Prudence was a concept damaged by Gordon Brown but one that will stand you in good stead when buying financial services. Three or four generations ago and we would be back in Victorian times when Charles Dickens character Mr Micawber said “Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen pounds nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual [...]

‘Which?’ has submitted a super-complaint  to the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) asking it to investigate excessive credit and debit card surcharges. A super complaint can be made if any market or feature  is significantly harming the interest of consumers. The consumer champion believes the price you see is what you should pay. Even in [...]

Fuel costs have risen, trains are not cheap and holiday makers are heavily taxed. You need to be savvy when it comes to hotel and travel costs. There are lots of tips and advise around so here are our tips based on personal experience. Hotels and Accommodation Look out for special deals from hoteliers. Travel [...]

Some tips for saving money in the house Set up Calender for Renewing Insurance Often I forget when home insurance is due for renewal. Then my existing company writes to me offering to continue with same deal. But, because I’m busy I accept rather than taking time to look around. However, one of the best [...]

If you are looking for drastic ways to save money in the New Year. Here are some of the top ways. Stop smoking. If you smoke 20. Your habit will be costing close to £2,000 a year. If your post tax income is £15,000 – that’s over 13% of your disposable income on reducing your [...]

There is a fascinating programme on BBC called Spendaholics. Basically, it looks at people who are seriously in debt and examines why and how it can be resolved. Although it is easy to feel smug that we are not spending £10,000 a year on shoes or mobile phones (like some of the participants), it still [...]

Rising food prices have only increased the benefits of saving money on our grocery shopping. In the past few months, shoppers have been deserting ‘up market’ grocery retailers like Marks and Spencers, but demand at ‘cheap’ budget end supermarkets has been booming. As well as choosing the cheapest shops and supermarkets, these are some more [...]

In a climate of rising prices and stagnant incomes many consumers are facing the unwelcome situation of declining disposable incomes. Furthermore, high levels of debt and the prospect of rising unemployment leaves many of us in a difficult situation. These are some tips to save money and increase your disposable income. Look at Your Biggest [...]

Children are expensive. The cost of kids is estimated to be between $125,000 and $25,000. (see: Economics of Raising children) Clearly if you want to make savings in life, it is worth thinking about how much you spend on children – bearing in mind, that money is no guarantee of giving children a better start [...]

There are a bewildering array of financial products on offer. Each one will help to improve our financial situation. But, some will be much more helpful than others. These are some suggestions about how to approach the market for personal finance. Don’t Buy Under Pressure Always be wary of being sold financial products and deals [...]