February 2011 Archive

Sewerage and water bills 'to rise with inflation'

Water and sewerage bills 'to stay in line with inflation'

Consumers will see their water and sewerage bills rise in line with inflation this year, Ofwat has revealed.

Live webcast: The cost of raising a child

Join Mark Jones and Nifa McLaughlin from parenting website Gurgle.com at 1pm on Feb 24th as they take questions on family finances at a time when the financial pressures on families have never been so great.

Consumers 'need to be convinced energy prices are fair'

Consumers 'should be told how energy prices are calculated'

Energy suppliers in the UK need to convince consumers that their prices are justified, Which? says.

British Gas 2010 profits up by 24%

British Gas has announced profits were up by 24 per cent to £742million for 2010 as a result of high usage in the early months of 2010 and a big increase in customers during the year.

Families shrink as child costs spiral

Families set to shrink as costs of child rearing escalate

UK families are set to become smaller as the cost of raising children increases, according to new research.

Cost of big events 'underestimated by Brits'

Costs of life's milestones underestimated by Brits

New research has shown that Britons underestimate the cost of life's milestones by £124,000.

Long-term sickness absence review launched

An investigation into how the current system for managing long-term sickness absences from work is being launched, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has announced.

Credit cards users 'should set up direct debit'

Consumers have been told they are wasting £150 million per year on unnecessary late credit card payment charges.

Consumer confidence falls in January

Consumer confidence has fallen and is currently sitting only six points above the all-time low, Nationwide's latest Consumer Confidence Index shows.

Radical welfare reforms announced by David Cameron

David Cameron has announced a radical welfare reform bill

The Prime Minister has announced the governments welfare reform bill which will introduce the universal credit as part of a new system designed to make work pay and reduce the benefits dependency culture.

Consumers advised to save as CPI hits 4%

Consumers 'should review spending in light of inflation rise'

Price comparison site moneysupermarket.com has urged consumers to review their spending following the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rising to four per cent.

Amendments to wills 'made to make ends meet'

Millions of people 'sell assets to make ends meet'

Millions of Britons are changing their will in order to make ends meet, a new survey has revealed.

Homebase competition winner!

Congratulations to our latest competition winner

Hazel Rigazio from Liverpool is the lucky winner of £500 of Homebase vouchers for successfully answering that Homebase sell more than 30,000 products. Congratulation Hazel!

January sales boosted by discounts

January retail figures boosted by discounts and pre-VAT rush

Retail sales in January were boosted by discounts and a rush to beat the VAT increase, according to new figures.

Live Webcast: Modern payment systems explained

At 1pm, On February 15th,the 40th anniversary of decimilisation, join Jemma Smith and Sandra Quinn from the Payments Council as they answer your questions on alternatives to cheques, electronic payments and other aspects of modern payment systems.

Insolvencies down 13.6% in 4th quarter

Insolvency down in 4th quarter from same period in 2009

Individual insolvencies across England and Wales totalled 30,729 during the fourth quarter of 2010, according to a report from the Insolvency Service.