In his first budget speech for the new Labour government chancellor Gordon Brown announced the 1999 introduction of individual savings accounts. The idea was to encourage the habit of putting money away, especially those who had never saved before. Twenty years later, there are more types available. We look at non-cash ISAs with Mark Polson, Founder of The Lang Cat financial services consultancy. Money Box reporter Dan Whitworth looks into warnings sent to the Financial Conduct Authority years b...
Mar 16, 2019•25 min
The Chancellor, Philip Hammond, gives an update on the health of the UK economy. What will it mean for your household finances? A panel of experts will analyse what he says and we want to hear your assessment too. Are you cheered or concerned by the state of the nation's finances? And how will it affect the way you spend or save your hard-earned cash? Also, looking ahead to the new tax year, we'll discuss the tax cuts which begin in April and the outlook for our personal finances over the next t...
Mar 13, 2019•29 min
Money Box reporter Dan Whitworth investigates the companies which marketed London Capital & Finance plc ('LCF') mini-bonds to investors, including on comparison websites. LCF entered administration in January, by then 11,000 bondholders had invested £236m of savings. The joint administrator to LCF, Finbarr O'Connell, also provides an update on efforts to determine how the investments of those 11,000 bondholders unravelled and whether they have any hope of getting any of their money back. The...
Mar 09, 2019•25 min
More than 11,000 young people aged 16-18 left local authority care last year. Many feel completely unprepared for the financial decisions they will have to make when they start living independently. What help is available to them and how much financial education are they given to help them navigate the complex world of rent, food bills, benefits and savings? Join Adam Shaw and a panel of guests. Email moneybox@bbc.co.uk or call 03700 100 444 from 1pm to 3.30pm on Wednesday 6 March. Standard geog...
Mar 06, 2019•32 min
Financial Secretary to the Treasury Mel Stride speaks to Paul Lewis about the forthcoming loan charge. The measure, which comes into force in April, aims to stop disguised remuneration schemes which can be used for tax avoidance purposes. People who have been tricked into authorising payments to bank accounts run by fraudsters stand a much better chance of being reimbursed in future. A new code has been published by the Payment Systems Regulator and agreed by the industry. It includes measures t...
Mar 02, 2019•25 min
If you're a small business, how are you affected by clients who pay late or don't pay at all? The Federation of Small Businesses estimates that around 50,000 firms go bust each year because of cash flow problems mainly caused by late payments. This is also a problem that also affects many of the UK's 5 million self-employed who find themselves out of pocket because clients can't or won't pay. So what can you do to recover the money you're owed? And how can we change the culture of late payment? ...
Feb 27, 2019•29 min
On April 6th the loan charge comes into force. It's an anti-tax avoidance measure which will enable HMRC to recover tax from disguised remuneration schemes which involved paying earnings back via a loan. Contractors, some of whom now face bills of hundreds of thousands of pounds, have told Money Box they were advised by their accountants to use these schemes, while others said they were told they would lose contracts without one. HMRC options for people in this situation are to repay the loans, ...
Feb 23, 2019•25 min
Confirmation of payee is a fraud prevention system which would allow banks and customers to check names alongside account and sort code details to ensure that transferred money goes to the right person. The Payment Systems Regulator wanted it to start in July. This week UK Finance, which represents banks, said it needed a delay until "some time next year." Guest Gareth Shaw, Head of Money, Which? Money Box reporter Dan Whitworth takes a forensic look at the accounts of companies linked to London...
Feb 16, 2019•25 min
So where are we with the promised Open Banking revolution? A little over a year ago we were teetering on the edge of radical reform after new rules meant that customers could give permission for their bank to share details of their current account with other banks and regulated companies. The plan was that by studying your spending and income details firms will be able to offer you financial products, give you a credit rating, or suggest ways to save money. What are you experiences? From 1pm on ...
Feb 13, 2019•29 min
From April millions of households on default energy tariffs and who have not switched suppliers will see a rise in their bills after regulator Ofgem raised caps for gas and electricity. The first cap was introduced in January as a measure to ensure customers paid fairer prices. Guest Jo Butlin, Chief Executive of EnergyBridge Consulting and an expert in how the energy industry works in the UK. This week the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee held its final evidence sessio...
Feb 09, 2019•25 min
How would you like to receive a set income from the state without conditions? It's an idea which is gaining world wide attention with pilot schemes in Finland, Canada and Spain to name a few. In Scotland ministers have awarded funding to four local authorities to undertake feasibility studies with a view to holding a pilot. Adam Shaw and a guest panel discuss the theory behind the idea and examine how if it could ever work in practice. How have the trials worked in different countries? Is a univ...
Feb 06, 2019•36 min
A firm which raised more than £200m from 14,000 investors has gone into administration. London Capital & Finance Plc (LCF) issued mini-bonds which promoted returns of 8 percent and higher. The Financial Conduct Authority was already investigating, last December it froze the assets of the firm. It also directed LCF to pull its "promotional material on the basis that the way in which it was marketing bonds was misleading, not fair and unclear." The FCA also expressed concerns that "LCF bonds w...
Feb 02, 2019•25 min
According to the Association of British Insurers, average motor insurance premiums dropped by 1% last year. But the experiences of many Money Box listeners tell a different story. Louise Cooper and panel discuss why the cost of car insurance is so high. How do insurers work your premium out? Is it ever a good idea to stick with your existing provider? And how common is it for young people to pay more for their insurance than the cost of their vehicle? From 1pm Wednesday 30th January you can call...
Jan 30, 2019•32 min
Administrators have been appointed to the Dream Lodge Group leaving people, some of whom invested hundreds of thousands of pounds in the luxury holiday park lodge business, at risk of losing most if not all of their money. In return for their cash they were promised an 8% return on their investment plus a guaranteed buy back of their capital. In a statement to Money Box administrators Deloitte said "The best outcome for everyone would still be a sale of the business and we will formally report o...
Jan 26, 2019•25 min
Private parking firms are issuing penalties to drivers at the rate of one every five seconds. That's a 20% increase compared to last year. Council income from parking penalties has never been higher. So why this increase? Every motorist has a parking ticket story. So what's yours? Email us moneybox@bbc.co.uk or call us from 1300 on 23rd January: 03 700 100 444, geographic charges from landlines and mobiles apply. Presenter: Louise Cooper Producer: Alex Lewis and Linda Walker Editor: John Murphy...
Jan 23, 2019•31 min
New rules are set to change access to pension credit. At the moment the benefit can be claimed to top up income when the older partner in a couple reaches the qualifying state pension age. From May 15th it will switch to when the younger person in the relationship qualifies. Pensioners with younger partners who are already on pension credit or pension-age Housing Benefit will not be affected by the change while their entitlement remains. The announcement was made via a written statement by pensi...
Jan 19, 2019•24 min
A New Year, a new you! Many of us have committed to eat better and get fitter. But just as popular is to save more. We want to know how you have resolved to improve YOUR personal finances. Email us: moneybox@bbc.co.uk or call us from 1300 on 16th January on 03 700 100 444, geographic charges from landlines and mobiles apply. Let us know how you're doing. Presenter: Louise Cooper Producer: Alex Lewis Editor: John Murphy
Jan 16, 2019•35 min
Two banks have taken the unusual step of refunding a fraud victim all her money. With new rules for banks on this issue coming into force soon, is this a sign of things to come and are more victims likely to benefit? We hear from bank fraud consultant, Richard Emery, of 4 Keys international. Economy Energy has become the ninth energy supply company to go bust in the last year. 235,000 customers are now being told to sit tight while Ofgem appoints a new supplier, but has the regulator opened up t...
Jan 12, 2019•24 min
Is it time to turn to the small claims court? It’s only 9 days into the New Year and your relaxed demeanour may have already waned. Especially if faced with a mountain of Christmas presents that never worked and a feeling of resentment about the botched boiler repair. Help is at hand in the form of the small claims court – a low cost way for you to claim what you feel you are owed by an individual or small business, providing it's not more than £10,000. In the past year a little over 2 million c...
Jan 09, 2019•28 min
Have you had an accident in the last 5 years - even if it wasn't your fault? Ticking that box on a car insurance application can be very costly - even if you weren't to blame. Money Box reporter Dan Whitworth has been investigating why. Around 14,000 investors who put their money into a mini-bond sold by London Capital & Finance are in limbo this week after the Financial Conduct Authority froze the firms assets and banned it from advertising or selling the product. What does this mean for pe...
Jan 05, 2019•25 min
In August, Jessica Hurst wrote to the media asking them to investigate how her dad’s debts of just under £12,000 became a bill of just under £73,000. Nigel Hurst killed himself eighteen months ago after learning that bailiffs were to repossess his family home. It was the bailiff who found him. Student, Jessica, was left with a pile of debt recovery letters and bank statements which she hoped would hold the clue to his financial troubles. After an old school friend offered legal advice, Jessica h...
Jan 02, 2019•29 min
More than 2000 steel workers - many of them in the Welsh steel town of Port Talbot - were persuaded to transfer out of their final salary pension scheme. Many now deeply regret their decision, and believe they were mis-advised by"sharks" who descended on the town to take advantage of a period of confusion. Tony Bonsignore hears how the men's lives have been affected, what lessons have been learnt, and whether enough has been done to stop something similar happening again. Presenter: Tony Bonsign...
Dec 29, 2018•25 min
Steven Long, the founder of the collapsed inheritance planning firm, Universal Wealth Preservation, has been jailed for eight months for failing to disclose the whereabouts of his clients' money. It's now emerged that at least twenty-five million pounds has gone missing. Money Box hears from Shivani Varma, the solicitor acting for around 30 claimants who have lost millions of pounds and talks to one client who attended the High Court hearing about what it was like when the prison sentence was ha...
Dec 22, 2018•25 min
More than 45% of UK households keep a pet. It's estimated that we spend almost £4.5 billion a year on them. Yet research suggests we underestimate what it costs to keep them.
Dec 19, 2018•32 min
You may not have heard of some of them; transaction charges, custody charges, collateral management costs, but these hidden pensions costs can have a real effect on your savings over the years. It's been estimated that charges - including a notional 1% which are hidden - could destroy a quarter of the value of a pension over 30 years. Why, when they matter so much, is it so hard to get the full picture and what can you do about it? Share your experience. Call us on 03700 100 444, email moneybox@...
Dec 12, 2018•28 min
In March of this year Money Box listener Nicola's financial adviser made his first attempt to move her investment fund, valued at £40,000, from Aegon to another provider. Nine months later, despite making a formal complaint and taking their case to the Financial Services Ombudsman, the money has yet to arrive. To date Aegon has offered Nicola £100 which it increased this week to £500, as an apology "for the unacceptable delays she has faced in the transfer of her funds." Guest: Nicola's independ...
Dec 08, 2018•26 min
The competition regulator has stepped up its investigation into the £2 billion a year funerals market, after finding prices have risen above inflation for over a decade.
Dec 05, 2018•29 min
Infertility affects one in seven couples. Many people seek medical treatment to help them conceive. Some fertility treatment is available on the NHS, but the majority of couples go privately and pay for it themselves. It can be incredibly expensive, costing tens of thousands of pounds. Money Box Live is looking at the costs involved in fertility treatments. If this has affected you or your loved ones, or you have a question you'd like answered, presenter Louise Cooper and an expert panel want to...
Nov 28, 2018•29 min
Money Box reporter Dan Whitworth investigates complaints from customers of a small energy supplier, Outfox the Market, who suddenly found themselves facing huge increases to their direct debit payments. Outfox the Market emailed Anna and her husband Rob to say their direct debit amounts would be split, meaning they would pay much more during winter and less in summer. The couple are already around £200 in credit on their account so they decided to switch supplier. Outfox the Market say the direc...
Nov 24, 2018•25 min
The way we work is changing. By 2025, only 13% of people believe they will be working in traditional 9-5 employment. For the last 15+ years the number of self-employed workers has been increasing - tripling for the over 65's and doubling for the 16-24's whether it be as a sole trader or on zero hours or as part of the 'gig' economy. And that doesn't account for the rise of people on short term contracts with little or no job security. So in this brave new world of employment, how has the financi...
Nov 21, 2018•32 min
