after the retailer's 2012/13 performance "fell short of where we wanted it to be", its annual report revealed.

Tesco endured a "challenging" year in 52 weeks to the end of March, with bottom line pre-tax profits diving 51.5% to £1.96 billion as it was hit by slowing sales growth and a raft of hefty writedowns.
These included an £804 million charge from its decision to scrap more than 100 major store developments in the UK. It also took a £1.2 billion hit from its failed foray in America and is offloading its loss-making Fresh & Easy business. Tesco is instead focusing on reinvesting profits in its existing UK business and expanding online, part of a £1 billion overhaul.

Chief executive Phil Clarke took home £1.17 million during the year, up marginally on a year earlier, comprising a salary of £1.11 million and £57,000 in benefits. That compares with a £7 million potential package. Finance director Laurie McIlwee saw his total pay fall almost 20% to £917,000, the report showed.

Mr Clarke and Mr McIlwee missed out on long-term shares worth a combined £2.4 million when the awards lapsed because of the missed performance targets. Tesco's top 5,000 bosses earned 16.9% of their bonus potential a year earlier.

Stuart Chambers, chairman of the group's remuneration committee, said: "This demonstrates that our remuneration policy is effective in aligning pay with performance".

The £56 million staff shares award is equivalent to 1.5% of an employee's earnings, and is payable to workers who joined the group before February 25. Shares are held in trust and can be sold after three years.

A spokeswoman said while the staff payout is not tied to specific measures, "it's not been a secret that it's been a challenging year for the business".

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

M&S launches green tomatoes

Sarah Coles — 2013-05-23T09:58:00+00:00

Filed under: Shopping & Deals

Marks and Spencer has started selling green tomatoes. The 'sweet greens' are said to be sweeter than the traditional red tomatoes, and are on sale in some stores to test demand.

So how are they different, and would you buy them?

The tomatoes

The tomatoes were discovered in Israel and have been developed by Andy Roe, a farmer in Lancashire, working with M&S. They will go on sale in some stores at £1 for 100g, and if the trial is popular they will be rolled out across the chain.

Typically buyers associate green tomatoes with being unripe and sour. However, this one has sugar levels of up to 12 (on the Brix scale used to measure the sweetness of fruit and vegetables), while a typical supermarket red tomato is closer to eight or nine.

M&S Tomato Technologist, Jo Oliver, said: "We're really excited to be bringing our customers the first ever sweet green tomato. We've been working closely with our growers to create a stunning green tomato with a perfect balance of acidity and sweetness, that we are sure customers will love."

Odd

Marks and Spencer has a history of selling unusual fruit and vegetables. It has previously trialled black apricots, tiger-striped green and red tomatoes, round carrots, the flower sprout (crossing kale with sprouts) and tiny tangerines.

When announcing the new green tomatoes, it said that customers are getting more adventurous in their shopping habits, and want to go beyond the traditional favourites to try something new. It is also expecting the tomatoes to make it into children's lunchboxes as a novelty.

But what do you think, are green tomatoes a welcome addition to the shelves? Will they create a dinner-time talking point? Or are they an expensive gimmick? Let us know in the comments.

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Royal Mail driver stole £230k of parcels

Sarah Coles — 2013-05-23T09:25:00+00:00

Filed under: Your Rights

A Royal Mail driver has been jailed for stealing parcels worth almost £230,000. Paul Doughty, 57, from Devon Court, Liverpool, kept much of the cash in a range of bank accounts, as well as buying himself a timeshare in the Canary Islands, and a caravan.

And he's not the only Royal Mail employee to have abused his position.

Theft

It's not known exactly how much Doughty stole. Royal Mail paid out £228,935.28 in insurance claims for the stolen post, but it could be more, given that not everyone will have made a claim.

The Daily Mail reported that the pattern of missing recorded delivery parcels alerted Royal Mail to the problem in 2011. Investigations revealed that Doughty may be involved, so a surveillance operation was started.

According to the Warrington Guardian, Simon Clarke, prosecuting, told Warrington Crown Court what they found: "He was stopping his Royal Mail HGV at the side of the motorway and removing mail sacks and putting them into black bin bags before hiding them in bushes at the roadside. When he had finished his duty he would return in a private vehicle to collect the bags and dispose of them through what is thought to be a network of buyers."

Doughty pleaded not guilty, but admitted fraud charges in March. He was jailed for three years and nine months. The Judge said: "'Those who are employed by Royal Mail have a special position and are regarded as people the public have a high degree of trust in." He added: "This was pure, unadulterated greed."

Not the first

However, he is not the first to have abused this trust. In February we reported the case of Jabur Hissan, a 32-year-old postman from Birmingham, who was jailed for eight months for destroying almost 30,000 letters that he should have delivered. He was apparently having personal problems and struggling to keep up with his rounds.

Then there was postman Paul Willicot, a 44 year old from Paignton in Devon, found guilty of hoarding over 30,000 letters that he didn't get round to delivering, and sentenced to community service in November 2011.

And let's not forget 38-year-old Yogeshbhai Patel, a postman from Wigston, Leicester, who stole mail including 2,000 DVDs and 2,250 games along with CDs and other electrical equipment. Patel pocketed £46,686 over two-and-a-half years. He was jailed for two years.

Clearly there are many millions of letters and parcels which are diligently delivered by trustworthy Royal Mail employees. However, if you should be unlucky enough to have post go missing, it's worth checking out this guide we put together on how to make a claim for missing mail.

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Rolling Stones rocker Richards racks up £3k library fine

Adrian Holliday — 2013-05-23T08:30:00+00:00

Filed under: News

Keith Richards may owe a local library £3,000 in fines. The 69-year-old Rolling Stones musician has admitted that he failed to return books he borrowed more than 50 years ago from a Dartford library.

On the basis that the fines are usually 15p a day - plus admin and interest - this comes to £3,000. However, the library has offered him a deal.

Brought to book

Athough Richards is on a Stones world tour, Dartford Library - reportedly haunted - has offered to waive the fine, provided the rock star pays them a visit. The library's negotiating position is compromised given that it has no record of the books Keith Richards originally borrowed.

"If he would like to come and visit and help us spread the word about what a great service this is," Kent's Head of Libraries, Registration and Archives, Cath Anley, told the Mirror, "he would more than compensate us for the books he didn't return."

"Unfortunately," she added, "any of our books missing since the 1960s will have been removed from our records many years ago."

Alternatively, Richards could stick a cheque in the post. Given he's worth around £175m, he's not short.

Library strategies

Some libraries have adopted interesting strategies to retrieve books. San Francisco's Public Library turned an overdue book amnesty program into a creative writing contest in 2009. Borrowers could return books without paying fines, provided they could scribble a good excuse.

Meanwhile in 2011, The New York Public Library waived outstanding fines of more than 140,000 city children barred from borrowing books. The condition? They had to read. Kids which enrolled in a summer reading program could erase $1 from their bill for every 15 minutes of reading they undertook, Reuters reported.

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Pensioners confused into losing £5.5bn benefits

Sarah Coles — 2013-05-23T07:44:00+00:00

Filed under: Retirement

Life is getting tougher for pensioners, as their fixed incomes are stretched thinner than ever by rocketing food and fuel bills. However, at the same time, there's £5.5 billion in benefits waiting to be claimed by pensioners.

So what is this money, and why isn't it being claimed?

Hardship

The seriousness of the financial crisis facing pensioners must not be underestimated. New research from Age UK found that 56% are worried about affording the absolute basics of feeding themselves and paying for heating. A fifth had to cut back on heating this winter, while a fifth are buying cheaper food. It's a growing crisis, which means that 1.7 million pensioners are now living in poverty.

However, at the same time as pensioners struggle, there are billions of pounds which should be lining their pockets, which are lying unclaimed at the Treasury.

What is this money?

The bulk of the money is pension credit - which makes up £2.8 billion. According to Age UK, around 38% of all those who are entitled to pension credit do not claim it - that's around 1.58 million people. The credit will top up your income to £145,40 a week, and the average amount being missed is £1,092 per person per year.

Housing benefit also makes up a chunk of this. Age UK estimates that 390,000 people are missing out, and that the average amount of unclaimed housing benefit is £2,444 per person per year. That comes to a total of £1.03 billion.

And finally there's Council Tax, of which £1.69 billion goes unclaimed every year. Age UK estimates that 46% of those who would be entitled to it don't claim it - which works out as 2.23 million people. The average person is missing out on £728 a year.

Why?

There are several reasons why this money is not claimed. Some people don't know they are entitled to it. Others don't know how to apply. Citizens Advice Chief Executive Gillian Guy said: "A lot of people simply don't know about the help that's out there. Others are put off because the system can seem very daunting. Some think the amount they get will not be worth the trouble. But all too often they are missing out on substantial amounts of extra cash that could make a real difference to their lives."

What can be done?

Age UK has a benefits calculator which works out what you are entitled to, and is a great place to start.

You can also get help in person - not just assessing what you are entitled to, but claiming for it as well. Charities like Age UK and Step Change have teams of experts trained to help you apply for benefits and complete all the paperwork properly. Alternatively you can ask for help at your local Citizen's Advice Bureau.

Meanwhile, some people will not claim benefits through a sense of pride. People are perfectly entitled to take any kind of stand they like. But given that so many of them have paid so much in tax over the years, and taken so little out of the system, surely they deserve some help with basic necessities as they get older.

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Cheapest and most expensive places to buy petrol revealed

lovemoney.com — 2013-05-23T07:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Motoring

A new survey says the average price at the pumps is falling, although there are big differences across the UK.

The price of unleaded petrol has dropped, according to new figures from Santander.
The bank's research found that the average price at the pump has decreased by 6.28p a litre since early March.

However, there are big differences between prices in different parts of the UK. Carlisle is the cheapest place to fill up with unleaded petrol, with an average price of 129.7p a litre. Taunton in Somerset is the most expensive place, with prices averaging 136.9p a litre.

Here are the top five most expensive places to fill up with unleaded petrol.

Town	Price per litre of unleaded petrol	Cost of filling up 60-litre tank (eg Ford Focus)	Cost of filling up 70-litre tank (eg Ford Galaxy)
Taunton	136.9p	£82.14	£95.83
Hereford	136.33p	£81.80	£95.43
Northampton	136.12p	£81.67	£95.28
Stevenage	135.85p	£81.51	£95.10
Milton Keynes	135.5p	£81.30	£94.85

And here are the five cheapest places.

Town	Price per litre of unleaded petrol	Cost of filling up 60-litre tank (eg Ford Focus)	Cost of filling up 70-litre tank (eg Ford Galaxy)
Carlisle	129.7p	£77.82	£90.79
Aberdeen	129.9p	£77.94	£90.93
Bradford	129.9p	£77.94	£90.93
Wigan	130.13p	£78.08	£91.09
Sunderland	130.7p	£78.42	£91.49

To find out where you can buy petrol for less in your area, go to PetrolPrices.com

Earn money on your fuel spending with a cashback credit card

Oil falls, but has it been overpriced?
The Office for National Statistics said that the price of oil fell by 6.8% between March and April, which is one of the key contributors to a fall in annual inflation during April and the price falls above.

There was also relief for motorists in this year's Budget when a planned 3p increase in fuel duty, due to come into effect in September, was scrapped.

However, BP and Shell are among companies currently being investigated over alleged fixing of oil prices.

Looking for cheaper car insurance? Try our comparison tool

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Nissan recalls another 800,000 cars

Sarah Coles — 2013-05-23T06:44:00+00:00

Filed under: Motoring

Nissan has said it will recall 841,000 cars worldwide, because a bolt in the steering wheel hasn't been screwed in properly. Among the cars are 133,869 Nissan Micras made between 2002 and 2006 in Sunderland.

So are you at risk?

The fault

Nissan said in a statement that the fault affects the Nissan Micras made between 2002 and 2006, and a model called the Cube, manufactured in Japan and never sold in the UK.

The car company said: "In some cases, the steering wheel securing nut has gradually become loose. This would soon become apparent to the driver and there is no risk of a sudden failure, but if left unchecked this could eventually lead to the steering column being damaged."

It added that there had been no reported injuries or deaths as a result of the fault.

Are you at risk?

Nissan said that it would be contacting all potentially affected owners, asking them to take their car to a Nissan dealer for a free check to ensure the steering wheel securing bolt is tightened sufficiently. If you are concerned you can contact your dealer who will check whether your car is affected or call customer services on 01923 899 334.

If your car is included in the recall you will need to make an appointment with a dealer, where the car will be fixed free of charge - either by tightening the bolt or by replacing the steering wheel. The fix should take 15 minutes.

Recalls

It's the third recall Nissan has had to implement in eight months. As we reported in April it was one of four car companies that had to issue a massive recall because of a problem with the device that inflates the passenger airbag. Back in September it recalled over 50,000 vehicles over a separate problem with a steering wheel.

And it's not the only car maker with recalls on its hands. In April Honda, Toyota and Mazda were also hit by the faulty airbag inflator and issued recalls. Honda has had to recall cars for four different faults in 2013, while Toyota recalled 2.7 million vehicles in November 2012 over a steering wheel fault and 7.43 million in October over a problem with window switches.

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Should cyclists pay a 'road tax'?

Michelle McGagh — 2013-05-23T06:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Tax

The Beatles' 1966 hit 'Taxman' contained the lyrics 'if you drive a car, I'll tax the street' and although George Harrison was probably only looking for a word that rhymed with 'feet' it seems that many motorists still believe that road, or street, tax really does exist.

The issue of 'road tax' generally comes up in one of two scenarios; when talking about potholes and when talking about cyclist.

The first is a more generic 'I pay road tax, why don't they fix the roads' but as we saw last week the argument around cyclists is much more militant.

Last week motorist Emma Way knocked a cyclist off his bike in Norfolk and then thought the incident so infuriating, or funny (I'm not sure which) that she took to Twitter to make the following comment: "Definitely knocked a cyclist off his bike earlier - I have right of way he doesn't even pay road tax! #bloodycyclists".

I'm sure most people would agree that her attitude is callous but what people will disagree over is the 'road tax' element of her argument. The fact of the matter is there's no such thing as road tax - it was abolished in 1937 following opposition from Winston Churchill. What the little tax disc on the windscreen indicates is that you've paid vehicle excise duty, which is based on emissions - the higher the emissions the higher the charge.

Bicycles don't create emissions so they don't pay the duty.

And there is also confusion over what vehicle excise duty pays for; it doesn't go towards keeping Britain's roads pot-hole free, that's what council tax is for.

If motorists are so concerned about the state of the roads and who has the right to use them, then maybe all road users, whether bicycles, motorbikes, scooters, cars or lorries, should pay into a road fund like they had in the 1930s.

If you want everyone to pay a tax to use the road then we have to introduce a new tax but who wants to pay more tax? I'm a cyclist and motorist and I can tell you right now that I don't want to pay more tax and that it would be completely unenforceable to tax cyclists unless you added a levy on to the purchase of a new bike.

Motorists and cyclists may not rub along without incident but I'm sure one area they can agree on is that we don't need any further transport taxes.

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Nationwide winning the current account war

Hannah Ricci — 2013-05-23T06:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Current Accounts

More and more dissatisfied banking customers are making the switch, according to figures from Nationwide that report 365,000 new current account openings at the building society in the past year.

So what is the draw to Nationwide and could you benefit from switching too?
Current account openings have reached a record high at Nationwide and 123,000 customers switched their main banking relationship to the building society in 2012/2013, an increase of 58% on the previous year.

Chris Rhodes, Nationwide's Executive Director, said: "Dissatisfaction with the big banks is leading people to vote with their feet. We opened new current accounts at a rate of one thousand per day over the last year and many of these were people switching from another provider. These results show that Nationwide really is the main challenger to the big banks."

What's on offer?
Nationwide is challenging the big banks with two new current accounts. First up is FlexDirect - a self-service, non-fee paying account, which pays a market leading 5.0% AER, and FlexPlus - a £10-a-month packaged current account that includes worldwide travel insurance, mobile phone insurance and UK and European breakdown cover. The long-standing FlexAccount remains popular, offering customers free European travel insurance when they use it as their main current account.

Easy to switch
Moving your current might seem daunting but it can be surprisingly quick and straightforward as most banks now have a dedicated switching team. Nationwide offers an Account Transfer Promise to customers that switch to the building society - promising to contact customers' direct debit providers within ten working days, and offering £100 if the process is held up. Text updates keep customers informed of progress and provide reassurance that the process is going smoothly.

Banking on the go
With a growing demand for customers to be able to manager their money on the move, Nationwide launched its mobile banking app November 2012. The app has since been downloaded by over 500,000 members and is being used by many on a daily basis to access and manage their Nationwide accounts.

"Nationwide has great products and a strong reputation for excellent service," adds Rhodes. "We hope this will lead to many more people divorcing their banks and starting a new relationship with Nationwide."

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Co-op rolls out 'talking' ATMs

Press Association — 2013-05-23T05:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Current Accounts

The Co-operative Bank has started a roll-out of "talking" cash machines for blind and partially-sighted people across the UK.

More than 400 ATMs, which give spoken instructions, went live on Thursday and over 2,000 machines should have the facility by the end of 2014, the Co-op said. People can use the machines by plugging a headset into the ATM and the service will be open to Link and Visa card holders from all banks.

The service will eventually be made available in all the Co-op's bank branches and at most ATMs at Co-operative Food stores.

The Co-op declined to give a figure for the cost of the ATM upgrades, saying it was an "ongoing investment".

The Co-op, which has 2,700 ATMs across the country, expected more than 1,000 of them to have the new function by the end of the year. High-contrast screens are also being introduced to help partially-sighted customers.

David Fawell, head of payments at the Co-operative Bank, said: "We are committed to implementing talking and high contrast services on our cash machines.

"We have started the roll-out and by the end of 2013 we'll have 1,000 of our ATMs enabled to 'talk'. Our aim is to extend this out to over 2,000 cash machines which is three-quarters of our entire estate by the end of 2014."

The move is being supported by charity the Royal National Institute of Blind People, which previously launched a Make Money Talk campaign calling for banks to provide ATMs with audio facilities for customers.

NatWest has already committed to making 80% of 4,800 cash machines which are branded with its name or that of its sister bank Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) speech-enabled over the next couple of years.

The Co-op quoted one if its customers, named Mark Ellis, who has campaigned on the issue. Mr Ellis, who is from Colchester, said: "I feel it's compulsory for banks to assist their blind or partially-sighted customers and I hope more will commit to launching the ATMs soon."

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Rural savers 'put more money aside'

Press Association — 2013-05-23T05:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Savings & ISAs

Savers in rural areas have around £1,375 more put away than people in towns and cities, a report has found.

Halifax, which analysed the savings balances held by its 11 million customers, found that those living in the countryside have £9,435 placed aside on average, which is 17% higher than the £8,060 nest egg their urban neighbours typically have.
Savers in rural Waveney in Suffolk and urban Christchurch in Dorset have the highest amounts stashed as a proportion of local earnings across England and Wales, at 53%.

The high cost of city living is taking its toll, with the lowest savings balances as a share of income concentrated in the London areas. Islington and Hackney topped the list of lowest balances as a proportion of earnings, both at 13%.
On a regional level, the highest rural savings balances were found in the South East, which at £10,046 on average were around 37% higher than the lowest urban balances, which were in Wales and averaged £7,351.

The biggest divides between rural and urban savings balances were found in the North West and West Midlands, where countryside savers have balances which are around one quarter higher than people living close by in urban areas in these regions.

People have struggled to put any spare cash aside amid high living costs such as rent and energy bills. Despite a recent easing in inflation, financial information website Moneyfacts reported this week that the number of accounts on the market offering real returns has plummeted from more than 150 a year ago to fewer than 10.

Experts have blamed recent Government efforts to help borrowers for making the situation worse for savers, who were already struggling in the low interest rate environment.

The Funding for Lending scheme, launched last August, gives lenders access to cheap finance and has made them less reliant on attracting savers' deposits.

But Richard Fearon, head of Halifax Savings, said that despite the tough environment is it still important for people to build up a "financial cushion" for emergencies.

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

I raised Google tax issue, says PM

Press Association — 2013-05-23T04:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Tax

David Cameron insists he had raised the question of Google's UK tax arrangements with the company's boss at talks in Downing Street earlier this week.

Labour leader Ed Miliband, addressing Google's own "Big Tent" event near Watford on Wednesday morning, suggested the matter had not been brought up with Google chief executive Eric Schmidt at a gathering of a business advisory panel at Number 10.

Referring to Mr Cameron, Mr Miliband said: "He's not putting concrete proposals forward on transparency, on transfer pricing, on tax havens, on tax avoidance rules. I think he did the wrong thing when he didn't talk to Eric Schmidt about this on Monday."

But, at a press event on Wednesday afternoon to herald a "breakthrough" in EU efforts to crack down on "aggressive" tax avoidance ahead of a G8 meeting on the subject, the Prime Minister said: "I raised the issue very directly as he (Mr Schmidt) is on my business advisory panel, and we discussed the G8 agenda, the tax multinationals are paying and I made sure there were proper contributions from people around the table, including him, on that issue.

"Aside from talking about it, what is much more important is taking action. What putting this at the front of the G8 agenda has achieved is a proper agreement, here in the EU to start with, that all countries should exchange tax information, that all countries should act on beneficial ownership, so we know who owns what.

"I think this is a big step forward."

Answering another question on the Google situation, Mr Cameron explained: "We had a meeting of my business advisory council, three of four items on the agenda. One of the items was my G8 agenda which includes transparency on tax, international action over tax.

"I explained my G8 agenda, how important I think it is, I explained I think it is important to tackle not just tax evasion but aggressive tax avoidance.

"I asked Eric Schmidt to comment on that and he did in the meeting.

"I don't think we're going to solve this if we simply take one company or another company that is registered in Europe, this one in Ireland. We are going to solve this, we are going to have proper concrete action."

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Poor nations 'deprived of billions'

Press Association — 2013-05-23T04:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Tax

Almost half of all money invested in developing countries is channelled through tax havens and deprives the world's poorest countries of tax revenue, according to charity ActionAid.

In total, the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) estimates that money lost to developing countries through tax havens is three times more than they receive in aid each year.

More foreign investments in developing countries go through tax havens than investments in developed countries, according to ActionAid's report, How Tax Havens Plunder the Poor.

Mike Lewis, ActionAid's tax expert who carried out the research, said: "As we have seen with recent cases like Google and Amazon, tax avoidance is a huge issue here in the UK. But evidence shows that poor countries are losing even more from tax avoidance, and are least equipped to protect fragile public revenues.

"Developing countries are being deprived of billions of dollars of tax revenue by wealthy corporations and investors using secretive tax havens.

"Tax havens are one of the main obstacles in the fight against global poverty. Their secrecy and harmful tax regimes leach money out of developing countries that could be used to end hunger and provide hospitals, schools and clean water."

ActionAid reported that one single transaction through UK-linked tax havens would have provided India with 2.2 billion US dollars in tax if it had not taken place offshore, according to the Indian government. The sum is almost enough to provide every Indian primary school child with a subsidised midday meal for an entire year.

In another case, a major mining firm is reported to get 84% of its revenue from Africa but has just four of its 81 subsidiaries registered in African countries, and 47 registered in tax havens.

The report comes shortly before the G8 Summit in June when world leaders, including David Cameron, have an historic opportunity to call time on tax havens. The UK is responsible for one-in-five global tax havens, more than any other country. G8 countries are collectively responsible for 40% of tax havens.

Research by ActionAid shows that 98 of the FTSE 100 companies use tax havens, showing the high involvement of British companies.

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Lower fuel prices push up sales

Press Association — 2013-05-23T03:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Holidays

Lower prices at the pumps have pushed up petrol sales, according to the latest figures.

UK motorists bought 1.51 billion litres of petrol in April - a big rise on the record low of 1.37 billion litres in March, HM Revenue and Customs statistics highlighted by the AA showed.

Last month's total was still down on the 1.68 billion litre figure of April last year when sales were boosted by panic buying over the threat of a tanker strike. Diesel sales, which include lorry and commercial vehicle sales, last month totalled 2.29 billion litres - a rise on the March total of just under 2.11 billion litres.

The AA pointed out that the price of petrol at the pumps had fallen to around 8p a litre in April.
Average petrol prices, which were as high as 140p a litre at the beginning of March, were as low as 133.22p on May 12 but up a fraction to 133.75p at the beginning of this week.

AA/Populus research among 21,510 AA members in mid-April showed high pump prices were forcing large numbers to cut back on car use. The AA added that each of the three 8p to 10p petrol pump surges in the past 12 months caused petrol sales to slump as family budgets snapped under the strain.

It said Treasury fuel duty receipts from petrol averaged £907.5 million a month last year. In February this year, the tax take had fallen to £829 million before falling to £797 million in March.

AA president Edmund King said: "Three pump price surges, three pump sales crashes - the official figures don't lie. The Office of Fair Trading called them 'price shocks' and the failure of petrol sales to rebound as strongly as they did last year suggests that drivers remain stunned even when prices on forecourts go down."

He went on: "Unless the ongoing EU investigation into fuel pricing, called for by the AA two years ago, can uncover systematic manipulation of oil and fuel prices, the drivers' only defence would be a transparent wholesale price.

"However, motoring families are denied any warning of impending surges in pump prices and the ability to brace their budgets against the impact. They respond by cutting back on car use and undermining Treasury fuel duty receipts. The Government's new policy unit needs to look at this quickly."

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

What will happen to inflation and interest rates?

lovemoney.com — 2013-05-23T03:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Savings & ISAs

Following the latest inflation figures, this is what the bank, the markets and the experts think may happen to inflation and interest rates over the coming years.

The annual rate of inflation, as measured by the Office for National Statistics' Consumer Prices Index, fell to 2.4% in April, down from 2.8% in March. But it's still above the Bank of England's target of 2%.

The inflation dilemma
In his final Inflation Report as Governor of the Bank of England, Sir Mervyn King said the bank forecast that inflation would drop to its target of 2% within two years. That's a downward revision of the Bank's February forecast, when it said inflation would only drop to 2.3%.

Sir Mervyn justified the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee's (MPC's) failure to meet its 2% target by saying: "Attempting to return inflation to target too rapidly would result in even slower growth and higher unemployment."

He continued: "But allowing inflation to stay high for too long could cause households and businesses to begin to doubt the MPC's commitment to meeting the inflation target, putting at risk medium-term price stability. Our job is to strike the appropriate balance between these risks."

Interestingly, an average of forecasts compiled by the Treasury finds that they predict inflation will still be above the 2% mark (at 2.2% to be precise) in 2017.

New figures from the Office for National Statistics show annual growth in average regular pay at 0.8% in the three months to March, compared to the current Consumer Prices Index annual inflation rate of 2.4%.

The Centre for Economic and Business Research is forecasting average total pay growth of 1.3% across 2013, so the pay squeeze is set to continue for some time yet.

How to give yourself a pay rise

More QE on the way?
Sir Mervyn refused to rule out more quantitative easing (QE) - the purchase of Government bonds (also known as gilts) designed to pump more money into the economy - in the future. Indeed, he's been actively voting for it at recent MPC meetings.

This could further drive down annuity rates for new retirees, at least in the short term, as annuity incomes are pegged to the price of Government bonds, which are going up due to QE.

Of course, all of these forecasts could be thrown off course by events in the wider world. Shortly before he left his final press conference, Sir Mervyn said: "We are very much dependent on what happens in the rest of the world including what happens in the euro area. If slow growth in the euro area persists and continues, that is going to make it much more difficult for us to get out of the difficulties that we have."

Interest rates
Sir Mervyn also referenced the fact that the money markets are predicting the Bank of England base rate will remain below 1% for the next four years. Those forecasts predict base rate will remain at 0.5% until the second half of 2016, as the chart below shows.

(a) The February 2013 and May 2013 curves are estimated using overnight index swap rates in the fifteen working days to 6th February 2013 and 8th May 2013 respectively

Source: Bank of England and Bloomberg

The independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which provides analysis of the UK's finances to the Government, said the market expectation was that rates would rise more quickly in its March Economic and fiscal outlook. It forecast them rising to 2% by 2017. But this would still mean a record low for six years. Here's the OBR's chart.

Meanwhile, an average of the predictions of independent forecasters - ranging from banks to economic research groups to data companies - compiled by the Treasury has rates rising to 2.50% by 2016.

Sir Mervyn said: "I'm certainly not happy about the prospect that rates will stay low for so long. I would like to get back sooner rather than later to a world of much higher interest rates, more normal levels of interest rates.

"But it won't be the lack of a wish to do that that creates the problem; it's the state of the economy. And once the economy improves then it may be possible to raise rates sooner than the current market expectation."

Fixed interest rates in the future?
His incoming successor, Canadian Mark Carney, has a reputation for announcing a future path for interest rates in advance, based on the belief that there will be broader economic stability.

That could provide those of us looking at taking out a mortgage or thinking about moving home with some firmer ground in making a decision.

For savers already struggling with low interest rates, the longer-term picture at present is not a rosy one. The extension of the Funding for Lending scheme announced in April and the forecasts above only add to the feeling that savings rates will remain low for the foreseeable future.

See the latest mortgage rates and get expert advice

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Pigeon called Bolt fetches record price

Sarah Coles — 2013-05-23T02:58:00+00:00

Filed under: News

A Belgian racing pigeon called Bolt has become a record-breaker. He was sold to a Chinese businessman for £260,000 - becoming the most expensive racing pigeon ever sold.

So why is he so expensive, and is this the most expensive animal ever sold?

Why?

According to the BBC, The pigeon was bred by a well-respected pigeon fancier from Belgium, called Leo Heremans, who sold his entire collection of 530 pigeons at the auction.

The bird was named after Jamaican runner Usain Bolt, and developed a following after performing well in a number of competitive races. He was bought for breeding purposes.

The price was partly a result of the bird's fame, and partly due to the wealth of the buyers at the auction. Nine of the ten most expensive birds were sold to buyers from China and Taiwan.

Nikolaas Gyselbrecht, CEO of the auction house Pipa told The Guardian that the presence of a number of very wealthy buyers, combined with the reputation of Heremans meant "It was pretty clear something special would happen."

So is this the most expensive animal to go under the hammer?

Not even close.

When it comes to racing, it's hard to beat horses for price. According to Guinness World Records, the most expensive horse ever sold at auction was a £9.1 million two-year-old unnamed thoroughbred colt, which had never even raced. It was sold at an auction in Florida in 2006.

In terms of pets, dogs draw incredible prices. A Red Tibetan Mastiff puppy became the world's most expensive dog, after selling for 10 million yuan (£1.08 million) at an auction in Eastern China. The breed is considered a vital status symbol in China, as they are rarely found outside Tibet.

The price of Koi carp reached its zenith in the 1980s, where Japanese companies were booming and buying the status fish for their corporate headquarters. These deals were done privately, and are said to have reached 100 million yen (which at the time was worth around £300,000).

However, the most expensive Koi on record comes well under the price of a pigeon. It was a 30 inch long ginrin showa koi, which won national Japanese koi shows in 1976, 1977, 1979 and 1980. It was sold in 1982 for 17 million yen (around £50,000 at the time).

And if you want a cut-price record-breaker, it seems as though cats are your best bet. The most expensive ever sold was a Californian Spangled Cat, which went for almost £16,000 in January 1987 and was the display cat from the Neiman Marcus Christmas Book of 1986.

More stories

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Updates from Halfords and United Utilities

Adrian Holliday — 2013-05-23T02:56:00+00:00

Filed under: Investing

The FTSE 100 climbed more than 36 points yesterday to reach 6,840.2. Miner Antofagasta saw the steepest push higher, up +3.94%, thanks to rising copper prices while British Sky Broadcasting fell by -2.44%.

But the Dow Jones was down 80 points at 15,307. Overnight, poor Chinese data ravaged the Nikkei 225, plunging more than -6.0%.
First off this morning, Halfords. Retail sales still look tough with sales climbing by just +1% to £871.3m up to the end of March, up 0.3% on a like-for-like basis. Underlying Group earnings after deductions were £78.1m in contrast with £97.2m in 2012. Profit before tax was £71m - a 25% dip.

"The Autocentres performance," says Matt Davies, chief exec, "was satisfactory against a backdrop of a declining market and particular challenges in the fleet sector. The fall in Group profitability however illustrates the pressing need for sustainable revenue growth."

Halfords is pushing for a final dividend of 9.1 pence per share, a cut of 35% on 2012 (14p). It says it plans to spend £100m a year on revamping stores and putting more cash behind its digital infrastructure.

Next, waste and water operator United Utilities. Revenues climb by £71m to £1.636bn up to the end of March thanks to a regulated price increase for 2012/13 of 5.8% nominal (0.6% real price increase plus 5.2% RPI inflation). This was partially offset by reduced volumes and the impact of customers switching to meters, United said.

Underlying operating profit increased by £13m to £607 million. Underlying profit before taxation was up 8%, at £354m. This was a result of higher underlying operating profit, coupled with a lower underlying net finance expense due to lower RPI inflation.

The total dividend per share climbs to 34.3p compared to 32p last year. "We intend to continue with our dividend policy of targeting 2% per annum growth above the rate of RPI inflation through to at least 2015, underpinned by a robust capital structure."

Finally, Dairy Crest Group claims adjusted profit before tax is up +7% to £50.6 million with year-end net debt down -82% to £60m. There's a post year-end £40 million cash contribution to the pension fund, cutting exposure and the proposed final dividend is up +2%.

"The sale of our French spreads business," says boss Mark Allen, "and subsequent restructuring of our balance sheet has strengthened our financial position and leaves us well placed to invest for growth in the UK, either internally or through acquisitions."

Recently Dairy Crest rival Arla took a key Starbucks milk supply contract from Dairy Crest - it's thought Starbucks' annual milk needs are around 12m litres. Starbucks claimed part of the move was because Arla was a co-operative.

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments