Beware new consumer rights do not give you a bruising

The European Consumer Rights Directive strengthens rights for e-consumers and those who buy on their doorstep. But we all need to be careful that we do not end up worse off. The new rights came in on Friday the thirteenth (June 2014) – which may be unlucky for some, but not for Money Fight Club followers,  if you follow our tips. Under the changes, online and doorstep customers now have 14 calendar days to return goods they do not want, or to cancel contracts and get their money back plus the cost for post and packaging. This is double the […]

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Why we’re still not out of the wood on pensions

When Gorgeous George announced our pension freedoms in the Budge, a lot of us thought great – we’ve got enough saved to pay off the rest of the mortgage and have a good holiday. But then reality cuts in – a pension’s for life and I may own by house but I can’t buy a sausage with a brick. Our guest blogger is Henry Tapper, founder of online pension resource, the Pension PlayPen. Henry has worked in pensions all his life and is now a Director of First Actuarial. Would you like to blog for us? To people who’ve done […]

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Smartening up your mortgage credit profile

It’s got even harder to get a mortgage because of changes brought it in under the Mortgage Market Review. So it’s worth making sure your mortgage credit profile is in the best possible shape. Lenders will want to take a close look at your spending and if you haven’t gone for a mortgage for a few years the added level of detail will come as a shock. Making sure bills are paid on time and being registered to vote are two of the basics but there is a lot more you can do, including checking there are no black marks […]

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Why supermarket price wars aren’t all they’re cracked up to be

Tesco has joined Morrrisons in tantalising supermarket shoppers with offers of price cuts. According to The Telegraph: Tesco has cut the cost of a cooked breakfast, with lower prices on eggs, bacon and tomatoes, saving families ‘£96 a year’. Hmmm… The Tesco salvo was in response to a similar promise to cut prices from Morrisons. Of course, it would be cynical to point out that both these generous offers were made on the back on dwindling profits. We’re all for basics such as bread and eggs costing less but we trust supermarkets about as far as you can throw a […]

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New tax year, new errors, so pick up the phone

We are in a new tax year and that means there’s plenty to be done to make sure you do not pay too much tax. Errors can and do occur and nobody seems to have simple tax affairs these days. If you think you’ve paid too much or too little tax you should contact HM Revenue and Customs. You can telephone 0300 200 3300. This is a special tax line. Or you can write to HM Revenue and Customs, PAYE, PO Box 1970, Liverpool L75 1WX. Be very careful when seeking out tax information online. There’s lots of useful information […]

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Watchdog takes on credit card companies

We’re still sizing up the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which has been pretty busy since it took over trying to whip the financial sector into shape. But we like the fact that it’s already managed to upset some of the big players. Way to go FCA. Way to go. Today they announced a competition review into the UK’s £150bn credit card market (although not until the end of the year). FCA chief executive Martin Wheatley says that given 30 million people hold at least one credit card it was right that the regulator explores whether competition in this market was […]

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When you fight – learn a lesson from the super rich

Just picked up the morning paper and almost choked on my coffee. It looks like the tax man could have to pay the super rich Barclay brothers £1.2 billion over a VAT dispute going back… 40 years. It was the time this case has been rumbling on that really grabbed my attention. The brothers Barclay are not short of a bob or two. They own the Telegraph newspaper and the Ritz hotel, among other things. But they obviously have the determination of incensed rottweilers when it comes to protecting their cash. In fact the tax man had coughed up but […]

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Insurance quotes – making a crisis out of a crisis

It was an insurance company that coined the slogan ” We won’t make a drama out of a crisis”, and now the insurance companies seem determined to make the most out of a crisis. Everyone knows that several thousand homes were flooded over Christmas and the New Year period and that in the end it will be us, as household insurance customers, who will end up paying the bill. Just how quick the insurers have got round to making us pay has amazed even us. One money fighter who last week queried why her household insurance had increased from £274 […]

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