British holidaymakers spend as much money before they leave the country as they do while they are abroad, research has revealed. The Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) has found that, despite the economic downturn putting a strain on people’s finances, our holiday spending starts before we’ve even left the country. It was found that [...]
More Customers Denied Refunds By Credit Card Companies
Shoppers attempting to claim money back from their credit card company, after receiving faulty goods, are increasingly being denied a refund by their card provider. The Financial Ombudsman Service, the independent watchdog for the finance industry, has said it handles as many as 100 complaints per week from customers who’ve been effectively ignored by their [...]
Where investors can find more than 40 consecutive years of rising income
Income-seeking investors looking for real returns do not have to suffer in silence like savers stuck in bank or building society deposits paying less than the rate of inflation. Those willing to accept some degree of capital risk but who demand long-standing proof that fund managers can deliver rising income should consider five investment trusts [...]
More Parents Take Their Children Out Of School For A Holiday
More and more parents are taking their children on holiday during term-time, despite facing fines designed to curb the practice. With the UK now officially back in recession, many families are feeling the financial squeeze more than ever. While people are making cutbacks in a number of areas, the family holiday is a priority that [...]
Men Spend More With Credit Cards Than Women
Men spend more money on their credit cards than women do, research into our credit card spending habits has revealed. It was found that the average male credit card user will spend 15% more with his plastic than the average female card user will. The research also revealed that men spend more than women on [...]
G20 finance ministers ask Europe to boost bailout fund before more IMF aid
G20 finance ministers on Sunday in Mexico told Eurozone leaders to boost their rescue fund before they can add to the IMF resources destined to help Europe. For his part, European Commission’s vice-president Olli Rehn said in a press conference that the G20 welcomed the euro are agreement on a second Greek bailout deal. “G20 [...]
House prices bounce with 10 per week fetching more than £1m each
House prices increased by 2.5pc in London and by a national average of 1.1pc last month, reversing losses seen over the last year, according to Land Registry, but some market observers continue to warn of ‘trouble to come’. Because Stamp Duty paid by purchasers is the basis for the Land Registry House Price Index, many [...]
Pensions crisis forces thousands more to work ‘till they drop
If you think pensions are boring, how exciting do you think poverty in old age will be? That’s what I used to say to cynics who questioned the value of building a retirement fund. Or, if they’d heard that one before, I would point out that any fool can opt out of saving but it’s [...]
UK economy still has ‘seven more hard years to go’
Four years gone, but seven years still to go. That’s the considered view of the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Ross Walker on the state of household “deleveraging” in the UK, and it seems about right to me. Just before the Lehman’s collapse in 2008, household debt stood at an astonishing 166pc of income, the highest [...]